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a) NAME:
Nakpil, Tito
b) Email address:
airgypsyBOASaolDOTcom
c) KAYAKS (Owned or Paddled)
Feathercraft K1, Folbot Aleut
d) Boat name and serial number if maritime radio operator
N3ZRB ham radio
e) SPECIAL INTERESTS:
Hang gliding, backpacking, cycling, winter camping, kayaking, travel, reading, model building, target shooting, meeting folks, making new friends and keeping old ones, a nice sunrise, a nice sunset, a good glass of wine & cheese
f) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
Technologist - computers, networking, mgmt consulting (trying to get away from all of them)
g) STRONG OPINIONS:
Trying to get away from those as well, that's why I prefer to lurk
h) MOST INTERESTING KAYAK TRIP: (so far)
Went on a long group paddle on Lake Erie and got caught in a ferocious lightning storm that spawned very quickly and snuck behind us as we were too busy paddling to look back to notice. Thunder, lightning broke out suddenly and we came out of the water like rockets onto the beach from our turbo-charged paddling 8-o. All of us were in awe of mother nature's violent display. Just like there are no atheists in foxholes, yes, hallelujah, amen, brother we believe as we huddled on the beach....
i) Short BIO (personal description)
Single, never married (come close a couple of times). Active 47 yr old outdoor buff 5'5" 60kilos, live in Erie, PA. Asst Scoutmaster for 14 yrs, ex prez of local outdoor club. Paddle when the weather aint flyable. Novice paddler, paddling 1.5yrs (since 1998). BS Computer Science, MS Business Admi. Ex-suit (tech-marketing type) from IBM(12yrs) after getting downsized. Now a network mangler, er, manager at a research center and getting downsized again - see lightning does hit the same spot twice - even if you move you still get hit. Biding my time until work becomes an option. Prefer and enjoy the simple spartan life even tho I've sampled life's very best (and worst).
a) NAME:
Newman, Bill
Hi Bill Newman here,
I must admit I feel young again after seeing the average age of posts. I am just a youngster of 37, although I often feel much older- my body does not take the wear and tear the way it did when I was in my 20s. I started kayaking soon after learning to walk - yes my parents have a photo of me at about age 3 holding my paddle upside down in the pool with " water-wings " for a PFD (not USCG approved).
I did not start sea kayaking until about 10 years ago, but after having paddled a fair bit of white water I had a good base of skills to build from. My roll is usually pretty good although my white water friends have and extensive gallery or photos of me swimming rapids. I am glad that they get so much joy out of my occassional misfortune. My offside roll is never as good as I would like, and although I could hand roll my white water from time to time, I just now managed to hand roll my Romany 18 sea kayak this last Sunday! Patrick Maun who already introduced himself was at the pool session and will do his best to deny that he witnessed this event!
I am fortunate to live right on the Mississippi River in Minneapolis MN so I have no excuses for not paddling, at least when the ice clears out like it has this week. Most of my paddling has been on the Great Lakes and especially Lake Superior, with a few trips to the Saint Lawrence, and Baja. After my housemate and I became creatively unemployed this summer we had the chance to explore all of the Great Lakes researching two guide books for Globe Pequot Press. Our guides to kayaking the Western (Superior & Michigan) and Eastern(Huron, Lake Saint Clair, Detroit River, Erie, Ontario, and the Saint Lawrence) will be out by early summer (end of shame-less promotion).
