How does Fear affect your paddling?

[TonyB]

[quote="Louie"]You never want to be the best boater in the group , you want to be in the group with the best boaters.

quote]

true on many levels be it skill, safty, or just good people.

Some recognize my paddling style to include a bit of fear or concern.

Keeps me from doing this I might regrett.

of course it sometimes compounds the fear that alot of the time is unfounded to begin with.

I know people that think any one with more skill's gotta look out for them every minute, some that had rubbed off a ways back and i'm just getting over it.

adrenaline has never been a good feeling to me. Something to overcome not enjoy.

recently Ive been able to combine a rush a accomplishment to that adrenaline and its working wonders on clean running.

[the great gonzo]

And as I general rule...You don't run the gnar with people that wouldnt jump in and attempt to save ur life when necessary.

Now that's a rule I can live with!

On the other hand you have to be aware that there arew many hard rapids where realistically speaking it's not possible to set up safety for the crux move at all, i.e. if things go wrong there even the best trained and motivated safety can't do anything but watch and you are on your own. I do very often approcach rapids where I am really pushing myself that way. I look at the rapid and ask myself: ' If I was by myself, would I run it?' If the answer is yes, the go. If the answer is no, maybe it's not my time to run it (yet).

TGG!

[jakke]

Fear is something you have to learn to know for yourself I think.

There are many feelings that can be interpreted as fear:
- excitement: this will be challenging, but I can handle it
- I've never done this before (but paddlers I trust say it's well within my skill range)
- I'm very well aware of my skills, and this will be challenging
- If I mess this one up, things could get nasty
- I'm trembling, even by looking at it ...

And x variations on these feelings.

It's a matter of learning for yourself:
- what is your skill level
- how is the feeling of the day
- on what kind of sections can I trust myself to decide myself to push the limits
- on what kind of sections to I trust well-known and very well trusted co-paddlers if I can handle this.

I've been paddling sections where I first did not want to run it but where other paddlers estimated that I could easily do it. And I've been walking rapids which I know I can do, but the days feeling was just crappy. Some people (like me) are rather defensive, others rely rather hard on their co-paddlers in case of a mess-up.

I personally don't like to be around paddlers of the latter sort. large steaming pile of dog doo happens, but if you go systematically over your limit, you're not only putting yourself to danger, but also your co-paddlers. And it's easy to say, you're on your own, but it's not so easy to let someone drown in front of your eyes. Even if it's his own mistake.

[mahyongg]

My biggest moment of fear was had when I watched a Lady and two (9 - 11 year old) girls without pfd's in a rubber dinghy (not raft.. just cheap crap) and no helmets, neoprene or anything go down a class II we often paddle that I knew had large wood accumulations in several spots due to earlier flooding a week before.

Now, how do you handle that.. when you are not paddling with people, you dont know, still knowing they might be putting themselves in great danger unknowingly. Of course, party-poop them out of doing it if you can.

All went well that day, but boy was I terrified to run into a bad situation when we went down there half an hour later.

Other than that, I try to use fear as guidance.. but never really had any so far, not that I would do gnarly stuff (yet). So maybe rather call it respect for the river and its features. I also tend to "fear" for other people more than for myself.

[sbroam]

My biggest moment of fear was had when I watched a Lady and two (9 - 11 year old) girls without pfd's in a rubber dinghy (not raft.. just cheap crap) and no helmets, neoprene or anything go down a class II we often paddle that I knew had large wood accumulations in several spots due to earlier flooding a week before.
...

A friend of mine witnessed a similar, albeit more obviously irresponsible, situation here - a couple of women had toddlers in diapers about to put on the river with an inflatable mattress. No PFDs, of course. He approached them and told them they couldn't do it, not with the kids. When they protested he stated making up US Coast Guard regs on the spot (there are some which probably do apply and if not our state DNR regs do) and they thought better of it.

