I was asked back channel by someone as to what swim escorting is. I thought everyone knew but clearly not; so here is a quick overview: Basically many swim race organizers have been asking that kayakers accompany the swimmers to keep them out of danger and act as guides. As far as I know, this started with events like the swim that circumnavigates Manhattan Island. One or two swimmers brought along kayakers and the other racers soon demanded that they have them too. That is, at least, the way it happened here but the genesis may be different, i.e. we didn't invent the wheel here, I suspect. The duties vary with the swim race and its location. Also with the numbers of kayakers that show up in proportion to the number of swimmers. Kayak escorts are only part of the equation. There are also motorboats acting as safety. In the swims I have been on the motorboaters chief responsibilities are to form a flanking wall to protect the race course from intrusion by other motorboats and also to come to the aid of a swimmer in trouble to pull them out. Despite an occasional run-in we have had with an escorting motorboater, the vast majority are good at what they do. Kayakers perhaps work better than the motorboaters because we are closer to the swimmers physically, emotionally and in empathy; moreover we don't appear to be a bodily threat even when almost on top of the swimmers. Most of our duties are that of a sheep dog helping to keep swimmers going in the right direction and away from obstacles and dangers. If a swimmer is in trouble, then the kayak escort can help by having the swimmer hang on to the kayak's bow (a disqualification from the race, but fine for someone who needs to be pulled out). Kayakers are not expected to be aquatic paramedics, nor are the motorboaters. In some cases, kayakers have done first aid work but that is rare. One such case in the Chesapeake was documented in Canoe & Kayak magazine last year. Swim escort work is a very rewarding experience in the gratitude expressed by the swimmers who just love our being around to help and encourage them. An example: On the last swim here in Manhattan I rushed to get a swimmer back on course who was swimming well off course into possible boat traffic. As I got to her she zigged when I zagged and my bow accidently brushed the side of her head. I started to apologize as she turned her head toward me and I was expecting a well-deserved cursing out for my error. Instead she flashed the sweetest smile and said "That's okay. You kayakers are just great!" Kayakers have saved lives on swims. But even in undramatic ways in every race, kayakers are doing countless little and big things to help the swimmers. Just about everyone who has done swim escorting has commented on how satisfying the experience has been. We are social animals by and large and when involved with something bigger than our own little worlds we do draw a feeling of well-being. Swim escorting leaves that sense of internal glow when you do something to help others. That the "others" are fellow water people is all the more gratifying. I have also found that kayak escort work helps paddlers become better paddlers at least in the Hudson River swims off of Manhattan. The waters are very turbulent because winds and currents are often in opposition and also because the unbelievable amount of boat wakes that hit you from one side before coming at you from the other side as they bounce off seawalls. Many kayakers paddling through these waters tense up but when they are concentrating on the swimmers, they don't. They let their bodies unconsciously absorb the impacts of the turbulent waters and allow their boats to do their thing. So after doing a swim escort or two, they are less nervous in turbulent waters when just paddling and not escorting. I have preached this in trying to get kayakers in NYC to join in on the escort duties. At least a dozen have later emailed me or told me personally that what I say above about becoming better paddlers has been proven true. If you have any questions or ideas regarding swim escorting, please make them. I know of perhaps a dozen paddlers on this listserve who have done such escorting extensively and would also likely pipe in. ralph diaz -- ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Ralph Diaz . . . Folding Kayaker newsletter PO Box 0754, New York, NY 10024 Tel: 212-724-5069; E-mail: rdiaz_at_ix.netcom.com "Where's your sea kayak?"----"It's in the bag." ----------------------------------------------------------------------- *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
ralph diaz writes: If you have any questions or ideas regarding swim escorting, please make them. I know of perhaps a dozen paddlers on this listserve who have done such escorting extensively and would also likely pipe in. -------------------------------------------------- I have been escorted before, and can attest that this is a very valuable service. Many of the participants in such events have done a lot of swimming in pools and not much in open water. In a swim a few years ago cross the Columbia River the first thing I noticed is that the water was damned cold. The second thing I noticed is that there aren't any lines painted on the bottom. The third thing I noticed is that there were swells in the river, and so in addition to moving forward I was also moving up and down. All of these things can make a swim in open water very disorienting to someone who hasn't done it before. I found that about every ten strokes I had to stick my head up and orient myself to some landmark on the distant bank. I once tried to swim for a ways without looking up, and found myself face to face with the bow of a kayak after about 30 seconds, as I was about to leave the the designated swim area. jim h. *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced/forwarded outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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