I have ACA and BCU instructor certifications and hope that my job as free-lance environmental consultant will give me the flexability to do a bit of instruction and guiding for a friends company.
a) NAME:
Niilus, Tony
b) CONTACT:
niilusBOASaolDOTcom
e) SPECIAL INTERESTS:
Birding, photography. Backpacker and downhill skier since age 15 but a few years ago hip and back problems made these activities too painful. I took up kayaking & kayak sailing instead.
f) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
Biology/Entomology; real estate appraiser; stock investor.
g) STRONG OPINIONS: Too many.
h) MOST INTERESTING KAYAK TRIP:
No epic trips, I do mostly local day paddles for exercise. Took the K-Light to Hawaii in July 2000 and paddled with Spinner Dolphins on Kealakekua Bay, Big Island. Frequently go to Bahia San Luis Gonzaga in Baja California for kayaking and kayak sailing, four times in 1999, five times in 2000, and twice far in 2001.
i) BIO:
Born in Estonia in 1942, divorced, no kids., lived in southern California since 1950. Served 3-years in the U.S. Army Intelligence Corps in Germany. BA/MA degrees in Biology/Entomology, worked in research in the Entomology Department at the University of California, Riverside. Changed careers to real estate in 1978, self-employed broker/appraiser until retirement from real estate in 1991. Began investing in stocks in 1978 and continue to do so.
I enjoy travel (usually birding related), places visited include: Estonia (returned 2x), Germany, Italy(2x), France(2x), Spain, Liechtenstein, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg, Belgium, Netherlands, England, Kenya(2x), Canada(4x), Mexico (Yucatan, Cozumel Island, Baja frequently), Costa Rica(5x), Ecuador & Galapagos Islands(2x), Peru (Macchu Picchu, upper Amazon basin, Atecama desert), Paraguay, Brazil, Argentina & Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica, China, Japan, India (Kashmir & Ladakh), Philippines, Thailand, Malaysia(2x), Borneo (Sabah), Indonesia (Java, Bali), Papua New Guinea, Australia, New Zealand.
26th May 2002 - Michael Noyes
a) NAME:
Noyes, Michael (Mike)
b) CONTACT:
- Chester, NH
- Email mnoyesBOASgsinetDOTnet
f) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE: Trivia
g) STRONG OPINIONS: (I doubt we'll have any of those :~)
There is nothing made by man that doesn't have at least one use
that the designer never dreamed of.
h) MOST INTERESTING KAYAK TRIP:
I want to go on a kayaking trip to Honduras (went there with Uncle Sam, didn't get to paddle) and to Ha Long Bay in Viet Nam. For a more normal trip for me see my Breakfast on Massabesic Lake trip report on the Paddlewise web site or my other trip reports on my personal website.
I) Personal info;
Born in New Hampshire (September 1958), grew up there. Divorced, 1 barely adult daughter (born February 1981), one granddaughter (born in May, 2001). I am an Electronics Technician for my job.If you want to see a picture go to my web site. http://gsinet.net/~mnoyes/
-- Paddling along through fog so thick that only one's thoughts are visible, your reverie is abruptly shattered by the ancient cry of a great blue heron as she lifts uncertainly from the brilliant blue of a mussel-shell beach witnessed only by the brooding, wet spruce.... your passage home seems as much back through time as it does through space.
Mark H Hunt
a) NAME:
Oliva, Vivian
b) CONTACT: details:
- email: snookBOASgateDOTnet
- location: FL
c) KAYAKS (Owned or Paddled) (boat names):
Scupper Pro sit on top by Ocean Kayak lovingly named: "The Escape Pod"
d) SPECIAL INTERESTS:
Kayaking, travel, fishing, arts and architecture, especially SW FL history.
e) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
Kayak fishing and island camping the 10,000 islands in the Everglades Nat'l Park.
f) MOST INTERESTING KAYAK TRIP:
There are too many to mention but the highlights so far are:
Did a 7 day Gulf loop trip on a sit on top in the 10,000 islands. I do overnight trips in the Everglades most every weekend in the winter. I also manage to at least get away for 5 day trip once a season. While not in a kayak but in a canoe, paddled the Boundary Waters this summer and last summer canoed Algonquin in Canada. Finally, a day trip in Baja, Calif on a sit on top (won me over to purchase current boat) was a gorgeous paddling experience. Hopefully, there will be many long kayak trips in my future. I am considering a folding or take apart kayak to take along on trips in the US.
