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What's News This Month
Sept, 2008
"In The
Same Boat" - Excerpt taken from PaddleNews
at
http://www.paddling.net/nl.html
Every member of the Over-the-Hill Gang notices it
sometime or other.
We just don't seem to have the stamina we once had. It
takes more time to recover than when we were younger, too. The
remedy? Fight back! In this week's In the Same Boat,
Tamia suggests a simple prescription for "Beating the
Bonk!" The good news? It's an easy pill to swallow.
http://www.paddling.net/sameboat/ |
July, 2008
|
The Paddle Boating Experience
Another
item inclusive in our Blue Ride experience is worthy of note
here. How different it was to find oneself on a body of water
where paddle craft of one kind or another outnumbered power
boats 3 to 1. Yes, there is an engine size restriction in
place for
Blue Ridge
which of course defines usage. Yet some how it felt that the
whole scene was beyond a boundary set by rules and regulation.
All up and down the run of the Blue folks seemed truly happy
to be making their way about under their own power. All
of them with time to smile and offer up some passing
conversation. This vibe was as real as anything and set
the tone for our entire stay.
Just across
the way from our encampment was what could only be defined as
a small village.
Numerous tents and shelters housing what had to be no less
than some 20 or 30 folks. With the exception of one motorized
aluminum row boat (undoubtedly the supply barge), all had
arrived by kayak. Twenty or thirty folks gathered on any
shore line doth nothing but a party make! And party they
did well in to the night. Yes, possibly a little annoying for
some of us more environmentally sensitive, but in the words of
Dan Reese our most practical option was probably to join
them. What the experience pointed out to me was that this
sport is really changing. No longer the sanctified domain of a
small group of environmental ecologists, maverick outbound
loners, and smattering of Eskimos some where north of
Nome
. No way baby. Paddle craft are easing in to the main stream!
My
then ensuing thought was; "well, there goes the
neighborhood". Not so…not so at all. While there will
be more watercraft out there, loaded to the gunwales with Bud
Light, headed off somewhere to party till they puke
(hopefully down stream), it still has us all headed in a good
direction. The positives far outweigh the negatives on this
one; it's built in to the sport. Thanks for giving this a
read, now go get out your Az. map and trace a route to
the Blue Ridge Reservoir.
Your Paddle Pal, Royce |
| |
The Passing
of a Pioneer
Volker Beer
1937 - 2008
On June 22,
2008 Volker Beer was taken by the
Arkansas River
north
of Buena Vista, CO. while doing what he loved best.
He lived as he died
with exuberance and an unyielding sense of
adventure. Even at 70,
Volker was an active kayaker and accomplished
triathlete as well as a
pioneer in the white water paddling sport back in
Europe
where it all
started. In
the mid fifties he and fellow adventurers began kayaking
uncharted white water canyons like the
Tara
River
Gorge in
Montenegro
(second largest in the world).
Volker had recently
produced a video documenting the early days of
white water paddling
many in which
he participated. His
video, "A Chapter in Paddle
Sport History, How the Sport Changed", is a
factual and historic
document containing incredible old film clips and
photos of those early
sporting days. Volker was among the first to tackle
these rivers single
handed in a
foldable, wood framed, canvas covered kayak.
As
an active member of the
Southern Arizona
Paddlers, Volker was
always willing to share his experience and
enthusiasm for river running
with us. He participated in and photographed several
white water river
adventures over recent years with club members and
friends and left us
with many fine memories, most recently from last May
while sharing
time on the beautiful
Dolores
River
in
Colorado. Volker was always out
front stopping to take photos of his companions on the
river. He will be
sorely missed
by all the paddling community, family and friends. |

March, 2008
This 5-min. video by club
member Volker Beer deserves recognition and is getting it.
Hear
and see it on YouTube by going to the following web link.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEy0HoEZ9M4
You will be impressed by the quality of video taken over 40 years ago.
This visualizes
the Paddle Sport History article Volker wrote for us
and is
featured below (January, 2008).
February, 2008
|
HOW TO LOAD A KAYAK by
Rick Johnson
Ultimately,
the easiest way to carry a kayak is on a low trailer. It
is easy to load and unload, but few cars have a tow hitch. This
is a small bike trailer I converted to carry two kayaks.
Carry
your boats on their side if possible. That is the strongest part
of the kayak. 
