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I have been paddling for
18 years. I first got hooked on kayaks
listening to Audrey Sutherland talk about
her solo paddling adventures n Alaska.
My first kayak was a big
plastic one. I put my three year old son in
the back hatch!We went on lots of short
camping trips. He eventually grew into his
own little kayak, and I towed him. He would
play in the sand while Mom learned to roll
in the shallows.
I did some guiding and
instruction over the years, and then, three
years ago, I discovered the Greenland blade!
To hold one in my hands was pure magic!
Evolved over a thousand years or more, it is
such a simple and elegant tool, yet so wise
in ways we moderns can merely dream about!
So buoyant, so warm in my hands, it called
to me: play, paddle, scull, roll!
I have been to Greenland
twice to compete in the Greenland National
Kayaking Championships.� When folks ask
questions like, �How did you do?�
expecting race and roll results, I balk at
an easy answer. I have a dozen gold medals,
but for me that doesn�t begin to answer
their question. It is about so much more.
It's really about "The
People" as the Inuits describe themselves,
the Greenlanders. Young ones, with so much
hope and promise. Old ones, so wise, with
the twinkle in their eye. Modern
Greenlanders proudly helping to bridge the
gap. The Qajaq culture, this tradition of
the seal catchers and their families, is
thus kept alive in the modern world. To be
accepted and welcomed, inside this circle, I
just feel fortunate to have taken part.
Present goals: To wander
the world with Turner, teaching the Green
love!
Future goals: Long paddles in strange and
beautiful places! ... to make a rolling DVD
to live in a yurt!
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