Topics:
Paddling News: Paddling workouts
Events and Races: WaterTribe Challenge; FCPA races; Wekiva River Canoe and Kayak Race, Ultimate Hugh Heward Challenge; Blue Spring State Park "Paddle Battle"; Shark Bite Challenge; Suwannee River Challenge and Marathon, West and East Coast Offshore Series
Preparation: Capsize Recovery

PADDLING NEWS:

Paddling Workouts
We continue our paddling workouts on the Winter Park chain of lakes, Tuesday and Thursday mornings. Email me for times. These are workout paddles, however the range of abilities and speed varies. All are welcome. Yesterday, 2/26, we had eight paddlers including a couple of folks on plastic sit-on-tops. After our paddle, six of us had the time for a breakfast at the Cuban Cafe, Winter Park where we rehashed the morning paddle and discussed various outings, boats, races, etc.

FCPA Races, Anyone?
Maura and I will paddle our third FCPA event tomorrow in our tandem kayak at St. Pete. If you're interested in going to a race, email me and perhaps we can car pool. See below for upcoming events.

WaterTribe Challenge:
WaterTribe events, start from St. Petersburg Fort Desoto Park on March 7, 2009. The Ultra Marathon goes to Placida, 65 miles, and the Everglades Challenge ends at Key Largo, 270 to 300 miles depending on route. Although it's too late to sign up, you can follow the progress of many of our newsletter subscribers on the web site http://www.watertribe.com. Everyone is listed by their "tribe name." Our subscribers who are entering the event are myself "SaltyFrog," Rod Price "RiverRunner," Kristen Greenaway "KiwiBird," Dawn Stewart "SandyBottom," Steve Bailey "KneadingWater," Matt Layden "Wizard," Nick Hall "Pelican," David Wicks "PaddleMaker," Dan Lockwood "SavannahDan," Bob and Janet Bradford "NiteNavigator" and "NiteSong," Dennise Mathis "SandDollar," Leon Mathis "DrKayak," Joe Mullen "Tyro," and Ed Engel "Paddlecarver." If I missed anyone, I apologize. Managing the race, sacrificing the opportunity to torture oneself, is Doug Cameron "RidgeRunner," assisted by Gary Blankenship "Lugnut" and Michael Collins "Greybeard."

Florida Competition Paddlers Events:
Mar. 14, 10:00 am, Great Pickle Race (Hillsborough River), Tampa. Contact Glennis Williams, 727-455-9188, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Mar 21, 2009, 10:00 am, Manatee Run, Ft. Myers, FL, 10 miles, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 727-459-6366 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 727-455-9188
April 4, 2009, 10:00 am, Rainbow River Race, Dunellon, FL, 10 miles. Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 727-459-6366 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 727-455-9188
April 25, 2009, 32nd Annual Wild Hog Obstacle Race, Otter Creek, FL, 10 miles. Contact www.wildhog.wetpaint.com or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
May 17, 2009, Wekiva River Race, Sanford, FL, 14 miles. Contact Martha Carswell, 407-321-7188 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
June 7, 2009, 10 am, Wascissa River Race, Tallahassee, 10 miles, Contact George Blakely, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 850-385-4974
June 11-14, 2009, Sunshine State Games, Winter Haven, FL, sprint Saturday, marathon Sunday. Contact John Edwards, 727-459-6366 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
July 12, 2009, Mere Mortals Race, Suwannee River Park, FL, 10 miles. Contact Larry Frederick, 352-495-9846 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
Sep. 19, 2009, Tarpon Springs Puffer Fish Race, Tarpon Spr., FL, Contact Karl/Cindy Vogel, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 727-938-7685
Oct. 4, 2009, 10 am, Santa Fe River Canoe & Kayak Race, Rum Island Park, FL (near White Springs), 12 or 6 miles, Contact Tim Dodge, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it , 352-371-9428, 352-318-5877
Nov. 1, 2009, 10 am, Paddle of the Pass, Matlacha Park, Pine Island, FL, 10 or 4 miles, Contact Nancy MacPhee 239-707-7275
Dec 5, 2009, Silver River Race/Annual Awards, Silver Springs, FL, 10 miles. Contact Bert and Dick Kloss, 352-546-3950