Note the carabiner to hold the bow of the kayak
to the tongue of the trailer. It keeps the wind from
pushing the boat off the trailer and if the trailer breaks (it
happened to me) it saves your boat until you can pull off the
road.
BUT, if you
must car-top, the one rule I found to be true is this:
NEVER buy more boat
than you can lift onto the roof of your car
after a long paddle day. One thing I learned from a small
woman
is this invention. All I did was improve one thing.
The
device (aka the Rod) consists of a simple pipe that will fit
into your roof rack. This version has a washer to prevent
the boat from slipping off the rod, a piece of pool noodle to
prevent the Rod from damaging the kayak and a piece of steel rod
to strengthen the Rod. My first version made of electrical
conduit, bent under load and dropped the kayak. Thus the
internal support.
The
Rod assembled.
PROCEDURE:
Lay the boat next to the car with the bow forward. It is bad
luck to carry a boat to the water stern-first. Also boats
like to see where they are going.

Slide
the Rod into the roof rack. It does not matter which rack
you slide the Rod into. Front or back is the same. I chose
the back for no good reason at all.
Lift the stern of the boat and place it onto the Rod.
Note
that I placed some foam under the bow of the boat.
This
does two things:
A)
It cushions the boat so it doesn’t get damaged from the
ground.
B)
It prevents the boat from sliding along the ground. Some
experimentation will show you how long the Rod should be.
The
bow of the boat has a strip of Gorilla-Tape. This is a
skid-guard to protect the boat when I hit sand or a rock or
beach the boat. Tape is easier to replace than repair hull
damage.
With
the stern still on the Rod, lift the bow and place it on the
roof-rack. Finally,
lift the stern off the Rod onto the Roof Rack.
Remove
the Rod and place it in the trunk for when you have to unload.
Strap the kayak down and go.
It
is not a good idea to toss the Rod into the boat as that means
you have to climb onto the top of the car to find the Rod when
you want to unload the boat.
The
nice thing here is that it allows a very small person lift a
very large boat since you are only lifting half of the boat at a
time and not struggling with the entire kayak.
|
January, 2008

Paddle
Sport History / Highlights
In
recognition of the 100 Year Anniversary of White Water (WW) Kayaking
by Volker Beer, December
2007
Paddling
on rivers, lakes and oceans is as old as the stone ages. The raft, the catamaran,
the canoe and the Eskimo kayak evolved depending on the needs and environment of
the indigent people in different parts of the world.
With
the Leisure Time Revolution in the middle of the 19th century, people
in Europe started to enjoy floating down rivers in all kinds of contraptions
taking in nature previously only available to a selected few.
1905
Alfred Heurich, a student from Leipzig, Germany, invented the “Faltboot”,
a folding Kayak in English called Folboat.
1907
Alfred Klepper, a seamster
from Rosenheim, bought the patent, improved the rigidity with a lever system and
started production. The design was suitable for WW
and easy to travel with but WW I stopped any progress.
In the 1920s boating on WW with Folboats slowly developed. During that time Eddi Hans Pawlata reinvented
the Eskimo-roll.
1927
Franz von Alber was next and Klaus and Arndt von Rautenfeld most likely have a
justified claim to have developed a roll independently with their sea kayaks.
Early
1930s, Walter
Frentz, Herbert Rittlinger and a handful of others became pioneers and advocates
of WW Kayaking with documentaries and books.
Starting
in 1933 Hitler banned the newly
founded Kayak Clubs. They did not serve his plan. World War II brought the paddle
sport to a total halt.
1948
The British lifted the ban on river travel in Germany. Paddle Clubs were again
allowed to form.
1952
Walter Frentz, published an inspiring book “In den Schluchten Europas” (In
the Canyons of Europe) that gained popularity. The book was based on his river
trips from around 1930. Publications in those days told great stories with
awesome pictures of first descents made without river information to go by.
The
tough times of the post war era had come to an end and people traveled abroad
again looking for adventures with Folboats and Canoes.
1959
Baschin in Stuttgart built the first Polyester/Fiber Kayak raising the paddle
sport to a new level. WW kayaking
spread around the world and converted from WW adventure trips into a hard core sport. With it came safety consciousness and
protective gear.
1980
Prijon in Rosenheim introduced Polyethylene making WW
boating virtually maintenance and repair free - a giant contrast to the old
Folboat .
