Trip Report - Pre-race shakedown

OC1 - Dave Warner. OC2 - Tom Wilhelm/Mike McCrea. K2 - Loandra Torres,
Laura Hollingsworth

With the Wye Island Regatta (a 12.6 mile tidal water race around Wye
Island, open to any and all human powered boats) less than a week away
we thought it would be wise to have a shakedown cruise with a small
selection of Duckhead racers.

Laura and Loandra will be competing in the tandem Sockeye, a boat they
have never paddled before, and with my usual bowman hors de combat
with a broken clavicle, I'll not only be stroking an relatively
unfamiliar boat (the Malecite Express), but will also paired with a
new partner. Dave has no pressing need for a shakedown, but he'll jump
at any excuse to paddle. Well, he does have multiple races coming up
within two weeks (Wye Island on the 13th and the twenty six mile
Potomac River Rally on the 21st), so additional training runs can't
hurt.

Arriving at the Cold Cabin put in we were greeted with the auditory
delight of two young men gunning the engines of their ATV's as they
tossed M80's at their Jet-Ski driver buddies racing past just
offshore. Ah, welcome to the Redneck Riviera.

In our haste to escape the explosions and exhaust fumes several terse
moments occurred while installing the spray covers on the Malecite,
but Tom broke the tension by finding something foul and smelly to roll
around in. Tom may well have spent too much time in the company of Bob
the dog.

Boats afloat I was pleased to see that Laura and Loandra quickly
mastered tandem paddling the Sockeye. That 30+ year old design, one of
Old Town's original attempts to design a tandem recreational kayak, is
a fine hull for novice paddlers - stable, maneuverable and easy to
paddle. I expect a great performance from them at the Wye Island
Regatta; the Sockeye was, after all, the first place finisher in the
Men's Tandem Kayak division last year.

I expect great things of Dave too. Last year there was but a single
Regatta entry in OC1, and that entry finished in a leisurely three
hours twenty minutes - I know Dave can smoke that time in his fast,
narrow Voyageur (provided he keeps the open side up).

The river was running a bit high and fast and our course took us up
the York County side through the rocky channel between Peavine and
Upper Bear Islands. Approaching the narrow slot between Crow and Upper
Bear we quickly deduced that attaining past the surging waves and
froth of the high-water slot was not in the cards. Even attaining part
way up this fast running sluice and then attempting to retreat would
have been a dicey proposition.

Turning about we floated back to the channel between Upper and Lower
Bear islands. Still a fast water passage, but perhaps possible. Tom
and I led the way and made it past the meat of the flow near the top,
eddying out behind a rock. Laura and Loandra struggled gamely, with
Dave paddling sweep safety and coaching, but called it quits half way
up and pulled into a shoreline eddy.

Tom and I enjoyed a bouncy ride back towards our companions and, as we
approached, Dave pulled out into the flow, coaching Laura and Loandra
on techniques for crossing a strong eddy line.

This instructional style is sometimes referred to as "Do as I say, not
as I do" method, as Dave dipped the upstream gunwale of his Wenonah
water-rocket, producing a floating garage sale of loose items. As Tom
and I chased down loose gear and kept an eye on Dave the Sockeye twins
executed a flawless eddy exit, testimony to great instruction, not to
mention a vivid demonstration of just how quickly things can go wrong.

Swimming with his water-filled Voyageur the current was fast carrying
Dave past the tip of Bear Island. Next stop, Peachbottom Atomic plant.
Preferring to paddle with friends who don't glow in the dark we hit
Dave with a throw rope and, with the assistance of a kayaker who had
observed this escapade, towed him to the shallows. Total loss - one
river shoe. Lessons learned - it ain't easy crossing sharp eddy lines
in a long, narrow canoe and, of course, that business about always
carrying a throw rope. Always.

All aboard (and right side up) we continued downstream, ferried up
against the main stem of the river at the tip of Lower Bear and
paddled into the hidden grotto on the north end of Big Chestnut Island
for a shady pause amidst the rock walls and eastern hemlock. Out the
grotto, another tricky attainment between Big and Little Chestnut
islands and a downstream cruise between Wolf Island and Hennery,
admiring the massive stone uplift resembling the bow of an oncoming
battleship. Lots and lots of big exposed rock face along this section
of the Susquehanna.

After a brief leg-stretcher on the west side of Big Chestnut we rode
the current back down to Cold Cabin and our vehicles. Another fine day
on the water. Laura and Loandra made a fine tandem team in the
Sockeye, the Malecite was a delight as a tandem, especially in
full-dress IQ mode (center float bag, lashings, foot brace, bow spray
shield, belly cover...dang that's a pretty boat) and Dave made the
Duckhead capsize list for 2003.

It's a mighty long list this year Dave; I wouldn't count on winning
that award at the Christmas party without taking a few more swims.