Canoecopia 2013: It’s not a small world after all
We often talk about paddlesports being a small world. But when most of the major manufacturers of boats, paddles, clothing and gear, along with clubs and organizations, outfitters and publications, come together under one roof in March, it feels pretty big.…
read moreTSA permits billiard cues aboard. Why not paddles?
The Transportation Security Administration announced yesterday that beginning on April 25, several items will be removed from the Prohibited Items List. In addition to small knives (with many size and type restrictions), passengers will be permitted to bring aboard billiard cues, hockey and lacrosse sticks, ski poles, and up to two golf clubs.…
read moreFive questions for: Filmmaker Justine Curgenven
Justine Curgenven in her North Shore Atlantic LV.
Adventure filmmaker Justine Curgenven launched the genre of sea kayaking films in 2004 with her This is the Sea series, which features profiles of top paddlers, footage of expeditions in a wide range of remarkable places, and lots of paddling excitement.…
read more10,000 hours of deliberate practice may just make perfect
During a discussion of why our shoelaces never stay tied, our son Jeremy informed us that we’ve been tying them incorrectly all these years. Turns out we tie granny knots, not square knots.…
read moreFive questions for: Surf fanatic Keith Wikle
We caught up with Keith Wikle, friend and fellow paddlesport blogger, as he was about to begin a three-day Essentials of Surf Kayaking Instructor Certification Workshop in Jacksonville, Florida with Instructor Trainer Nigel Law, co-owner of Savanna Canoe and Kayak.…
read moreBody, boat, birthday: having fun with kayak rescues
51 Rescues at a local pool.
Today is Alec’s birthday. We began the celebration by doing 51 rescues — one for each year — in a nearby pool: 20 T rescues, 10 reenter and rolls, 10 scrambles, 10 hand of Gods, and an all in.…
read moreThe Hippocratic Oath* of coaching: First, do no harm
Perhaps anyone with the power to help also has the potential to harm. Certainly that’s true in paddlesports, where harm can take many forms, from diminishing skill acquisition to squashing enthusiasm to causing physical injury.…
read moreFive questions for: Meterorologist Bryan Tilley
This year, we noticed a change to the NOAA marine forecasts. Instead of the familiar “waves 4 to 7 feet,” they routinely added “occasionally to 10 feet.” We wondered when this change was made and why.… read more
Who invented that? The pogie’s history revealed.
Do you ever love a piece of kit so much you just have to know whom to thank? We feel that way about our pogies–the only thing that keeps our hands warm when it’s too cold for gloves.…
read morePaddle, interrupted. Incidents are best avoided.
Ominous skies over a deceptively calm lake.Risk assessment is an everyday practice. It’s not reserved for dire situations and dramatic scenarios; it’s the quotidian act of taking relevant safety factors into consideration and adjusting your plan accordingly.…
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