Is cart plus Hullavator possible?
Or something similar to the Hullavator… I know that’s a big chunk of change. But it would solve the lifting issue if you could find your way to it.
When I was young, I sometimes took
club veterans on easy whitewater runs that they no longer would have tried on regular trips. Once in the canoe or kayak, they were quite reliable, but some help with loading and unloading, and with an occasional portage, made a big difference for them.
I don’t yet need help loading and unloading. In fact, one of my pet peeves is that when I go to “throw” my canoe up on my head, younger folks rush in to help, at the peril of my cervical spine! But I do appreciate younger folks keeping an eye on me when I am running unfamiliar class 3, and some help on difficult portages is welcomed.
Perhaps…
Maybe because I’m from a canoeing background, only moving to kayaks lately, I don’t really concern myself over rolling. Due to long term arthritis my flexibility, especially cervically isn’t good enough to manage a roll. However in all the years I canoed I never rolled successfully once and managed to have a great and safe time for decades. If I can exit my yak, I’m not any worse off than I was in my open boat. In any case I’m not paddling in conditions or waters where I can’t save myself by heading to shore in my PFD. Perhaps because I paddle for peace of mind and not thrills, my adventures have been without incident.
rolling as a skill or a safety skill?
“I’m not paddling in conditions or waters where I can’t save myself by heading to shore in my PFD. Perhaps because I paddle for peace of mind and not thrills, my adventures have been without incident.”
That describes about 80% (or even 90%) of the folks who paddle. Their safety isn’t based on rolling. All they have to do is watch out for weather and have partner that can facilitate assisted re-entry.
Rolling maybe a good skill to learn because it helps so much with balance, so you end up not capsizing to even need the roll!
But as a safe skill to rely on, you’ve got to be able to roll in waves and basically bombproof even in condition. A lot of the folks who “can roll” aren’t rolling with that kind of reliability.
I always think of rolling a kayak a bit like yoga. Some people take it as a way of life. Others, just an exercise. Both swear by its benefits. Both are right.
Don’t have to do that
– Last Updated: Aug-18-11 3:09 PM EST –
Have you tried this sequence? Get one leg onto the PF with the other roughly parallel to it, stabilize torso over the deck, then move the outside hand onto the PF before spinning lower body roughly together towards the cockpit. I don't recall if I ever actually had one leg on the paddle shaft at the point the other was near the cockpit, at least that it worked. Very close in time sure, but the shift to the hand always comes first. You may need to squinch (OK, made it up but that's how it feels) your torso over the deck a little further before making this move, but that takes strain off the hand and shoulder which is good.
This timing is a lot more secure for me than trying to deal with legs at 45 plus degree angles. And that's not just an old age thing - there are days 10 years ago I couldn't have made that spread without pulling something.
Or, try the paddle float heel hook variation that was in Sea Kayaker magazine a few months ago. I found this to be surprisingly easy on all body parts, went much better than I expected the first time I tried. The shoulders and upper back were completely supported by the paddle and actually stopped it from squirreling around nicely.
Errr…
– Last Updated: Aug-18-11 2:41 PM EST –
..since when has 65 become elderly? If that's the case, then I'm approaching that age and thus should sell my sea kayak, my surf boat and my Pyranha Burn and restrict my paddling to anything that is flat and doesn't even involve the very thought of (gasp) ROLLING.
I started paddling in my fifties and was never what one would call an athletic lady, having suffered through required (yes, and "required" gym shows how old I am, too.) gym classes in high school and college. In order to have the strength and stamina to paddle effectively and safely, I've spent the past two years at the Y working with a trainer on cardio and with weights, along with spin class twice a week. Putting a label like elderly on anyone 65+ is unfair in this day and age. Any number of people approaching that number are still working, taking up sports they couldn't afford when they were younger because of work, finances or children, instead of sitting home expanding their waistlines and listening to their joints creak.
There are many ways of handling aching joints and limited flexibility while kayaking, as has been discussed. I'm hoping you've come away with a some new ideas and are consigning the label elderly to someone 90 years old.
Horray, Halleluhia, Bless you !
Man I couldn’t agree with you more, but every time I say anything to that nature I get jumped on by the holy rollers as I am sure you will also
Jack L
Glenn,
Your post makes total sense to me. My approach is the same as yours and it is working well. I’ve been on the water my whole life (canoe and kayak) and have never come close to an incident where I needed self-rescue or assisted rescue, due to good judgment and caution. There is just some disappointment at the march of time, which seems to speed up at a certain age. As a young person you set goals and hope to advance a bit each year. At a certain age you’re happy to maintain your level. Then you’re happy to be able to do the sport in any form.
this forum just got more depressing
…but I’m glad to see all those folks out there who are still in the game even though others think they shouldn’t be.