Must make a mental note to ask Ralph Diaz for opinions :)
30th May 2002 - Kirk Olsen
a) NAME:
Olsen, Kirk
b) CONTACT:
kolsenBOASimagelanDOTcom
4 tier (8+ boat) canoe trailer to take everything so I don't have to choose ;-)
f) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
Occasional canoe/kayak racer over the past 25 years (marathon flatwater canoes, outrigger canoes, surf skiis, sea kayaks, and conventional canoes). Admin for the skin/frame boats mailing list.
g) STRONG OPINIONS: Yes.
h) MOST INTERESTING KAYAK TRIP:
I wish. At best I could offer up a story on the canoe trip from hell... With a 10 wheel dumptruck as shuttle vehicle for a couple friends plus 30 or so lumberjacks (Rhode Island lumberjacks...)
i) BIO: section.
Age 38 married 2 small kids. I started canoe racing with my father when I was 13. I now only race sporadically - in surf skiis, touring kayaks, marathon flatwater canoes, conventional canoes and outrigger canoes.
I was SUPPOSED to get my wife a sea kayak instead of an engagement ring. I was too slow for her and she went out and bought herself a sea kayak, in about '92. I'm a canoeist at heart who just likes to paddle and sea kayaks were a fun addition to the flotilla. The surf ski was added because of my racing background and liking to paddle hard and fast.
I haven't done a semi-wilderness trip since canoe camping along the Maine coast about 20 years ago.
For vocation I'm a serious techie. I've written Unix device drivers, assorted networking software, and I'm now developing PC support tools.
kirk olsen
FEBRUARY's "Who We Are" ENTRY
My father got me into paddling when I was 13 by entering us in a canoe race. A memorably long 13 miler.
My wife and I both paddle. She started paddling after meeting me but was the first to purchase a sea kayak. She got a Nordkapp HM as her "beginner" boat, after trying dozens of other boats. We've currently got about 8 paddlecraft including marathon flatwater canoes, a racing surf ski, a VCP PinTail, her Nordkapp, and a skin/frame baidarka (I'm the admin for a skin/frame boat mailing list).
I greatly enjoy paddling any boat people will let me try and I'm always interested in improving my skill set.
As for location, I work in New Hampshire, doing fairly technical computer programming, and live in Massachusetts.
As for preferred paddling, it all depends on the day and the company.
Some days it may be poling a canoe across some tidal flats on Cape Cod with the family, other days it might be a 20+ mile solo day trip, teaching acquaintances to paddle, or off exploring some local stretch of water. I've done next to no multiday trips, something I hope to remedy.
kirk
NAME: Osman, Peter (PeterO)
CONTACT:
- rebyl_kayakBOASiprimusDOTcomDOTau (I live in Sydney Australia)
- http://home.iprimus.com.au/rebyl_kayak
SPECIAL INTERESTS:
foldables, sea kayaking, kayak names, music, running, energy/water for isolated communities
SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
biophysics, electronics
STRONG OPINIONS:
Like to give names to kayaks!
MOST INTERESTING TRIPS:
So many
- Day trip from Lane Cove River Weir to Roseville Bridge via Sydney Harbour, my first solo day trip and a great way to see all aspects of Sydney Harbour.
- Kayaking round the Dardanelles for a dawn landing into Anzac Cove followed by a memorial service and gunpowder breakfast.
- Scariest trip was when I went out with no safety gear or water and got swept by a current past the Beecroft Peninsula into some challenging (for a beginner) sea. A one hour trip turned into four hours and I'll never again go out ill equipped or without planning the trip. I repeated this trip recently (properly equipped this time). It is a glorious stretch of hidden sea caves, inlets and weathered cliff face.
- Last Easter a small group of us paddled from Mericca River to Merimbula via Disaster Bay and GreenCape Lighthouse. This can be quite a challenging trip, its not named Disaster Bay for no reason. We were exceptionally lucky with the weather though.
