ask anyone I actually paddle with
if that guy is me.
I’d like to think not.
If anything I’m a risk taker.
But opinions vary.
err what?
If castaway would rather share feelings than “robotic technical achievements” then I suggest some other forum.
Then again I’ve seen some total loser scumbags moved by the beauty of their environment so I wouldn’t use that criteria to judge a person any more than I would chastize somebody for viewing paddling as a sport and pursuing technical improvement in that endeavour.
Just a joke - not an opinion 
NM
The monkey is amusing…
… so long as it’s not in control.
No need to kill, or silence it, or control it in any way. Only see and appreciate it for what it is and it no longer has any power.
Control is also a potential illusion, is it not? Another trap? It too is not required for “enlightenment”. Some degree of mental self control is very useful in many aspects of life - just as with discipline in physical training (which you know far more about than I do!), but for enlightenment?
At some point you have to ask: What is there to control? Who is controlling it? Who opposes that control? The answers cause all this to fall away. “Self Control” is duality/delusion in one of it’s purest forms and most self-limiting forms.
The wave needs no control maintain itself. We are no different.
well this paddler is one of those
I’m a late twenty-something that is looking drop than next second from his 1000m time. I have an advanced degree and am a professional in the field in which I studied. But I put in a good volume of athletic training. Today my water time consisted of a 30minute easy cruise after doing quite a few 200m running sprints with my boat on my shoulder. Yesterday I did 13miles in the morning at level 2 and did speed endurance intervals in the boat after work.
None of that detracts from my aesthetic enjoyment of paddling. Yesterday morning I paddled up an uninhabited backwater creek that I have passed dozens of times without entering. The shore was lined with verdant floating vegetation crawling with gallinules and herons. Tupelos, palms, and cypress draped in moss stood behind that. Mist rose sultry from the warm water and the vapors shone pink in pre-dawn light. Gators eyed me from the sides and one big old bull forced me to alter course because he ruled the reach. Yesterday afternoon I was treated to a spectacular sunset while I hammered through a workout. Today I was paddling in a cathedral of evening storms with clear skies overhead and lightning dancing on every horizon except for the west where the setting sun set the heavens on fire. Just because I’m breathing hard while I’m out there doesn’t mean I lose appreciation for the beauty. I get chills running down my spine every morning I walk down to the glassy lake with mist rising into the pastels of pre-dawn light. It is what gets my tired ass out of bed to do a hard workout before I go work for 8 hours.
"people who get too into the gear"
Too into it for who? This makes no sense. To each his own.
Some people truly enjoy increasing their VO2 max. Some like sitting on their butts in their kayaks drinking beer and thinking they are more in tune with nature than some gear head or more technique oriented paddler. Why should any of that bother anyone?
Pretty judgmental and limited sort of thinking. I guess I just don’t understand the need to finger point and ridicule others. Interesting how it has triggered so many interesting and heartfelt responses though. All approaches have value - to those who pursue them.
Ahh…
but the “monkey brain” controls us most of the time… It does take a bit of noting to realize how much that Monkey is running around in our head. The more one can note the monkey, the more the monkey loses control over us. As opposed to us trying to control it, it’s more like being being able to let the monkey run around until it simply loses steam and ability to engage and consume our mind.
I was thinking, there are actually a few “monkeys” (not specifically referring to this thread) running around these forums who have the ability to drag us into their manufactured mayhem.
sing
I got the joke
Greetings From The Monkey Brain
During my adventures with the monkey brain jabbering away, it seems like it’s a matter of getting the monkey brain to be on the same page with me. It’s kind of like removing a splinter for a child and saying “there, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” At least with rolling practice this has been the case for me.
I do agree with Sing that by embracing the monkey brain, it quiets down, and sometimes, there is complete clarity.
Lou
This thread is beginning to remind me
of that Indiana Jones movie where they eat chilled monkey brains.
Great synopsis G(g)reyak
An analogy we can all relate too:
Practice is like a boat… necessary to cross the water, but a burden once on shore.
Eventually, you have to leave the boat behind to make progress.
American Tag Line
In America the tag line is “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth over doing.” Kayaking is a great sport, hobby, or activity. No matter how you approach it, don’t let anyone try to steal your fun! And also, good job on posting a thread that is sure to break 100 replies.
Eating monkey brains
I once saw (not in person) where the monkeys are strapped into a special dining table, scalped, and skulls opened while alive. Brains are eaten while still breifly alive for maximum freshness, cruelty, and freak factor. Anyone know what culture that’s from - or is it a movie myth?
Big “G” little "g"
Funny you noticed that. Posts from different computers. I could just relog on and update the cookie so they match, but I though it funny and have left it. I’m easily amused.
Just Explained
I only explained what I felt Castaway was talking about.
When ever I’m facing waves or rapids I’m focused like a laser on what I’m doing. It’s the mind rush I’m there for, not to dawdle gazing around. I do that at a more appropiate time.
It’s the person on the beach who can best appreciate the beauty of a wave. An intelligent paddler knows what they should be focusing on at theat moment. That beauty of a wave thing was dumb to bring up.
Notice the example of the two kayak surfers who limited their appreciation of nature by focusing on the surfability of waves.
stages
Person on beach: “Nice wave!”
Beginner: “Oh s***! I’m gonna get hammered!”
Intermediate: “Ok, it’s a little bigger than the last one, starting to break a little farther out, breaking right to left, nobody on it yet. I need to …”
Expert: “Nice wave!”
From the interviews I’ve read with folks who have surfed most of theur lives, it seems that they get past the point of having to focus on the details. All that processing becomes automatic, and their senses expand again.
Who pissed in your Cheerios?
– Last Updated: Aug-08-05 1:13 PM EST –
My point was, though it is possible to become too much of a gearhead, or take yourself way too seriously, that I think paddlers are much less prone to these phenomena than other sports enthusiasts, and that there is nothing wrong with being curious about how to get better technique or know more about safety, especially during your off-water time, so that you've already got the technique in your mind, and don't have to try to figure it all out for yourself on the water, which gives you that much more time to enjoy paddling. That's why we see so much technique discussion here, and it makes total sense. My post was not subtantially different that Sing's point of view. I don't agree with castaway, but I tried to see where he was coming from before stating that I didn't believe anyone goes overboard on this forum like he thinks they do. Maybe because I didn't gleefully jump at the chance to tear him or anyone even slightly sympathetic to him a new one, as how you obviously felt maniacally compelled to do not once but 5 times, you mistook my post for being in agreement with his. So really the one fingerpointing and being judgemental here is you, Greyak, letting your short fuse get the better of you, or just looking for someone to flame, or whatever your usual game here is.
to ensure this post gets past 100
replies; I will say,
“you sure like to type greyak”.
maybe in The Hot Zone ?
I believe it’s discussed in a book about the ebola virus… The Hot Zone? (I must say that compared to the graphic nature of the book, I was both relieved–I’m squeamish–and let down by the movie “Outbreak”)
I want to say that the practice has something to do with the origin and spead of AIDS as well, but I could be wrong.
Doesn’t that take us full circle
And back to the expert becoming like the child…