Sunday, June 30, 2013
Get some instruction from yours truly
If you're interested in getting started in kayaking, please consider taking a class this summer offered by Outdoors, Inc., here in Memphis. The instructor? Me! Details and schedule are here.
Back on the grid
Well, here I am back among the living. Actually, I've done plenty of living all along, but haven't been able to broadcast until now.
Last Saturday (June 22) I joined my friends Curtis and Ruthie from Atlanta for a run of both the upper and middle sections of the Ocoee River near Ducktown, Tennessee. I was already sore and achy from all the paint stripping I had done that week, and I felt anything but sharp in my whitewater boat, which I was paddling for the first time since last November. I sort of shied away from the more challenging moves and just tried to get used to using muscle groups that had fallen into disuse. I was hurting from head to toe by the end of this long day, but there's no such thing as a regrettable day on the river.
That evening I drove over to Long Creek, South Carolina, where I camped. The next morning I met my buddy Travis at the U.S. 76 bridge over the Chattooga River. Travis had been out of his boat for a long time too, so we decided to run the section of river between Fall Creek and Woodall Shoals--not the most difficult whitewater the Chattooga has to offer, but at a gauge reading of 1.7 feet, some good action nevertheless, especially the intimidating Bull Sluice rapid.
The first thing I noticed as we put in was how much more peaceful the Chattooga is than the Ocoee. While the Ocoee has been dammed into submission by the TVA, has a road following most of its length, and is clogged with tourists who pay to see the river from rafts, the Chattooga is free-flowing, has no development along its banks, and, save for a few auto-accessible points where locals congregate to swim and fish, offers plenty of solitude.
Once I had a chance to loosen up on the easy whitewater in the early part of the run, I felt quite a bit better in my boat, and a nice clean run of Bull Sluice did much to lift my spirits. It was also fun to spend a few hours with Travis, talking about nothing in particular like we always do.
When the paddling was done it was time to move on to the main agenda item for this trip: a six-day class in cooperage at Country Workshops in the mountains north of Asheville. It was the same course I had taken last summer, and you can read this post for an explanation of why I think it's relevant material for a canoe and kayak racing blog.
Fortunately I did manage to come away with a passable bucket, but at this stage of my woodworking (and paddling) career I pick classes based not on what sort of object I'll take home but on the potential to advance my skills. This one was taught again by Carl Swensson, sort of a mountaintop guru of woodworking technique, and he pointed out that the top performers in any field are lifelong learners who even late in life seek the advice of teachers or coaches. I'm not sure I'm a top performer in any field, but I'll continue to emulate them.
I'm spending today visiting my sister's family in Lincolnton, North Carolina. Tomorrow I'll head home at last, eager to see what's gotten done at my building and to rescue my poor kittycat from his long days alone in my little apartment.
Last Saturday (June 22) I joined my friends Curtis and Ruthie from Atlanta for a run of both the upper and middle sections of the Ocoee River near Ducktown, Tennessee. I was already sore and achy from all the paint stripping I had done that week, and I felt anything but sharp in my whitewater boat, which I was paddling for the first time since last November. I sort of shied away from the more challenging moves and just tried to get used to using muscle groups that had fallen into disuse. I was hurting from head to toe by the end of this long day, but there's no such thing as a regrettable day on the river.
That evening I drove over to Long Creek, South Carolina, where I camped. The next morning I met my buddy Travis at the U.S. 76 bridge over the Chattooga River. Travis had been out of his boat for a long time too, so we decided to run the section of river between Fall Creek and Woodall Shoals--not the most difficult whitewater the Chattooga has to offer, but at a gauge reading of 1.7 feet, some good action nevertheless, especially the intimidating Bull Sluice rapid.
The first thing I noticed as we put in was how much more peaceful the Chattooga is than the Ocoee. While the Ocoee has been dammed into submission by the TVA, has a road following most of its length, and is clogged with tourists who pay to see the river from rafts, the Chattooga is free-flowing, has no development along its banks, and, save for a few auto-accessible points where locals congregate to swim and fish, offers plenty of solitude.
