Brit Blog

East coast Blizzard

2010-02-08T13:55:00.004-06:00

Emma had no school today as Baltimore County is digging out from about two feet of snow that fell over the weekend. Apparently more is on the way and they are thinking as many as three snow closure days...... Today was very cool for Emma and I as she finally got Skype video conferencing working and we were able to chat numerous time through out the day.

Pool session and paddling making

2010-02-07T20:02:00.013-06:00

This morning at the ISK pool session it had been my intention of focusing on the spine roll, but some much more was achieved…. I had thought that I just needed to work on the end of the roll, but Alex helped me understand that I had to set up differently (my hands were all wrong), dig deep and get the blade out of the water and then slide my off hand and on hand out sideways. The end result was a great sense of accomplishment as I powered through the roll and found myself upright. Alex made another comment that really resonated with me – stop watching, just feel the roll, my chin had been tucked in so I could watch and this caused my head to rise up. By relaxing and no trying to watch my head was much lower in the water and stayed there for longer.
Having completed the spine roll Alex suggested I try the roll with the paddle behind my back, I nailed that first time. With my confidence built I broached the subject of Norsaq rolls and my desire to do the forward start forward finish Norsaq roll. Alex helped me set up correctly then bam, I did it, then bam I did it again… at this point I thought of quitting having had such an awesome session. Then Alex suggested I try the Norsaq from stern to bow finishing forward, unbelievably I nailed that too. I repeated them both then took a breather chatting with Tony, who then wanted to see the rolls, I did not expect them to work but to my amazement I nailed them all again! This time I finally quit and practiced some braces to relax. I had a huge grin and a wonderful sense of accomplishment leaving the pool today. You have to love the way people embrace not just the skills but also the culture of passing on these skills to others. Thanks Alex I am indebted to your teaching this winter.
On my way home I called J and we decided to have lunch together which was a lovely surprise, we met at Big Bowl in Edina, mmmmmm….. Good food. We then shopped and chose some everyday china and glasses to replace the war wounded flatware we have been using for many years. I visited Ron, owner of Novorca Paddles, on my way home and he showed me the processes he uses for wrapping the paddles in carbon, then as an added bonus I stayed and watch as he cut the foam core for an Aleut paddle a customer had ordered. It was great to see the craftsmanship and artistry at work, anyone who claims technology takes away from the tradition has clearly never seen Ron at work.
Ron and I have decided to offer this Wednesday pool session for free. Why you may ask? Well its paid for so why not share the opportunity with friends? One compelling aspect of Inuit culture is the way they pass on skills and help each other adapt the rolls to suit their bodies and boats. I think of these sessions as our chance to do that with our friends. I have helped several and several have helped me.... this is what it is all about for me. Today at the ISK pool session I talked Peggy through learning the butterfly roll, I knew having seen how relaxed she had become with her standard roll that she was ready for something else, she nailed it, and I was proud to be called her rolling mentor. A perfect end to a great learning experience... pass it on.

So the roll list has grown:

• Standard Greenland roll - Kinnguffik paarlallugu/nerfallaallugu
• Side sculling - Innaqatsineq
• Chest Scull - Palluussineq
• Reserve sweep roll - Kingumut naatillugu
• Standard roll with paddle behind neck - Siukkut tunusummillugu
• Armpit roll - Paatip kallua tuermillugu illuinnarmik
• Butterfly roll – Pakkaluaq
• Rolling with paddle in crook of elbow - Pakassummillugu/unermillugu
• Storm roll - Siukkut pallortillugu/masikkut
• Throwing stick, start tucked forward, finish leaning aft - Norsamik nerfallaallugu
• Hand roll, start tucked forward, finish leaning aft - Assammik nerfallaallugu
• Paddling upside down - Pusilluni paarneq
• Quick succession of standard rolls - Nerfallarlugu assakaaneq
• Spine roll - Aariammillugu
• Paddle held behind back- Kingup apummaatigut
• Throwing stick, start tucked forward, finish tucked forward - Norsamik masikkut
• Throwing stick, sweep from stern to bow, finish tucked forward - Norsamik kingukkut

Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown

2010-02-06T00:23:00.003-06:00

While working on an incident at work tonight I had another new DVD playing in the back ground, Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown. Gordon Brown uses a trip along the west coast of the Isle of Skye to teach many bracing, turning and rock hopping skills. It's an interesting approach to a training DVD, I have many produced by the University of Sea Kayaking which are pure training, and the This is the Sea series which are purely about trips, this is the first that I have seen that blends the two together.
It certainly made me long to get back onto Lake Superior where I can get to play in the waves.... or the warm trade wind swells of Kauai breaking on the bar at the Hanalei river....

Dubside Spine Roll

2010-02-03T21:50:00.005-06:00

Today my copy of Dubside's Greenland Rolling DVD arrived, I had received two copies of a different DVD from Paddling.net for Christmas and so I replaced one with this new DVD. It is awesome, lots of very helpful hints on how to improve my rolling. I captured this shot showing the arm position for recovery from the Spine roll, it completely explains why I failed.... I was taking the whole spine thing a little too literally. I can't wait to try this out on Sunday.

Also he shows a very interesting progression for learning the crossed arm roll, Alex tried to explain this to me a couple of weeks ago, but watching this DVD really made the progression sink in, more learning for me.... If you are unfamiliar with Dubside check out his website here: http://www.dubside.net/ And thanks Renee for recommending that I watch this DVD.

Spine Roll

2010-01-31T17:07:00.003-06:00

I still can't quite get the finish on this roll. More practice required next weekend. In this video it is pretty clear that you leave the paddle behind in the water and it only comes out as you left your back upright and that it never really comes onto the deck.... food for thought.
Today I also cracked the Petrussen maneuver, which was surprisingly easy with my long tulik, Jeff struggled but I think his tulik was not long enough to allow him to get his hips out and twisted. I also again practiced the nalaasaarneq this time on both sides, in fact most of today's pool session I spent practicing offside rolls, none forward finishing... that is next on the list.
The new paddle worked like a charm even with its far smaller blade, I saw Fran using hers for the first time too, and Ron had finished the Carbon Aleutian Paddle - it looks awesome.

I discovered by chance today that ISK has an extra pool session on Feb 7th, sign up on line as usual, I just checked and 8 slots were available. Also we are holding a rouge pool session Wednesday the 10th February, sign up at http://poolsession.net

Rogue Pool Session #5

2010-01-31T09:07:00.001-06:00

Traditional Kayak Clowns

2010-01-28T17:11:00.000-06:00

Be careful when you watch this, you might die laughing:

Aleutian paddle

2010-01-26T01:36:00.004-06:00

Ron at Novorca Paddles is working on a new Carbon Alutian design paddle, I am not sure but this may be a world first!
Very cool. I am hoping to see the prototypes on Wednesday, also my new Carbon GP (86x3) may be ready by then too... can't wait to try it out!
This picture shows the prototype shape cut out in styrofoam - not the foam that will be used in the final product!
While surfing tonight I came across this cool site skinboats.org they have a page on carving Aluet paddles.

Homeward bound

2010-01-22T13:47:00.001-06:00

Plaza de Mayo, originally uploaded by Christopher Crowhurst.

Argentina proved to be a beautiful country filled with fabulous architecture and warm hospitable people. The mix of ancient and modern architecture makes for a vibrant lively city, add to that the street café scene and you have a great place to live, or visit.
That said its time to fly home, I can’t wait to see my family again. Europe beckons next with a trip to the UK, Spain and Belgium.

