Tai Chi, Head Games, and Kayaking

These three things have all gotten jumbled up in my head lately, so bear with me while I try to explain.
It all started with a couple of tough paddles and a post-paddle conversation on the deck of Java Madness. Tim mentioned something about kayaking being, in large part, a head trip. He was making a point about how much there is to learn about kayaking and that he is constantly learning new things about technique. My mind went off on a completely different track with the comment however.
I think that a big part of kayaking is a mind game you play with yourself. How much of learning to roll is about technique and how much is just a matter of convincing yourself that you are OK for a little while under the water? How much of staying upright in trying conditions is about having good balance and a strong brace and how much is a matter of confidence and focus? How much of learning to really edge a boat is a matter of technique and how much is a matter of having the confidence to accept that you may capsize? How much of a successful rescue is about the hours of practice and how much is it about staying calm and projecting that to the swimmer?
A few weeks ago H and I started taking a Tai Chi class through Newton Community Ed.. Two of the major points of Tai Chi are that all movement comes from the core and the idea of focusing on the movement. Since, I'm obsessed with kayaking, I immediately started making correlations between what we were learning in class and what we learn on the water.
The idea that all movement originates from the core is key to kayaking. The core is the drive shaft of the forward stroke. It is also the major player in most boat handling strokes. Plenty of people try, and succeed to a certain extent, to paddle without their core engaged, but they always tire out and have trouble swinging a kayak around. In a forward stroke, the rotation from the core drives the paddle through the water and your arms act as a guide for that force. When stabilizing a kayak, the motion of the hips is all centered around the core. A powerful sweep turn uses the core to pull the boat around the paddle, while the arms are providing a brace. Even a rudder turn comes from the core because it involves some rotation, some balance, and the use of the legs/hips to turn the boat. The core grounds and drives the whole endeavor.
The concept of focused, purposeful motion feeds back into the idea that kayaking is largely about the head games you play with yourself. Your motions become fluid and natural not because you don't need to think about them, but because they are purposeful. When you make a movement in Tai Chi you are supposed to focus on the movement and directing the energy of your body. The same is true of a paddle stroke. You focus on directing the paddle through the water and driving the boat forward. When you turn, you focus on directing the boat towards its destination. The focus on movement also forces you to focus on staying in the moment. You cannot worry about what might happen, or what just happened. Paddling becomes about what is happening. You feel the boat as it reacts and only look a few waves out. The voices in your head quite as your concentration becomes focused on the moment and the movement.
Paddling = Zen?

Feeding the Need

Many of my non-kayaking friends think it is strange that I get a little tweaked out, sort of like the shakes, if I go too long without paddling--even the ones who smoke. So, after nearly 10 days off the water, I was starting to feel pretty off-kilter.
Fortunately, Tim M. is on vacation and itching to paddle. I took the day off and we headed down to Westport to feed the need. While the rest of NE sweltered in the heat, it was a nearly perfect day on the water. The temperature was in the low 80s, the humidity wasn't too oppressive, and there was a nice breeze.
For the most part we just poked around in the river and practiced sculling and rolling. We did head out around the break water to look for some waves and rocks to play in.
I was without my trusty stick--it was undergoing a refinish job. In its place I started off using a Tooksook, or as Tim calls it "the Toxic Paddle." In theory, the Tooksook is a blend of a traditional paddled and a Euro paddle. Sadly, like most hybrids, it has all the weaknesses of both and none of their strengths.
It didn't take me long before I decided to switch to my normal back-up paddle which is a Kinetic Touring. In my opinion, the KT is one of the best paddle shapes made. It is a big scoopy blade, but it does not abuse your body. Still, it is 100% more forceful than my stick. For the first half hour I felt every stroke and nearly toppled myself trying to reacclimated to the feather. It wasn't long before I was back up to speed. Most skills transfer smoothly between a Euro paddle and a stick. The only stroke that is really different is the forward stroke. Rolling, for example, is pretty much the same. The biggest difference is in the force generated by the blade in the water.
Just on the edge of the break water we found a great tidal rip with some little standing waves to play in. We also did some practice sculling and rolling in the current along the beach. The effect of moving water on how a paddle reacts is surprising. I tried a roll on the side of the boat facing the current and the water kept driving my paddle into the water. I got zilch for lift. I swallowed a bunch of water before trying it on the other side of the kayak, but Tim tells me that it is much easier because the current would add lift to the blade.
Of course, paddling was followed up by coffee. The venue of choice for that side of the Bay is Coastal Roasters. Despite the drive to get there, it is worth every minute out of my way!!
Now I can go back to work and feel like a human again...

