HAWAII SUR RHONE

On June 6th I arrived in Lyon, France to prepare for the 3rd annual Lyon River Festival to be held that weekend. Situated on the Rhone River is an epic wave comparable to that of the Bus Eater on the Ottawa, and of the Dries of the New in West Virginia.

This international event drew competitors mainly from North America and Europe, with much attention given to Paulo and Juma who flew all the way from Uganda to participate. Jamie, owner of kayakthenile.com was there to chaperone these boys and I helped out when I could as well. We had some good times driving around the city looking for a grocery store while continuously reminding Jamie that in France you drive on the right side of the road, and when the boys realized they weren’t going to be able to eat matoki, rice and beans (their local staple), they finally succumbed to a week full of baguette, cheese and meat…poor them! At one point they left the hotel restaurant to go back to their room and 10 minutes later we found them stuck in the elevator trying to figure out how to use it…too funny!

Lyon is a beautiful city, what you would imagine in any European town…coffee and pain au chocolat, wine and cheese, shops galore, wine, people walking to and fro, late night dinners, wine, wine…and more wine. We had beautiful weather the entire week, but given the chance I think Juma might have contested with the notion that any climate below 90 degrees is completely sub-standard. However once we layered him up the shivering did eventually cease.

Toon, the event organizer and owner of Kayak Session Magazine is a man who gets things done. His calm and relaxed exterior might give you a different impression, but those organizational skills along with his productive team of staff were a welcome change to the usual mayhem that has come to be expected at kayaking events. I have never attended a competition that was marketed all over the city, and so well catered to both spectators and athletes. Great accommodation within walking distance to the site, a shuttle to and from the hotel, dealer booths, a play land for the kids, beer and food tent, and of course a popular line-up of bands on the Saturday night. (I’m not a connoisseur of music but apparently the headliner was a very popular band in Europe).

The competition itself ran very smoothly with Shane Benedict as head judge. Unfortunately the hot weather made for unusually low water levels, but that’s part of rodeo and over the years we have learned that you have to make do with what you have. So this challenge of performing to our own potential made it all the more impressive when big moves were pulled off from people like Anthony Yapp and Andrew Holcombe who came 1st and 3rd, respectively. Nouria, a 14 year old French girl was the most consistent female there, catching the wave every round and pulling off both front and back blunts. In the end, she placed 2nd behind another young European, and I actually came 3rd, proud to represent the older generation of pro-paddlers and thrilled to be a part of the new up and coming women who are showing some real talent. The big air competition off of the ramp was a real attraction, and in the end Canadian paddler Logan Grayling took away the prize.

I find the culture and language of France so fascinating and I do intend to spend more time there in the future. Thanks to Toon, Shane, and the rest of the team who contributed in the making of a fantastic event…I look forward to participating in it again next year!

 

CINDERELLA AND THE UGLY SISTERS

Moving to a house in Jinja for the last few weeks of my stay in Uganda was a welcome change to the tent I had been living in since my arrival 2 months ago. Jinja is the main town just 20kms from Bujagali, and when you can look beyond the unkempt, rundown nature of the houses here you will see some beautiful and unique architecture, and this house was no exception. My new accommodation also proved to be the place of lazy mornings defined by mass consumption of tea and biscuits with Hendrik, Helga, and Shane. Sharing a house with a South African, Croatian, and a Kiwi, respectively, is just another fine example of the diversity of culture that is drawn to this land.

In any case, I had become acquainted with many of the locals in Bujagali and came to miss their big smiles and warm welcomes during my morning ritual of mango, chapatti, and coffee purchases from their stands. For them, there is little variety in the local routine as each day consists of working their respective jobs and loitering with the same few people, and so it becomes quite apparent when somebody is missing from their presence for more than a day. In this case the common greeting when you reappear is; “You have been lost”, and so I came to hear that sentence often as I traveled to and from the river to my house. Another common phrase is “How’s there?” which basically means that they don’t know where you have been, just that you haven’t been there, and to this I could only logically respond with “There is good!”

Jamie, owner of Kayak the Nile has been working hard over the last few years to promote the local Ugandan Team, and so I helped to organize a photo shoot for an article to be published about these boys; Paulo, Juma, and Geoffrey. All sponsored by Fluid Kayaks, I thought it would a good idea to get them out for a little bit of team coaching, and I myself was keen to try out the new Fluid prototype for the small boat that we have been working on over the last few months. Now, it should be impossible to become complacent when paddling the Nile because there are so many different lines down the same rapid, but as humans I think we are drawn to the safety of routine. Hendrik was great at challenging me to run different lines and it was a relief to see even the Ugandan Team question new routes that I had been shown. Since the water level was lower than ever we had to seek new waves to surf, and my favorite one just happened to be at Total Ganga, a big, messy rapid which can be literally translated as ‘total craziness’.

