Wednesday, August 29, 2007

End of Days

I'm not referring to biblical Armageddon or that rather cheesy film by Arnold Schwarzenegger but that fact that as of today I will no longer have the opportunity to train and assess others for their 4*


As of September, the 4* Sea (and other disciplines) will see a change in the award in that it becomes one with leadership responsibilities



So congratulations to Eve Donald for putting in a fine performance to gain her 4* Sea. A very memorable day all round

Monday, August 27, 2007

Monday Morning Wave

Photo: Jason Murray

Surfing produces adrenalin, the elixir of stoke

- DC Green -

An unidentified rider coming off the bottom on a Maroccan screamer.

Friday, August 24, 2007

Objects of Desire


Buff® is the brand of an innovative, useful, comfortable, fun, multi-functional garment that will keep off the sun, wind or cold. The brand’s success consists of Joan Rojas having created a product that didn’t exist before 1992, which meets a significant need among sportspeople and outdoor practitioners who are seeking functionality, quality and design.


A Buff® is probably the most versatile piece of headwear you will ever own. Buffs are designed for outdoor enthusiast and can be worn as a scarf, balaclava, face mask, neckerchief, pirate cap, wristband, headband.......the list goes on. It will wick perspiration away from the skin and is seamless for maimum comfort. More advantages of a Buff® include that it is made form a microfibre; is wind resistant; is small enough to keep in a pocket; is machine washable and fast drying.

Wednesday, August 22, 2007

BCU Performance Award Scheme


As of the 1st September 2007 the BCU is introducing a new scheme by which paddlers will be able to benchmark their skills and abilities on the water in a variety of craft and disciplines. The scheme will consist of the Star Awards and the Paddlepower Awards. 


Paddlepower is a youth-centred scheme aimed at encouraging young people to come into and stay within paddlesports. Its structured so that key concepts are introduced at specific stages within a paddler’s development, providing a strong foundation of skills and understanding. This structure also helps coaches to maximise both their sessions and their students’ potential. As well as focusing on skills and understanding there is also a strong emphasis on participation, and paddlers are encouraged to experience the many aspects of paddlesport available – both competitive and adventurous, across a spread of
disciplines. Its flexible structure means that it can be delivered in any venue or situation.


The intention behind the new Star Award scheme is to provide support and encouragement for adults (16+) in order that they can get out and go paddling. Changes that established paddlers will notice include the initial awards being generic, encouraging participants to experience the various disciplines of paddlesport available, then individuals being able to ‘specialising’ at the Three Star Award level (sea, surf, white water, open canoe & flat water). The emphasis of these awards is to develop personal skills and gain independence; the Four Star and Five Star awards are leadership awards enabling paddlers to lead groups in appropriate conditions.


The journey down this long and sometimes winding road has not been straightforward and its not quite over yet. It will be interesting to see how attractive the new scheme is to would-be customers (for that's what they are) as well as how those who can currently assess the awards cope with the changes with who can do what as of September.

For more information and syllabi on both award scheme go to the BCU website .

Monday, August 20, 2007

Monday Morning Wave


Photo: Andrew Shield

Anything else on your mind when you're dropping in?

- Kit Boise-Cossart -

The addictive cycle that is the perfect session: paddle out, wait, get pitted, paddle out, wait, get pitted.

Friday, August 17, 2007

Top Tips - Wikipedia


Where do you turn to these days when looking for some illusive bit of information or just want to get the low down of an old pop group you used to like in the '80's? That superb web based resource know to most as Wikipedia , of course.

More often than not I drop by Wikipedia and therein can be found the much coverted answers (as long as someone has taken the time to create an entry). If you are prepared to accept the the knowledge available isn't definitive or entirely accurate (as the idea of a wiki is that nayone can edit it and not everything wriiten can be guaranteed 100% true or correct) then Wikipedia is goldmine.

