I was reflecting on why paddling seemed to be such an instant fit for me, like a missing part that I found. I think it is a metaphor for my life, alone on an ocean that is beautiful and dangerous and can push you along to your goal or swallow you into its blackness...filled with beautiful and deadly creatures and the unknown...and the struggle to endure, forge ahead and keep going though it seems so far...
"All things test man, say the Gods
so that he, robustly nurtured learns to give thanks for all
And understand the freedom to wonder as he will"
The six man to me is the antithesis of what I feel about the outrigger...like a row of motorcycles welded together, militaristic, mechanistic, follow the leader. That is probably why I dont really fit in with the crowd at the club, with the politics of getting the seat on the A boat or whatever. What I have seen and experienced is too much like the insanity and pettiness I go to the ocean to escape. Maybe who you are, what club you paddle for, how fast you are, who you know is more important than "I love to paddle" so I go my own way. As the sun is setting I look out to Catalina and wonder if I could make it now, tonight or if I will die alone on the water...but I have to go home to take care of my family so I play it safe...but it is a great adventure.
My thanks to those here on the board who have helped me.
Shawn
Submitted by Shawn Michael on Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:14pm
A post like that may make some think you are about to embark on a one-way trip out on the water to never comeback.
Don't do it, man!!!
#1 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:18pm
OC6s have their own coolness. When the blend is on, the whole teamwork thing. No better or worse than OC1.
#2 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 4:49pm
Why can't you do both?
And what's wrong with being militaristic? Some of my best friends are militaristic. Some of them get real poetic paddling upon the waters on dark moonless nights.
Well if you're going to get philosophic, just remember the ancient Polynesians were tribal, not loners. Then again they were cannibalistic, too. So forget that "aloha spirit" group harmony stuff. Its modern re-invented feelgood bunk. They weren't handing Captain Cook leis when he landed in the Sandwich Islands.
Yeah, now I think about it, maybe we all ought to paddle off to our own separate islands and live alone, with Ginger...or Mary Anne. Alone.
You didn't happen to read that book about that guy who went off into the woods in Alaska, did you?
~~~~~~~~~~
YankeeHo'okele
"Anyone can steer the ship when the sea is calm" - Syrus Publilius
#3 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:24pm
Spoken like a true "dumb haole"! It takes one to know one they say...
#4 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:39pm
The term _____ comes to mind rapidly.
I could recommend some Hawaii-centric books, but I am concerned they would not be understood.
Here are some more quotes from your hero- Publilius Syrus -I hope they help you.
"I often regret that I have spoken; never that I have been silent."
"Good health and good sense are two of life's greatest blessings. "
"How unhappy is he who cannot forgive himself."
"It is better to learn late than never."
"It is only the ignorant who despise education."
"Take care that no one hates you justly."
"You can accomplish by kindness what you cannot by force."
"You cannot put the same shoe on every foot."
#5 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 5:55pm
It is just a reflection of my own mental pathology...I can imagine the perfect co-ordination of a team of 6 in the flow just flying like one giant heart, muscles and billowing lungs powerful, tireless...and being good friends too, that would be amazing...in soccer when the team functions like one perfectly timed unit, it is just unreal.
It sounds like a case of "the grapes I cant reach are sour" but I really just love the freedom and solitude of the one man. Where I paddle I see the dragonboats all the time and sometimes the 6 man. I see the rowers and envy the speed and power, but they are trapped, cannot see where they are going and cannot venture beyond their walls. Maybe it is just me who feels this way.
Thanks for reading
#6 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 7:43pm
Into the wild? Good stuff.
#7 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 7:48pm
People paddle for different reasons. You may want to get away from it all. I want to be a part of something.
#8 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 8:21pm
I first started paddling just to get the staph infections, but I've stuck with it, even after all these years, for it's wallet-emptying qualities.
#9 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 8:30pm
Don't forget the bonus of taking skin off your ass.
#10 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 8:33pm
I was offered the generalization that outrigger culture, surfski culture and paddleboard culture each have their own tone...the surfski being from a more individualistic solitary, self sufficent, self rescue lifeguard mentality and the outrigger being more of a club/tribe circle of friends mentality. I know it is a generalization but is there some truth to this?
