Onancock Challenge Kayak Race Sept. 10 2011

SouthEast Expeditions’ 14th Annual Onancock Kayak/Canoe Challenge has some new divisions and pre-race clinics to give you a competitive edge. The race is Saturday, Sept. 10, 2011, at 9 a.m. during Onancock’s Harborfest, a festive weekend of food, music and water fun on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

The weekend starts on Friday with two pre-race clinics led by Chuck Conley, instructor and winner of last year’s race. The morning session, 8 a.m. to noon, features racing strategy and boat control. The Forward Stroke Clinic (with video critique) will be from 1-5 p.m. Cost for each session is $55 with your own kayak (add $20 to rent one), or both sessions for $95 (add $30 to rent a kayak)

Afterwards, relax during Onancock’s Second Friday Art Stroll, 5-8 p.m. and the kick-off of Harborfest with live music on the wharf at 7:30 p.m.

The 9 a.m. race on Saturday has 5 & 10 KM courses on beautiful Onancock Creek. There will be new divisions this year for Kids 8 years and up and Stand-Up Paddlboards. It is a great event for paddlers who are serious about enjoying their time on the water as well as those who want to test their skills against the best racers in the region, including the legendary Olympic Champion Frank Havens, fastest octogenarian on the water!

Pre-registration is $15; $20 the day of the race and includes a T-shirt. Some rental kayaks will be available by reservation. Download the registration form for both the race and the clinics, print and mail in to save time on race morning.

For more information, call SouthEast Expeditions at Onancock Wharf: 757-354-4FUN, email mary@southeastexpeditions.com., and sign up for updates on Facebook.

Why I Heart Kayaks

I'd like to reflect upon how much easier kayaks are to paddle than canoes.

For one thing, kayaks are studier and heaps easier to balance in. I noticed this while seeing my boyfriend nearly bucked out when he stepped from the dock into a seemingly innocuous canoe.

Also, canoes are more difficult to propel through the water. You have to switch hands when you paddle on different sides and canoe hulls are wide and cumbersome. You feel like you're dragging the boat though slippery mud.

Now, what I want is a slick, slim-lined fiberglass kayak that skims the water like a dragonfly. I want my strokes to be executed with a fluid roll of my wrists and shoulders. Man, I love kayaks.

By
Alex Rich
Southeast Expedition Enthusiast and Shop Assistant

Sunset Kayak

The plink of water as it drips from your paddle and the seawater is thick like the green glass of an old bottle. Beneath the surface, a jellyfish drifts in lace tatters and spins slowly like a pale and distant galaxy.

Overhead the indigo and teal of the sky seep into a smouldering orange that roils at the edge of the world.

The wind is still at the end of the day.
Only the sound of your breath and the surf. However, it is quiet enough, so you might even hear the noise the sun makes as it first slips into the brine:
a faint sizzle
or a distant sigh.

Your First Kayaking Adventure

Location

We guide our 1st time kayakers through shallow, sheltered creeks and marshes where they can relax and enjoy calm waters teeming with wildlife.

Historic Onancock Creek Tour

Eastern Shore National Wildlife Refuge Tour

Winery Kayak Tour

Kayak Clamming Tour

Duration

The duration of your kayaking trip can be tailored to fit your fitness level. We recommend a 2-hour tour for beginner kayakers.

However, we have lots of options and our trips are highly customizable depending on the group's needs and what they want to see and how far they want to go.

Technique

Proper kayak technique, which is demonstrated by our guides before each tour, utilizes the whole body in order to maximize body efficiency in regards to position, rotation, and usage of the body and provides the most safety, recovery, and ergonomics while paddling.

In other words, you don’t have to have the arm strength of a professional weightlifter to propel yourself through the water. You use your entire upper body, not just your arms.

Myth: Getting Stuck in an Overturned Kayak

First of all, it is unlikely that your boat will turn over: we place our beginners in wide, stable kayaks and take them to sheltered waters.

