An Adventure – Learning to Sail

Today’s Music: Jimmy Buffett

WHEEEEE!!!!!!

In a June, quite some time ago, Ms. Diamond needed to get certified as a Life Guard.
So, one day in the cafeteria, she dropped the brochure for the place she was going for the lifeguard course on the table.
Being a nosy S.O.B. (though it’s possible sh offered it to me – not sure – been a lot of drinking between then an now), I looked through it.
Sailing! Learn to sail on a lake in Pennsylvania! One person Sunfish! Oh.My. God.

At the time, I was listening to way too much Jimmy Buffett. Parrothead, (mostly) recovered, that’s me.
One of the things Jimmy sings an awful lot about (besides drinking, and women, and food and islands and…) is sailing.
And here was an opportunity to learn it on the cheap!

So I went. My sisters came along to learn to Scuba Dive (in the same lake), but I was there for the sailing.

The first day, it poured. So they brought the sailing group (there was sailing, lifeguarding, scuba, and a bunch of other classes being taught that week) into a cabin. The instructors told us about themselves, told us about the boats we’d be using, and asked us what we wanted to get out of the class, and to draw a picture of it.
I wrote Sail like Magellan. The picture I drew wasn’t quite as bad as this, but lord, it wasn’t good:

Not even Magellan could keep this afloat.

Fortunately, making us artists wasn’t the point of the course. Making us sailors was.
They taught us how to put together a sunfish and take it apart. How to step the mast (insert it in it’s slot so it wouldn’t leave the boat when the sail was filled with wind), how to run the lines (ropes on a boat are called lines), how to tell where the wind was coming from and how to trim the boat (adjust sails and heading (direction) for the wind).
They taught us about the hardware on the boat – the stays and guys, tiller and running rigging, and how all of them held the boat together and made it go.
They taught us witty sailor sayings – “red sky at night, sailors delight, red sky at dawn, storm coming on”, “tiller to boom to avoid doom”, “rain before wind, better stay in. Wind before rain, soon set sail again”.
All phrases that I’ve found useful even in my daily landlubber-ous existence.

And they taught us how to sail.
Picture 5 newbies, each in our own boat, trying to sail in formation. Okay, we managed to get more or less to the same part of the lake, more or less at the same time. But when they told us to sail in close formation, we all managed to get in exactly the same part of the lake at exactly the same time. And had a massive pile up.
I think that was the first time I fell out of my boat, avoiding the nose of another that parked itself on top of me.

But slowly we learned. We understood the points of sail, learned how to trim a sail to take the most advantage of the wind. How to get out of irons, or steer for a buoy.
And we learned to not crash into each other. Unless we really wanted to.

On the last day, we were allowed to sail around on our own. When time was up, I steered in, coming up to the dock neatly against the wind. I put my hands on the dock – to hoist myself out of the boat – my feet still in it.
And the boat, which wasn’t tied down, started to drift…away…from the dock…

Which was the last time I fell in.

I’m sorry I couldn’t find it, because i really wanted to scan and post my Upside Down Award, for falling creatively out of boats. I earned it, dangnabbit.

And before you leave the post chuckling at how i wasted a week, several years later I was invited to crew on the Around Long Island Regatta on a boat something like this:

I got here from a Sunfish.

Random Notes

Today’s Music: The Wombats

Haven’t posted in a few days.
Just thought I’d throw out some of what’s going on.

Music –

The Wombats are again Today’s music. I had tickets to see them last night. Couldn’t make it. A little grumpy about that.

Health –

The sick relative has been moved to a post-op facility and is getting better. Doesn’t mean they are good yet, just not quite as bad.
That means that instead of trekking out to Long island every night and on weekends, I will be hauling to the wilds of Queens.
On the bright side, there is the chance of a good restaurant nearby, so that’s something anyway.

And my wife (most wonderful girl in the universe) is getting over a cold* that only lasted 2 days. For her, that is ridiculously short. And there was only a minimum of chasing her under the blankets or up to bed. (mostly because I’m exhausted and probably just barely holding off a cold myself).

*Her being sick and me almost being sick has not stopped me from kissing her. Some risks are just worth the reward.

