Eddy Lines by John Lane

With the first hangover of the year gone, it's time to think and do paddling. If the weather cooperates, we'll have had our first trip of the year on January 2. If not, that's central Ohio for you! Rain, snow or not, you should come to our winter pool sessions at the Greenhouse Aquatic Center. This is the pool we used last year and it's a great facility for getting your paddling muscles and roll skills warmed up. With a canoe camping trip in February and an icebreaker paddle in early March, it's already time to get back into shape!

I thought I'd share some of our program resolutions for the New Year. We want to increase the teaching skills of our instructors, get more boaters into leader training, complete our boat and equipment purchases, have an additional sea kayak class or two this summer, get more boaters into first aid, CPR and swiftwater rescue training. Whew!

Doing more with more could be our motto. Good mottoes are hard to find, though. The "more" we are after is having more instructors who are better trained to teach skills and knowledge to our students. The training that we are scheduling for our instructors is paid for from fees collected from our boating schools and other functions. The equipment we purchase to keep students and trippers safe comes out of the same pot. We will be adding four Old Town sea kayaks and six Old Town whitewater canoes to our fleet in early spring,

Congratulations to Les Groby, Doug Eldridge and Mary Spikowski. They took the COP leader training class last November. We're looking forward to seeing them on the water!

We're looking forward to having you join us on our expeditions to somewhere!

Grayson Lake

Photos by Val Zen

Members of Columbus Outdoor Pursuits enjoy a sunny October day on Grayson Lake, in eastern Kentucky. What a beautiful site to enjoy the fall colors!

Just some of many stunning photos of this remarkable COP trip. See more at: http://community.webshots.com/album/23709411pMtVmlTmYu

The photo below was featured as the "Weekly Outdoor Photo" on www.paddling.net/photography/showPhoto.html?showID=132

2001 National
Interpretive FreeStyle
Canoe Championships

by Elaine Mravetz

When most people think of FreeStyle, they imagine kayaks completing earth-defying tricks on a frothy river. But there is another side to FreeStyle. This one is done in open boats, and has been embraced by nationally known whitewater paddlers like Bob Foote.

FreeStyle canoe maneuvers in general are advanced quietwater techniques that are applicable to both quietwater and whitewater open boat paddling. The emphasis is on precise boat control, and knowledge of how the boat and paddler interact most effectively and efficiently - sort of like obedience training for one's canoe.

I was introduced to FreeStyle canoeing the year after I took a particularly uncomfortable swim on the Lower Yough and decided that the consequences of getting munched in a hole if I missed a move or a line were more painful than I cared to experience again. So I began taking classes in FreeStyle and learning the physics, hydrodynamics, and biomechanics of boat design, single blade paddles, and the paddler.

Within the cadre of FreeStyle paddlers are a group who pursue Competitive Interpretive FreeStyle Canoeing. This sport has been likened to Figure Ice Skating competitions in that the rules and judging are similar. The competitor develops a routine to a music selection that must include a series of compulsory maneuvers executed perfectly, include a series of creative and interpretive maneuvers that showcase the paddler's strengths and skills, and reflect his or her artistic interpretation of the music. Literally every move of the paddler is judged for technical merit, difficulty of advanced maneuvers, artistic interpretation, use of space within the 25 x 50 meter competition arena, and each component is judged on a rather complex point system to arrive at a total score for the performance.

After a taste of placing in regional competitions (I strangely found that I enjoyed the adrenalin of having something that I had worked on for one or two months placed under a microscope by judges and picked apart ), I decided to attempt a National Competition this year, held October 13 in Houston, Texas. My husband and I drove through a driving rain most of the way. Sponsored by the American Canoe Association and hosted by Houston Canoe Club, the National Championships for Interpretive FreeStyle Canoe are held annually, at night, under lights, in front of a very vocal crowd of spectators. This year, the venue was an artificially constructed arena of water with concrete boundaries (no way to exceed the regulation 25 x 50 meter area without serious consequences to the boat). It was really much like an ice skating rink, only wetter! There was a spectator area, along with a judges' table, announcer table, and a whole lot of bright lights and spotlights.

The Competition was divided into the Championship classes of Men's Solo, Women's Solo, and Tandem. Competitors hailed from Maine, South Carolina, Texas, Oklahoma, Louisiana, Florida, and Ohio (me). The spectators were very vocal in their support of any technical maneuvers that they felt were impressive or that they just plain liked. Perhaps the most unnerving part of getting out in front of a large audience to perform my routine to Janis Joplin's "Summertime", was turning toward the judges' table to complete two compulsory precision maneuvers, only to find myself feeling much like a deer in headlights! I was almost literally blinded by spotlights shining directly in my eyes, completely obliterating my sense of depth perception. I paddled toward what appeared to be a black abyss, with no idea as to how close I was to the concrete arena barriers, and no sense of the amount of arena space left for me to complete the two more difficult maneuvers in my routine. I heeled the port side of the boat so the rail (gunnel) was on the water, slid my leg forward into a lunge, and spun the boat around, hoping that I didn't look as unsettled as I felt, and managed to finish the routine so as to stay with the music.

I was very surprised, when the winners were announced in each division, to find that I had received the Silver Medal (2nd place) in the Women's Solo Division. Along with the winner's plaque and recognition, I also received over $300 in prizes. Needless to say, I am already beginning to create a routine for the 2002 National Championships! And, as recently certified instructors in FreeStyle Canoe, my husband Bob and I are already beginning to schedule classes and workshops to introduce this sport to anyone looking for obedience training for their canoe! For information, contact Bob or Elaine Mravetz at (330) 239-1725 or at rmravet (AT) uakron.edu.

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