Wat happens ta old canooists…
dat kin not canoo anymore? Dems take up ‘yakin’…
Wat happens ta old 'yakers dat kin not 'yak anymore?
Dems take up golf…
FE
Smile!!
As always, FE, you bring a smile to my face.
WHAT? OLD??? 65 IS THE NEW 50!
Sixty-five ain’t old. It better NOT be -I’m a year and a half away from it!..!
Gotta go with Jack and the others on this one -age is what you make of it -yeah, sure, we’re all slowing down -but that doesn’t make life impossible in the least! Do what you can to stay in shape, eat well -and not too much of even the good stuff -and exercise regularly as well as you can, and THINK young! I really think the latter’s one of the best things we all can do as we age -understand the process, but don’t roll over an die and give up the fun stuff.
Get out there and do things!
You won’t run 1 10-0 100, or a 4-minute mile, or circumnav the world, maybe, but you can get out there and have fun as you
PADDLE ON!
-Frank in Miami
That’s OK, I can handle it if you can’t.
Elderly??
WOA! Back up that truck! Elderly just means older, not decrepit. Heck, my GGGrandfather was elderly, age 81, when he remarried and homesteaded in South Dakota.
Maybe it’s my advancing age…
…but I’m a bit confused by your reply.
How about 85?
How about if I change the definition to: “Elderly means 85+ and/or have lost critical functions”?
The actual age doesn’t matter. What I’m asking about is what people do when they find they have lost critical skills that impact their safety and that cannot be retrieved.
That could happen at any age. Many people have joint stiffness by age 70. But premature arthritis can occur much younger than that, like in your forties. That ages a person!
Sometimes this has nothing at all to do with attitude. Some people do the right things their whole lives—eat right, exercise, stay active. They plan to be among the exuberant 80-year-old skiers on the slopes. I know a guy exactly like that. He was hit by multiple sclerosis in his 40s and became old before his time. He’s still doing everything right, but his MS isn’t going away.
Usually that degree of disability doesn’t happen until late in life. But not always. So there’s no way of defining “elderly” or “old” or “older” that would satisfy everyone and describe each person’s case. Don’t get hung up on the number. Call it 85 or 95 or whatever.
There are many older people in the U.S. who have inadequate health care. That too ages a person. They don’t have the solutions available to them like joint replacements.
I sense from the replies that this is an emotional topic People don’t like the idea of getting old and don’t want to be called old before their time. That’s understandable. That’s why I raised the question—to give people who are already there a chance to talk about what it feels like when your body can no longer keep up with your love of something. I think there is something to be learned from people who are dealing with declining capacities. If you’re a hundred and ten and you’re not there yet, well, roll on!
getting old
Old happens. It’s not so much a mattere of years, that’s just part of it. Genetics, maintaining an intelligent level of fitness, diet, prescribed meds and personal attitude are even more important in defining “old”. A friend,of mine, a 65 year old avid kayaker living in Sarasota, FL, has noticed that, in the two kayaking groups to which he belongs, there are plenty of active paddlers up to about age 75 and then a precipitous decline; not many 76 or older paddlers to be found.
My own personal fitness history has not been overly intelligent. Once a compulsive runner who trained 40 to 60 miles each week, I have now, in my 70th year, had both hips replaced. No more running but still manage to bicycle [rather slowly] 4300 miles in the average year. The guys I paddle with consider anything less than 20 miles a light day. All told, probably not too intelligent. I’m starting to feel old and what I need is a lighter, more efficient kayak. My faithfil Caribou will soon appear in the Pnet classifieds.
Old is…
…when you have to get up more than 2 times at night to go to the bathroom.
Not old, just experienced
Well, I’m 61 now and just looking to start kayaking. I expect to have my first kayak by next summer, I’m doing some research first. I’ll grant that I’m not even close to the shape I was in at 20 but I’m not dead yet and I want to do something more physically active. Since I live close to 2 decent lakes this appeals to me. Unfortunately my wife said the largest body of water she wants to deal with is the bathtub but I’m undeterred.
there’s a middle ground (water) here
I, too, am a very cautious paddler. But I paddle in winter, alone, as a monitor for local eagle nests. (Nesting starts in Jan.) Rolling is very important to me as one possible self-rescue technique. It is definitely not a way of life or a fitness routine. It is a tool I keep in reserve, like my paddle float.
In winter I always wait for favorable weather before I go. I dress for immersion (often a drysuit). And I always go out with up to 3 ways in mind to save myself in event of a capsize: paddling as close to shore as I can, carrying a paddle float and a spare paddle, and knowing how to roll. No, I don’t have a competent paddling partner available to go at the spur of the moment on a weekday – it’s just me and whatever experience, skill and judgment I can muster. So rolling is very important – to me. But we’re all different.
G in NC