Day 3

Another morning session on the water with Jackie. I wish my every day life were like this. I could get up for a warm sunny paddle every morning - it sure beats getting up and walking in the rain to go to school.

By this point, my team is getting some really great chemistry. We are made up of 3 big groups: paddlers from the Nanaimo team "Blu b y" (who happen to know my cousins Greg & Denise - small world); 4 crazy women from a new women's team in Cultus Lake (these women are nuts, I love it); and a group from the Portland-based team "Wasabi." I'm really starting to feel like I've made some good friends.

We worked more on individual technique refinement and balanced out the pain by working both sides. (Really, everything just hurt more...) We worked on push/pull drills, reinforced the catch concept which would be reinforced by Jason in the afternoon, did quite a few drills and went for a few longer pieces. It was quite a bit cooler - probably mid-70's - but still shorts & tank top weather!

And then, the torture ... VIDEO CRITIQUE!!

We met at the marina and walked together to the Ops Center (which is essentially the tourism info centre for the Tempe Town Lake area.) We really felt like we were "Paddling the Desert" then because we had to walk through a bunch of sand to get there.



There's nothing like watching yourself on video and having someone critique you frame by frame. It's particularly humbling when you think you've really mastered some of the technique you've been working on - only to have visual proof that you haven't! Jackie was very kind, though - lots of positive feedback and constructive criticism. I'm completely open to hearing & seeing what I'm doing wrong. Why else would I be at this camp?



Some notes from her critique:

*I have a good open angle waterside between my arm and my side. This allows for good rotation and reach (when I do it right) - but I have to maintain it through the pull & exit.
*I am still collapsing on my reach. This is obvious by the fact that as I begin to pull, I sit up. I should be hinging back to 5 degrees while maintaining a "tight tight tight" core.
*My shoulders are fairly level. This means that I am not over-rotating and I am starting to successfully apply a straight hinge. When the top shoulder is higher than the outside shoulder, you're a "stacker."

We went through every person and I learned a lot by listening to Jackie's critiques of them. It was also fun to try to predict what she'd say by watching for the strengths & weaknesses of each paddler. This is good practice for me as a coach.

After lunch, we headed back to the marina for a water session with Jason. Now, before I go on, let me just tell you about Jason. This man has the body of a Greek God. Oh, and he's an Olympic kayaker, too. Jason's primary job is to work on catch with us - such an important thing in dragonboat racing. We did some great drills. Not easy mind you, but we got a great workout. I think a few of us really started to understand the concept of connection with the water, and importance of following proper technique through the entire stroke. If you don't set up properly, you're not going to get great catch. If you don't get the catch, your pull isn't going to be good. If you don't have a good pull, your exit will be sloppy. If your exit is sloppy, you won't be able to set up properly, and so on.

I had a particularly exciting evening. Kat & Jackie invited me back to the coaches' condo for a BBQ. I must admit that I felt pretty special. (They probably just felt sorry for me being all by my lonesome in the hotel...) Leah Nagano (Alcan race registrar) and Greg Lam (Alcan race director) & his wife Louise gave me a ride there & back. Jackie is a great cook - she BBQ'd steak, ribs and asperagus. Kamini made some awesome garlic bread and we also had salad, chips, and drinks. I tried to take it all in, listening to their chit chat about what was going on at the camp. It was particularly nice to talk with Andrea & Kamini. They are both very inspiring. Andrea coaches False Creek Women, a team I dream about competing with one day. Kamini is a 2-time Olympic kayaker who coaches the False Creek Men and the mixed team. She is so humble about all her accomplishments, but it's clear that she's dedicated her life to pursuing her dreams and doing whatever work needs to be done to get there. I admire her for that. I was very lucky to have spent the evening with them.