Once I had a chance to loosen up on the easy whitewater in the early part of the run, I felt quite a bit better in my boat, and a nice clean run of Bull Sluice did much to lift my spirits. It was also fun to spend a few hours with Travis, talking about nothing in particular like we always do.
When the paddling was done it was time to move on to the main agenda item for this trip: a six-day class in cooperage at Country Workshops in the mountains north of Asheville. It was the same course I had taken last summer, and you can read this post for an explanation of why I think it's relevant material for a canoe and kayak racing blog.
Fortunately I did manage to come away with a passable bucket, but at this stage of my woodworking (and paddling) career I pick classes based not on what sort of object I'll take home but on the potential to advance my skills. This one was taught again by Carl Swensson, sort of a mountaintop guru of woodworking technique, and he pointed out that the top performers in any field are lifelong learners who even late in life seek the advice of teachers or coaches. I'm not sure I'm a top performer in any field, but I'll continue to emulate them.
I'm spending today visiting my sister's family in Lincolnton, North Carolina. Tomorrow I'll head home at last, eager to see what's gotten done at my building and to rescue my poor kittycat from his long days alone in my little apartment.
Thursday, June 20, 2013
Signing off for a while
Well, I'm headed out of town for about ten days, during most of which I'll be off the grid entirely. I apologize in advance for the lack of posts. Once I'm back online I'll set about the task of winning back all the readers who have gotten out of the habit of checking in here.
Wednesday, June 19, 2013
Haste makes waste
I think I've mentioned before that I'm currently living in the apartment over my mother's garage. My mother has moved to a retirement community, so it's just me here (the house is on the market but has not yet sold).
The locks on the doors here are such that it's pretty easy to lock oneself out. I've mostly been careful about that, but this morning I went outside and shut the door behind me without unlocking it. I spent the better part of the next hour knocking on neighbor's doors, trying to borrow somebody's phone so I could call my mother and have her come let me back in the house. Few of my neighbors seemed to be home, but I finally got my hands on a phone, and my mother very kindly came right over.
Though I really didn't lose that much time, I felt in a rush the rest of the morning, and in my haste I went down to the river without my paddling clothes. I discovered my mistake on the dock, and ended up paddling in my underwear for 40 minutes.
I paddled the K1, a boat that requires maximum concentration from me right now. Feeling flustered and distracted, I might have been better off just skipping paddling, but eventually I got my mind on the business at hand.
One thing I did today was paddle on one side for ten or twelve strokes at a time. I have done this in the surf ski many times and had no trouble, but I found it very difficult in the K1, especially when paddling on my right side. Each time I took a stroke, I badly wanted to counter it with a stroke on the other side. I was frustrated with how awkward I was feeling, but I'm hoping that this and similar drills will bring about some improvement in my balance.
The locks on the doors here are such that it's pretty easy to lock oneself out. I've mostly been careful about that, but this morning I went outside and shut the door behind me without unlocking it. I spent the better part of the next hour knocking on neighbor's doors, trying to borrow somebody's phone so I could call my mother and have her come let me back in the house. Few of my neighbors seemed to be home, but I finally got my hands on a phone, and my mother very kindly came right over.
Though I really didn't lose that much time, I felt in a rush the rest of the morning, and in my haste I went down to the river without my paddling clothes. I discovered my mistake on the dock, and ended up paddling in my underwear for 40 minutes.
I paddled the K1, a boat that requires maximum concentration from me right now. Feeling flustered and distracted, I might have been better off just skipping paddling, but eventually I got my mind on the business at hand.
One thing I did today was paddle on one side for ten or twelve strokes at a time. I have done this in the surf ski many times and had no trouble, but I found it very difficult in the K1, especially when paddling on my right side. Each time I took a stroke, I badly wanted to counter it with a stroke on the other side. I was frustrated with how awkward I was feeling, but I'm hoping that this and similar drills will bring about some improvement in my balance.
Monday, June 17, 2013
Monday photo feature
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Sunday, June 16, 2013
A K1 summer
This morning I paddled my K1 in the harbor for 60 minutes. It was both a recovery session after yesterday's race and a transition into my summer paddling routine. I'll be spending most of my time this summer just working on my building and getting my workshop and all my stuff and myself relocated, but I hope to get out in the K1 at least two or three times a week. I'm hoping that on these long hot summer days, when a swim is no big deal, I can gain confidence in this incredibly tippy boat.