March 14, 2009, 9 am, Wekiva River Canoe and Kayak Race, Wekiva Island (formerly Wekiva Marina), Longwood, FL, 5 miles. Great race for recreational paddlers as well as racers. $25 entry by March 6, $30 after, all proceeds going to benefit Friends of the Wekiva. Sponsored by Travel Country, who donated a kayak to be raffled off. For more info contact Rod Price, 407-227-5606.

April 3, 4, & 5, 2009, Dragon Boat Festival, Wooten Park, Tavares, FL. For more info contact Martha Carswell 407-321-7188 www.wekivaadventures.com

April 17, Ultimate Hugh Heward Challenge (UHHC) 2009. We invite experienced and adventurous paddlers to participate in the retracing of an historic 1790 canoe journey from Detroit to Chicago via the Detroit River, Lake Erie, the Huron and Grand Rivers of Lower Michigan, and Lake Michigan. The trip will start at Detroit on April 17 2009 and end at Chicago approximately three weeks and 475 miles later. Contact Mark Przedwojewski, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or by phone at 231-266-2089

April 18 & 19, 2009, Shark Bite Challenge, 2009, 12 or 8 or 4 miles, Honeymoon Island State Park, FL, as part of Earth Days Festival. Contact Karen/Rob Mirlenbrink This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 727-510-3493

April 18, 8:30 (10-mile) and 9:30 (4-mile): 3rd Annual St. Johns River Paddle Battle, at Blue Spring State Park, Deland, organized by me in conjunction with the Park and the CSO. The 4-mile race will proceed upstream (south) from the Park for 2 miles then return downstream. The 10-mile race, as last year, will circumnavigate Hontoon Island including the twisty, wild Snake Creek. The major sponsor, Travel Country of Altamonte Springs, is donating a kayak to be raffled; raffle ticket is included with entry fee. Registration forms are available at http://www.floridastateparks.org/bluespring/Events.cfm

June 6, 12th St Johns River Cleanup in conjunction with National River Cleanup Week. For more information please see:  http://volusia.org/cleanup/

October 10, 2009, Suwannee River Challenge and Marathon, 52 or 26 miles. This is a fun one. White Springs, FL. More info contact Rod Price 407-227-5606 This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

West Coast Offshore Series for OC1, OC6 and Surfskis: contact Rob Mirlenbrink, This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Short races, generally downwind, in open water.

East Coast Offshore Series, every Saturday, Miami. Contact Tim Streeter This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it 786-208-8458

Capsize Recovery
Capsize! What do you do now? How do you get back in the boat? Hopefully, you've practiced reentry methods and are prepared to reenter and be on your way. For those of us without a bomb-proof roll, here are some tips for what to do. The links provided in this article have some pictures, so if the description is unclear, check out the link articles.

If you have experiences in rescues, tell me about them so we can share with our readers. I welcome critiques of these methods or descriptions of other methods and, with your permission, will share them in a later newsletter.

Solo reentry: Two methods will work; cowboy reentry or paddle float reentry.

Cowboy reentry is the quickest and easiest, but takes some practice and skill. After righting the boat, you scramble face down onto the rear deck, head towards the bow, and throw one leg onto the other side of the boat. At this point it's a little precarious since your weight is kind of high on the rear deck, but with your legs dangling on each side of the boat you should be able to stay on top. While face down, wiggle forward until you can quickly drop your seat into the cockpit. This takes a smooth, quick action since your weight is very high and unstable for a short time. You're then seated with your legs hanging over the sides. Pull in your legs, pump out the boat, reattach your spray skirt, and be on your way. This will work only if your cockpit is long enough to swing your legs in while seated.

