Kuna 'Anela
I'd be remiss if I didn't give love to the Mt. Tam Outrigger club for hosting Kuna 'Anela just a few weeks ago: a great end-of-the-season paddling race from Horseshoe Cove at the base of the Golden Gate Bridge, around Angel Island and back. The field was strong, the weather kind, and the water flat. Familiar faces, beautiful views and a potent celebratory punch rounded it out for a perfect bookend to the season.
In a stacked women's field we watched as 6 or 7 boats pulled away from us and out of sight around the island. Dismayed but not deterred, we ramped it up in the 2nd half and finished feeling okay about our effort, better for having beaten a few of the Tam folks who handed it to us in Catalina, and even better still 2 or 3 beers later when we were on land toasting the end of the season and the success of our other crews in the coed and men's races.
That pretty much wraps up the season save for weekend paddles and whatever we can bag in the fading daylight hours Tuesdays and Thursdays. But the fall is big running days and winter - well, you know what happens when the fatty fresh falls. But hopefully my supreme passion in the sport this season will carry me through some OC1-ing with friends who've graciously offered to go out with me in the off-season. Maybe another 2-man attempt with JFewy. Our first was a tragedy of boat flips. Across the board I've been told the OC1 will make you stronger in the 6. Time to man up and make OC1 my new BFF.
Big props to my team, new friends and old, a body that didn't break down, layers of Mysterioso, Tuesday night dinners, wine, all the tips on my timing issues, the drills, the water, the power when we had it all dialed in, the frustration when we didn't. Most importantly, for the women and the coed boats I was a part of, throughout the season there was always the attempt to give our best effort and despite where we finished, to have enjoyed the experience and the company of friends enough to always say "that was fun." At least that's how I felt.
In a stacked women's field we watched as 6 or 7 boats pulled away from us and out of sight around the island. Dismayed but not deterred, we ramped it up in the 2nd half and finished feeling okay about our effort, better for having beaten a few of the Tam folks who handed it to us in Catalina, and even better still 2 or 3 beers later when we were on land toasting the end of the season and the success of our other crews in the coed and men's races.That pretty much wraps up the season save for weekend paddles and whatever we can bag in the fading daylight hours Tuesdays and Thursdays. But the fall is big running days and winter - well, you know what happens when the fatty fresh falls. But hopefully my supreme passion in the sport this season will carry me through some OC1-ing with friends who've graciously offered to go out with me in the off-season. Maybe another 2-man attempt with JFewy. Our first was a tragedy of boat flips. Across the board I've been told the OC1 will make you stronger in the 6. Time to man up and make OC1 my new BFF.Big props to my team, new friends and old, a body that didn't break down, layers of Mysterioso, Tuesday night dinners, wine, all the tips on my timing issues, the drills, the water, the power when we had it all dialed in, the frustration when we didn't. Most importantly, for the women and the coed boats I was a part of, throughout the season there was always the attempt to give our best effort and despite where we finished, to have enjoyed the experience and the company of friends enough to always say "that was fun." At least that's how I felt.Mahalo Kapalakiko.
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