Saturday, June 15, 2013
Another OICKR is in the books
Several hundred paddlers descended on the Memphis riverfront today for the 32nd Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race. The race course is approximately 5000 meters in length; racers start in the mouth of the Wolf River, paddle out onto the Mississippi and down the river to the mouth of Wolf River Harbor, and up into the harbor a half-mile or so to the finish.
I expected the times to be fast today: the river was at a pretty high level at 26.3 feet on the Memphis gauge, winds were light and variable, and the water was calm. But once we had finished and the results were tabulated, they were quite a bit faster even than I had guessed. Mike Herbert, the three-time Olympian and three-time world championships medalist, bettered Greg Barton's course record by one second with his time of 15 minutes, 38 seconds. A short while later Pete Greene, Eric Mims, and I finished second, third, and fourth, respectively, each of us breaking 17 minutes for the first time in his many appearances in this race. Fast times continued to be the rule moving down the list through all the various boat classes.
Greg Barton set his course record back in 2002. That year, the river was almost as high (25.6 feet), conditions were calm, and the river was smooth. Racers in all boat classes posted fast times. The only difference between that year and this one that I can think of is that in 2002, race director Joe Royer placed a buoy some twenty feet off the southern tip of Mud Island to keep paddlers out of the shallow water there, whereas this year there was no buoy, making the course slightly shorter but subjecting racers to the shallow-water hazard.
My time in 2002 was 17:32, and until today that stood as my PR. Today I clocked 16:51. Am I really that much better than I was eleven years ago? Were the conditions just faster in subtle ways? Are the little changes to my stroke that Shaun Caven suggested two weeks ago already making that big a difference? But then, I was about the same relative to Pete and Eric that I usually am. I could drive myself crazy trying to analyze these results, and it's probably a fool's game because there's absolutely no guarantee that today's course was anywhere near the same length as the 2002 course.
Oh well. I had a great time and a hard-fought competition. I love this time each year when canoe and kayak racing takes over the Memphis riverfront for a morning.
UPDATE: The results are now posted here. If you scroll down a bit you'll see the results in "finish time sequence," or the overall order of finish regardless of boat class.
I expected the times to be fast today: the river was at a pretty high level at 26.3 feet on the Memphis gauge, winds were light and variable, and the water was calm. But once we had finished and the results were tabulated, they were quite a bit faster even than I had guessed. Mike Herbert, the three-time Olympian and three-time world championships medalist, bettered Greg Barton's course record by one second with his time of 15 minutes, 38 seconds. A short while later Pete Greene, Eric Mims, and I finished second, third, and fourth, respectively, each of us breaking 17 minutes for the first time in his many appearances in this race. Fast times continued to be the rule moving down the list through all the various boat classes.
Greg Barton set his course record back in 2002. That year, the river was almost as high (25.6 feet), conditions were calm, and the river was smooth. Racers in all boat classes posted fast times. The only difference between that year and this one that I can think of is that in 2002, race director Joe Royer placed a buoy some twenty feet off the southern tip of Mud Island to keep paddlers out of the shallow water there, whereas this year there was no buoy, making the course slightly shorter but subjecting racers to the shallow-water hazard.
My time in 2002 was 17:32, and until today that stood as my PR. Today I clocked 16:51. Am I really that much better than I was eleven years ago? Were the conditions just faster in subtle ways? Are the little changes to my stroke that Shaun Caven suggested two weeks ago already making that big a difference? But then, I was about the same relative to Pete and Eric that I usually am. I could drive myself crazy trying to analyze these results, and it's probably a fool's game because there's absolutely no guarantee that today's course was anywhere near the same length as the 2002 course.
Oh well. I had a great time and a hard-fought competition. I love this time each year when canoe and kayak racing takes over the Memphis riverfront for a morning.
UPDATE: The results are now posted here. If you scroll down a bit you'll see the results in "finish time sequence," or the overall order of finish regardless of boat class.