November, 2008
You may not see this avid white water
enthusiast at many SAPC meetings
but none less this photo shows Juanita Davenport's love of fast moving water
is enough to put a smile on her face any day.

October, 2008
"In The Same Boat" (Taken from
this month's article from Paddling.net)
"Edmund Burke said it best: "Early and provident fear
is the mother of safety." And while no paddler wants to be reduced to a
shaking jelly on the river, there's little doubt that intelligent anticipation of
the many things that could go wrong has kept a lot of canoeists and kayakers out of
trouble. In other words, safety on fast-moving water begins while you're still on
shore, and in this week's In the Same Boat, Tamia Nelson makes "The
Case for Scouting." << Please go to the link below for the
complete article and photos>>
http://www.paddling.net/sameboat/
September, 2007
| Kayak
tarp-tent 101 by Norma
Miller: This
plan illustrates a quick and easy way to set up a shelter when wind and or
rain comes in and necessitates a need to get out of the elements while having
all your equipment close at hand and dry. It provides a way to set up a
sheltered area big enough to cook in and sit or even sleep in with another
companion while keeping the rain or sand out of your kitchen and protecting
you.
The idea is to set the closed, back
part of the tent (lower end) into the wind and then set out a large plastic
ground cloth big enough to roll-up against the tent/kayak inner side walls
and also partially barricade the open side. The plastic tarps can
easily be stowed in your kayak hatch folded flat on the bottom (along with
the collapsed hiking staffs) or just folded up and bungeed to the back of
your kayak. We've used this tarp-tent method with either one or two
kayaks (if you have a larger tarp) several times on the sandy beaches and
rocky shores of Lake Powell where winds can suddenly cause havoc. Early
on we used an 11x17 tarp & split kayak paddles (as shown in the photo)
but they were about equal in length and it was hard if not impossible to
close down the windward side of the tent from blowing sand (note the unusual
use of the sleeping pad). Two people can carry one or two full kayaks
up on shore a short way without too much difficulty.
Use cord and large rocks to replace
the stakes if you are on a rock surface. As noted, one of the key
components to get the right shape and structure of the tent are the two
adjustable hiking sticks. They work well for fitting through a standard
grommet hole on the open end and standing point down and handle up in the
middle of the tent. A staked length of rope or cord holds the front
staff and tent erect while other stakes or rocks and bungee cords (around the
kayak hull) anchor the rest of the tarp surfaces to the ground and kayak.
Fold the lower end of the tarp
around the end of the kayak and stake the remainder to the ground.
Then, set in the ground cloth last, sliding it under the center staff and
positioning it to roll up around the inside perimeters. You get cozy
and protected from blowing sand. Your clothes, food and cooking
equipment are close behind you in the protected hatches or open cockpit so
you don't have to run out into the elements to get stuff. And, the
kayak hull provides you a sturdy back rest. Of course this isn't a
replacement for a personal 3-season tent, one can't always find a good place
to set up on a flat or dry surface near the shore line. But it's quick
and roomy when you have to wait out some time in bad weather. Play
around with this at home with your kayak before getting out in the wilderness
till you get the knack of setting it up just right for your needs. |
July, 2007
June, 2007
|
2007 FibArk Raft Rodeo Champion
SAPC President - Tommy James

The "Duck-Man" wins big !
A group of rafting
aficionados and spectators judged this rodeo contest by who performed with
the best skill while staying in the hole (tricks & time up got points)
and also finished with the required end-over splash down into the
river. They couldn't believe someone from Southern Arizona
("There's ain't no water in Southern AZ") could be doing this and
even paddling away as the winner. Tommy quacked he practiced in a pool
with a bunch of Girl Scouts (I have pictures to prove it's true).
Several SAPC members & friends where there to cheer for and support Tommy
at his first Fibark raft rodeo. He had the best two runs among several
contestants most of who were younger than Tommy whose age matched his
number. The trick that put him over the top was the
"whirly-bird". Great job Tommy - Congratulations !
|
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Raft Rodeo Trials sequence

|
In the final FibArk event, SAPC
member, Steve Kanner, participated in his first 26-mile down river raft
race. Steve was the only solo rafter competing in a race full of teams
of at least six paddlers. Much to his credit, strong-man Steve finished
sixth overall just minutes behind the winners. No trophy but lots of
kudos from his friends, a cool 2007 FibArk Finisher's t-shirt and a great
Italian dinner at Amica's. |
May 2007
Riding Through Wave Trains by
Ken Whiting
The
following is a modified excerpt from Ken Whiting's book,
'The Ultimate Guide to Whitewater Kayaking' and appeared on the
"Paddling.net" newsletter.