[philcanoe]

Perspective knowledge of fear is often a matter of perception. Your story reminds me of a day on the Locust Fork, a rather benign local class2-3. The big rapid is Double Trouble. We were a group of 4 or 5, and as we neared Double Trouble we create great big mass with the addition of a Troop of Boy Scouts. So we 4 or 5 skirt the bad spot, a large undercut, by taking all manner of a'sundry toward the left lines. AND then the Boy Scouts head right for this really undercut boulder, on down the right side, big tandem old school boats. I quickly ferried into a micro eddy, with the stern of my Spanish Fly practically under and definitely touching the nastiest of spot, hanging onto a on shore above the water tree. Every one of the boaters gasped WTF, and the kids they just kept a coming. One by one - I pushed them aside as they careened into the undercut, smiling and saying - ya'll have fun, have a good day, good day to be on the water.

There was all kind of fear going on. I was feared for them. My friends for me. They had none at all. We quietly called the scout leader over and explained their now past dilemma, and now he had a dose of fear. And my friends learned I had been in there the week before, clearing out some debris. A lot of fear is perspective, and other times we know not what to fear.

[Louie]

Now a couple of women with small kids, we would turn on our best southern charm and strike up a conversation and then start showin them some of the crack in the helment, tares in the life jacket and gouges out of the boat. Then move on to tell when, what rapid on the river we were at did what. I would not be above makein up some law to tell them about and stress the fine that goes with that law, loss of car, depart of human services involement. I can be a real charmer when I want too, ask any of the girls. You guy have to get to know me to like me and then you still might not.

Now if ti was a couple of 20 year old males, I would just get the camera.

[sbroam]

...
Now if ti was a couple of 20 year old males, I would just get the camera.

But of course, and we collect their beer when its later floating downriver...

[Jared the.canoe.ninja]

Well Put Mr. Gnarlz I don't think I have ever paddled with some one I wouldn't try to save, oh that's right because I would jump in to save anyone. I thought that was an unwritten code in paddling. Iv been unlucky enough to personally witness 3 deaths on the river in my first year paddling and been present for 5 rescues four of which I initiated. (2 of which were rafters) But that's the sport, when you want to push the limits it happens. If you wanted to be 100% safe you wouldn't be boating lets face it, that being said everyone's fear level is different. I paddle with people who have been boating 10 times as long as me wont leave class 3 if that makes you happy then tear it up. For me its never enough. "Givn er for life"

Peace hope to meet some of you this coming year.

[Brendan]

It is imperative that we all recognize that there is inherent risk to WW boating, and that each of us has the personal responsibility to decide where and what we boat. There are a multitude of reasons we boat and all are valid. I do worry that there is a certain element of fundamentalism going on ( as tends to happen when humans are involved) in terms of what's right/wrong, etc.. when it has to do with boating. If paddling the GNAR is what spins your top- go for it, if paddling swamps does it for you, enjoy and so on.

As far as safety- there will always be folks getting in over their heads (no pun intended). Hopefully they will have exposure to good paddlers who will pass on imortant lessons. When we used to see liquored up rednecks jumping in an innertube to float the flooded James we referred to it as natural selection at work.

My biggest fear these days has to do with NOT boating! I am sad to admit that other things in life interfere with my getting on the water with any regularity.

Have fun, paddle what you want, push yourself if that is your desire, be safe ( within your definition of safety) and have a great New Year!

[Smurfwarrior]

Very few things have been able to replicate the feeling of intense concentration while purposely being oblivious to each threat to your safety that I used to feed on when I was involved in the sport of Luge. Here's a taste http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IMuShkwjQ2s Dropping into a track, on a 50# sled with no brakes and hitting over 85mph with an insane lack of protective gear gave me a bit of a rush. Doing a challenging (for me) run in the OC1 and hitting my lines has been the closest I've gotten to the Luge rush that I miss so much. Fear is good, it focuses your attention... seperating healthy fear and irrational fear is where most get jammed up I think. Scouting and thinking hard about the 'what ifs' and choosing a line removes a lot of the irrational fear and helps one program the brain to react if something goes wrong, since during the scouting phase you've already thought what to do and its that much easier and quicker to switch modes from hero paddler to hero swimmer, rescuer or whatnot.