Friday, June 14, 2013
The excitement is heating up
Well, here we are one day before the big race. The Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race is scheduled to start at 10:15 AM tomorrow. The field in the race boat class is looking less strong than usual this year: Greg Barton won't be making it, leaving fellow Olympian Mike Herbert as the heavy favorite for the overall win. Whereas last year there were five or six entrants around my level of ability, only maybe two or three are currently registered for tomorrow. The canoe classes will be a little thin tomorrow as well, as the race this year conflicts with the Aluminum Canoe National Championships upriver in Dubuque, Iowa.
But as always, I try not to pay too close attention to who else is coming or what others are doing. I can control nothing but my own performance, and I'm trying to make sure I am prepared to do the best I can.
Yesterday I paddled for 60 minutes and did six 12-stroke sprints with full recovery. This evening, when I meet my friend Katie to load our boats and formulate our shuttle plan for tomorrow, I'll paddle for maybe 40 minutes and do about four such sprints. Other than that my plan for today is to do a little work in my workshop and rest and relax as much as I can.
We're having our first real hot spell here for 2013, with temperatures reaching the low to mid 90s. I'd been resisting the urge to turn the air conditioning on in my apartment, but when the thermostat's temperature display said it was 93 degrees Fahrenheit inside a couple of evenings ago, I decided it was time. I've got it on now, with the thermostat set on 80. If I can get some relief from the humidity, I'm perfectly happy not to have my place feeling like a meat locker.
And, not knowing what scientific studies have been done on the topic, I believe intuitively that shutting yourself up in the climate-controlled indoors at all times is not really congruent with a healthy, fit life. The human body has evolved to withstand some heat and humidity in the summer and some cold, grey clamminess in the winter. I'd be lying if I said I love the typical Memphis summer weather, but I'm not afraid to get out and immerse myself.
But as always, I try not to pay too close attention to who else is coming or what others are doing. I can control nothing but my own performance, and I'm trying to make sure I am prepared to do the best I can.
Yesterday I paddled for 60 minutes and did six 12-stroke sprints with full recovery. This evening, when I meet my friend Katie to load our boats and formulate our shuttle plan for tomorrow, I'll paddle for maybe 40 minutes and do about four such sprints. Other than that my plan for today is to do a little work in my workshop and rest and relax as much as I can.
We're having our first real hot spell here for 2013, with temperatures reaching the low to mid 90s. I'd been resisting the urge to turn the air conditioning on in my apartment, but when the thermostat's temperature display said it was 93 degrees Fahrenheit inside a couple of evenings ago, I decided it was time. I've got it on now, with the thermostat set on 80. If I can get some relief from the humidity, I'm perfectly happy not to have my place feeling like a meat locker.
And, not knowing what scientific studies have been done on the topic, I believe intuitively that shutting yourself up in the climate-controlled indoors at all times is not really congruent with a healthy, fit life. The human body has evolved to withstand some heat and humidity in the summer and some cold, grey clamminess in the winter. I'd be lying if I said I love the typical Memphis summer weather, but I'm not afraid to get out and immerse myself.
Tuesday, June 11, 2013
More speed, more rest
Today I paddled for 60 minutes, doing a set of eight 12-stroke sprints with full recovery. I'm getting more and more comfortable with the changes to my stroke, though I'm not yet to the point where my body automatically does it the new way. We'll see how it goes this Saturday.
For Saturday's Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race, we're expecting warm temperatures--low 90s Fahrenheit--and a river level somewhere around 26.5 feet. The times should be fast as long as the wind stays moderate.
For Saturday's Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race, we're expecting warm temperatures--low 90s Fahrenheit--and a river level somewhere around 26.5 feet. The times should be fast as long as the wind stays moderate.
Monday, June 10, 2013
Monday photo feature
Here's a vintage photo from the Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race. This is up at the starting line around 1996 or 1997. I'm near the middle of the picture in the kayak with the green deck--that's an old John Jaycox-designed Colorado River Machine. Photo by my mom, I think.
The 32nd Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race will take place this Saturday at 10:00 AM. I'll be there doing my best just like always.