Buenos Aires

2010-01-20T12:05:00.005-06:00

I arrived this morning in Buenos Aires with Peter on a direct flight from Sydney Australia, it was a great flight, I ate dinner took a sleeping pill and woke up on the approach to the airport!
Daniel met us at the airport and took us to our hotel which is a Hyatt inside the Palacio Duhau, a beautiful old stately home.
We walked around the city streets to get some sunshine and fresh air, then had lunch at the hotel. Now I am back at work on finance conference calls for the afternoon. Tomorrow we are off to the La Ley offices to meet both the local team and the customers.

Lunch at Bondi Beach

2010-01-18T22:21:00.003-06:00

Bondi Beach, originally uploaded by Christopher Crowhurst.

Peter and I went with the Australia and New Zealand team for lunch overlooking the world famous Bondi Beach, it was fabulous weather, 25C with a breeze keeping us cool. People were covering the beach sunning themselves and we watched as people surfed. What a place to be able to call home!

Australia and New Zealand Team, originally uploaded by Christopher Crowhurst.

The Gap

2010-01-18T03:46:00.002-06:00

This evening Laurence took Peter and I out to The Gap near Watsons Bay, a penincular at the mouth of Sydney Harbor, the view both out to sea and back to the city was spectacular. Tomorrow afternoon we are having lunch with the team at Bondi Beach - it should be fun to watch the surfing.

MSP - LAX - SYD

2010-01-17T11:20:00.010-06:00

Thursday night there was a production storage issue in the datacenter, being a part of the management team I was up all night assisting my colleagues lead the process of recovering from incident. Best news was no data loss and little to no end user impact. But it did impact me and the many other folks engaged in the process, I slept for 65 minutes that night, and then in the morning went to bed at 6:30a, and got back up an 8:00am for a staff meeting with my leadership team.
Why is this relevant to my trip? Well it set me up for being completely drained by the time I reached MSP airport. J and I had arranged to meet at Houlihan’s restaurant just outside security and we had lunch together, it was good to see her and give her a hug, she had been out west all week at a work training event, so that was our one chance to see each other in 15 days. Eventually J had to leave and go pick up K from school and I went through the security at MSP, very quick no issues on Friday. I went to the Delta Crown Room and noticed there was an earlier flight to Los Angeles (LAX) so I was able to quickly change my flight and jump onto the earlier one, I generally prefer to get on the earliest one possible to reduce any issues of delays etc. I landed in LAX and then wandered the airport looking for somewhere to buy Australian Dollars and Argentinean Peso, I eventually walked through a tunnel to another terminal and found somewhere that could sell me Aus Dollars but no luck on the Peso. I spent a few hours in the Delta Crown Room charging my laptop and phone and clearing up my inbox, and then headed to the gate. I had been expecting the flight to be around 20 hours, but it ended up being 15, I think in the itinerary I had read the combined first two flights as one… Anyway 15 hours was quite long enough, I slept a good 7-8 hours and didn’t feel too bad when I landed. The appraoch to the airport was amazing, the wind was from the south so we landed over the harbor from the north and got great views of the Opera House and bridge. I was given a pass to expedite my way out of the airport, I was glad to have it, the immigration line was not bad but the customs lines was massive, I was just waved through bags x-rayed and out in a matter of 2 minutes. Oh and on the way I lost a day (I never saw Saturday....)
The drive into the city was great and I saw a lot of the main sights from the ground so I have a general idea of the layout for the city. The hotel is nice, modern and clean - the room has a washer and drier!
After a shower and a shave I took a cab to Mosman which is on the other side of Sydney Harbor from the hotel, there I had arranged to rent a kayak, from Sydney Harbor Kayaks. When I arrived I had just missed the “Fat Paddler” which was a shame as he and I had exchanged a few messages as he too is an avid paddler and blogger – next time I will have to let him know I am coming. It was interesting how much more relaxed the rental company was than a US based one would have been, no massive deposit, no signing away your life, just hand over $30 and go for a paddle. I was able to select an old sun bleached Kokotat PFD and a Werner paddle and then headed to my assigned boat, I had asked for their longest thinnest boat.. holly cow it was a cross between a nuclear sub and a bath tub (Boreal Design Saguenay), any way it was awesome to be afloat. Apparently local laws prevent them renting spray decks and I did not feel like buying one so I went without. The wind was blowing about 20 knots in the outer channel and there were white caps everywhere. The bath tub loved it, plowing swiftly through the chop and when I turned around I was able to catch many waves and really enjoy the warm water. I couldn’t resist taking the opportunity to roll the boat so when I was back near the launch site I locked my knees in and flipped it over, I used an extended screw roll as I had no idea how tough it was going to be, it popped right up, but of course was full of water. I pumped it dry and then went off into the wind to dry off and repeat the surfing. An hour later I was done, soaked from the chop spraying over me but happy and warm. I landed and then lay in the sun to dry off. While paddling I had noticed somewhere that looked fun to eat so I walked around the corner to the Plonk Café and had a really nice lunch of locally caught Blue Cod, and a glass of local Sauvignon Blanc, both were excellent. I slowly made my way back to the hotel across the Harbor Bridge (which I hope to climb on this trip), I managed to survive until 7:30pm and then my body decided enough was enough and sleep overcame me. I awoke at 3:30am (hence this posting) and am about to try to get some more rest.