In the event your kayak is overturned, it would be extraordinarily difficult to remain inside it. You are not trapped or enclosed in the kayak; you're just sitting in it. Gravity will take hold, you'll slip out, and your life jacket will float you to the surface.

However, if you still feel uncomfortable with a sit-in kayak, we also offer sit-on-top kayaks.

Even Your Grandmother Can Do It

Kayaking may call to mind images of extreme sportsmen, bulked-up guys with daredevil grins, high performance waterproof sandals, and raccoon eyes from their sunglass tan lines.

In truth, kayaking can be a leisurely sport for people of all ages and exercise habits. Recently, Southeast Expeditions guide Mary Burnham took an 89 year-old grandmother, her two grandchildren, one of which was a 4 year-old, and the children’s parents on a two hour tour of historic Onancock Creek.

The group traveled in 3 tandems: two with a parent in the back and a child in front, and the grandma sat in the front seat of the third kayak with tour guide Doug MacGarvey. Mary paddled in a single-seater in case anyone needed a little help.

The grandma did great, Mary says. “So, as for age, many people ask us how old is too old? The answer is you're never too old! This lady was not our oldest customer.”

Above: Bernei and Amelie Burgunder 89 and 82 years young with tour guide Bill Burnham

Also, a few summers ago, Connie and Bud Bernton, 82 and 83, of Bethesda, Maryland celebrated their 59th wedding anniversary with Onancock Expeditions. “They'd never been kayaking before, and they loved it!” Mary said.

~Southeast Expeditions at Onancock Wharf~

Jupiter Kite Invasion 2011

For years I’ve been hearing stories and reading articles about the Jupiter Kite Invasion. For East Coast riders, it’s one of a handful of contests that have become part of the region’s kiting culture. Even though this was my first time at the event, I’ve always felt a small bit of regional pride when reading the coverage of epic conditions, innovative events, and great parties that Jeremy Green and his crew at Jupiter Kiteboarding put together every year.

Looking at the forecast a couple of days before I took off, I debated whether or not it would be worth the trip. To say that it looked like Jupiter’s 7 year stretch of perfect event conditions was coming to an end is a bit of an understatement. If it were possible for the forecasters to predict negative wind speeds, I’m pretty sure they would have done so. However, all it took was one look past the wind forecast to compare the weather in Jupiter with what the week ahead held in Virginia, and I was packed and headed to the airport.

What’s the worst that could happen in 75 degree weather with crystal clear water, right? Well, the wind didn’t really cooperate this year, but that doesn’t mean that the event wasn’t a success. Jeremy’s experience in hosting the Kite Invasion was the key factor in ensuring that everyone had a great time with or without the 20+ knots & head high waves that the event has become famous for.

Add to that experience the new gear that’s available to us all, and you end up with a pretty happy crowd of kiters. Neil Hutchinson and Dimitri Maramenides took turns showing off the incredible range of the newest light wind kites from Slingshot & Epic. For East Coast riders, this is an important part of the quiver, and the crowd was definitely talking about the fact that with these kites & some awesome new surf designs from Jimmy Lewis riders were doing a lot more than mowing the grass while the rest of us stood around next to our 14’s & 15’s waiting for a little more breeze.

Mid-day Saturday saw the wind pick up enough for Cabrinha rider Jon Modica to take a couple of short downwind runs on his 14 and show some sick style in the small surf. For the rest of the riders, Jeremy and his crew turned out a fleet of SUP’s to fuel our competitive fires. Team SUP races & an impromptu surf competition showed that this mix of kiters was determined to enjoy their time on the beach rather than gripe about the conditions.

Jupiter Kiteboarding delivered on the party promise as well with great cookouts, movies on the beach, and a chill vibe throughout the weekend. So, while my kite stayed in its bag this weekend, I’ll definitely be back for the 9th annual Jupiter Kite Invasion... whether the wind is or not.