Sunday, June 9, 2013
Rest time
I paddled for 60 minutes this morning, doing ten 12-stroke sprints. I hope to get in several more such sessions this week to polish my speed and leave me feeling sharp next Saturday morning. At the moment I am not feeling particularly rested, and I guess that's mainly because of the strenuous week I just had. I'm getting pretty full nights of sleep, but I've been waking up tired each morning lately. Hmm...
Saturday, June 8, 2013
Riverfront litter pickup
I paddled in the harbor today for 80 minutes. I participated in a litter pickup put on by Memphis River Warriors, the Tennessee Sierra Club, Memphis City Beautiful, the University of Memphis, Outdoors, Inc., and others who value a clean environment on our riverfront. The effort was focused on the cobblestones and the finish area for next Saturday's Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race, so I wanted to be sure the paddling community was represented.
So it wasn't really a training session, but I can find training value in almost any in-the-boat activity. This morning I would stop at one patch of floating litter and pick it up, then paddle over to another patch, and so on, and I concentrated on my stroke with its recent alterations during those bursts of paddling. In this way, I worked toward internalizing the new movements without obsessing over them, because most of my attention was on the very important business of removing some pollutants from the water that we paddle on.
So it wasn't really a training session, but I can find training value in almost any in-the-boat activity. This morning I would stop at one patch of floating litter and pick it up, then paddle over to another patch, and so on, and I concentrated on my stroke with its recent alterations during those bursts of paddling. In this way, I worked toward internalizing the new movements without obsessing over them, because most of my attention was on the very important business of removing some pollutants from the water that we paddle on.
Friday, June 7, 2013
Under pressure
This morning I paddled for 60 minutes. It was my first time in the boat since Tuesday, but the days since then haven't exactly been restful. The ground floor of my building had all kinds of broken plaster and peeling paint on the walls and ceiling, and I decided to use a pressure washer to knock down as much of that stuff as I could. I discovered that pressure washing is very hard work. The washer I used shoots water around 3000 psi, and my hands and arms feel like jelly after hours of handling that thing. I doubt any of the top coaches or sports physiologists would recommend my way of spending the two weeks before the season's big competition.
Oh well, I still have a week to try to get in some rest. My paddling sessions will be short in duration, but I'll paddle as fast as I can in that time. Today I did ten 30-second sprints with full recovery. I'm slowly starting to feel better with the change to my stroke. One thing I've noticed is that I'm capable of a higher stroke rate than I had been before, because I'm not wasting as much motion between strokes. I also need to re-figure my balance--I don't feel as stable as I did when I was paddling with my elbows farther from my body and the blade farther from the boat. I very nearly flipped this morning as I paddled across the squirrelly slackwater at the southern tip of Mud Island.
I'll be paddling again tomorrow, but at lower intensity as I participate in a litter pickup down at the riverfront.
Oh well, I still have a week to try to get in some rest. My paddling sessions will be short in duration, but I'll paddle as fast as I can in that time. Today I did ten 30-second sprints with full recovery. I'm slowly starting to feel better with the change to my stroke. One thing I've noticed is that I'm capable of a higher stroke rate than I had been before, because I'm not wasting as much motion between strokes. I also need to re-figure my balance--I don't feel as stable as I did when I was paddling with my elbows farther from my body and the blade farther from the boat. I very nearly flipped this morning as I paddled across the squirrelly slackwater at the southern tip of Mud Island.
I'll be paddling again tomorrow, but at lower intensity as I participate in a litter pickup down at the riverfront.
Tuesday, June 4, 2013
Soreness persists
This morning I paddled for 60 minutes, doing the same workout as last Monday (45 seconds on, 30 seconds off), except today I did just eight intervals rather than twelve.
I'm still feeling awfully sore in my upper arms, especially the right one, and I wonder whether I haven't strained them a little. This change to my stroke could be the reason, but it's just as likely that strength work or paddling that big tandem boat last week is the culprit. I skipped the strength work this morning.
I'm still feeling awfully sore in my upper arms, especially the right one, and I wonder whether I haven't strained them a little. This change to my stroke could be the reason, but it's just as likely that strength work or paddling that big tandem boat last week is the culprit. I skipped the strength work this morning.
