Kayak Update

I'm coming up to the final stages on Isabelle's kayak. The coaming was pretty much the most difficult component to finish up. I had to redo some of it. Here is a picture of the canvas pinned to the coaming through the holes that will eventually be used to sew the two together.

This is what it looked like from up close. In the end I should have made the holes bigger but I was worried about the strength of the coaming. It is Isabelle's boat after all and I suspect it will be beat up a little. After several hours this is the finished result. The pictures below show the final result, at least before the paint. It certainly looks sharp and I can see why some people say it's a shame to paint them. In this case I haven't decided what colour to paint it. Remember it is for Isabelle. Any ideas? Feel free to post your suggestions. I think I'll stencil some sharks, whales, and starfish on the finished product. For the paddlers out there, here is a video I came across on YouTube. I didn't realize MEC did this sort of thing.

Other than that I am preparing for a big trip to Ireland and France. I hope the weather will be good and the flights will cooperate. It will be a real planes, trains, and automobiles kind of event. More driving on the "wrong side of the road" in Ireland and the TGV to Clermont-Ferrand from Paris. I'm looking forward to it but not as much as I am looking forward to our five day weekend at the beach in June. It might be the launch of Isabelle's boat. Either way it will be a good time.

Asheboro, NC

Here I am on another business trip in Asheboro, North Carolina. We have a small retread facility here and I've finally had an opportunity to visit.

Asheborro is a small town about the size of Truro. It was founded in 1796 on Christmas Day. Seems like a strange day but I guess they'll never forget it.

We rolled in on Tuesday, spent some time in the plant, and finished up around 5:00. At 6:00 we walked across the street to eat at a place called The Rockola Cafe (be careful-the website plays music as soon as you log on). It is a less expensive version of the Hard Rock Cafe. The menu was pretty typical and the decor interesting. My colleague and I sat in the bar with the lonely business men. At least we had each other to talk to, some of these guys just flirted with the barmaids and played with their Blackberries.

Along with our free appetizer coupons from the hotel (I had nachos with some good chili on top) we also ate some decent sized mains. A rack of ribs for me and a steak for my friend. Both were good but the ribs certainly were not as good as they are back in Greenville at the local barbecue spots. The beans and slaw were very nice.

In the end it made for another anniversary away from each other. Jane and I are happily married for 8 years on May 12th and can't seem to put two anniversaries in a row together. Last year I was in SC house hunting while she was packing up the house back in Kentville. This year I am away in another state. Seems like there is always something going on somewhere that keeps us apart on the big day. I guess it doesn't matter so much as long as you make the best of the time you have together.

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.

Happy Mother's Day

First of all Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers out there, especially to my mother Diane, and my grandmother, and my mother in-law (that doesn't sound right- how about Elizabeth instead), and Gran, and all the others out there who have mothered me over the years (Ann Y., Tante Elaine, Tante Etta, just to name a few). Here in SC it was a good day with activities and quiet time for most. We got out to Downtown Greenville for Artishpere and saw some neat art. Artisphere is a neat event with lots of artists showing off their stuff along with other performers and activities. There were some great street performers, musical groups, and acrobats, and a big tent with lots activities for the kids. Isabelle made a mask, a maraca, and did some abstract painting. Maggie stayed home by herself for all of three hours and didn't wreck the place (that's progress). It was a good day. Now for a little story. A few years ago when I was just little my Dad bought himself a small welder for the workshop. The problem was that he bought it on Valentine's Day! Ever since then my Mom has always wondered what she'll get for Valentine's Day or Mother's Day or her birthday. Well this year I'm following in my father's footsteps...read on. Saturday was the subdivision wide yard sale. I guess in order to keep the yard sales to a minimum they have one or two big ones a year and put up all sorts of advertising for them. It keeps the neighborhood respectable. In our part of the neighborhood there were lots of houses with things for sale (we didn't participate-we sold most of our junk, I mean treasures, when we moved). There were also lots of people out looking for a bargain. At 27 Redglobe I got up early with Isabelle (as is normal for a Saturday) and got breakfast moving. Jane was up not long after and went to the store to pick up a few things since we were having company over for supper. When she got back at 8:30 or so she mentioned there was lots to see. I had been on and off as to what I wanted to do that day so made a decision and jumped on my bike to hit the streets. At the sixth stop I saw something that caught my eye. There was a perfectly good, gently used, beautiful whitewater kayak. I couldn't believe my eyes! It was the boat I had learned to roll in back in Newfoundland. Well in the end you could say I bought myself a kayak (at a good price) for Mother's Day, just like my Dad who got himself a welder for Valentine's Day. For those of you who know boats it's a Corsica Overflow Pro-Line by Perception. They don't make it any more and haven't for a good number of years. It was actually made just a few miles form here in Easley SC. Now if I can just get Isabelle's kayak finished. Actually I am making progress. I have all but one small seam sewn. Next comes the coaming. After that will be the paint. Still no decision on the colour but it may have to wait for a while as I have a couple of busy weeks with work coming up.

Skinning a Kayak

I have been at Isabelle's kayak a little this weekend. I sanded the seat slats and the last of the stringers and it looked about as ready as it was going to be. Isabelle got to sit in it for the first time and seems to like the idea of having a boat of her own. I guess I know how my father felt when he made me my first kayak (Merci, Bernard). Anyway, below are a few shots of the process so far. I think I have about 15 feet of stitching to do and I've got about four feet done in three hours. That means it should take me another eight to ten hours to get it done, and that doesn't include stitching the coaming in. Then comes the fun part-painting it. I haven't agreed on a colour with Isabelle yet. It will not be pink and it will not have a rainbow on it. I'm leaning towards turtles and starfish, maybe red or blue with yellow accents.

The first job was getting the coaming ready. As my Dad always says, you can never have too many clamps kicking around your workshop.

This is the boat ready to be skinned. I bought some canvas a few months ago and made sure it was large enough to wrap completely around the boat.

The slats are just sitting on the frames. Ideally they should be lower (some boats don't have any), but anyone in this boat won't have a very high center of gravity. Isabelle in her boat for the first time.

For those of you who know kayaking this is what I do as I celebrate riding a huge wave or running a killer rapid. It will be a while before we get to that with Isabelle.

This is what the process looks like. Note the curved needle at the end of the floss (yes floss, unwaxed and unflavored). The staples help to keep the canvas taught as I work along the seam.

Above is a picture of my handy work on the bow. It may be difficult to see but you need to stitch in the flaps you create as you move along the length of the boat to keep the skin flat.

This is finally starting to look like a boat.

A few weeks ago I went to the East Coast Canoe and Kayak Festival. I have been working on a long post from that weekend in Charleston. Please stay tuned. I hope to get it out this week.

I'll leave you with a trademark shot of the girl.