When
learning to whitewater kayak, it's often taught that while running
through a rapid your best course of action is to just keep on paddling.
The reason is simple.
Every
paddle stroke that you take effectively acts as a brace. This is
important in the early stages because you don't have enough experience to
anticipate how the river will push you around. As you gain experience and
confidence, you gain the capacity to foresee the effects that waves and
currents will have on your boat. As this happens, your approach to
running rapids should change. Continuous downstream paddling should no
longer be your "default" action. Instead, your default action
should be floating downstream sideways with your eyes scanning ahead for
obstacles.
There are a number of reasons for this change in approach. Firstly, a
river's current is usually carrying you downstream at a horse's pace
without any forward paddling. Unless you're in a hurry or need to build
forward speed to clear an obstacle, then there's no real use in speeding
up your descent. Secondly, if you do see an obstacle or a danger ahead,
paddling forward is just taking you there more quickly! It also means
that you have to turn your kayak almost a full 180 degrees to establish
an effective ferry angle, whereas if you're floating sideways, just a
small sweep stroke will move you onto a powerful ferry angle in either
direction. Another benefit of the change in tactics is that you'll now be
moving the same speed as the main current. This means that catching waves
to surf or to help your ferry will be much easier.
The
key to floating sideways through waves is staying loose at the hips, so
that your kayak can follow the contours of the river while your body
stays balanced over top.
If the waves start breaking, you need to get a bit more aggressive to
pull yourself through it. There are a couple of different ways to deal
with breaking waves. You
can "jump" the wave, or you can pull yourself through. The
method that you choose will depend on your personal preference, as well
as on your need to set up for future moves. Jumping a wave involves using
a small pivot turn to pull your bow up on top of the break so that you
skip over it. It's preferable to have some speed when doing this to
prevent your stern from catching and sending you into a vertical stern
squirt.
Here are pictures in movie form to help you see what is
being explained:
·
Boof
Sequence Movie (407k - large download)
It's
also preferable to approach the wave on an angle in such a way that when
it's time to pull your bow up, that sweep stroke pulls your kayak to face
directly downstream. A potential drawback from using this technique is
that you are usually carried very quickly into the following waves,
making any quick moves difficult to make.
Pulling
through a wave is a slower, but often more controlled, means of getting
through a breaking wave. The idea is to float into the wave on an angle,
ready with a powerful stroke on the downstream side that will pull you
through the break. In this case, you actually use the breaking part of
the wave to slow yourself down. You can then come through with more
control and more time to prepare yourself for the next move. Float into
the wave with a downstream angle and with your boat tilted downstream. In
this way, you prevent water from piling up on your stern and squirting
you up when you hit the break. This also lets you pre-establish which
stroke you'll be using to pull yourself through the wave.
Ken
is a World Champion Kayaker and the author and producer of an award
winning series of instructional kayaking books and videos. For more info,
check out www.helipress.com
|
April, 2007
|
The following is an excerpt
from World Champion, Ken Whiting's new book, "Rolling a Kayak"
Teaching the kayak roll is an exercise in
patience and communication. For many instructors, it is the most enjoyable
kayak skill to teach for the challenges involved, and for the feeling of
satisfaction that comes from successfully helping a paddler learn to roll.
Before looking at some of the ways
to teach the roll, it's important that I preface this section by making it
clear that the techniques presented here come from my years spent teaching
the roll, and working and learning from other instructors. Although they are
time-tested and proven methods, they certainly don't represent the only way
to teach the kayak roll.
One of the most important things to
do as an instructor is to keep in perspective how difficult and emotionally
taxing things-which may seem simple to an experienced paddler-can be for new
paddlers. Fear and frustration can be powerful hindrances to learning. For
these reasons, it should be a priority to develop and support the beginner
paddler's comfort in being upside-down underwater-before they have an
opportunity to flip unexpectedly and scare themselves-and it is why I
recommend starting with the wet exit.