In luge, visualization is used heavily for a few different reasons- different tracks, not looking where you're going most of the time, the availability of track time and for simple relaxation. My sports psychologist ingrained the importance of visualization into me and I find that is the key in overcoming the fear involved in looking at something that you think you can't do or are just worried about. We were taught that if you visualize something perfectly, imagining everything from the sound, temp, weight of equipment.. basically everything you would experience doing it for real, and then imagining yourself (in the first person) doing the run perfectly three times, your brain cannot seperate fact from fiction, you trick yourself into thinking that you've already done 'it' three times perfectly and therefore what is there to be nervous about? This works in a variety of situations, and it doesn't take long at all to accomplish while scouting. No coombayyaaa BS, just intensly looking at the line and taking everything into account then running it in your head a few times, from the initial drop to turning around and looking up with a smile on your face. Try it some time...

[Wendy]

Over 20 years ago I took some private instruction at NOC in kayaking. At that time I had been kayaking class I-II+ for 10 + years. While practicing eddy turns with an instructor I flipped onto the back deck in very swift, shallow water. I could not reach my loop, my hands were to cold to pull the sides of the skirt, the water pressure too much to push off the bottom. My life flashed before me. I thought about how my family would be so mad at me dying on the Nanty, especially since my brother was killed by a drunk teenager. The moments seemed forever as I said goodbye to this world. As I took a deep breath of water the instructor got to me and performed the hand of God. I survived but developed a reflex cold induced bronchospasm since that time. I stopped paddling decked boats for 10 years, never quit paddling whitewater. Fear, death, and gnar are separate issues to consider while paddling. Fear of this near death experience didn't stop me from paddling, but did get me back to the open side that I love. For me fear gives me strength, others it freezes.
Each of us must make our independent decisions so when someone dies, and they will running the limits others will not feel guilty.

[skooks]

I believe that there is 'good' fear and 'bad' fear. The 'good' type energizes you, sharpens your perception, and helps you focus. The 'bad' fear is debilitating and reduces your ability to react to your environment.

'Good' fear is part of almost every paddling trip I do. There is always a balance going on between fear and confidence, and for me the objective is to overcome the fear with the knowledge and confidence that I have the skills to run something. Usually I am successful in displacing the fear and using the skills I know I have to nail the line. I guess that is what Tommy refers to as 'Firing it Up". It is truly an awesome feeling but once in a while I loose the battle and that is when I pick up my boat and walk. Not a big deal, since the river will be there to run another day.

Fear for what might happen to others is far more intense than fear for what might happen to me. I was truly scared only once on the river, when my wife came withing seconds of being stuffed under a boulder sieve right in front of me. After she just barely managed to avoid it (her boat did go under and stayed there) I sat on the river for half an hour before I could paddle again. It hasn't seemed to have any long-term effects on her paddling but I think about it quite often.

[mahyongg]

Oh yes, that story reminds me of the moment where my partner nearly got pulled into a strainer.. where her boat ended up - and I sat on the other shore, on a foggy day with noone being able to watch me, quite an intense few minutes before I made her out walking on shore safely. Quite similar to your situation, only in this case it has given her a slight fear of murky waters.. not too practical here where murky is very common with the best water levels on our home runs.

See the situation here.. our friend's quake is the most visible thing, she got out where its on the shore - by a hair at this flow speed. Strainer is visible just below, at least the upper tree, there have been some more parallel to it below. Ah, details, I wont bother you with that no more.

[url]http://www.ipernity.com/doc/mahyongg/7639340[/url ]

I'll chat her up on that project of ours.. cleaning out that upstream v tree catching her boat that day, there should be a few low-enough water level days left this winter. Ugly thing, easily avoidable, just not when you go for a swim above it in a flood.

Phew.

[Alden]

I don't understand it. I do not think of myself as an especially daring person. I do paddle mostly class V, but I think for a class V boater, I'm pretty conservative. I have no problem walking or sneaking rapids, even ones below my skill level, if I don't feel right.

That said . . . as I consider the future, I find that the next two hobbies that I hope to get into this coming year are hang gliding and motorcycling!! I just told someone that yesterday, and he said I must be crazy . . .

I don't think so. But maybe we lose perspective when we boat for too long and are only basing our self-perceptions on each other . . . ?