[Paddlewise] Ignoring a Fellow Crosser: any thoughts?

For those that read my Catalina trip report, you know that we met up with a
fan of Duane's who was heading out for Catalina. It was somewhat of an
awkward situation, as it seemed he and his friend would have liked to have
been invited along with our group. I found it a bit surprising that someone
who had read of some of Duane's exploits would think of being invited along
last minute on the beach--the disparity between SOTs and sea kayaks not
being even the major consideration! Talking about it later, we all agreed
that plenty of young bucks could gut out the trip to Catalina especially
under the conditions we had for our crossings-even in small SOTs. But anyone
who belongs to CKF or reads our trip reports ought to come a way with the
impression that getting to know your fellow paddlers is an important part of
planning a trip--not to mention required safety gear!

I hope Peter (if I got his name right) might read this and realize we
weren't shunning him on some personal level and if he really appreciates
Duane's accomplishments he might study a bit on what it takes to make a safe
trip. It would have been nice for us to take the group under our wing, but
there was no way for that to turn out good. We wondered/hoped the group had
a safe passage, but we also hoped their immediate trouble in the surf maybe
gave them pause to wonder if they were up to continue their planned trip.

I hope they become members some day and come to appreciate the collective
wisdom of our more experienced paddlers and put their knowledge to good use

Mark
www.sandmarks.net
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