Countdown to Chile: Step 2 - The dreaded Passport

Hey there again. So ok I am a world traveler who was stupid enough never to renew my passport so now I am in a bit of a lurch. The fine folks that staff the Post Office here in Chucktown informed me that if I went thru them, I would not be able to get me passport until December. Yeah a big FU to that. So I hooked with a passport service. It's a bit more $, but at least I know that I will have plenty of time to get the passport and then my Chilean visa. More on this process as it evolves kids so standby!

Countdown to Chile: Step 1 - The Flight

Ok.....want to engage in a mentally numbing experience? Book a flight overseas. Yikes. For the first time EVER, I was able to book a flight out of Chucktown for LESS then driving to Mrytle Beach or Savannah GA. Talk about a win folks. WOOT!  So 15 hours down, 22 hours back. Miami to JFK just to get to CHS. Yeah that makes sense right? Oh well, that is what in flight cocktails are for. Step 1 done!

Countdown to Chile!

Hey ya'll, Greg here. Well I did it. I am going to Chile with the fine folks at H2o Dreams (http://www.whitewaterdreams.com) This is most certainly going to be a life changing event and I want to use this blog as a chronicle of my pre trip, trip and post trip experiences......so here we go!

Boat Maintanence......a few tips.

Hey there. Just returned from a great weekend of boating, 3 rivers in 3 days.......good mix of II, III+ and a IV for good measure. My partner in crime Kyle and I put down some serious miles and along the way, he picked up a new LiquidLogic Stomper. At the Chatooga we picked up a friend and ended up having (3) boats on his car. Mine being the longest was on the bottom, his Stomper nestled on top and Kristen's Solo on the side. After (3) days of hoping around GA, SC and NC, I noticed that my boat's (LLogic XP10) hull was starting to deform under the weight of the Stomper and the tension of the stay straps. Needless to say I was initially concerned but realized that an easy fix was at hand. First, I put up the boat on my wall mounted J cradles over night and let nature take its course (plastic mold memory). By the next morning, most of the deformity had left the hull and there were just some minor flat spots. What I did to address these was to put the boat cockpit side up on (2) saw horses. Then I filled the cockpit with water........I also made sure that boat was in the sun. The evenly disbursed weight of the water couple with the heat provided by the sun worked out the remaining flat spots quite nicely........so there is a quick blog on fixing hull deformity. There is plenty on the interwebz about using bricks, heat guns, blow dryers and the like. Mine fortunately was a simpler approach.

Another thing.....don't forget to wash your nappy ass boat. There is nothing sexy about a dirty, stinky boat, unless dirty and stinky is yo' thang....Maybe it's just me but I like having my ride clean and ready to go for the next adventure. I just clean her down with car soap in and out.....works well to get rid of the river funk. Then I take a sanding block (220 fine grit) and knock down all of the high spots from gouges......yeah I am anal about these things but its my boat and it was not cheap. Finally before putting it up, I check all the rigging / outfitting making note of wear. No need for surprises when you least need them......cheers!

Reflections on rolling

Hey there. Just wanted to share a few thoughts regarding rolling. I have been working with a friend for a few weeks trying to get him to break some bad habits that he has picked up. We know that the head is our worst enemy in this regard in (2) ways. Firstly the head is like a big wet bowling ball that we pulled up out of the water has an interesting way of causing the opposite knee to pull up, ruining your roll. Looking at my own progress it took awhile for it to sink as its really ok for the head to exit the water last....really it is.  Remember the basics : First comes the boat, then comes the body and finally the head.  Following this formula you can't go wrong.

Ok, now the second point to make about the head.....it's a got an over analytical brain. The moment that you start beating yourself up and start thinking too much about what's happening in your roll you are doomed. Rolling is muscle memory and part of that is establishing a good foundation. Like the above notion of boat, body and head, a critical point is the setup. Getting back to my friend, in watching his roll, I quickly noticed that his hands were barely making it out of the water and when they did, it was usually just his passive hand (back).........so what happens in this case? Answer: he dives his paddle (descending blade angle) trying to muscle his way through a roll and fails.

So always willing to help a brother out, I offered a few simple suggestions that I picked up from a certain "ZEN" instructor and friend.  One....have fun! Rolling is serious stuff but that does not mean that you can't enjoy it. Second, make sure that you remember the basics (setup, hand position, body position underwater, following paddle blade with your eyes and finally finishing)......all of these parts together aid in your ability to successfully "right" yourself and work wonders in breaking bad habits............there is no such thing as perfection so don't trash yourself when you blow a roll.

Happy to say that by the end of our hour session, my friend had improved and what I was saying made sense..... What are your thoughts on this subject?????

Products review page is up!

Hey we all know that gear is expensive. You definitely take a leap of faith buying stuff online. Sometimes what you ordered is perfect other times not so much. Let me know what works for you and what does not. I will also share my product reviews and offer comparative advice........

Products Review Page

Welcome to The Eddyline

Ok....so why blog?..... Well why not? I wanted a place to collect all things whitewater that I could find during my journey into this truly fascinating sport. Just a bit of back ground, my whitewater experience started a year ago at USNWC with Chris Wing of H2oDreams. He really set the hook for me and for (2) days was quite patient with my lack of rolling ability. I spent part of the summer scouting for my boat and gear. Once obtained the next step was to hit the pool and learn my roll. It took all summer but finally got it down. I did my first two rivers this spring with Chris and what an experience......this blog will serve as a journey of these an future experiences, a place to collect thoughts, a break down of what works versus what doesn't from a technique perspective and of course gear and river review!

I would love input from all. Send me excerpts of your river experiences, favorite equipment, rivers visited, best face plants, links to vids and pics, awesome instruction materials........whatever!  See you online.....Greg