#11 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 8:39pm
There is something about Outrigging that is contageous.
I paddled Kayak for 24 years. I tried outrigger paddling at an expo and have not looked back since.
My family tree goes back 48 generations. My ancestors are scattered throughout the South pasifik, Samoa, Fiji, Tonga, New Zealand and now Australia.
Hopping into an OC6 was very spiritual to me and I am not even a religous guy. I feel that I had contact with my ancestors for the first time.
I do not know what really drew me to it, I just go with it and am thankful to be working out with nature as my training buddy.
Shawn mate, i think I know where you are comming from. I will paddle for as long as I am able. It is an awsome exerience that can be enjoyed at so many levels.
#12 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 9:20pm
Wow there are so many issues in this discussion. I think balancing oc6 and oc1 is best. oc1 is awesome, we all know that. But if you got 6 of your best buds and you're hauling ass in a 6-man then there's nothing better than that. Yeah there are the politics and that sucks but oc6 has the potential for some great times.
I paddle for the injuries. So far I've gotten a boil on the face and ass. The one on the ass was huge, had it cut and then packed and couldnt sit for a while. I got tendonitis or something so bad in my hand I couldn't grip my steering wheel of my car and other things. Blew up my back and got a hernia. Love it!
But on a serious note I think we all need the unpredictability of chaos and disorder in our lives. We live lives with so many rules, laws, and so much order and predictability that some part of our brains yearns for the opposite. For paddlers its the ocean. For others its sky diving or mountain climbing or drugs. So much chaos and uncertainty out there on the ocean, perfect for the sanity of insanity.
#13 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 9:23pm
i first stepped onto a boat fer th' burnin an' lootin that i could get into. then i reckoned makin' someone keel haul th' plank be way cooler. then one tide i saw a guy keel haul starboard off th' plank an' onto a canoe. th' canoe be so majestic as 't carried th' lad's t' safety. 't be ornately decorated wi' red pin' pong balls along th' length o' 'tis hull. perfectly beautiful.
since that tide i decided bein' a sea dog be cool. but attackin' an' pillagin' one man`s be e'en cooler. since 1988, i be havin' nerelooked aft. 'ceptin' fer when i needed t' be seein' behind me. an' when i be drivin', but i think rear view mirrors dasn't really count fer lookin' aft since technically me hade dasn't turn. then i guess thar be th' time i sailed' t' washington t' paddle a regatta an' i looked behind me t' be seein' 'ere th' other boats be. plus tonight i ended up lookin' behind myself at th' ATM machine when i tookst ou' treasure. ah well.
but paddlin' sure be cool!
#14 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 10:00pm
It seems, too, that some clubs are much more competitive than others, in which case you'd have more of the politics of "getting a seat on the A boat" - or getting a seat at all. I was talking recently with a coach for a huge club, and she mentioned having a line of 18 paddlers sitting on the beach, waiting (hoping) for a seat to open up. Yikes. This was about regattas, so I'm not sure what happens to them during distance season, but I can't imagine - nor do I want to - being a member of a club like that. Although I'm sure there are positive qualities in there somewhere.
I'm lucky to belong to a small club with somewhat set crews (due to limited numbers, for now) which allows us to really bond and grow together. There's much love in our canoes, and that's a big reason I've become so enamored of paddling. Of course, there are some downsides to being in a super small club. I've also started paddling with a larger, but not huge, club (for Kona - W00T!), but it seems the politics are limited there, as well. Maybe I'm just not seeing it yet.
Then, as Poops mentions, there's the water, the waves, the wind, the honu and sharks, among other things... the unpredictability of all of this and the mental acuity necessary while paddling. Shawn, I feel like you do as far as paddling filling some missing part - this is one of the very few things I feel impassioned about and I'm just getting started.
But boils on the face?! I've already had one on my ass (holy crap, that thing HURT!)... didn't think about getting them elsewhere. And I just pretend the missing ass skin is like some super-duper exfoliation. Or something.