Poking Around Plymouth

H and I spent the weekend camping with friends at Myles Standish State Park in Carver, MA. The park is huge and offers several lakes, ponds really, to swim in, miles of trails for hikers and bikers, and an array of family friendly programs. They also have some excellent camping sites for short money. Our group had five sites for three nights and it cost about $100. There were also bathrooms and showers.
Since we were nearby and this group of friends are creatures of leisure, H and I decided to check out Plymouth in our kayaks. The guide book, Sea Kayaking Coastal Massachusetts from the AMC, provided good directions to a put in and a detailed description of the harbor. We stuck to the trip plan outlined in the book for a pleasant 14 mile paddle.
We put in at Stephen's Field just outside Plymouth center. It has plenty of parking and bathrooms. It is also has a local baseball field and tennis courts. The boat ramp is a break in the bushes that leads down to the water. It is mostly gravel at high tide and mostly muck at low tide. The haul at low tide is not too long and the muck is not deep enough to claim any footwear.

From Stephen's Field, we headed north towards Plymouth. This section of the harbor is protected from the rest of the bay by a seawall. It houses the Plymouth Rock and the Mayflower II. The Rock seemed much smaller than my childhood memories. From the ocean you can see the back of it through the grates. Despite the nice weather, the Rock had very few visitors.

The Mayflower II also seemed smaller than I remembered. It was pretty cool looking though. Unlike the Constitution in Boston, the Mayflower II is accessible by water. No armed guards pointed rifles at us when we paddled up to the hull and peered in the windows. There were also two large dinghies at the Mayflower II that are replicas of the boat the Pilgrim's used to land on Plymouth's shore.
While checking out the Mayflower II we were treated to a mock pirate battle. One of the tour companies has a little pirate ship out in the harbor. When the tour boat gets close, the pirates attack the ship with water guns. The tour passengers are also armed. It was quite a site.
From the Mayflower II we headed out of the harbor under a bridge that breaks the seawall near the shore. Once out of the seawall we turned for Plymouth Beach which is across the harbor. Plymouth Beach is a tiny sliver of sand that forms the southern rim of Plymouth harbor. It is a popular spot for migrating birds, beach goers with boats, and kayakers. We saw several people in kayaks poking out along the beach.
From the tip of Plymouth Beach, we crossed over to Duxbury Pier Light, affectionately known as Bug Light, and then to Saquish Head Point. This was the trickiest part of the paddle because it involved crossing a fairly wide and busy channel.
From Saquish Head we meandered up Saquish Beach along towards Gurnet Light.
Saquish Beach was busy and full of SUVs. The only access to the beach and the small cottages that line it is by SUV. While it may sound horrible, it wasn't bad at all. The SUVs drove slowly and nobody was doing donuts on the beach. For the most part people were just lounging about in the sun.

The water along Saquish was clear enough to see the bottom. The bottom was lined with seaweed covered rocks and the odd fish. While eating lunch, H and I followed a brave hermit crab around under the water trying to get a picture of him. I'm not sure who was crazier, him for not just bolting or us for persisting...
At the far end of Saquish Beach sits the Gurnet Light. This is the oldest wooden lighthouse in America. From the water it is hard to get a good view of the light because it sits high on highly eroded cliffs. From a distance, however, you can get a glimpse of its bright white sides.

The water at the point was a wonderland. The water was crystal clear and we spent time mesmerized by the landscape of seaweed covered boulders and lobster traps. There weren't any fish in view, but that was OK.
We made our way back to Plymouth Beach by retracing our steps along Saquish Beach. While crossing the channel, H saw a skate along one of the shoals. We even got a chance to check out Bug Light because it was protected by a shoal that kept most of the boat traffic out of our way.
Back in the harbor, we followed the channel along Plymouth Beach to make our way back to Stephen's Field. It was low tide and as the guide book made clear, the harbor was mostly empty. The channel, which is clearly marked, has plenty of water and most of the paddle back was easy. Once we got to the point where we needed to break away from the channel the water got very shallow, but we never had to walk the kayaks.
Plymouth offered us an easy paddle with a bit of open water exposure, some history, and some gorgeous water gazing.