Round the world in 8 days

2010-01-14T11:00:00.002-06:00

Sydney Harbour Kayaks

2010-01-13T08:40:00.004-06:00

I just reserved a kayak from Sydney Harbour Kayaks, they supply Boreal Design kayaks, I asked for the longest thinnest single they have, I am hopeful that it will be the Ellesmere which looks like a nice boat. I am renting all the equipment and will have to revert back to the Euro paddle as I have not been able to find anyone that can rent me a Greenland Paddle.
I have found a couple of contacts through a facebook friend who I am going to work with to go on a guided paddle in Argentina, it looks like there are some wonderful paddling opportunities in some of the massive river deltas. more on that as it firms up.

Rolling stick

2010-01-11T09:44:00.002-06:00

Today I received a new rolling stick from Joe O'Blenis, it is substantially longer than my previous one from Bettsie Bay. It is also treated with Tung oil, compared with epoxy so it has a much warmer feel to it, I will be interested to feel how it once it is wet to see how it sticks to the hand. The stick is laminated from nine individual strips of wood, and tapers down in a nice uniform shape, and its beautiful.

Photograph taken with iPhone so quality not up to much.

Novorca paddle

2010-01-10T20:40:00.002-06:00

Can't wait to get my hands on a Novorca Carbon 86 inch Greenland paddle that Ron is making today.

Chilly Britain

2010-01-08T09:41:00.001-06:00

Alex rolls again

2010-01-07T20:53:00.002-06:00

I found Alex on You Tube! Here he is performing forward finishing rolls at the Brooklyn Center ISK pool session using a Ron Steinwall Carbon GP.

It’s all in the knees

2010-01-07T19:57:00.006-06:00

Last night was a Bloomington pool session. When I started practicing the reverse sweep roll I was able to sustain a nice chest scull and recovery, I was able to to do a reverse sweep by setting up falling face first, but every time I went in backwards for the whole roll I was unable to cleanly finish the roll, each time I ended up having to scull up. This continues until Alex paddled over and pointed out that the reason I was failing was all to do with when I was engaging my knees. When falling in face forward I was engaging my knee immediately, drawing my head to my knee and thus the roll was working. When I fell in backwards I was not initially in contact with the masik and thus was loosing the knee contact and was not engaging it until I was nearly completely through the paddle sweep.
Based on Alex’s advice I set up for the roll with my knee engaged and as soon as I felt my paddle blade in the air I started “lifting” my knee. The effect was immediate and dramatic, from then on every roll was a success!
Buoyed on by the success Alex started talking to me about the storm roll. I explained that I had succeeded a few time but was not sure why it had worked, I demonstrated a failed attempt, and then Alex explained what he had found to be the magic behind the storm roll. Two factors, one was putting the blade on edge between my fingers and thumbs, as opposed to grabbing the blades edges. The second was to punch forward with my offside hand rather than sweeping with my onside arm. It worked like a charm, in fact as Alex predicted it felt rather magical as the roll just “happened”, the punch made a dramatic difference. Alex then explained that there were two basic ways to do the storm roll, a partial sweep stroke or a C-to-C, with the C-to-C you move the blade into a right angle position prior to using it as a lever, with the partial sweep you lever using the blade during the sweep and when it is in the right angle position. After Alex’s tutelage I was able to do both repeatedly.
It was an awesome evening of improvement thanks to the great help, I cant wait utill the next pool session.

