ROCK BOAT
Continued from page 37—
dinner of fish and chips at a popular waterside eatery. It was early in the season and the water was just a few notches above freezing. Across the bay, I noticed a kayaker paddling out. I remember wondering at his lack of gear, but I was too far away to get his attention. I guessed he was heading to a nearby cottage and gave him no further thought. The following day,
fitness, wilderness expeditions, time for personal reflection or socializing with friends. Some may claim they’ve already learned all they need to for their purposes—but can they do that roll or self-rescue when they’re cold? Tired? In waves? Blindfolded? There are always new ways we can challenge ourselves and stretch our skills.
Certification courses are only the tip of the iceberg of knowledge, experience and ongoing practice that makes up a strong, versatile paddler.
I heard that same kayaker had been found capsized and drifting out to open water, unable to get back in his boat. Through incredible luck or fate, the local marine unit happened to be out for a practice session and picked him up. Psychologists talk about four levels of competence in any skill or area of expertise. The first is unconscious incompetence, where we don’t even know what we don’t know. As we gain a bit more experience in a field, we become aware of what we don’t know and thus reach the second stage: conscious incompetence.
With practice and further
experience, we can make informed decisions and apply our skills and move to the third level: conscious competence.
When we truly master a skill and know how to apply it instinctively and intuitively in dynamic conditions, we reach the forth level: unconscious competence. Unconscious competence allows us to make instinctive responses such as bracing in rough water, automatically compensating for current, or instantly going to the bow of a capsized kayak rather than wasting time blundering around the wrong end. While in the throes of appendicitis, we don’t want a doctor who’s fumbling with the scalpel, trying to remember details from a course a few years ago. We want decisiveness, competence, good judgment and the ability to perform under pressure. These are the same attributes we as kayakers should seek to develop in our padding partners and ourselves. Of course, we’ll also happily take a friend paddling for the first time, with no expectation of any rescue skills, but if this friend intends to continue kayaking, we should all take our turn in the water to practice rescues together. Paddlers have different goals: relaxation,
Practice can take many forms—attending symposiums, enrolling in courses and paddling with friends—but it needs to be ongoing. Ideally we find
a group of paddlers with
compatible skill level and risk assessment and spend time in conditions that can push us beyond familiar habits. I have a kayaking friend who practices a roll and rescue every time he goes paddling, sunshine or snowstorm. I immensely admire his diligence, even as I happily go out of my way to keep my head warm and dry for the winter months. If he ever needs to use his skills in serious conditions, I think it’s safe to say he’ll be more prepared than most. Once, for a month, I practiced 10 rolls a day on each side—by the end, I couldn’t remember which was my offside. Just a couple weeks later, I ended up swimming after surfing and getting flipped out of the boat before I could catch myself on the thigh braces. A good reminder to paddle a well-fitting boat, and that no amount of practice will ever prepare us completely for the unexpected. Chances are there are more interesting swims in store for me.
Practice brings us competence, joy, fluidity and the ability to move confidently in different conditions. There will always be more to practice and certification courses can be valuable tools for honing in on specific skills, receiving expert advice and stretching our comfort zone in a safe and supportive environment. But no matter how many letters and numbers they add to our credentials, they should never be our sole source of experience. Charlotte Jacklein learned to kayak with her high school outdoor club, where she and her fellow participants spent a disproportionate amount of time upside down.
38 | ADVENTURE KAYAK
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