Monday, June 3, 2013
Little Rock results
The results of Saturday's race are now posted here. I guessed right: I was the tenth overall finisher, about three and a half minutes behind winner Dylan Puckett.
Monday photo feature
Racer David Christopher took this photo before the start of Saturday's Arkansas River Canoe and Kayak Race at Little Rock. Facing upriver, the paddlers watch a mass of ominous black clouds roll toward them. The downpour began shortly after the starting gun went off.
Sunday, June 2, 2013
Something new, late in the season
This morning I did two sets of the May strength routine--yes, I know it's June now, but since I'll be doing only a couple more strength sessions between now and the OICKR, there's no reason to start up anything new. Then I went downtown and paddled for 60 minutes. It felt good to be back on my home water.
In the boat I worked on the stroke modifications that Shaun Caven recommended yesterday. He mentioned several things he thought I should do: keep my elbows closer to my body, insert the blade farther forward, lift my wrist before my elbow in the recovery phase. Today I decided to focus mainly on keeping my elbows close to my body. As Carl Swensson emphasized in the cooperage class I took last summer, when learning a skill it's best to break it up into as many components as possible and take them one at a time.
Paddling this way felt a little strange, but not as awkward as it sometimes feels when I make a change to my stroke. And when I reverted back to the way I had been paddling, I realized that there was indeed some wasted motion like Shaun said. Having somebody to point out things like that can be very handy, because once you get used to doing something a certain way it's difficult to detect that anything is wrong.
Now, a few hours later, I'm feeling very sore in my upper arms and deltoids. It's probably partly the result of the strength work, but I expect it also was caused by the unfamiliar motions in the boat.
In the boat I worked on the stroke modifications that Shaun Caven recommended yesterday. He mentioned several things he thought I should do: keep my elbows closer to my body, insert the blade farther forward, lift my wrist before my elbow in the recovery phase. Today I decided to focus mainly on keeping my elbows close to my body. As Carl Swensson emphasized in the cooperage class I took last summer, when learning a skill it's best to break it up into as many components as possible and take them one at a time.
Paddling this way felt a little strange, but not as awkward as it sometimes feels when I make a change to my stroke. And when I reverted back to the way I had been paddling, I realized that there was indeed some wasted motion like Shaun said. Having somebody to point out things like that can be very handy, because once you get used to doing something a certain way it's difficult to detect that anything is wrong.
Now, a few hours later, I'm feeling very sore in my upper arms and deltoids. It's probably partly the result of the strength work, but I expect it also was caused by the unfamiliar motions in the boat.
Saturday, June 1, 2013
A wet, wild morning at Little Rock
I'm pretty sure I've never raced in a rain as heavy as what we had today. As we warmed up this morning, the sky to the west (upriver) was black. Less than a minute after the gun went off, we slammed head-on into the deluge, and it felt like smacking into a liquid wall. The rain came down in buckets for the entire race, and continued to do so through the awards ceremony, which was held under the nearby Interstate 430 bridge because it was the only shelter of any size available.
At this point, I really don't know what my place was; counting the boats ahead of me was impossible in all the chaos, and the race organizers didn't have the results posted promptly like they usually do because of the inclement weather. And it was very hard to hear them announce the award winners because of the traffic roaring overhead on I-430. My guess is that I was something like tenth place overall. I'll link to the results once they are posted online.
I do know that we had a very high-quality turnout from the Oklahoma City training center, with a number of racers signing up since I wrote my post yesterday. Dylan Puckett, a junior (under 18) racer whom I've watched improve steadily over the last four editions of this race, edged everybody's favorite world-class-country-boy-athlete, Mike Herbert, for the win. Maggie Hogan was the fastest lady, finishing not so very far behind the top men. For much of the race I actually thought I might run down Kaitlyn McElroy, who spent the race paddling alongside Arezou Motamedi a tantalizingly short distance ahead, but once we got into the last 1500 meters or so I knew it wasn't happening.
What did happen for me is that I targeted the tandem surf ski paddled by Bill Cains and Phil Capel, because I knew they would be a little faster than I but also would offer a better wake ride than the skinny little K1s. I paddled hard to stay on their stern for the first half of the race, with Shaun Caven, the Oklahoma City coach and a former British national team member, hanging out on their right-side wake in his K1.