#15 Mon, 07/21/2008 - 10:02pm
Not only is the "culture" different from OCs to skis, to paddleboard, but even OCs from one area to another. Just got back from Gibsons and the Gorge and it just doesn't feel as Hawaiian up there. Canoes on the beach, okole to the water, people stepping over canoes, sitting in them on dry land. Go to Kona (or even SoCal) and try one of those. One quick smack upside your head.
There's great paddlers up there (Jericho OCC, False Creek OCC, etc,) but for me its more than just the physical sport. Take away the culture and tradition and a lot of the feel goes too.
#16 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 10:17am
First post here…
Shawn - a timely post - I have had similar thoughts lately regarding the politics of clubs, getting seats, etc. It seems to kill it the vibe for me.
Admittedly, up here in Canada, the culture side gets too often overlooked (I think because of lack of knowledge) — but it’s a part of the sport that creates more of an atmosphere…more to it than just the sport of it…it’s a big draw for me.
#17 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 11:33am
You want some inspiration .... check out Nappy's latest feat.
http://www.honoluluadvertiser.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080722/SP...
Cheers Rambo
#18 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 12:25pm
Shawn
I once helped a guy with his stroke. He was sure that "kerplunking" his blade into the water just before his knees and pulling back far beyond his hip not only felt strong, but was fast. A lil tweak here and there and he started silently slipping into the catch near his toes and started exiting out at the hip and lo and behold......he was faster. He himself was amazed at the speed. He felt it instantly. BUT, had he never tried the extended reach and earlier exit he never would know the thrill of paddling faster. OC6 is awesome in its own way..........but you never know till you try:-)
#19 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 1:25pm
I think that though there are some unfair "paddletics", there is a lot more to crew selection than meets the eye. Ability, effort, fitness, attitude, combinations, who's best in what seat, matching strokes, motivational games, etc.. People often think its about them or who likes them when most times its not.
#20 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 1:54pm
Shawn,
I respect what you are saying and your feelings are rightly your own to experience and reflect upon.
I live in a busy, big city here in Canada and as you say the water is my last free solice and place to escape from the hectic, busy crowded bustle of it all. Absolutely love being out on my OC1s and its only 5 minutes from home. OC-1 is 'your' time, mostly on your terms and for your own needs and reasons....its your vehicle to freedom and something to truly appreciate.
Yes OC6 has its politics everywhere, but when experienced with the 'right' unselfish, not self-serving individuals in a club it is a great feeling of sharing that respect for the water, each other and OC. Whether you are part of a rec crew in a club or competitive one.
Unfortunately as someone else already pointed out here, that sense of bonding and respect can be missing in certain clubs or groups as people miss the value and sense of the cultural roots of the sport and the respect and honour people hold for their club and members. Some individuals will always be self serving. In many cases our western sport values have influenced that. It took a few trips for me to Hawaii and paddling with clubs to see and really understand and appreciate those things deeply rooted in those OC traditions.
Choke Aloha
#21 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 2:23pm
I paddle because I like to paddle.
My favorite reason...shamelessly plagiarized by unknown [to me] voice on one of the vids at this site. Needs no further expression.
#22 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 2:48pm
That unknown voice is Nappy Napoleon.
#23 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 4:19pm
I love Nappy's comment on reaching the final stages of the 74mile leg of the article i posted above.
He said "I was just Whistling along" ... hahaa .. What a champ eh?
Cheers Rambo
#24 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 4:30pm
In the final stages of a 74 mile paddle, the only whistling you'd hear from me would be out of the hole the medics punched in my throat.
#25 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 8:25pm
I can in some distant way imagine paddling for hours on end but I cannot sit for more than three without unbearable pain from sitting. I hope that capacity improves along with everything else. I am totally humbled by Nappy's feat.
After reading some of the injury thread you wonder if paddling is something that is bound to hurt you sooner or later but with the mega mileage some of these older guys have put in it is good to know that there is a chance at enjoying it long into life.
There is a lot to be said for starting with 6 man and really getting it down, since I took my first OC strokes on my own boat that I bought on impulse...thanks to boataid for coaching and technique help that made a big difference, even though old habits die hard, I'm trying.
#26 Tue, 07/22/2008 - 10:40pm