A day off of work, a day to sleep in. Pancakes, hang out with Sam, and burn the hours away. An hour to departure, load Sam in the truck and head out for a hike. Return home, feed Sam, and rush to load my boating gear. One last stop at a gas station for road snacks. Finally on the road twenty minutes after I meant too. Whoops.
Audible spinning stories as the dark miles passed by. Good roads, no ice. Cody came into sight an hour later. And soon, unloading in the rec center parking lot. A quick haul and five dollars later, the pool area awaited. Conversations, paddling, rolling, and a fun time followed.
Now pool sessions are great ways to practice skills, because of the controlled environment that it puts you in. I find this to be a nice way of testing out any modifications I've done to my boats. And, I've had a lot of testing. My goal for my canoe is to have a comfortable and functional. Something that I an paddle all day, brace/roll, and still have happy legs in the end. It's a work in progress.
My most recent modification leans more to the comfort side. Which I learned during this trip to the pool. I can push on the new blocks that I added, but my feet slip off when I apply pressure while attempting to roll. This might be fixed if I wear shoes, or I may have to add a way to prevent the slipping. I won't know until I try.
While on the topic of pool sessions, I want to talk about something that different people may have different opinions about. And that's the almighty 'roll'. What a roll is, is a way of recovering from a capsized position while remaining in your boat. I think it's a great self rescues skill, and one that takes a while to master. That being said, do I think that a new boater needs to master this skill before putting their boat on a river? No, I don't.
Why do I think this. Well, I'm someone who likes to see the fun at any difficulty level. I mean, many of us got into kayaking/canoeing by looking at pictures or videos of experienced boaters paddling through class V rapids or dropping from water falls. I still get chills, and shots of inspiration when I see these. (I'm watching some while writing this.) But, I think most people forget that these experienced boaters started at a similar place that we did. They gained their skill from kayaking/canoeing on rivers, and pushing beyond their comfort levels.
I can use myself as an example of this.
I bought my canoe back in 2016, knowing very little about how to handle a whitewater canoe. Then, after only two runs, promptly paddled it down most of the Main Salmon River in Idaho. Thinking back to the first day of that trip, I was scared. The first section of lateral waves nearly caused me to jump into a raft and leave the canoe lashed up for the rest of the trip. I am very happy I didn't.
That trip, I canoed many class III rapids. And, with the help of basic bracing, never capsized while moving down the river. (I did capsize a few times while practicing at the camps we stayed at.) I can happily say that I built a lot of confidence during the Main Salmon trip. I also got a lot of experience with paddling and bracing. These skills I will always prioritize over rolling, for the simple fact that they are used more frequently. Rolling is really just a larger brace after all.
I'm not saying that I'm going to give up learning to roll. I mean, having a good roll is an incredible confidence booster. Similar to a flashlight at night, 4 wheel drive on a vehicle, or a spray deck on a kayak. Rolling gives a huge boost in a boaters confidence, allowing them to push limits and maybe reach the class Vs/water falls faster. If that is still what a boater is looking for.
Feel free to tell me your thoughts.
Talk to you later,
Yeti
Audible spinning stories as the dark miles passed by. Good roads, no ice. Cody came into sight an hour later. And soon, unloading in the rec center parking lot. A quick haul and five dollars later, the pool area awaited. Conversations, paddling, rolling, and a fun time followed.
 |
| Cody Rec Center |
Now pool sessions are great ways to practice skills, because of the controlled environment that it puts you in. I find this to be a nice way of testing out any modifications I've done to my boats. And, I've had a lot of testing. My goal for my canoe is to have a comfortable and functional. Something that I an paddle all day, brace/roll, and still have happy legs in the end. It's a work in progress.
My most recent modification leans more to the comfort side. Which I learned during this trip to the pool. I can push on the new blocks that I added, but my feet slip off when I apply pressure while attempting to roll. This might be fixed if I wear shoes, or I may have to add a way to prevent the slipping. I won't know until I try.
 |
| Old |
 |
| New |
While on the topic of pool sessions, I want to talk about something that different people may have different opinions about. And that's the almighty 'roll'. What a roll is, is a way of recovering from a capsized position while remaining in your boat. I think it's a great self rescues skill, and one that takes a while to master. That being said, do I think that a new boater needs to master this skill before putting their boat on a river? No, I don't.
Why do I think this. Well, I'm someone who likes to see the fun at any difficulty level. I mean, many of us got into kayaking/canoeing by looking at pictures or videos of experienced boaters paddling through class V rapids or dropping from water falls. I still get chills, and shots of inspiration when I see these. (I'm watching some while writing this.) But, I think most people forget that these experienced boaters started at a similar place that we did. They gained their skill from kayaking/canoeing on rivers, and pushing beyond their comfort levels.
I can use myself as an example of this.
I bought my canoe back in 2016, knowing very little about how to handle a whitewater canoe. Then, after only two runs, promptly paddled it down most of the Main Salmon River in Idaho. Thinking back to the first day of that trip, I was scared. The first section of lateral waves nearly caused me to jump into a raft and leave the canoe lashed up for the rest of the trip. I am very happy I didn't.
That trip, I canoed many class III rapids. And, with the help of basic bracing, never capsized while moving down the river. (I did capsize a few times while practicing at the camps we stayed at.) I can happily say that I built a lot of confidence during the Main Salmon trip. I also got a lot of experience with paddling and bracing. These skills I will always prioritize over rolling, for the simple fact that they are used more frequently. Rolling is really just a larger brace after all.
 |
| Second to Last Day of the Main Salmon Trip |
I'm not saying that I'm going to give up learning to roll. I mean, having a good roll is an incredible confidence booster. Similar to a flashlight at night, 4 wheel drive on a vehicle, or a spray deck on a kayak. Rolling gives a huge boost in a boaters confidence, allowing them to push limits and maybe reach the class Vs/water falls faster. If that is still what a boater is looking for.
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