Slugging it out with the Southwesterlies

After Saturday's paddle, I was ready to open up the engines and do some long-haul paddling. The trip from Pier 5 to Galilee is seven miles of straight-forward ocean paddling. It parallels the coast so there is plenty to see and plenty of spots to get off the water if needed. It also takes you outside of the Bay so you get to experience open-ocean swells.
The forecast before H and I hit the road was for possible late day thunderstorms and some wind, but nothing too drastic. As I was heading into Narragansett along 1A, I realized that the winds may be trouble. The leaves in the trees along the road were dancing to a crazed techno beat.
At Pier 5, Tim, Kevin, Sean, and John were hanging out with their gear still stowed on the cars. Because of the winds, Tim was considering dropping the Galilee run and moving the paddle over to the Bay Campus. Things were blowing pretty hard out in the Bay. At the end of Pier 5, the wind was blocked by a head land, so it didn't feel too bad. One look at the water to the south, however, clearly warned us against testing the group's luck. There were bands of wind whipped white caps waiting for us. One could only imagine what the entrance to the Harbor of Refuge looked like in those conditions.
The trip was advertised as a level 4, but conditions were looking a lot more like a tough level 5. Seven miles of slugging out against 25-30knt winds is not exactly recreational, so we changed venues and headed for the Bay Campus.
The final kayak count that launched from the Bay Campus was 9. Bob B., Becca, and Carole had arrived at Pier 5 while we were discussing the conditions.
The original plan was to head south from Bay Campus and take advantage of the cliffs near Bonnet Shores to provide some protection from the wind. Depending on conditions, we planned to head down as far as Whale Rock. Then sail home on the SW winds.
The group made it to the end of the cliffs before turning around. The wind made forward progress slow and the waters out by Whale Rock looked fierce. The swells were large and close together. They were conditions that could either make for an exciting challenge or for a serious mess. In the interest of fun, we chose to avoid a mess.
The modified plan was to paddle up to the Jamestown Bridge. There is more protection from the wind further north.
The paddle up to the bridge was a breeze. The houses along the coast are beautiful and there are some nice spots to dodge rocks. We lunched just before the bridge. H offered up the remains of the "chocolate clam cakes" from Saturday's paddle. The healthy and tasty chocolate cookies didn't look too appetizing after spending two days in the sun, but they still tasted yummy. Lori Bomes' cookies took the spotlight however. Lori's cookies are divine!!
The return trip was a slugfest. There may be some protection from the wind north of the Bay Campus, but the wind still fought us the whole way back. We definitely earned the cookies.
Paddling into a constant headwind is a good test of your forward stroke. Even the slightest inefficiency becomes apparent. For a physically powerful paddler it is possible to overcome this by sheer strength. For the rest of us, it is all about technique. While seemingly pretty easy to master, the forward stroke is really a complex mixture of small things. There is rotation, paddle angle, stroke length, paddle entry and exit placement, and driving with the lower body.
To further complicate matters there is the subtle interaction between your equipment and your technique. How long your paddle is affects how effective your stroke is and how much you can rotate. Having a rudder can make it impossible to really drive your kayak with your lower body. Your kayak's proclivity for weather cocking determines how much of your stroke goes into forward motion and how much goes into correcting course.
On the way back, H, who usually has no problem keeping up with the group, kept falling behind and was getting frustrated. I looked at her stroke. She was rotating and appeared to be doing everything else right. I am far from a technical expert on the forward stroke and I use a traditional paddle, so I knew that I was probably missing something subtle. The forward stroke with a traditional paddle, while it looks the same from the sidelines, is a completely different beast. The blade angle is backwards, the rotation is completely different, and the stroke is longer.
I asked Carole to see if she could offer any good advice. She suggested several bits of info. Of course, she talked about driving with the lower body. This was not much help since the rudder in H's kayak doesn't provide solid foot-pegs to push against. The other key bit of advice was that you shouldn't begin to rotate until the paddle is in the water. It makes perfect sense, but is rarely mentioned.
Once back at the Bay Campus, we did some rescue practice. The Bay Campus offers a great place for rescue practice because you can get some nice swells to simulate real conditions, but the beach is close enough to offer a safety valve.
H rescued me in a picture perfect T-rescue. After a bit of difficulty grabbing the bobbing nose of my kayak, she emptied it. She then slid it along side of hers and held it steady while I heaved myself in. This is not as easy as it sounds given that I outweigh her by a few pounds and there were some swells.
John demonstrated why it is a good idea to carry a spare paddle on your kayak. He tried to do a brace and one blade fell off of his paddle. There was a hair line fracture on the paddle that just gave way. He paddled back into shore to get the spare paddle out of his van. Once back out on the water, he was eager to practice rescues and rolls.
Tim, after he wound up in the water while trying to switch kayaks with Kevin, offered some sage advice about rescues in rough water. He suggested that if the rescuer is having a hard time getting hold of the front of the swimmer's kayak, they should paddle along side of it and grab the whole hull. Once the rescuer has the hull, they can maneuver it into position to do a T-rescue, or simply just flip it over. If the water is really rough, it may not be worth the time to empty the swimmer's kayak. It can always be pumped out once they are in the cockpit. It boils down to this: While practicing perfect rescue technique is probably a good thing, the reality is that rescues are never perfect. A good rescue is one where everybody ends up in a kayak with a paddle.
Hopefully, next week the winds will die down....

