Okay, so I havent posted to the blog.  Well, I have been busy!  I took an order for a dozen paddles for a kayak camp up in Northern Canada.  So I have been carving like mad for the last month.  ANd I am on sabbatical soon!  Two more weeks!  Ill have a week off, and then up to Lopez Island and the Brooks Penninsula!   So, Ill be out of touch for about a month!  The plan is – get as far away as I can!  And spend some time at home too, working on my house.

Well,
THe class at Tillamook went very well! For screening, I used the strokes rubric. You can see that at OOPS’s website, in the docments section under ‘COOL’. www.oopskayak.org. I only used some of the strokes out of it, not all. And then I also asked some experience questions. Between hte two, it was a good screening process, quite accurate. For the class, we had six students and two instructors – Fred Harsman and myself. The conditions were forecast higher than Id have liked, with gale force SSE winds and 12′ swell. But we decided to go ahead, and we could change the route if it didnt look good. It was a good choice. When we got there, the wind was calm. When we got to the Three Graces, after rescue practice and some stroke work, that 12′ swell outside translated to a 3-4′ set every five or six minutes. Perfect conditions! So the class all had a lot of fun, and it was a very good day.

Well!  Tonight I worked on an upcoming class for OOPS (Oregon Ocean Paddling Society).  Im learning about screening…  Always before Ive mostly taken first come first serve in the club classes Ive taught.  That drew some criticism over the last one, where we had four rescues and many more mishaps.  Not that anyone was in danger at all, but… It was an interesting day.  So this time Im screening for basic skills. 

Teaching is very rewarding for me.  It lets me contribute to the Kayaking community.  Kind of like supporting a charity   Its a good feeling.  ANd its fun!  I learn a lot with every class!

12-25-09: Well!  Mark made this Blog thing work for me, and now Im figuring out how to use it!  It might take a little while.  

Its been an interesting year.  Divorced again. Dad is gone.  Dave Graham is gone.  Bought a project house. 

Paddle carving is still going strong, tho not as strong as it was last year.   Im still getting out on hte water, looking at trying to do an Advanced Open Coastal ICE this year and hopefully an Adaptive Paddling Workshop.  Maybe a Ocean Currents class with Body Boat Blade, too.  Will see…   Ive Sabbatical this summer, and an thinking of putting together several weel-long road trips instead of one long trip down the coast.  Ill be able to see the things I want to see, and spend some time at home hopefully working on the kitchen.  That is, if Im out of the bathroom by then   So much to do…    One NY resolution is to write in hte blog once a week, keep up on it, and update my web site at least twice this year ( as opposed to none last year).   More soon…  Tidings of Comfort and Joy!