•≈ Sgian Dubh

Saturday 10 November 2007

Now here's a thing, Dubsides new •≈Ice Kap≈• ...phwooooaar. Nearly as sexy as my Anas Acuta. I like what they did in lowering the coaming as well for technical layback rolls, but how is he ever gonnea get that on a bus or over his shoulder on a bicycle? Also, his Ice Kap is an unprecedented ¼" wider than my composite Acuta. It'll be like trying to roll a sheiks yacht, I'm telling ya. -People will tell you my bottom lip usually comes out quickly if I have to play in anything wider than a pencil- The Acuta is also 11.5" deep... thus 1"shallower than the LV Ice Kap & its 12½". The Ice Kap beats the Acuta on weight by a few pounds but that said, I've never strapped either to my head in readiness for hoofing it in a road race, so any relevancy there, falls away when it comes to acrobatic dances across the skin of the ocean. At the moment I can perform 85% of roll sets in my Acuta composite without faltering, compared to 100% repertoire in the Sgian Dubh SoF. I'm sure I'll keep a quiet eye on how the black brother does in his transition. Great looking qajariaq though Dubs. All this has somehow reminded me to practise more bizzare rolls. Broomstick, done it...deckchair, done it...juggling clubs, 4, 2 in each hand resembling a double Norsaq roll, done it.....frying pan, of course! Now if I managed it with a pigs leg would that be a bacon roll or a ham roll? Don't even think about it. Just pass the ketchup.

Now for comedy, how about a rolling set performed on a •≈sit-on-top≈• . The excellent Leon Somme along with the black brother have a roll-off using a variety of bath tubs...Beyond the technical rolls, what is great about this movie is that it is also, & moreover, a display of community, fun & togetherness, integrity & humility, it is overrun with mischievous humour - ergo, it is a place where the ego & the willy waver have no place. This is how the world should always be, & this, to my mind, goes some way in helping to explain, why we do what we do..

Well, this morning when I peaked out the window, there was a dusting of snow in the Cuillin & the leaves were all but gone from the trees. I'm away to teach a roll or three in some near Baltic conditions. Sadly, no beautiful brilliant Maylee to share this one with since she's away to scare fish in Jersey...but hey, now I have digital camera waterproofing, I'll try to get some shots, maybe some film, of how it all goes. Stay safe out there ladles & jellyspoons. Now... where did I put that frying pan...

-you have to read the One On One post below to make sense of the frying pan aye-

मौसम

Labels: Anas Acuta, kayak rolling, Kayak Symposium 2005

posted by •≈ Sgian Dubh at 19:47:00 |

2 Retorts:

At 12 November 2007 at 15:48, Helen

http://magicseaweed.com/Eoropie-Surf-Report/98/

found a wee link that might be good... don't want to get swept out of the harbour!

At 13 November 2007 at 03:39, •≈ Sgian Dubh

That's a fine & healthy swell to pick a fight with. Eoropie is also a lot more exposed in comparrison with the harbour at Port on the NE reaches, where I will take you through this weeks rolls. The advantage of Port is that the forward massif of the Butt headland creates a natural storm buffer which in conjunction with the harbour, will more often than not, give a novice plenty of security for the task at hand, but allow them to experience some gentle natural elements of the ocean at the same time. Things you just won't feel in an indoor clinic. They didn't choose to build the harbour there, in a natural recess for kayaks afterall aye...

I also need to put my head in the door at Andrews on this trip & see if he is ready for a shotgun escort through the outlaying Drum & full Butt archipelago. Nearly everytime I'm up that way he asks me to take him through. Again it's about making sure he's up to speed, & only then, telling him it won't do his hairstyle any good.

I'll be on Harris by late afternoon.