Today is different in many ways. Tony, Debbie, Linda and I signed up for a class to try out kayaks on Lake Natoma. This area is close to Johnny Cash’s Folsom Prison. The morning temperature is in the 60s with a shining sun. The lake is calm with few ripples. One couldn’t have asked for a better picturesque setting on this glorious Saturday. Our kayak class is sponsored by REI and designed to give an introduction to one and two person kayaks. We kibitzed and laughed about Jaws being in the water with us. Time on the water is great. While being on the water, Tony came next to me in his kayak and said "I’ll race you". Okay, that’s all it took to get my competitive juices flowing. From then on, I brought up the idea of getting kayaks to race him. We found out, that length is an important variable when it comes to speed. So we have to get similar kayaks in order to have a fair race.
Being on the water and being comfortable in the water is a great experience. I remember taking a rowing class and the difficulty in keeping the shell up right and the technicality of rowing. Being in a one-man shell is very difficult, very technical, and requires much practice. The kayak is more stable and the stroke easier to learn. That’s not to say that one doesn’t have to practice in order to get good and especially to race.
Talking about kayaking, being on the water brought back memories of the movie Captains Courageous that I remember seeing when I was young. Other memories such as Herman Melville’s Capt. Ahab in Moby Dick and Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea come to mind as well.
On the way home, we stopped first at REI and looked at an inflatable kayak and was not impressed. The two employees inflated the kayak for us and told us that was their first time. Eventually, the kayak was inflated but in a cumbersome way. At that point it seemed like the inflatable kayak is a real hassle.
Our last stop is at the local kayak shop at the top of the canyon. The owner a man named Guy is there and gave us much information about the kayaks that he had both new and used. We talked to him about the hassle at REI and he proceeded to demonstrate the ease in the assembly of the inflatable kayak. He is fast and efficient. It’s clear he knows what he is doing. In fact he said" take it out and return it tomorrow". So I’m thinking this might be a great way to cross train and a new sport to conquer. So, why not take it home and try it out at Rec Lake. That’s exactly what we did for the next few hours. This is fun. At the lake, I told Linda" let’s buy it" .This could be the beginning of a new chapter. By the way, I didn’t miss not running today.
Being on the water and being comfortable in the water is a great experience. I remember taking a rowing class and the difficulty in keeping the shell up right and the technicality of rowing. Being in a one-man shell is very difficult, very technical, and requires much practice. The kayak is more stable and the stroke easier to learn. That’s not to say that one doesn’t have to practice in order to get good and especially to race.
Talking about kayaking, being on the water brought back memories of the movie Captains Courageous that I remember seeing when I was young. Other memories such as Herman Melville’s Capt. Ahab in Moby Dick and Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea come to mind as well.
On the way home, we stopped first at REI and looked at an inflatable kayak and was not impressed. The two employees inflated the kayak for us and told us that was their first time. Eventually, the kayak was inflated but in a cumbersome way. At that point it seemed like the inflatable kayak is a real hassle.
Our last stop is at the local kayak shop at the top of the canyon. The owner a man named Guy is there and gave us much information about the kayaks that he had both new and used. We talked to him about the hassle at REI and he proceeded to demonstrate the ease in the assembly of the inflatable kayak. He is fast and efficient. It’s clear he knows what he is doing. In fact he said" take it out and return it tomorrow". So I’m thinking this might be a great way to cross train and a new sport to conquer. So, why not take it home and try it out at Rec Lake. That’s exactly what we did for the next few hours. This is fun. At the lake, I told Linda" let’s buy it" .This could be the beginning of a new chapter. By the way, I didn’t miss not running today.
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