Every paddler has a different comfort level on the water. Some paddlers won't
mind flipping and swimming on their own accord. For others, flipping
upside-down will be a terrifying experience, even with you standing right
beside them in the water. For more anxious paddlers, try the following
progression. Start by standing in waist-deep water with the paddler facing
you in their kayak. Ask the paddler to hug their deck while you flip them
over and then immediately flip them back upright. As they gain confidence,
you can ask them to slap the hull of their kayak when they want to be rolled
up so they can safely experiment with being upside-down a little longer. It
won't be long before they will have the confidence to try the wet exit with
you holding onto their kayak, ready to roll them upright in case they
suddenly feel like they "can't get out". After a few wet exits with
you on hand, they'll be ready to flip over themselves and perform the wet
exit with your more distant supervision.
Once a paddler is comfortable with
the idea of being underwater, you can start teaching the hip snap. Ask the
paddler to first practice rocking their boat back and forth while keeping
their upper body still and upright. This teaches them to stay loose at the
hips, which allows their upper and lower bodies to work separately and
cooperatively with each other. Next, ask the paddler to practice their hip
snap while on their side and holding something stable, such as the side of a
pool, a low dock, or the bow of a friend's boat. Once they have developed a
full hip snap and learned to keep the head down throughout, try a few
T-rescues. When a T-rescue can be performed competently on both sides, a
paddler is ready to learn to roll.
As with teaching any skill,
remember that different people learn in different ways, and no one way is
better than another. On one end of the spectrum you have people who learn
visually and through action. No matter how effectively you break down the
technique verbally, this type of person really needs to see it and/or attempt
it to fully understand it. On the other end of the spectrum you have people
who learn in a very technical fashion and who need to be given clear verbal
breakdown of the method with obvious landmarks. Most people fall somewhere in
between these two ends and will need the roll to be both demonstrated and
broken down in a clear and simple manner. This is not only important when
introducing the roll, but it is equally important when working with a paddler
one-on-one, while standing in the water. As clearly as you may be verbally
communicating what you would like them to do, you may have to hop into your
kayak and demonstrate it.
With regards to which roll is the
best to teach a learning paddler, there is no correct answer. As I mentioned
earlier, some instructors will very successfully teach the Pawlata roll
first. The Pawlata is much more common among sea kayakers and much less so
among whitewater kayakers because the latter need to be ready to go
immediately after rolling up, making it preferable to not move the hands
around on the paddle. I prefer to teach a standard C-to-C or sweep roll
because it promotes good rolling technique from the very beginning and it
helps to develop paddle dexterity.
Whichever roll you decide to teach,
don't give the paddler any options early on. The simpler you can keep it, the
better chance they have at rolling successfully. If after working on a
particular type of roll for a while, you decide that it would be best to try
a different style, no problem. In the interests of being attentive and
flexible, feel free to adapt your teaching technique as necessary, but
understand that you want to limit how often you switch techniques.
Here are pictures in movie
form to help you see what is being explained:
I have always found the most
successful teaching progression starts with me standing in the water with the
paddler. I ask them to focus on setting up with their paddle high out of the
water, and their head and body leaning far out to the side. I ask them
beforehand to let me guide their paddle, while they focus their attention on
making a complete and powerful hip snap and keeping their head down. By
repeating these motions, the paddler learns how their paddle should move
through its set-up and catch phase. Once they are setting their paddle up
nice and high out of the water, hip snapping effectively, and keeping their
head down throughout the roll, they are ready to start taking more control of
their own paddle. At this point I stand right behind their body while they
are still upright. While supporting them either under their arm or by
grabbing hold of their PFD, I have them slowly fall towards me. They can now
completely right their kayak while I keep their head just above water. If
required, I talk them through the paddle motion and even use one of my hands
to help guide them. The key, as mentioned earlier, is to support the paddler
not the blade, so that they do not have to put too much pressure on their
paddle.
These assisted rolling practice
drills will develop good technique over time. Some paddlers will catch on
right away, while other paddlers may need a number of sessions before it
clicks. Just stay patient, attentive, flexible, and positive. Another thing
to keep in mind is that rolling uses muscles in ways that a learning paddler
isn't used to. This fact, combined with the mental challenges of picking up a
new skill, mean that there is a point at which "learning fatigue"
will set in, so don't expect to spend more than an hour or two teaching to
roll on any given day. By going longer than this, I can guarantee you that
the learning curve will quickly plateau, or even reverse.
Ken Whiting was the 1997/98 World Whitewater Freestyle Champion. He has
produced an award-winning series of instructional kayaking books and DVDs,
and leads kayaking trips to Chile. Check out www.helipress.com |
March,
2007
|