- A few months later I had a chance to paddle with the New York Boat House kayakers around the Statue of Liberty and spent an evening session with them rolling, taking photo's and practicing in the Hudson. They were an extremely interesting, hospitable and very impressive group. I must write up that trip.
- On Christmas night this year joined a group paddling around the Kent Islands in Bass Strait. Our group installed solar lighting and a gas stove for the Island Guest house, helped remove invading weeds, put up fencing and rounded up wallabies in return for staying on Deal Island. This trip included my first experience of navigating by compass alone. It was across Murray Pass between Deal and Erith islands in a thick sea fog, no visibility. It was only one km but necessary to set the course to compensate for 3 to 5 knot currents in the Pass, or else be swept into Bass Strait in the fog.
BIO:
I'm a tall skinny guy, 55 years old, married in '72 and came to Australia from
England in '74. I visit the USA and England quite frequently. Started paddling about
5 years ago and spend most of my spare time on the water. Passed my sea proficiency
two years ago. Still got heaps to learn and thats one of the reasons I love paddling!
Two biggest events of my working life were building an experiment for the Space Shuttle
years and years ago and helping to get a nanomachine/biosensor to work. I paddled my
first boat when I was 10 years old, it was two planks of wood supported loosely
(no glue, nails or string!) on two blocks of wood and paddled with a long iron bar
on a pond in Sussex. (But I was born and raised in the East End of London - a grand place!)
All the best, PeterO
http://home.iprimus.com.au/rebyl_kayak
a) NAME:
Pantalone, Margot
b) EMAIL ADDRESS:
mpantaloBOAStennesseeDOTedu
c) KAYAKS (Owned or Paddled):
d) BOAT NAME
None, although someone else's name for their Edisto,
"Dreadisto," struck me as both funny and apt.
e) SPECIAL INTERESTS:
I'm looking for a new boat! I want it to be light,
decent in tracking and yet maneuverable, fairly quick and suitable for varied
paddling conditions, and also a heck of a lot of fun. CD's Caribou is the
leading contender, but I'm open to other interesting suggestions -- prefer
composite at this point. ŠThe Anas Acuta has appeal, but I paddle mostly
flatwater, and the Anas' rocker could be a problem on longer paddles.
f) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
Communications, information sciences
g) STRONG OPINIONS:
Kayakers are a nice community to hang with.
h) MOST INTERESTING KAYAK TRIP:
Love paddling in the Everglades. Favorite
trip to date, though, was to Reelfoot Lake in NW Tennessee, paddling across an
afternoon and past twilight in a wildlife sanctuary on a cool November day.
Rescued a trapped duck and saw the water and sky exchange colors at sunset.
Getting back in the dark across a large stump-filled basin was also memorable.
The photo is from Reelfoot on a different trip and shows some of the lake's
towering cypress trees.
i) SHORT BIO:
Grew up enjoying nature and canoe paddles on rivers during
trips to Arkansas. Learned kayaking in my 30s and initially preferred
whitewater. Later realized that I like sea kayaking better -- it was just that I
needed more experience, better technique, interesting places to paddle, and a
better boat. I continue to work on all of those variables. Whitewater is great
for chilling off on torrid summer days, though, and so is tubing on mountain
rivers around Knoxville, TN, where I live.
j) FUN FACT:
I married my husband because of kayaking. When I met him,
he seemed nice enough and all, but it was when I learned that the racks on top
of his truck were for kayaking that my interest was piqued. :-> When they heard
that I was seeing a kayaker, several of my friends asked if he still had all of
his teeth. I was so startled by the question, but apparently it's a common one
to ask here, in the heart of whitewater kayaking territory. I'm happy to say he
still had his teeth.
NAME: Parks, Carey
CONTACT: - cparksBOASfuseDOTnet
LOCATION:
- Cincinnati, Ohio, USA
KAYAKS (Owned or paddled): - Rented a few in various places, - Monterrey Bay, CA some SOT (first paddle), SW Florida Current Designs Storm (got the bug), Perception Carolina (First river experience), Wilderness Systems Cape Horn (First purchased)
SPECIAL INTERESTS: - Sailing, rock climbing, knot tying (I love ropes, can you tell?), wood working.
SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE: - Software development (35 years) - Sailing (20 years)
STRONG OPINIONS: - Eat dessert first! MOST INTERESTING TRIPS: - I'm working up to that.
Greetings from Paint Island Canoe & Kayak in Bordentown, NJ on the Delaware River. Nanette and I are nonprofit types that have created this paddle shop to hopefully balance our nonprofit activities. I work full time for Isles, Inc. out of Trenton. I run the new community farm project which works to deliver fresh produce to the neediest in the city, help people start farmstand businesses, and develop new economic sustainable products from the farm like herbal vinegars and oils and perennials that we can market to the traditional outlets in the area.
Because of our roots in the nonprofit sector we often donate product and services to community groups. We have donated a canoe as a fund raiser, offer free paddling opportunites to Trenton based nonprofit staff and community members. This past April, we did a trip out of a city park on the famous Delaware and Raritan Canal once the gateway for goods coming up the Delaware and heading east to New Brunswick and the NYC markets. Spring of 99 has another venture scheduled.
Our shop is truly a small boat shop. We have 450 square feet with every nook and cranny filled with gear, rope, floatations devices, lights, and boats. The addition of a rear boat storage facility has allowed us to display up to 40 boats and on the weekends we bring in the trailer with additional craft. .
I started paddling with Boy Scouts many years ago. Then one crazy summer I got a job with the Princeton YMCA leading youth canoe/camping trips to Algonquin Provincial Park, The NorthEast Carry in Maine, and Nova Scotia. I actually got paid to go camping and canoing. That was that. I bought a 13' used Gruman for $75.00 and paddled the local lakes for years. Poetry, love, and life came from my small outings.
Nanette, my partner, grew up in Rochester NY. She was part of a mariner troop that exposed her to sailing off the coast of New England. She volunteered for the Peace Corp back in 1980's and worked in Botswana. Then she joined a local United Way and ran community service programs and fund allocations here in NJ.
I watch the list to offer assistance when I can and learn as much as I can. We have been in touch with people from Thailand, Japan, England, Australia and of course all over the US.
Our new online store will be up and running this season.
Have a great paddling season. Come see us.
Ron and Nanette
Paint Island Canoe & Kayak
350 Farnsworth Ave
Bordentown, NJ 08505
609-324-8200
From: Perkins, Robert C
Email: rperkinsBOASfayettevillencDOTcom
I just turned 59 and have been paddling kayaks for 3 years. I'm strictly a weekend paddler but I try not to miss many weekends. I have a Prijon Taifun that I paddle on Class 1-2 whitewater and on timber-clogged blackwater rivers. My primary boat is a composite Dagger Meridian. I use a Greenland style paddle with the Meridian unless I'm going to run into sunken timber, in which case I take one of my Werner paddles.
This past summer I bought a Dagger Reflection 16 for fishing and for taking my wife paddling. We do okay with the canoe but our daughter and her husband paddle it really well.
Bob
--------------------------------------------------
Robert C. Perkins, Ph.D.
Associate Dean for Research and Planning
Methodist College, Fayetteville, NC 28311
910-630-7037 rperkinsBOASmethodistDOTedu
a) NAME: Phillips, Bob
b) email: PhlopzBOASaolDOTcom
It is interesting to see who we are.
I am Bob Phillips (59) and came to yakking by a circuitous route. As an adult at UC Bezerkeley, I got into sailing on the bay through the Cal Sailing Club and built an International Fireball. This is a sailing dinghy that weighs about 220 lbs all -up with a crew of 2. One of the crew trapezes, and the boat has main, jib and spinnaker. In the strong sea breezes funneling through the Golden Gate, *Balls will do an exciting 22+ MPH through the chop.
