I suppose it was appropriate that one our crew members was wearing a toque with "Alaska" emblazoned on it. Because it felt cold enough. Today was the day for this year's Lotus Icebreaker Outrigger race. It's a short (less than 6km) V-12 outrigger canoe race hosted by the Lotus Paddling Club in Burnaby, BC.
The one thing I enjoy about the Icebreaker race is the simple fact that it's held in the dead of winter. It's nice to get out and paddle when the temperatures are in the single digit range and there's snow on the ground. I think if paddlers from warmer climes found out we do this sort of thing they'd have us all committed to an asylum. There they are paddling in sun and surf while we're running the risk of being numbed by hypothermia.
Oh yeah...I don't think outrigger paddle makers would be too interested in advertising their wares using photographs of paddles sticking out of snowbanks...
Enjoy your pop rocks, sir.
15 years ago
2 comments:
Brrrr... Just thinking about it gives me chills down the spine. How can you withstand it?!
It's funny. We complain about the cold and all that but we're out there paddling our guts out. I don't know. When I'm in a race I'm quite focused and I don't think about the cold. I think about each stroke and how the boat is moving. Plus, I was the caller for our boat: I had to count strokes and call out "Hut!" at which point everyone switches paddling from one side to the other. Guess that's why I can paddle in this weather without wearing gloves.
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