Waterkeeping in Beijing

Once again I’m back on the train. This time from Hangzhou to Shanghai. Seems like this is the only time I have to concentrate for more than 15 minutes. We’ve been having an incredible time, and all this running around leaves us both exhausted at the end of the day. Of course after dinner is the time I plan on sitting down to write, so it gets put off ‘till the morning, which starts earlier than expected and so the cycle continues until we’re back on the train. So enough with the prologue, let’s get back to the story.

For Saturday we had arranged to join the local Waterkeeper group for a river walk along the South Beijing Canal. They had even arranged for a translator to help us our as well. Andrew is an American student doing some research and work with the environmental NGO community in Beijing. He’s actually a Virginian as well (Arling-xandria area).
As we walked out to the main road to catch a cab Andrew introduced us to the joys of Beijing roadside cuisine. Skip the carts & mobile stands, but pop into any interesting looking food stall or open garage bay and you’ll be presented with some mysterious culinary masterpiece. It’s not gourmet, but these hard working cooks take pride in what they turn out. If you have no idea what to order, it helps to simply smile & look American. Chances are they’ll pull out a sample of their best dish and offer it to you. This morning it was meat and vegetable dumplings hot out of the steamer. This had to be the best $1.25 breakfast I’ve ever eaten.
Our cab driver stayed true to form and whisked us around the city with complete abandon. Chinese taxi drivers earn their reputation for having a passionate disregard for road signs, other cars, pedestrians, and any other obstacle that’s unfortunate enough to be in their way. While I never felt like we were in danger, I was glad to have a seatbelt. When the cab dropped us off at the subway station we had gone from running 10 minutes behind schedule to being early by 15 minutes. While we waited for the rest of our team to assemble we kept ourselves entertained by trying to find shelter from the biting wind that was whipping through the city. We knew that it was going to be cold in Beijing in November, but we happened to land in the middle of a major cold snap. The snow on the ground this time of year wasn’t unprecedented, but it was far from a regular occurrence.
As the Waterkeeper volunteers arrived Andrew kept us in the loop with the conversation and the rest of the guys flexed their English skills, happy to have the opportunity to practice. Before we knew it there were a dozen of us heading off to the river where we were met by a group of about 15 students who were joining us today to learn about environmental issues and what they can do to be part of the solution.
The South Beijing River runs in concrete banks for dozens of miles (maybe 100’s). This once wild waterway has been transformed into a frightening metropolitan drainage that collects water from everything from factories to the runoff from the outdoor markets that fill dirt lots around the city. While we did some ducks pausing for rest on it’s surface, this is not a river I’d want to jump into. Judging from the caution used in collecting water samples, I don’t think that I was alone in this opinion.
We spent about 2 hours along the banks of the canal, taking pictures of sketchy pipes and debris piles, collecting water samples, and talking to the students about why we do what we do. All in all is was a great way to connect with the local community and see a part of the city that we would never have experienced. Oddly enough it made Beijing feel more familiar by breaking down the colossal metropolis to one of it’s core challenges - water. Societies around the world share these challenges. How do we get enough clean water to meet our needs? What do we do with the water we use? What do we do when we get too much water all at once? Today Beijing was dealing with all of these, and the Waterkeepers were there to see how the city was meeting the challenge. If the bright colors of the test tubes in our water testing kit are any indication, they’ve got some work to do.
Towards the end of our walk Xian, one of the Waterkeeper staff members I had been e-mailing with, arranged for us to have dinner with Wang Yangson, arguably the most influential environmental activist in China. This is the same woman who I was supposed to meet yesterday, so I was doubly grateful for the opportunity to get together and explain the snafu. But we’re not meeting Yangson until 8:00 and we’ve got a whole afternoon to run around the city. We ask Andrew for directions to a good outdoor market and he points us toward the Dirt Market. Sounds like it fits right into our budget, and one of the volunteers even offers to get us there. Perfect!

Pics - http://gallery.me.com/gonesailin#100230&bgcolor=black&view=grid