The Fireball is plywood (or should be), and with only the back 4-ft wet while it is planing, it is like motorcycling without the risk of skin loss in a capsize.
When my family got its life together in the mid-80s and moved to the foot of Mt. Hood Oregon, we aumented our cycling with cross country skiing. Here, In Michigan (don't ask --it has to do with peace breaking out), snow season always finds me with decent aerobic fitness, useful legs and a weak upper body. Usually, by the end of the Michigan Cup season, I have gotten the upper bod in shape.
Anyhow, with my background in plywood and fast boats, I decided that off season kayaking would be just the ticket to keep my shoulders and stuff in shape. So, I built a Pygmy Golden Eye and started to learn to paddle.
My local lake is small, and it soon got to be confining. The GE started taking my to bigger and more remote waters, and I got so excited about slipping quietly through the water and watching nature that it sort of took over. Now, I have to be really serious to take the bike for a ride with Michigan's dangerous, shoulderless roads, motor-city brained drivers, ...
The yak has a permenant home on the top of the bungalow truck, and with my bikes goes everywhere. Vacation is time to take the yak somewhere and poke around. It has been wet in 4 great lakes, 1000 islands, ...
I love to share the water with Loons and get them to yodel to me.
My son taught himself to roll by reading the book and persisting in our local lake. I swear to learn to roll this season.
Kayaking is a great thing to do, and I am paddling this year because of advice and problem solving help from you, my aged colleagues from WaveLength.
Thank you
Bob Phillips
a) NAME: Pivovar, Jennifer
b) CONTACT:
- kayakBOASheadwindsDOTorg
- (I live in Western New York State - USA)
c) KAYAKS (Owned or paddled):
QCC 600XL for open water ('Headwinds'), Wilderness Systems Alto for the creeks and rivers, when I need to go faster I use my Alden Star single (rowing shell) and when I'm being sociable I use the Wherry I built with the passenger seat in the stern. Paddled a CD Solstice once this summer but gave it back when I found out how much effort it took to turn it around in a strong wind. Actually considering a carbon racing kayak with which to abuse my ego with in the NYState Marathon Canoe Races next season (they do have a kayak class). Just bought (and WILL NOT LET GO OF) a Lightning Paddles Skimmer Ultralight.
e) SPECIAL INTERESTS:
Quickly moving across calm water, Golden Retriever Rescue, building things, growing things
f) SPECIALIST KNOWLEDGE:
database internals, systems architecture
g) STRONG OPINIONS:
Life is short - do something important!
h) MOST INTERESTING RECENT TRIPS, 2001:
A very quick run down Seneca Lake from Starkey Point to Watkins Glen, aided by a cold front that had just blown through and still contributing wind & waves in the right direction (unusual in that the N-NW wind is atypical, the usual prevailing winds are S-SE). Then there was my Thanksgiving Day Ganargua Creek Paddle & Poultry event, a great way for 8 hardy folks in the snow-belt to spend Thanksgiving, I think. Unfortunately, we were deprived of snow scenery this year. In fact, it has been so warm that on December 5 I took to Canandaigua Lake for a half-loop because it was 60 degrees F and sunny and who could NOT paddle on a day like that? If the weather holds, I'm considering a Winter Solstice paddle as well. Takers?
i) BIO:
I'm a widowed 45 year-old native of New Hampshire. No kids (except the golden retrievers), currently work for Oracle as a Director of Architecture Services. Lived all over the eastern US while working in heavy construction. Settled in the beautiful Finger Lakes region of NY State in '94 and rekindled my relationship with boats & water. A rowboat was my first independent means of transportation as soon as I could reach both oars at age 4 or 5, but I had gotten away from water and spent too much time working for a while. I'm over that now! Started Sea Kayaking in '95 and try to devote increasing amounts of time and attention to gaining competence each season. Am planning a kayak trip / awareness event to circumnavigate all 11 Finger Lakes. (Takers? :-)) Looking forward to an early retirement and doing important things on the water.
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