Stretched at Sakonnet

H and I showed up at Sakonnet Pt. looking forward to a nice warm up paddle before Sunday's Pier 5 to Galilee paddle. Earlier in the week Tim M. had suggested a bit of playing around in the rocks and perhaps a quick trip over to Brigg's Marsh. Nothing too crazy was planned.
We showed up close to launch time-around 8:40-to find Tim already in the water practicing. He'd showed up early and was eager to get the show on the road.
We got our gear together as a few others showed up. There was Rod, who has a sweet looking Pygmy kayak that he built, John, Eli, a new guy from CT, and Jonathan. Carole and Bob H. were also scheduled to arrive.
Since Tim was itching to go and Carole and Bob H. were late, Tim, Eli, John, H, and I headed out. Jonathan and Rod waited for the stragglers.
As we were heading out of the harbor, H pointed out some white caps off in the distance and asked if it was anything to worry about. Since the wind didn't feel too strong and it looked like there was a boat nearby, I said "nah, it's just boat wake." Once around the breakwater, I realized that I might've been very wrong. The conditions in the river were challenging. We were paddling into a 20knt SW wind and an incoming tide. The combination of wind and tide not only made making headway tricky, it also created big rollers that occasionally crested in a frothy white brew.
The level of the trip went from three to five quickly.
This was the first time H had been out in these conditions in a while and was understandably concerned. It is funny how fear worked in this situation. She wasn't worried about capsizing on the way out of the river, she was anticipating the return journey. This made paddling in the conditions as they were that much more difficult because she wasn't focused on the moment. I can remember many times when this has happened to me also, and it is always a struggle to force myself back into the moment.
She did a great job of working through it. In short order, we were tucked behind the rocks off the point. With the rocks acting as break for the wind and waves, the water was much calmer.
The boys wanted to test their luck out amongst the rocks and the waves, so H decided to hang out on the beach. Rod also chose the wise path and explored the protected areas near the beach before joining H.
On the outside of the rocks, conditions were interesting. The wind driven swells crashed off the rocks creating a stew of refracting water. We bobbed along near the rocks, kept our hips looses, kept our braces ready, and avoided bashing our heads on any hard surfaces. The rugged conditions were a good challenge and provided an exciting opportunity to test my skills. It looked like everybody else also enjoyed themselves.
While keeping my head, which really should have been in a helmet, off the rocks, I also worried about the safety of the other paddlers and their ability to help out in a crisis. One of the challenging parts, for me at least, of paddling with a group is the fact that you are sometimes paddling with people you don't really know. Because I'm a bit of a closet control freak, this makes me feel like I need to be extra vigilant. I always look out for the other members of the group, but with people you always paddle with it seems to be a lot easier. I understand how they think and I know their skill levels. When the conditions get challenging, that knowledge is comforting.
Back at the put-in, however, there was less joy. Bob H. suffered a back spasm while launching and was completely incapacitated.
Meanwhile, us happy paddlers collected the beach crowd and poked down the coast of Little Compton for a bit. Nobody was really ready to go back, but nobody really wanted to push things either. The wind was picking up and the current in the river was going to start to run against the wind around 1pm. The combination would make getting back a potentially dangerous slog. We decided to stick close to the shore and make sure we were back at the river by 12:30. That way we would be in the river at slack tide and the conditions would be at their best.
While paddling up the coast most of the group stayed far enough off shore so that they were out of the rocks. The SW wind was working for us, so nobody really minded it too much. Eli, on the other hand, decided that the rocks would be fun and darted in without checking to see if anybody was watching out for him. Naturally, somebody was... I enjoyed playing in the rocks, but not the knowledge that I was essentially on my own if I got into trouble.
On the way back, the wind forced the group to a slow crawl. There is nothing like a strong, sustained headwind to wear a paddler out.
Once tucked back into the rocks off of Sakonnet Pt., we decided not to stop for lunch. The time was ripe for getting into the river and back to the protection of the harbor. The wind was as quiet as it was going to get, the rollers were looking smaller, and the tide was slack.
We dashed into the river pushed along by following seas. It was the easiest part of the whole paddle. The biggest challenge was keeping the kayak from being twisted around. Since the seas were pretty reasonable, that was a piece of cake.
On the beach at the put-in, Bob H. was in bad shape but keeping a stiff upper lip. We rallied around him and made sure he got the proper care. Jonathan contacted a massage therapist who was able to see Bob. We all helped get him in Carole's car. Even Rod and John, who don't know Bob from a hole in the wall, stayed to make sure he was going to be OK. It is refreshing to see people band together to help out a person in need. The world could use more of that spirit.