Wikipedia, naturally, has useful facts and figures about itself........As of August 14 2007, Wikipedia had approximately 7.9 million articles in 253 languages, 1.95 million of which are in the English edition. It has been written collaboratively by volunteers around the world and the vast majority of its articles can be edited by anyone with access to the Internet. Steadily rising in popularity since its inception, it currently ranks among the top ten most-visited websites worldwide. Wikipedia's name is a portmanteau of the words wiki (a type of collaborative website) and encyclopedia.

There are flaws, as with any innovative system, but for me the pros outway the cons. Every day, almost, I discover something new and have even added to a few pages. I just think its great that in 21st Century that we can all begin to more freely share we individually know and this can be accessed by many all over the world. Here to a great knowledge transfer medium.

Wednesday, August 15, 2007

Judgement


One attribute that is at the heart of all leadership decisions, and often acquired through that which can be learned from our mistakes, is the ability to exercise good judgement. This is usually taken as a person's capacity to make decisions based on their knowledge, qualifications, personal skills and intuition.


More than anything else it is this aspect of leadership that requires experience and maturity. Judgement is, in many ways, the hardest disposition of leadership to master precisely beacuse of its intangible nature. Essentially, judgement could be considered as taking all the facts at the leader's disposal, then using their expertise to fill in the blanks and hence deciding whether the intended course of action is prident and reasonable rather than negligent.

Monday, August 13, 2007

Monday Morning Wave


Photo: Sean Davey

If the pulse of jazz is the ocean swell, then the trumpeter is the surfer improvising against that backdrop, not by stating the obvious, but by creating space through style and rhythm. The best surfers don't just play the tune, but hint at it with sideways glances, subtle intonations, moves away from the beat, long aching silences punctuated by perfectly timed clusters of blue notes, or just a single shimmering note suspended in space, like hanging ten - suspended animation in that beautiful space between gravity and levity

- Sam Bleakley -


King Kelly, pondering the potential. Small Granites, King Island, Australia.

Friday, August 10, 2007

Top Tips - Travel Light


When you're camping from your kayak, take as little as you think you can comfortably manage with. The less you have with you, the quicker it is to find things and the less effort you'll need loading, unloading, carrying and setting up. That doesn't mean you have to forego taking your water-color paints! But really, how many changes of clothing do you really need?


Photo: Photo: Simon Willis

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

Seward, Alaska


Ressurection Bay


Seward and Goodwin Glacier


It just might happen........


Resurrection Penninsula


Just a nice house


It all began here


Mt Marathon........they run up it apparently


Yoly's Bistro.....you'd be a fool not to eat here


Moby Dick Hostel.....a comfortable stay


Exit Glacier

Monday, August 06, 2007

Monday Morning Wave


Photographer: Jason Childs

Even the wind and the waves obey him

- Damien Hobgood -


Dave Rastovich mining for emeralds, Padang Padang, Bali. Tough job, but he makes it look easy.

Friday, August 03, 2007

Top Tips - Fog Happens!



A true story! It had been a sunny day and they ate lunch lounging on the springy grass and enjoying the scent of wild flowers in the sun beneath a whitewashed stone wall by a lighthouse. But when they stood to walk back down the island to their kayaks they realized the sea was gone, covered in a dense fog. From up on the island they could see the next headland jutting up out of the fog but nobody in the party had a compass. They were stranded until the fog thinned in the evening, or at least that was their excuse! Carry a compass, and at the very least learn how to take a simple bearing and how to follow it. If you know land is "sort of to the east", that could be enough to get you to shore in event of fog. Otherwise, well, you could be late for tea!

Wednesday, August 01, 2007

Whittier, Alaska


Anchor down at the.........


Some say "there's nowhere shittier than Whittier"


The Buckner Building


US Coastguard


Buffalo Burgers - Yummy!


Leaving Whittier


The Tunbridge Team


Kittiwake Colony


Passage Canal


Sunset, Prince William Sound