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Newbie Journal - Great Lesson
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The Newbie is almost ready to graduate. Since I haven’t done a column for months,
you get a double-dose to start the new year.
Part one is my great lesson. Part two is my adventure in Bouquillas Canyon. The Lesson
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Pecos River enroute to Big Bend
Photo by sherri
Click on image to enlarge.
Last fall I entered the winning bid on a paddling lesson at a
Sierra Club auction.
John and Cindy Bartos had generously donated the lesson so it was satisfying to
benefit the club even as I got a much-needed lesson.
Cindy heard my fears and whittled away at them, replacing each one with
coping techniques. She listened as hard as she talked, a real rarity,
and she didn’t just lecture. She took time to explain and demonstrate.
We had a quiet pond all to ourselves so we could indulge in practice without embarrassment.
After that lesson, I went on two trips on the Colorado River, then to
Bouquillas Canyon. I got to use all my newly learned strokes.
Knowing them and, more important, knowing when to use them inspired confidence,
almost cockiness. Watching my stern partner stand up and surf the canoe by
leaning one way and another, I tried it, landing abruptly. Another time
I turned to the stern seeking approval only to find my tandem partner
taking pictures of me instead of paddling. Now that’s a vote of confidence.
Oh, and I didn’t capsize the canoe once on all three trips.
That’s not to say I’m an expert ...
yet.
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