Whitewater Kayaking

Last Saturday and three Saturdays ago on the ninth, I went kayaking on Hurunui River, which is about 2 hours north of Christchurch. I hadn't been whitewater kayaking in two years since the spring of 2004 when I was last in Seattle. I went with people associated with the University Canterbury Canoe Club.

I paddled very well on the first trip. I only rolled once and had little problems with the rapids. I was in a big creek boat with lots of stability and lots of volume. The second trip I didn't paddle as well. I was in a tiny play boat with no back support. I rolled countless times and swam once in the gorge. The gorge is class III part of the river. I swam because I was stuck in a hole and the foamy water makes rolling difficult. I don't know why my roll still fails one time in twenty. To top it off, I was verging on hypothermia at the end of the run. The swim was mild. I held onto my paddle and another easily retreived the boat. I was on shore quickly.

River kayaking is one of the more frustrating sports to learn. Differences in athletic ability and metal attitude are magnified. Some people learn to roll on their first try and never miss another one. Some don't learn until their one thousandth attempt. The consequences of missing a roll and rolling are radically different. You can guess which type of person usually goes on in this sport. I like to think that rolling a kayak is tied into the challenges that I face in my research and in my social life. I know in theory that to break out of a hole while you're up-side-down look for the "green" or flowing water. Putting a paddle into it will pop you out. Plus, the average human can hold their breath much longer than the intermediate kayaker waits to pull their skirt. Why can't I execute in practice?

Last Saturday evening, I went out to bars with the kayakers. We started at the Dux-De-Lux, went to the Rockpool, and finished at the Treehouse. Again, the difference between theory and practice haunted me. Very late in the evening at the Treehouse, some in our group wanted to sing Sweet Caroline and they wanted me to come on stage with them. They knew that I was from Boston and had seen a Red Sox game or two. I whimped out. In theory, it would've been fun, but in practice, I was too shy. I like this quote that I read on someone's email signature once,

In theory, theory and practice are the same. In practice, they're different.