Kayaking Class 101

Author: Diane Olin

ACO Raft Guide Diane Olin

................ So, I attended a whitewater clinic this past Sunday, 06/16 and one of the very first things I was issued was a spray skirt to go along with the kayak............... My initial thought was; "Nope!" I love the river and I love to kayak but, the thought of flipping over and being held down by my legs trapped under that skirt in the kayak was terrifying to me..............

Having very dear and trusted friends not only with me but, but also as my instructors helped me to at least go down to the river with my equipment and watch. 🙂still not quite sure if I could or even wanted to overcome this fear by getting in the water!

 

To begin with my teacher and friend, Don Nelson explained he first would do; “the Hand of God roll” which would mean he would flip me upside down in my kayak but, then he would turn me back up right side up.  My job was simply to hold my breath and trust he would flip me back over . Success!

I'm upside down, inside my kayak.

I can feel "the Hand of God" pulling me upright.

Next, it was time to trust in myself and my ability when it flipped to perform a self rescue.......Not too sure about this since it would mean tucking my body forward, hugging then tapping the sides of my boat three times, (this is done to keep you calm and in control) Once I'd done that I was to pull the ripcord to remove the skirt, then use my hands braced on the sides to slide my body out of my kayak.......... Wait, what?  The thoughts I had right before he was about to flip me over were; "this is kind of like being baptized."  I spoke those words to Don and Brian right before they flipped me, not really realizing at the time how profound they were, and the lesson I was learning.

They did flip my kayak upside down then let go. At that moment I knew I was alone under that river water, my legs trapped. I also knew my way out, if only I could trust enough in myself..............At no moment did I even consider the equipment not working or my friends not being able to get me out.  My worry and fear was rooted in my ability alone.........Why??

"You can do this, Diane.  I'm right here and won't let anything happen to you."

The truth was I wasn’t alone. I was safe. They would never had let anything happen to me.

I think life can give us experiences that sometimes aren’t necessarily good or kind. Those experiences have the power to alter the way we see things and even trust others .Fear itself can be life saving. It’s a healthy response to danger and can keep us safe. However, there can be an unhealthy fear as well.  Fear that can be so severe it can and will debilitate some of us , especially those who have been exposed to trauma. That fear can keep us from living the full life God truly intended for us to have if we are not careful.  Overcoming fear and life circumstances is not easy but, it is possible! 

On my drive home I thought back to the day I was baptized in that very same river.  That water Baptism represented a new beginning for my life............That day I had to make a decision to be set free of sin.  I I had to want that new beginning. After the decision was made in my heart then the Pastor lowered me into the water..........This past Sunday I again  had to make a decision first, only this decision was to be set free of fear.  A decision to believe again in myself - a decision to trust those with me.  After the decision was made in my head and heart then those boys flipped me and I was set free!!

Free from my kayak, and free from my fear!

Courage is not the absence of fear - but moving forward in spite of it -

2019 Upstate Tick Report

Author: Glenn Coin - Syracuse.com

Common Ticks

Syracuse, N.Y. – Brian Leydet makes his living studying the ticks that cause Lyme disease, and he knows that ticks avoid sunny yards with grass cut short. So he was surprised and disturbed to find a tick on the ankle of his 21-month-old son, who plays only in the mown grass in the sunny part of their Fayetteville yard.

“My yard has no tick habitat. That’s really concerning,” said Leydet, who studies ticks as a professor at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry. “I’m seeing higher numbers at the edges of my yard than we’re seeing in tick habitat.”

Leydet said the lack of a late season snowfall led to more adult black-legged, or deer, ticks surviving the winter. That means they laid more eggs that have now turned into the life stage that causes most cases of Lyme disease, the nymph. Leydet speculates that there are so many nymphal ticks this year, the shady, damp habitat areas they prefer are overcrowded and forcing them to move into open yards to find a meal.

“It’s just really, really bad this year,” he said.

Helpful Tips to Remember

Nymphs are less likely to carry the Lyme bacteria than adult ticks are, but nymphs cause 80% of Lyme cases. That’s because the nymphs are active in summertime, when people are more likely to be outdoors, and because the nymphs, about the size of a poppy seed, are difficult to see when they attach to skin. Adult ticks are larger, about the size of a sesame seed, and more easily seen on the skin.

Leydet is careful to spray his shoes with permethrin, an insecticide, but he still found a tick on himself recently after being in the yard. Fortunately, the tick was dead, probably killed by crawling through the permethrin, he said. His son is fine, too.

Ticks tend to prefer moist, dark areas, so they’re most commonly found in high grass or bushes in dense shade. Leydet said his yard has a single line of trees, a place he didn’t expect to find ticks when he dragged a cloth along the ground recently.

“I picked up 20 ticks in 15 minutes,” he said. “There’s also a single tree behind my house, an oak with some understory. I circled it once and picked up seven nymphs. “They’re out there in numbers,” he said.

The numbers aren’t the only scary part, he said: Half of the 14 ticks from his yard he had tested in the lab were positive for Lyme bacteria. Lyme disease cases generally start increasing in June, so it’s too early to know how bad this season will be, said Dr. Kristopher Paolino, the Lyme disease expert at Upstate Medical University,

"That said, I’m seeing a lot of tick bites and have already seen a handful of Lyme cases, as well as other tick-borne diseases," said Paolino, an assistant professor of medicine, and microbiology and immunology.

New York sees about 8,000 cases of Lyme disease annually, according to the state Department of Health. Early symptoms include flu-like symptoms such as headaches, body aches, fevers, chills and joint pain. About half of people infected with the Lyme bacteria will also get a circular rash that grows outward from the center. The disease can be treated with antibiotics if caught early, but can cause serious health problems if left untreated.

Leydet and other experts urge people to use precautions when outdoors, especially:

-- Spraying clothes and especially shoes with a permethrin-based spray, available at drug stores and outdoors stores.

-- Wearing light-colored clothing so you can see the dark ticks crawling up.

-- Spraying exposed skin with bug spray containing DEET.

-- Checking your entire body after you’ve been outdoors, especially areas like armpits, groin and nape of the neck.

Using Tweezers to Remove a Tick

-- Removing any tick attached to your body with fine-tipped tweezers. Save the tick by dropping it in rubbing alcohol or putting it in a plastic bag and then placing it in the freezer. The tick can be tested for the Lyme bacteria.