This morning, Chris Wood, John Ernst, and I met Paul Jonason at Hansen Dam for some much needed rolling practice. After finding the right place to be - the giveaway was when I finally saw Paul's kayak on top of his car - I parked and was amazed at how nice a facility this is. Although the lake is small, there are plenty of bathrooms with running water and even a shower if you feel like rinsing the lake (actually reservoir) water off before returning home. There are also some very nice picnic facilities that I will remember for the next time we come here.

When he arrived, Paul coordinated with the lifeguard on duty who graciously allowed us to store extra boats or paddles on the dock which is normally reserved for lifeguard use only. Paul also alerted him to the fact that if he saw kayaks upside down or people in the water, that we were really not in trouble but were just practicing skills.

Paul started off by showing everyone that he has finally mastered the Greenland Sculling stroke. He laid his entire body into the water and kept himself from capsizing by sculling. I was impressed. He then did a few rolls and had everybody's attention. Practice does pay off.

Next was Chris who was suffering from some mental images of last week when he missed several re-entry and rolls in Wayne H's class and had to do an assisted rescue. Although his technique started out flawed, and he missed his first one or two rolls, the old muscle memory came back and Chris was rolling almost as good as he usually does. After a few more rolls, his technique looked as good as it always did in the past. Chris is a good example of once you learn something, you really don't forget it.

John was playing around in what he calls his surf boat. Personally, I think he left it out in the sun too long and it shrunk. Although John said he hadn't rolled since last year, he looked like he had been doing them all his life.

Finally it was my turn. I couldn't put it off any longer, the water was warm enough that none of us were wearing wet suits--just shorts, a rash guard, and a light paddling jacket under our Pad's and skirts. I completed the first half of the roll without any problem and there I was underwater. I was able to visualize all of Wayne's instructions to me when he worked with me last summer, and a could also picture the instruction from Kent Ford video that Wayne recommended I get.

At this point it was now or never--although Chris was standing by to offer me a bow rescue if needed. I reached out and up and started to rotate my torso while sweeping out with the paddle. It felt right and all of a sudden---I was breathing air.

John and Chris switched boats and Chris took the whitewater boat for a while and John took Chris's new Performa. He immediately commented on how "tippy" it was and opted to get out rather soon. He then swam a bit and I practiced towing a swimmer from the bow. John had only done that from the back deck and really liked the technique. Of course I couldn't resist needling him for not taking the guiding classes that CKF has arranged discount prices for us for the last 2 years. We joked about how he would already have known that if he hadn't been too cheap to pay for a class. He replied that he'd learn the techniques from those of us who already had taken the classes.

Then it was back to rolling practice. I attempted 5 more rolls and found that I was successful every time. I decided to stop when I noticed my technique was deteriorating from fatigue. Thanks to Wayne H for taking the time to work with me last year and also to Peter O and Chris Wood for all of the help they have given in the past. If I can keep this up, I guess I'll be able to say "I can roll" soon.

Thanks to Paul Jonason for organizing this practice session and doing all of the coordination work with the lifeguards. It was fun to be just a participant.

    Steve Holtzman