Paddle float reentry, although not as quick, is a sure way to get back into the cockpit. A paddle float is an inflatable rescue device that secures onto the end of your paddle. When you have the paddle and float assembled, place the paddle across the rear deck under the bungies behind the cockpit coaming with the paddle float on the same side of the boat as you are. You now have a stable, outriggered platform to use in scrambling back into the cockpit. While in the water, hold onto the cockpit coaming and swing your aft leg over the paddle shaft, held afloat with the paddle float. Crawl up onto the boat over the cockpit, keeping your weight on the paddle float side so that you don't flip the boat over away from you. Turn so that you are face down on the rear deck and place one leg then the other into the cockpit. Wiggle down into the cockpit, still face down on the rear deck. Then, in one smooth motion, twist around and sit down in the cockpit. This will get you back in the boat even if your legs are too long to use the cowboy reentry. Just be careful not to capsize to the other side, away from the paddle float. Here are a couple links to some other explanations: http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/showArticle.html?315 Solo Paddle Float Recovery, and http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/showArticle.html?66 Paddle Float Rescues and Assists .

I prefer to always use a paddle leash if there's any chance of capsize, although folks with a solid roll may feel that a leash is an unecessary, possibly entangling, piece of equipment. The big advantage of a paddle leash is that, while you're swimming, you can stay with the boat and paddle, whether you have ahold of either.

You can empty the boat of water prior to flipping it. This will minimize the amount of pumping you'll have to do after you have reentered. While the boat is upside down, move to the rear of the boat and put your weight on the stern, sort of crawling up onto the rear hull. This will lift the bow and the water will pour out. Then, in one smooth motion, right the boat, but don't let go of the boat! This works only if you have a rear bulkhead, of course. One caution, when flipping the boat right side up, it's easy to let the boat slip away. So, hold onto your perimeter deck lines when flipping it.

Assisted reentry: If you have paddling partners, reentry is easier. Here is one method, called a T rescue, I've used numerous times, even with inexperienced paddlers.

This description is from the standpoint of the rescuing paddler. Have the swimmer position him/herself safely out of the way, holding onto the bow of your boat. Position the upside-down boat such that it's at right angles to your boat with the bow at your cockpit. From this T-position of the two boats, lift the bow of the capsized boat to empty the water. If it's too heavy, have the swimmer go to the stern of his/her boat and push down on the stern. When drained, flip the capsized boat being careful to keep control of it and taking care to avoid the swimmer. Position the swimmer ahead of your cockpit on the side of the righted boat, and bring the righted boat alongside your boat, bow-to-stern. At this time, the swimmer is between the two boats next to his/her boat's rear deck. You should lean across the other boat, placing your torso weight on the other boat just ahead of the other boat's cockpit. This gives stability to both boats. The swimmer then reenters his/her boat by putting his/her legs onto the two boats and wiggling forward into his/her cockpit. Maintain your stabilizing position, leaning on the other boat, until the other person is settled, re-skirted, and confirms to you that he/she is comfortable to continue your trip. You can check out this description: http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/showArticle.html?64 The Classic T-Rescue with Variations. And here's a description of how to get back into the boat: http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/showArticle.html?260 Between the Kayaks Reentry.

Here's another rescue method which, thankfully, I've never had to use. It's called the "Hand of God" rescue. This method is to be used if a capsized paddler is stuck in his cockpit, a very dangerous situation. This is a method to right the capsized kayak while you remain in your kayak. Come alongside the capsized kayak and thrust your torso completely across the capsized boat. Grab the cockpit coaming on the far side of the capsized boat; it's a long reach. Then, with your other hand push down on the near side cockpit rim while pulling on the far rim. Be careful when the capsized paddler comes up as he/she may be flailing about. Maintain your weight across the other boat, leaning heavily to stabilize both boats. If this doesn't get the boat up, then alternatively you can grab the capsized paddler's PFD and at least get them high enough that he/she can breathe. More on this rescue technique: 
http://www.paddling.net/guidelines/showArticle.html?378 THE HAND OF GOD RESCUE.