tangled up in rope

The Inuit have about 30 different kinds of rolls to upright their kayaks in the event of a capsize while out hunting  for supper. It may happen that the harpoon line gets tangled around your body and the unfriendly seal just keeps on pulling you around. So over you go, rope round your body , kayak getting dragged along and you have to roll up somehow or you family goes hungry.
Well we dont need to hunt seals now, and we don`t carry harpoons anymore but we do tend to tie all sorts of equipment on our kayak decks, one of them being the pump.

Normally you can paddle for months and nothing will happen but if you like rough water and surfing you could be in for a surprise. We had some good surf a couple of days ago and Yossi went surfing, he got rolled over in a big wave and the rope came loose and got tangled round his neck making his eskimo roll a little more challenging than  usual. Luckily he managed to roll up after drinking a good bit of seawater. Now he is looking to stow his pump behind his seat and not  on the rear deck as before.
Here is a video of the event

The same morning he had his favourite Greenland paddle on the foredeck as a spare, the waves were so strong, they shifted the paddle over the deck and then the force of the water broke the paddle in half.
Heres that video
Thanks to Yossi for the material for todays blog, hope we can all learn something from it.

VERED LEARNS TO ROLL HER KAYAK

Heres Vered, that translates to Rose in English, but after being here for  so long it sounds better to my ears as Vered.I guess her story is typical of so many kayakers who learn to roll at a clinic or rolling session, then comes the winter and the rolling lessons and practice just dont happen any more.
Then one bright day a decision is made to get the job done and the lessons and practice begins again. This time progress is much faster and the  rolls get better and better. At the end of the season Vered has a pretty reliable roll. Now it just takes lots and lots of practice to get to the stage when it becomes instinctive, when you roll up and realise that you just did it without any thinking at all. And then you still need to practice, not just in flat water, you need to get out and do it in tides and surf and any other  difficult conditions.
Remember that you have a left and right side and  just when you think you can take it easy you realise that you have neglected the other side and the whole process starts again.
What fun.
Heres a video of vered learning to roll in the warm waters of Sdot Yam

Another year is finished, another year is beginning

learning to roll

If there is one skill that can improve your kayaking and boost your confidence, it is the Eskimo roll.

Once you have mastered the roll your fear of capsize disappears and you can venture out in rougher water without worrying about rescues. In fact the better you get at rolling the less you have to do them because your balance and bracing improves as well. Then you find yourself rolling just for the fun of it because you can.

It does take a while to get to the point of rolling instinctively and you have to practice a lot. In fact you should roll every time you get on the water. At first you will find that your roll comes and goes, one day you may think you have it only to find the next time its gone away.

Also you should try to roll on both sides as well, this is harder than it sounds but pays off in spades in rough water and when you are surfing. 

Most of all don't give up, with persistence it gets easier and then one day you will find that you are rolling without thinking.

This summer at Optimist  we spent a lot of time on our Thursday afternoon sessions teaching rolling and here is a short video showing how its done.

easier to make, harder to use, making and using the Greenland paddle........again

In the beginning you start off with a 10x5cm piece of wood, here we have 2 pieces of Cedar and one of Paulownia which has already been planed and cut out to the rough shape

Then you begin by getting rid of all the wood that is not part of your paddle, this can take a good few hours. Its actually a lot of fun when there are a few of you working together

Finally you end up with a beautiful hand carved Greenland style paddle

next you bring it to the kayak club and have your photo taken

And fiinally you get to put it in the water. This is the hardest part because if you are not used to the new GP  the first few strokes can be a bit of a challenge. Some never make it past this step, others on the contrary are more determined and stick it out getting through the first awkard moments and then get better minute by minute

A little encouragement does help, find someone who loves his or her GP and let them mentor you for a while

It started out with one paddle a few years ago and look at us now, every day there are more paddlers discovering the pleasure and benefits of the GP. 

getting it right

This morning I met Amir Taran on the beach, he had his camera set up on a tripod with a large telephoto lens and was taking photos of the action on the beach.  He told me he dows it for fun and does not do anything with the pictures except keep them on his computer

He said he would send me some if I wanted. Of course I said yes and gave him my email , not really exprcting anything. What a great surprise I got when he did send the pictures to me, and really nice ones too. If I was a bit smarter I would have turned around and played in the waves for him ...... lets hope we meet again soon

Thanks to you Amir your pictures are too good not to be seen , we need to find a way to show them.

The sea has been really nice this July with good surf for playing in

Sometimes it gets busy and crowded out at the rock

But its always fun and keeps us smiling

Rough water is also good for rescue training

Heres Izzy and I having a bit of a race for the wave this moning thanks to Vered

The kayak is a Guillemot Play, built in 2005, Im using it while repairing my Petrel, and this just shows that the Petrel is the best kayak for rough water that I have, cant wait for the repair to be finished and get it back in the surf

And then Yoav brought me a bucket of Lychees  straight from his tree.
I must be doing something right.

Thursday skills sessions in rough water

 rough water makes a great learning environment

Great waves for beginners

good bracing practice

and a great place for froggies

the size of the waves depends on where you are

I think thats Gidi

didnt I say only one kayak on a wave at a time

its taken a long time to get Arieye out in the surf

go for it

and then get rescued.... better learn to roll

sun gone in the cloud

and one broken paddle