Then I got a break at the buoy turn: Phil and Bill had trouble getting their ultra-long boat around the buoy and nearly rammed the bank, and in doing so they trapped Shaun, who had been on the outside. I swept my boat around on their inside and put the hammer down to try to drop them.
I didn't get to savor my opportunity seizure for long: somehow, Shaun had gotten himself back on track and within a couple of minutes was sitting on my right-side wake. I knew I had to push the pace, because there was no way I would beat him in a final-50-meter sprint. With some 400 meters left I tried to throw in a surge, but it didn't shake Shaun, and a few seconds later he was sprinting away from me.
I knew he had me beat, but then Phil and Bill came charging into my peripheral vision on the left--those tough old guys had made it back from their awful buoy turn. With the last bit of energy I had, I managed to hold them off by a foot or two.
Shaun, who had gotten a good look at my stroke while sitting on my wake, told me I can improve it by keeping my elbows closer to my body and the blade closer to the boat. He also noted that at the end of a stroke I should lift my wrist ahead of my elbow. This seemed to contradict the injury-preventive "chicken wing" recovery that Brent Reitz talks about in his forward stroke video, but after trying out the changes that Shaun suggested I think the two concepts can coexist. Two weeks before the big race of the season is not the best time to make major changes to my stroke, but I'll be thinking about what Shaun told me as I paddle this coming week.
At this point, I really don't know what my place was; counting the boats ahead of me was impossible in all the chaos, and the race organizers didn't have the results posted promptly like they usually do because of the inclement weather. And it was very hard to hear them announce the award winners because of the traffic roaring overhead on I-430. My guess is that I was something like tenth place overall. I'll link to the results once they are posted online.
I do know that we had a very high-quality turnout from the Oklahoma City training center, with a number of racers signing up since I wrote my post yesterday. Dylan Puckett, a junior (under 18) racer whom I've watched improve steadily over the last four editions of this race, edged everybody's favorite world-class-country-boy-athlete, Mike Herbert, for the win. Maggie Hogan was the fastest lady, finishing not so very far behind the top men. For much of the race I actually thought I might run down Kaitlyn McElroy, who spent the race paddling alongside Arezou Motamedi a tantalizingly short distance ahead, but once we got into the last 1500 meters or so I knew it wasn't happening.
What did happen for me is that I targeted the tandem surf ski paddled by Bill Cains and Phil Capel, because I knew they would be a little faster than I but also would offer a better wake ride than the skinny little K1s. I paddled hard to stay on their stern for the first half of the race, with Shaun Caven, the Oklahoma City coach and a former British national team member, hanging out on their right-side wake in his K1.
Then I got a break at the buoy turn: Phil and Bill had trouble getting their ultra-long boat around the buoy and nearly rammed the bank, and in doing so they trapped Shaun, who had been on the outside. I swept my boat around on their inside and put the hammer down to try to drop them.
I didn't get to savor my opportunity seizure for long: somehow, Shaun had gotten himself back on track and within a couple of minutes was sitting on my right-side wake. I knew I had to push the pace, because there was no way I would beat him in a final-50-meter sprint. With some 400 meters left I tried to throw in a surge, but it didn't shake Shaun, and a few seconds later he was sprinting away from me.
I knew he had me beat, but then Phil and Bill came charging into my peripheral vision on the left--those tough old guys had made it back from their awful buoy turn. With the last bit of energy I had, I managed to hold them off by a foot or two.
Shaun, who had gotten a good look at my stroke while sitting on my wake, told me I can improve it by keeping my elbows closer to my body and the blade closer to the boat. He also noted that at the end of a stroke I should lift my wrist ahead of my elbow. This seemed to contradict the injury-preventive "chicken wing" recovery that Brent Reitz talks about in his forward stroke video, but after trying out the changes that Shaun suggested I think the two concepts can coexist. Two weeks before the big race of the season is not the best time to make major changes to my stroke, but I'll be thinking about what Shaun told me as I paddle this coming week.
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