Reply
 
Thread Tools Display Modes
Old 03-21-2022, 01:03 PM   #21
jimbo
Senior Member
 
jimbo's Avatar
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Posts: 324
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default

A man's got to know his limitations

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B-zzftkWbmE

Last edited by jimbo; 03-21-2022 at 01:09 PM.
jimbo is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-24-2022, 09:43 PM   #22
Ambridger
Senior Member
 
Ambridger's Avatar
 
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Ambridge, PA
Posts: 250
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default

FYI: Tonight the Red Mo is at 1.5 feet. 1 foot is paddle zero, and I believe 4 feet is their upper cancel limit.
__________________
Properly worn life jackets save lives. Wear and fasten your PFD!
Ambridger is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-25-2022, 01:28 PM   #23
djstone
Member
 
djstone's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2017
Location: Stoneboro, PA
Posts: 61
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default Red Moshannon

The Red Moshannon doesn't come up on my app. Hopefully the .02 inches of rain predicted will bring it up.

Looks pretty rocky. Maybe throw the bumpers over the sides to help you bounce off the rocks! Sturdy footwear might be a good idea too!


East bound and down tomorrow morning.
Safe Travels
Keep it between the mustard and the mayo!
djstone is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-26-2022, 10:53 AM   #24
KenM
Senior Member
 
KenM's Avatar
 
Join Date: Jul 2013
Location: Louisville Oh
Posts: 387
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default A missed opportunity

I'm sitting here Sat 11:45 am. Watching it snow. 33 deg. Getting some things together for a camping/hiking trip to far southern Ohio. Hard to get motivated.

What I'm thinking is what a great day for a canoe race! KenM
KenM is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-26-2022, 02:02 PM   #25
JPTolson
Senior Member
 
JPTolson's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Salem, Ohio
Posts: 895
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default Chili Chilly Run Training

The club’s annual chili chilly run often prepares us for paddling in weather like today! Hope our folks did well in the Red Moshannon Race. Can’t wait to hear about it.
JPTolson is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-28-2022, 06:34 PM   #26
mfdanko99
Senior Member
 
mfdanko99's Avatar
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Location: Champion, OH
Posts: 1,257
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default My Red Mo Race Review

My Red Mo Race Review
It was a great weekend filled with surprises left and right.

Saturday started rough for me and Jessica. As we made our way down to the put in I crossed the bridge over the creek and saw a turn around. I pulled into the little area and as I stopped the ground gave way and the front of the truck fell into a ditch leaving me at a 45 degree angle. I was unable to back out and had to get towed out.
Once that was over and we got everything unloaded and registered we got our shuttle done.

There was a bit if a wait before the race and they explained how it started with 2 minute introverts between classes.

At the Start of the race it was clear and temperature was 29 degrees.
American Whitewater gauge was 532cfs.

I learned a lot really quick. I was in the OC1 over 13ft long canoe class. When I got on the water I heard the others talking about there Kevlar & Fiberglass canoes. One guy called my scout a hog.
Plus I realized they were a lot narrower than mine canoe and a true solo canoes not a tandem canoe like mine.

My Start letter was group N which had OC1 13ft under & my OC1 13 longer. Total of 10 Canoes.

For the first four miles I was with the pack and hanging in there. I learned really quick my J stroke was to slow, had to switch to a goonie stroke with sharp corrections and side to side switching more than I normally do and I am upset with myself as it takes more energy to do that.

Then the guy behind me hit my right stern side and it spun me like a top and took me a while to recover. Now I am really behind trying to catch up.

As I was starting to get gain on him I came across a tandem canoe that flipped and one paddler floating down river unable to get to shore, I had him grab my Stern Painter and towed him to shore as rescue crews where on there way.

Then with just over a mile left I found a kayaker flipped and unable to get his kayak to shore. I used my canoe to get it to shore and get him out of the water as rescue crews were coming on 4 Wheeler's

I finished strong as I could the last mile. I have never been so exhausted after a paddle.

During the paddle we had 4 season in one event. We had cloudy skies, Sunny Skies, Rain & Blizzard whiteout Snow.

This is a great class I/II creek that I would consider a step up from Beaver Creek and a step down from the Connoquenessing Creek.

I am sorta disappointed in my time but I am glad I helped fellow paddlers and not just past them by like other paddlers did.

My over all stats
7.2 Miles
4th out of 5 paddlers in the OC1 over 13ft Canoes
1 hr and 8 minutes
Average MPH 6.1
Fasted Mile was 7.3 MPH
__________________
Mahoning River-Home of the Trumbull Canoe Trails 1975-2024 49 years

Last edited by mfdanko99; 03-28-2022 at 06:40 PM.
mfdanko99 is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-28-2022, 07:00 PM   #27
JPTolson
Senior Member
 
JPTolson's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Salem, Ohio
Posts: 895
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default Good Report

Mike,
Thanks for the race report. Really sorry about your vehicle needing a tow right before the race. Without question you did the right thing to help fellow paddlers who flipped despite it costing you valuable time. That should be a rule for racers in my opinion. It sounds like you paddled your heart out. I’m sure al the club members who participated learned a great deal, and it will serve them well for future races. Averaging over six miles per hour, especially with the delays caused helping fellow racers, is really moving!