Cooking –

Still going with the “cook like hell” on Sunday so my girl and I have food to eat during the running around weeks of work and healthcare visits.
Cooking 3 or 4 meals at once on the weekend makes it a lot easier during the week. It’s nice to know that we will have something good to eat when we get home, and I prefer bringing my lunch to work so that A – I don’t throw away 10 bucks for a bad sandwich, and B – I know what I’m eating.
I believe there is beef stew and chicken soup (yes, from scratch) on next weeks menu…

Mental –

You know, I’m kind of run down.
It’s not just the sick relative. Work has been busy and the peanut gallery has been getting more worked up than usual. I’ve gotten to the point where I pretty much ignore everything they say
unless it is directly related to work. Which means I’m ignoring about 95 percent of the noise they make. They are in a different office, but close enough that they don’t have to go to far out of their way to try and piss me off.
There’s a reason I don’t own firearms folks.
I’m also a bit concerned about money. We’ve bought many of the prescriptions the sick relative needs, we were driving out to see him daily when the rel was on long Island, and there have been too many days/nights where we had no prepared food, so lunch and or dinner had to be bought.
We aren’t falling behind or on the verge of going broke, but I do worry about it…

Bright Spots –

I have my health (such as it is).
The rel is getting better
The wife is getting over her cold
The weekend is coming and surf conditions might be good if the wind comes down a bit
Doctor Who Series 6will be out on DVD next month
I have been subjected to almost no Kardashian/Gaga/Michael Jackson/Britney news lately, and Lindsey Lohan should be fading from the spotlight again shortly.

Now if we could just make the politicians be civil, that would be fantastic….

Hopefully I’ll be a bit more coherent after Friday and will be back posting, updating, and above all, babbling more regularly soon.

How has your week been?

Stupid: +1, Brain: 0

Today’s Music: Snooks Eaglin

Went surfing Sunday.
Probably shouldn’t have.

Forecast was 8 knot wind, blowing from offshore, with 1 to 3 foot waves. Perfect for a beginner.
Wasn’t.

Actual conditions were:
Wind: Fast and strong. Coming parallel to the beach. Made for a very difficult paddle out past the breakers.
Made it even harder to walk down the beach with the board. I was literally spun around by my board catching the wind. Twice.
Waves: 3 to 6 foot. There was a lull every so often, so unlike the last trip, when the waves were 4 to 8 feet with no letup, it was at least possible to paddle out.

Frank was there when I got out of my car. I heard him before I was him.
“Look at you! You’re an animal!”. And when I turned, there he was , with a big grin on his face.
Frank runs the NY Surf School, the guy who taught me to surf.
Frank and I have the same attitude – any day spent surfing is a good day, any time you get your feet under you, it’s a ride.
So I have an affinity for Frank. He gave me good advice on getting a board, without trying to steer me to a particular store, he gave me good advice on a wetsuit, without trying to stress a particular model or seller.
Frank is good people.
So when I walked over to say hi and asked if I could borrow or rent a rashguard, I was ecstatic when he said “Sure, I have an xl for you. Keep it”.
Frank just wants everyone to have fun on the water.
A little while later when I was on the beach looking for an entry point, he came over and said “You look cold. I have an extra wetsuit you can use, just return it at the end of the day”.

So now I had my board, my rashguard and a wetsuit over it. I also put on my gloves and boots that I had from my scuba days. So I was ready to go in.

NY Surf School class getting ready to charge in.

The wind had other ideas.

Out of habit, I had set up camp near the right side jetty. I needed to enter near the left side jetty.
So I pick up my board (which is just wide enough to make it uncomfortable to carry under one arm) and head diagonally down the beach to the entry point. And get spun left. And right. And pushed back. And pushed sideways.
But I made it. Eventually.

Now I’m all set. I wade in to about thigh high water and watch for a lull, my hand on the nose of the board to keep it from straying.
And I realize – I’m in over my head. I’ve taken a bunch of lessons with Frank and his crew, learned the basics and gotten bunch of rides.
But the amount I know about surfing can be poured into one of my surf boots without dumping out the water first.
And here I am, standing, for the second surf trip in a row, at the edge of something way beyond my abilities, that for me to try would be incredibly stupid.

Those of you who know me know what happens next. Those of you who don’t should be able to guess.

I charged right in, turning off the brain and turning on the stupid.
Waded deeper, catching the waves against my shoulder, and the second I saw a lull, I hopped right up on my board and started paddling for all I was worth. Which sadly wasn’t much.
I was able to stay on my board, which made me happy. Let’s face it, being on a surfboard (unless it’s on your lawn) is pretty cool. And I managed to balance my weight, keep the nose pointed into the waves, and keep paddling.
I kept my head up and my arms working. When a wave came, I braced for impact, kept my weight forward and let it roll over me.
It wasn’t enough. I couldn’t force my way against the wind enough to get past the breaker line.
So I headed back to the beach, sorry I hadn’t made it, glad I had tried, and ecstatic I hadn’t died.

Dragged my board back to my spot and saw the wind had buried my blanket in sand.
Had a message from OtherPaul on my cel. He was stuck in traffic and should be there in about 30 minutes.
Frank (my new hero) came over and gave some useful advice about managing the paddle out.
I flopped in the sand and considered this while waiting for OtherPaul and smoking a cigarette.

Other Paul finally made it and we headed out. I learned two other things yesterday at the beach:
-That’s going to be my last day as a pack-a-day smoker
-There are effing push ups in my future.

