In a message dated 3/30/99 7:27:40 PM Pacific Standard Time, woodardr_at_tidalwave.net writes: << When the fight or flight instinct kicks in, I imagine it is very very difficult to overcome the flight tendency. Especially if you have no personal ties to your group, or your confidence in your own skills under pressure is in doubt. >> I agree. I've been there - scared, anxious and ready to run. What makes the choice of flight so wrong (outside of one's moral obligation to others) is the fact that anyone can experience problems. So those who fractionate the group by paddling away from their companions may endanger themselves as much or more than the bulk of the group. They may blindly think they are rushing toward safety, but they may actually be fleeing their only source of help. But then, fear and reason don't usually paddle in the same pod. <<With all the interest in paddling gear and safety, why almost no focus on the paddling 'experience'? >> Good question. On the other hand, when paddling with a group, I find that my comfort level weighs heavily upon my level of enjoyment -- my personal paddling experience. And the degree of group cohesiveness, combined with the group's approach to safety, seriously affects my comfort level -- usually far more than the prevailing conditions. So anything I get from this list that helps me improve pod cohesiveness could help improve all my future experiences. In fact, when Kirby Stevens started this thread, it was with a poignant and seemingly exasperated request for feedback because his enjoyment was being hampered by bad group cohesiveness. Group paddling should be as much about looking out for one-another as it is about sharing the joys of paddling. Harold So. Cal. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.gasp-seakayak.net/paddlewise/ ***************************************************************************Received on Thu Apr 01 1999 - 01:58:52 PST
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:30:06 PDT