JP

Last edited by JPTolson; 03-29-2022 at 05:48 AM.
JPTolson is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-28-2022, 09:38 PM   #28
BandanaDan
Member
 
Join Date: Oct 2015
Posts: 32
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default

Mike, Awesome, I've been looking forward to a trip report! Congrats to all the club members who raced, that was a very tough day. I'll bet it felt good to get warm and dry at the end of the day.
BandanaDan is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2022, 01:56 PM   #29
trjim
Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2021
Location: Poland, OH
Posts: 40
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default

Mike is right it was great day filled with surprises. I learned many things that I will share later. First a recap of the day.

I decided not to drive out the night before. My thinking was that I would be better off sleeping well in my own bed than getting a bad nights sleep in a hotel. I woke at 4:45 am and left my house at 5:17, headed to Clearfield. I arrived around 8:30 to met Jodi, Mark, Jessica and Mike at their hotel. Jodi, Mark and I decided to take advantage of the buffet breakfast at the Moose Lodge in Grassflat. It was a real feast, I ate 4 different pork products. Is that wrong?

After breakfast we headed to the put-in to drop off our boats and gear. It was along a narrow dirt road that was very crowded and quite muddy. Jodi was kind enough to be our shuttle driver after we dropped our cars at the (again very crowded) take-out. When we got back to the starting point we had about 2 hours till race time. I spent a good part of that time checking out the vast assortment of boats. There were lots of serious boats that I knew were going to be paddled by some highly skilled racers.

I was in class K 1 Recreational kayak less than 11 feet. Our race pushed off at 12:08 pm. I found the creek to be good challenge. Lots of class 2 and 2+ sections. There was not much of an opportunity to relax. As a result fatigue could be an issue if one did a poor job of pacing themselves. I was feeling pretty good about my progress. We were several miles into the paddle and I was mid-pack in my group. Also, I mostly likely was the oldest paddler in the group. About 4/4.5 miles into the race I experienced an situation that I am still trying to figure out. I had just successfully navigated a rapid/wave train and was in relatively calm water. Suddenly my kayak rolled hard to the left and in what seemed like a blink of an eye, I was upside down. I should mention that this is the second time I have gone for a swim. However, it was the first time doing so while using a spray skirt. After a rather disorienting moment it dawned on me to pop the skirt or drown. My PFD brought me to the surface and I grabbed my boat. Now I needed to get to the creek bank. Pulling a kayak full of water out of the creek through a strong current while navigating slimy, slippery rocks in the creek bed is not easy. Luckily the race organizers had many people on the banks for such an event. One of the safety crew jump into action and assisted me getting ashore. When I hit dry land I was pretty tired. I spent about 30 minutes recovering, drying off, changing clothes (over top of my wet suit), and prepping the boat for reentry. By the time I got back in the boat I was one of the back markers. I finished without any further issues I had two goals: stay dry and avoid being last. I am happy to report I failed at both of these goals. Actually I was on the water for about 1:15 minutes which is decent time. Dumping your boat really takes you out of the race.

Lessons learned.

I should have driven out the night before. Driving 2:15 in the dark is not the way to arrive feeling fresh.

I put on too many clothes overtop of my wet suit. The temp was around 30 degrees and I was concerned about getting too cold. The suit does a good job of keeping you warm. In fact once I started to exert myself I was too warm. Another consideration is to think about how heavy your outer clothes will become if you take a swim. I was wearing nylon pants with a polyester lining. When I got to shore I could really feel their weight. My guess is that wet they were 10 to 15 pounds. This could be one the reason trying to get to shore was so difficult. Also if you wear a stocking cap under your helmet make sure it can't flop down over your eyes if wet. I can assure you being blind while trying to exit the water is not helpful. One more thing. When you are paddling hard you will be breathing heavily. That means when you go under you need to react quickly, you will not be able to hold your breathe for long.

As a retired educator I know the importance of learning from your mistakes. In the learning process mistakes are teaching opportunities. The lessons learned from failure are the lessons that last a lifetime. The first time I took a swim I know exactly what I did wrong. I under estimated the current and over estimated my ability to get my boat to where it needed to be. The result was getting to close to a tree in the river and being flipped by a submerged branch. I will never make that mistake again. I can't figure out what happened this time. I have a couple thoughts as to why I ended up in the water. I am going run those thoughts by some of our more experienced paddlers to see if they can shed some light on my sudden roll over.

Overall it was quite a day. Did I mention that on the way home I drove through several whiteouts on Interstate 80? Would I do it again? Yes. I am already thinking about next year.

Jim

Last edited by trjim; 04-01-2022 at 12:56 PM.
trjim is offline   Reply With Quote
Old 03-30-2022, 06:05 PM   #30
JPTolson
Senior Member
 
JPTolson's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2009
Location: Salem, Ohio
Posts: 895
Nominated 0 Times in 0 Posts
TOTW/F/M Award(s): 0
Default Just a guess...

Thanks for the very interesting race report, Jim. Lots of good observations and lessons learned. You are to be commended for shaking off the spill, regrouping, and finishing the race...not easy to do when the air and water were so cold.

This is just a guess about why you flipped based on the account in your report. I suspect you may have flipped in an eddy either because you were leaning in the wrong direction, i.e. up current, in the eddy or because the current of the eddy forced your paddle underneath your boat which, in turn, caused you lean up current far enough to flip. Current in an eddy next to the river’s main current flows upstream and sometimes it’s easy to overlook that. And some eddy currents can be strong enough to flip an unsuspecting paddler if they lean up current. Just a possibility to consider.

JP

Last edited by JPTolson; 03-30-2022 at 07:53 PM.
JPTolson is offline   Reply With Quote
Reply

Thread Tools
Display Modes

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is Off

Forum Jump