Ever been around a pack-a-day smoker who quits? Unpleasant. And I hate exercising. I’d rather do whatever it was I’m exercising for than exercise in preparation.
(another reason there are more points in the Stupid column than the Brains column.)

So let us sum up:
Wind: very difficult to paddle through when it’s strong and at the wrong angle.
Waves: can be disorienting when they toss you about
My Board: Coolest. Board. Ever. At least, it looks very cool.
Smoking: Bad for surfing. And breathing
Upper body strength: non-existent
Sand: In everything I own
Brains: nowhere to be found.

So what am I going to do?
Pushups, exercise, cut down on smoking.

Because I’ll be going back out – Halloween-ish, Thanksgiving-ish and New Years Day.
It’s too much fun to not. Which is pretty damn stupid.

But maybe not…

Why Adventure?

There are things that are important to me. One of them is adventuring.
Why? is a question a lot of people ask me. It’s a question I ask myself as well.
Part of it is being part of a group that understands the thrill of doing these things, that have felt the same thrill.
I’ve jumped out of airplanes twice – the first time on a static line, the second time as a tandem.
Most people I’ve spoken to that have jumped all say the same thing – they don’t remember the first five seconds of their first jump.
I have the same gap. I think that happens because there is just no frame of reference for the brain to process what it’s just done.
Even after the brain catches up, it’s kind of hard to process. But it leaves a pretty damn big smile on your face, even after (if you’re like me) you blow the landing, smack your knee into a rock and limp for the next three weeks.
Battle scars are cool.

Part of what I love is the discovery of what this magnificent, complex, under-appreciated body is capable of.
I’ve gone climbing many times at the Shawangunks in New Paltz, NY.
Sure, there’s a safety line, but once it’s fixed and checked for security, it’s forgotten, only used as a last case if (when) you come off the wall.
I remember 2 climbs in particular: Slightly Roddy, and the second pitch of High Exposure.
Slightly Roddy is a short climb – about 25 feet vertical, with a 10 foot overhang ledge. To reach the end of the climb, you shimmy up a very accessible face, then climb out parallel to the ground along a crack that is navigated by jamming both fists and both feet into it.
It’s a short climb, and as a Top-Rope, it is well protected. But on my third try, I was laughing so hard at the absurdity of the position I was in, that it was guaranteed I was going to fall off. And, laughing to my partner who was belaying me, that’s exactly what I did.
I never finished it, but it is one of the stand out climbs of my trips there.
High Exposure is memorable for a different reason.
Finishing a 100′ climb to a ledge, the exit move is done from that ledge onto a point.
To make the move (just below the woman in the picture), the climber has to lean forward over a 100′ drop, reach over their heads to find a hold, then grab it, spin around and climb up into nothing. Nothing.
I couldn’t do it. I took that look down and seized up.
If the two climbers rappelling down hadn’t stopped, called out encouragement and yelled guidance on where to put my hands, I wouldn’t have been able to do it.
But they did. And with their words, they welcomed me into the club of “Because it’s There”.
That day, I learned, more clearly than from any other situation before or since, what my body and mind can do when they work together.
Same thing with hang gliding. The body and mind have to be focused and working together, or bad things can will happen.

Or scuba diving.
As an insulin-dependent diabetic, I’m not supposed to dive. But it was pretty high on my list of things to do, and on a resort vacation one year, I decided to take the whole Open Water Diver course.
Oh. My. Goodness.
Flying. I was flying. Moving in three dimensions with a wave of my arm or kick of my leg. Hovering. Rising. Falling. Flipping (a little weird doing somersaults in scuba gear, but still fun). And so, so relaxing. If you’ve done it, you know what I mean. And you can understand a conversation about the fun of being self-contained in an alien world.
If you haven’t, stop reading this, find a dive shop, and get your butt in the water.
You’ll thank me for pushing you into it later. Even you, Greg.

Or surfing. Which I suck at.
I don’t suck at all parts of it. there’s a move called “pearling”, which is flying off the front of the board. While it’s not the goal of surfing, I have managed to discover 117 different ways to do it. And mastered them all.
But I keep going out and I keep trying. Because it’s fun. And lets face it, driving through suburban NYC with a surfboard strapped to your roof is cool. Especially if you know how to use it! (Which I will one day. I hope).

It’s part of being in a group that knows what it takes to do these things, of the commitment and focus needed to ride on that edge between lots of fun, slightly insane, and totally unbelievably stupid.

In the end though, more than the community, more than the cool factor, even more than discovering my limits and how to get past them, it’s about discovering joys and perspectives that I just can’t find commuting to work, or just sitting at my desk, or doing any of the mundane daily tasks that are part of life.

If someone asks “Why adventure?”, my two answers are a quote from George Mallory, “because it’s there”, and the other, even truer for me, to answer every surprised gasp or aghast sneer of “why would you do that?”, I can only answer…

“Why would you not?