I slept like a log at Nick's house last night and woke up this morning feeling surprisingly fresh considering the hard race effort yesterday. Nick and I hung out and had some breakfast, and then we said goodbye as I departed for home.
But first I had some paddling to do. I had a hankering to check out a part of the Back Bay of Biloxi that I'd never visited before, so I went to a public access that Nick recommended and put my boat in the water.
Maks had told me to paddle for 90 minutes--"Just a stroll around... just paddle and mind the surroundings." I aimed to do just that. But after a few minutes in the boat I realized I had a problem. During the race yesterday I rubbed a nasty blister where the base of my right thumb contacts the paddle shaft. I drained the fluid from it last night, but it was still very sensitive today and it was quite painful as I paddled. It forced me to alter my grip on the paddle, and that in turn put some stress on my right wrist, making me stop paddling to rest it every few minutes. I tried to grin and bear it, but it made an ordeal out of what was supposed to be carefree relaxation on the water. I endured it for 75 minutes and then called it quits.
I did learn one useful thing: the Back Bay might be fertile ground for some downwind action. There was a mild but steady breeze blowing from the west-southwest, maybe 10 knots, and I found some borderline-decent runs out in the middle of the bay. With some stronger wind I think it might have been very good. The question is how often there is such wind in that area. It is, of course, the reliability of the wind that makes places like the Miller's Run and the Columbia River Gorge the downwind destinations that they are.
I made the six-hour drive back to Memphis and am wearily readjusting to life at home. I have a much-needed day off tomorrow, during which I hope my blister will heal up. I'll be back at it on Tuesday.
For more information on what this blog is about, click here.
No comments:
Post a Comment