Small Fish in a Big Pond

A few weeks ago after arriving home from Mexico I did something I've always wanted to do-I went to a real live kayak festival. The 2009 East Coast Canoe and Kayak Festival was held at James Island County Park in Charleston. It is one of those events I always read about in Sea Kayaker Magazine but never could find a way to go. It was amazing. But first...

WARNING: This is first and foremost a kayaking post filled with technical jargon, kayaking terms and references, and lots of other stuff that I find terribly interesting but may not be appreciated by others outside of the paddling community (you know who you are). Read this at your own risk. Be warned that newcomers to the pass time of kayaking have been cautioned with the following message:

CAUTION: Kayaking is a dangerously addictive activity. Do not attempt unless you are prepared to re-examine your life and make radical changes to give yourself more opportunities to paddle. Such changes include, but are not limited to: giving up your current profession, spending less time with family and friends (unless they paddle too), choosing your next car based on gear space and roof rack capacity, making new friends, and never, ever, complaining about being wet. It is a water sport! Now go out there and get wet!

Now back to the post...I arrived on Friday just before noon and registered. I had already signed up for several masters classes via their online registration system but unfortunately was wait listed for both surf kayaking and surf sea kayaking (there is a difference).

The first order of business was to find my campsite. I registered at the James Island County Park Campground and put my tent up in the back of the big field they call the primitive camp area. It wasn't too crowded yet so I got a nice dry spot at the back that would hopefully be quiet. It turned out to be a good spot except for the fellow next door who had a bad case of the "ahems". There was also the group of college students who stayed up late discussing Jonah and the Whale and his relationship to God. (I must say I was surprised when I got up the next morning at 6:30 and they were gone, tents and all.)

The venue was perfect. It is actually a nice little county park with lots to do. Above is a shot of the vendors row across the pond where all the courses, demonstrations, and demo paddles took place.

The weather was great the whole weekend and there were hardly any flies (apparently the "no-see-ums" can get very bad). Sunburn was a concern but I managed to keep myself covered up and lathered in sunscreen when I wasn't in the water.

There were courses, lectures, and classes for all levels. I attended two lectures, one on Managing the Surf Zone and another on Kayak Fitness. The courses were for both kids as well as adults. Below is a group of six and seven year olds getting ready to hit the water. Later that day they had a cardboard canoe race where the kids built boats and then raced them. The winner went home with a new sit-on-top kayak and all the gear.

One of the highlights for me was a Sculling Rolls clinic by Dubside. For those of you who are not familiar with him (Dubside is what he goes by) he is well known in paddling circles as the father of Commando Kayaking, defined as:

1. The use of collapsible, manually propelled watercraft deployed via public transportation, often on spontaneously selected non-circular routes. 2. Kayaking effected so as to render the automobile superfluous. 3. Kayaking enjoyed under adverse conditions of weather, comfort, and convenience. 4. Kayaking on the cheap. 5. A way of life that embraces all of the above.

He is a well respected Greenland style kayaker who has competed and done well in competitions in North America and Greenland. He is also very well known for his abilities at qajaasaarneq or Greenland rope gymnastics. (Note the word qajaq in the name.) If you visit his website you'll see that one of his trademarks is that he wears nothing but black. His boat is black, his bandanna is black, and of course his tuiliq (traditional paddling jacket) is black. Apparently he lives 90+ft up in a treehouse in Washington State somewhere. He certainly was a character.

Here he is in his custom made (black) folding Feathercraft kayak. The boat is also pictured below on the beach.

One evening before a less traditional paddling demonstration we got to try some rope gymnastics. Here is Dubside trying to convince some of the onlookers that it really is possible to spin and twist on the ropes, with a little practice and some strength.

Before I get to the paddling demonstration I want to tell you about a very interesting instructor I met while at the festival. Allison Sigethy did the first two master's classes I attended on Friday when I arrived (intro to Greenland Paddling and Greenland Rolling). She is an accomplished paddler and instructor but is also an artist. Her work and her story are found on her website: gointogreenland.com. I ended up sitting with her at one of the meals and learned a whole bunch about Greenland style paddling. She also sorted out a few things that were wrong with my paddling while we were on the water. A few minutes with her corrected some key stroke issues.

Anyway, here she is during the paddling demonstration. I only caught a short clip of her "show" but it really was like ballet on the water. For the full thing have a look here.

Another paddler who really was amazing was Karen Knight. I don't have a good video of her in her single canoe but she made her boat dance on the water. This YouTube video isn't too bad.

Another key speaker/lecturer/attendee was Nigel Foster. He is a very skilled sea kayaker (some say the best). His Accomplishments can be found at this website set-up by Seaward who carry his line of kayaks in Canada. I didn't get a chance to attend his classes but I did watch some of his demonstrations. Below is a picture along with a few videos. The last one is particularly impressive, although that is a relatively wide boat he stands in.

On the last day I managed to finally paddle two boats I've been considering to replace my 12 year old Capella. The Scorpio by P&H Kayaks in Derbyshire, UK, and the Aquanaut HV by Valley Kayaks in Nottingham, UK. Both were nice boats with lots of features I don't have on my boat now. I especially liked the ease of adjustment both had with their foot braces. The Scorpio has a fourth hatch that is a little excessive in my opinion while the Aquanaut is larger and roomier (more gear and more room for my toes). I guess in the end the Aquanaut wins out due to its simple sleek look, longer waterline, and lower price. Then again, I'm not buying a boat tomorrow am I? (Of course I'm not counting the white water boat I just bought...you can't compare a Jeep to a Ferrari can you?)

The last thing I want to mention about the weekend is the food. No trip would be complete without a review of how we ate. In this case lunch was on the run on all three days. I had dried salami, crackers, raisins, and fresh fruit. For the other meals I opted for the festival meal package. This included a traditional barbecue dinner one night and a low country boil the next. the barbecue is essentially pulled pork with all the fixings: baked beans, green beans, potato salad, coleslaw, rolls, and macaroni and cheese casserole. The Low country boil is crab and/or shrimp, boiled with new potatoes, corn on the cob chunks, and sausage. My favorite was the barbecue but the boil wasn't bad either. Both were served with large amounts of sweet tea (iced tea for you northerners) and strawberry shortcake and brownies for dessert.

Breakfast was essentially a traditional buffet complete with biscuits & gravy and grits. There were more healthy options for those who wanted it as well as strong coffee. All in all it was way too much for those of us who had to paddle that day, but all the meals were well worth the price of admission.