This morning I did the strength routine for the last time before this next round of races. Now it's time to hone my speed a little and get some rest.
Yesterday I had an enjoyable 60 minutes on the riverfront. As I was paddling from the harbor onto the Mississippi there was a barge rig coming downriver, and I fell in behind it to see if the surf was up. I got several decent rides before the waves began to peter out. As I drifted along looking around to see if any more waves were developing, I saw a guy in a big bass boat heading my way. He called out "Are you okay?" Somewhat surprised, I said, "Yeah!" He said, "Okay, I was just checking to make sure," and I gave him thumbs-up and yelled "Thank you!"
And just to be clear, I am very grateful for his concern. But I'm also a bit puzzled, and curious to know just what he was seeing that made him think I was a boater in distress rather than the happy, relaxed, content paddler that I actually was at that moment. I think it's an interesting example of the different worlds that paddlers and fishermen live in even though they're both boaters using the same river. Somehow he looked at me and saw a different reality from the one I was experiencing.
Once I was certain the surfing opportunity had run its course, I paddled back upriver along Tom Lee Park and re-entered the harbor. Once back on flatwater I did six 12-stroke sprints at two-minute intervals.
It was another sweltering hot day, and with the wind at my back as I paddled back to the dock, I was feeling the heat in a big way. But it was nothing a bath under the hose couldn't cure. Who needs a spa when the marina where you keep your boat is equipped with a water spigot?
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