Traditional Paddlers Gathering

2010-01-07T15:42:00.001-06:00

I was very excited to learn from Alex Pak that the Northern Lights Qajaq Society Traditional Paddlers Gathering is being planned for 2010 - I know that I for one am planning on attending.

Lake Superior Goes Greenland

2010-01-05T07:34:00.000-06:00

I am seriously considering going to the Naturally Superior Greenland Symposium in August, has anyone ever been? Any advice recomendations or cautions? Would this be suitable to bring Mrs C to also?

Holiday montage

2010-01-03T21:19:00.000-06:00

Nalaasaarneq

2010-01-03T15:13:00.000-06:00

In the Eastern Arctic Kayaks book it describes a variation of the static brace, Nalaasaarneq. "When performed correctly this enables the kayaker to fall backwards upon the water surface and lie there for several minutes without any movement of the kayak, kayaker, or paddle. The Kayak remains heeled on edge so that the kayaker's weight is shifted, which helps relieve the tired muscles and aching joints that can result from sitting several hours in a kayak". This all gels with the static brace I have learned, however when it comes to the paddle it is very different: "In the nalaasaarneq maneuver, instead of using an extended paddle to brace against the water for support, the paddle is used to lock kayak, kayaker, and paddle into a floating unit that remains stable and without movement." "To perform the nalaasaarneq, the kayaker holds the paddle across the shoulders behind the neck , with the hands outboard of the shoulders on each side, and shifts the hand that will be outbound toward the end of the paddle. The the kayaker twists the torso so the back faces the direction of the capsize. At the same time, the kayaker leans aft and hooks the paddle outboard the aft deck gunwale on the side towards the capsize, then quickly throws his or her head back to capsize, while keeping the kayak heeled with the legs and pelvis so that it is inclide away from the direction of the capsize. When the kayaker hits the water, the head goes under, then quickly bobs up.. The kayaker, who has remained in the position assumed at the beginnning, now floats on the surface facing upwards."

I have never heard of this previously, but intend to try and learn it on Wednesday night.

Great Books

2010-01-03T10:54:00.002-06:00

I had previously thought that my best Christmas gift was the union suit but this has since been trumped by a series of books. The first was BFG by Roald Dahl which I am reading with Emma (having her here is realy the best gift), we have just read the seciont where the BFG is explaining about all the other giants eating Human Beans, and how they all taste different, Emma and I are both enjoying it tremendously - thanks Mum.
The other books were given to my by Mom (mother in-law), I am fortunate to have a Mom and a Mum, it makes it things easy for me as they never get confused being called Mum or Mom. Anyway the books; The undisputed best book I have read on Kayak history design technique has to be Eastern Arctic Kayaks History, Design, Technique by John D. Heath and E. Arima. It has excelent sections on the evolution of the designs, the history behind many of the Greenland rolls and braces, as weel as an exceletn dsection on paddle design and techniques. I read with much ammusment the introdduction to Inuit Terms, whcih deals nicely with the issue of Kayak, Qajaq, and points out that the english spelling for the Inuit Watercraft should actually be Qayaq, and that Qajaq is the Danish or German spelling. I think I will stick with Boat for now....
Anyway thank you to Mum and Mom for such a wonderful selection of books this holiday they are all very much appreciated.