Paddling Role Models

Kayaking Inspiration

Becoming a kayak instructor is a process of evolution. If you're looking to be a great kayaker, you might be interested in my paddling role models - starting with my Dad, Joe, who taught me to row at age four; my mother, Jeanne, who's still paddling at 75; my best paddling buddies, whom I can trust in any conditions we dare to tempt; the ACA Instructor Trainers whose professionalism I humbly emulate; and several amazing kayakers whose brief knowing has brought me to a higher level.

My father died on April 12th, 2006, after several years of struggling with Parkinson's disease. I especially remember my childhood years from age 4 through 12. What impresses me is that in only eight of Dad's almost 80 years of life, he had such an influence on me - a tenth of his life, but the foundation of my life. I learned to be a gardener from my Dad - and that activity gives me peace and joy six months of the year. I learned to be a seaman from my Dad, and that gives me joy twelve months of the year!

Here's a yarn of an early trip in a small boat (photo taken 1955):
We had moored our 34' 1928 Elco Cruisette at an anchorage on the north shore of Long Island. Dad took me, Joe, Renee and Jeff exploring in our dinghy. I was about seven at the time. (My siblings were 6, 5 and 4, and my Mom stayed on the Elco with baby Marie.) A power boat went by, probably a 40 footer, kicking up a 2-3 foot wake. The wake looked huge to us, and we watched in horror as it approached our little boat. "Row, Daddy, row," we exhorted. Dad laughed, and pulled hard on the oars, keeping the dinghy ahead of the crest for yards, until the wake became rounded, and passed harmlessly beneath. Resting on the oars, he grinned from ear to ear. We were wide-eyed, awed that we hadn't been swallowed up. Boy, were we lucky to have such a strong Daddy! [We didn't understand the skill and composure until much later.]

I feel proud to carry forward his passion for sharing the adventure of the sea, and to pass on his determination to bring everyone safely home.

Left: Jeanne Merkel in her Heritage Osprey 13' sit-on-top

In the spring of 1954, when I was four years old, my parents bought their first powerboat, along with a dinghy to row us out to its mooring. This is how my mom describes it in her book, Nine Boats & Nine Kids:

Joe worked seven days a week, so the only time we could use the boat was in the evenings and on rainy days. Even that couldn't dampen our eagerness. Every evening I had dinner ready in the cooler, the children bathed and their pajamas and sweat shirts packed. We would be sitting on the stoop, watching for Joe; as soon as he pulled into the driveway we'd pile in the car and head for shore, life jacket the kids, load the dinghy and row out to the boat. The kids and I would row around in the dinghy while Joe went aboard...

My mom's excitement certainly infected us all. We were in command of our own vessel, even if it was only an 8' dinghy. Boating was the center of my mom's life while we lived on Long Island, and continues to be important today. She now winters in the Bahamas, where she has two sit-on-top kayaks. She keeps them on a beach just fifty yards from her house. She waits for high tide, pulls her favorite, the Osprey, into the Settlement Harbor, and paddles around its margins three or four times a week.

How do you become a better kayaker? By testing your limits, often. That's what paddling buddies are for. I have two who accompany me in gale force winds, peasoup fog and confused, choppy seas - Claire and Howard.

Right: Claire watches a bluefish feeding frenzy from her Wilderness Systems Sparrow Hawk.

I met Claire at an open house at the Wooden Boat Workshop in South Norwalk. There she was, with her husband Tom, who learned to kayak in Anglesey, UK- a top place to learn how to handle rough, northern seas. She glibly admitted she kayaks year-round, by herself in a sit-inside kayak. I grilled her on safety protocols and posed numerous what-if scenarios. I must have given her a smidge of doubt, as she and Tom showed up for a lesson shortly thereafter. Both roll, both sides, combat rolls, no set-up position, no hesitating, far better than I.

We soon began mid-week trips to explore each other's favorite spots for finding herons and seals, and to take advantage of windy winter days when no one else would go out.

Left: Howard sets his gps before launching off Martha's Vineyard.

Three of my "Viking" buddies came on this trip from Edgartown Harbor, portaging to the Atlantic side, then paddling in the ocean to Edgartown Great Pond. We had planned to go farther, but "weather" slammed us. We made a bail-out landing through 8-10 foot surf, three of us swimming in with our kayaks. Howard, however, surfed all the way to shore, the fastest ride he's ever had in a kayak.

With over thirty years experience as a sailor and trained as an engineer, Howard is the nav-com man on our trips. He paddles a Heritage Shearwater in kevlar, a 17' sit-on-top no longer produced.

Our most memorable trip was to Falkner Island, three miles offshore. We had winds NE at 15-20, visibility of 1.5 mile or less, and pouring rain. When we left the mouth of the harbor, we could barely see buoy #4 a mile away. The two foot seas were made turbulent by numerous rocks and ledges. As we entered deeper water, the waves turned to nasty 2-4 footers. At buoy #4 we could not see Falkner and had to pilot by compass. Thirty minutes later we spotted the island. The long barrier beach leading up to it was a continuous mass of whitewater, with random big waves giving us no moment to rest.

We stopped for a quick lunch below the high tide line, then girded ourselves for the return trip, directly into the wind. There were no boats anywhere in sight to radio if we needed help. There was no way I could keep up with Howard, so he slowed to stay with me. After 45 minutes of sheer willpower, we spotted buoy #4 - yes, we were on course, in spite of the wind. Another 55 minutes of completely focussed paddling brought us back to Guilford Harbor.

My favorite American Canoe Association Instructor Trainer (IT) is Mandy Buckner. She was my teacher for four days in April 2000 for a Coastal Kayaking Instructor Development Workshop. She showed me just how tough a female paddler can be, and taught me to gear up to outlast my clients in any conditions. My first ACA IT, Randy Wilson, taught our class through three days of pouring rain. We learned to like it!

Meeting Jan Shriner, co-author with Roger Schumann, of Sea Kayak Rescue, was a turning point. Here was another female ACA IT, not more than five feet two, warm and funny, wiry and strong. Her demo of the cowgirl re-entry and bow fancy flip got me started in a whole new direction. I learned to "play" in and out of my kayak, easily climbing out and back in, regardless of the height of the seas around me.

In spring 2003 I met Derek Hutchinson, the "father of modern sea kayaking," at a Jersey Paddlers show. He gave me an undivided half hour of his time explaining paddles and how important it is to cradle, not grip them. This insight contributed to huge improvements in my paddling technique. After the show, I bought his DVD, "Beyond the Cockpit," continuing to learn to "play" with my boat.

Right: Nigel Foster uses a feather-light touch to control his blade. The Silhouette is a boat he designed for Seaward Kayaks.

In May 2005, I gave up a full Saturday to meet another famous British kayaker, Nigel Foster. Nigel spent an hour and a half demonstrating stroke refinements to Connyak members, then joined us for an hour and a half paddling trip. I never left his side. It was a pleasure to argue the merits of teaching to student's limits versus pushing their limits, and how blade size, weight and shape affects paddling performance. Nigel has his own line of kayaks and paddles, manufactured and distributed by Seaward Kayaks. He also designs life vests and other paddling gear, made by Extrasport (which I use).

The British influence continues. In 2006 I re-certified with ACA Instructor Trainer Ben Lawry. After watching him paddle the 2005 Lighthouse to Lighthouse race faster than anyone else in a kayak, I knew I wanted an opportunity to work with him. In the four day IDW/ICE, I shared him with only five other paddlers. As the Brits are wont to say, he was brilliant!