On the far left side of the rapid there is a big, steep wave, and although there was potential to throw any big move on this ‘one shot wonder’, it was the consequences behind the wave that kept me on its conservative side. I think Juma thought I was a bit nuts when I pointed to the wave that I wanted him to surf, but once he was out there I know he enjoyed the nice blunts he so effortlessly pulled off. Afterwards we headed down to the Ugly Sisters to surf ‘Cinderella’, a new wave that was also recently discovered at this new level. Again, the problem with this wave is the massive pourover located about 20 feet behind it. Now I know 20 feet might seem like plenty of time to roll and get out of the way, but to be honest it didn’t take more than a few seconds to find yourself in front of the hump. Just a few weeks ago someone swam and consequently broke his collarbone so I think we all had a hard time focusing 100% on the wave. Juma, however, seemed to warm up to the wave after just a few practice rounds, and the photos should prove it.

 

It’s so hard to do things that make us uncomfortable, but often the gain from these personal challenges can be the most rewarding. There is so much to take home from this Ugandan experience. I feel clearer in some ways, more confused in others, but for me that is the excitement of life. When I question my decisions or wonder how I have ended up in some precarious situation (which happens more regularly than you might think!), I ask myself: “how did this happen on the board that I am?” a philosophy I learned from The Art of Possibility. In fact, at this very moment I am writing this story from the South of Italy where I am visiting my Ugandan friend, an Italian who owns a rafting company on the beautiful River Lao in Calabria. Two days ago I was supposed to be home, and now I find myself on a slight detour, immersed in Italian culture and living in a small village where I am the talk of the town, eating fresh pasta with Stefano’s entire family and stumbling over a language I am not familiar with. Life can be so full of irony, and sometimes I think it’s better to laugh and trust that you are just where you should be!

 

BUJAGALI AND THE NILE 03/18/06

Lake Victoria is a dam-controlled source that supplies electricity for both Uganda and Kenya, but with rainfall records being at an all time low over the last few years the diminishing lake level is actually a major issue. I’ve heard that they need approx. 3 weeks of continuous rain to bring the level up, and although the rainy season has begun it rains only intermittently, where sometimes we enjoy a light sprinkle and other times we seem to be witnessing judgment day. To compensate there are electricity cuts across the country, but with no given format the power goes on and off randomly throughout the day, and the loud and intrusive hum created by the generators has created a ringing in my ears which I fear will haunt me for months after my departure.

So the low river level means that some waves disappear and new ones can be discovered. It hasn’t been a prime level for ‘Nile Special’, the infamous wave that us Canadians came here to train on, but the boys set up a rope system similar to the one we use for Bus Eater so that we could get on the wave with a little more ease. It took me a day to figure out how to use it, and I spent half the time back surfing while holding onto the rope until I could pull myself around. Those who know my stubborn nature can understand that I’d rather pull my arm out of its socket before giving up and letting go of the rope, but luckily I only had to endure a sore arm for a few days afterwards. The level has since dropped even more, and so I have made the move from the island of the Hairy Lemon to the town of Bujagali for some river running/play. The ‘Silverback’ section of the river that we paddle only takes about an hour and is big water, similar to the Ottawa in spring but with 2 or 3 times the volume (and don’t forget this is low water). The waves are big, the water is boily, and I spend half the time flailing down the river in a controlled chaos. An interesting part of the run is the ride back to town from the take-out by way of ‘boda’ (scooters). First, you walk out of the entrance to your campsite and prepare for the 5 or so boda drivers who chase you down in a race for your business of 3500 shillings (approx. $1.25). Swarmed by them like a pack of seagulls waiting for you to drop a french fry, you have to choose one and arrange a time to be met at the take-out. Once there you walk up a short hill and hop on the back of the scooter with your boat and paddle in between you and the driver, make your way down a narrow road and get chased by local children who are yelling ‘hallo…hallo’ while hoping not to take any of them out with either end of your kayak. Now that the rainy season has started I think it’s safe to say that the real danger actually starts when you get off of the river.

The Bujagali mud is thick and slippery like clay and if you happen to have bad timing with the rain the drive becomes a heroic feat if you arrive home unscathed. These boda drivers are also a good example of Ugandan culture and how extreme they go to ‘living in the now’, though I think it can be contributed more to a lack of forethought. Here, all the drivers sit around talking, playing cards and waiting for business, and only when they finally need to drive someone do they stop for petrol. So as soon as you get on their scooter you have to first stop at the gas station, and then they only put 1000 shillings of petrol into the tank (approx. 500ml). Even if you ask if there is enough petrol there is no guarantee that you won’t find yourself stranded in the middle of a dusty road with trucks, bicycles and scooters whizzing past you. One time my driver ran out of gas on the way back from the river at the bottom of a hill, and the common solution was to blow into the tank to push the remaining fuel/fumes into the pipe…yes, it got us home.

There have been a ton of great people to paddle with and I have spent some time with Alaska, Norway, France, Australia, Great Britain and Ireland, just to name a few. Everyone has different ideas as to the difficulty of the river depending on what kind of water they come from, so it’s important to experience the river for yourself before making any judgments. A few people had me a bit concerned about what I was getting myself into, but my experience in big water has made the grandness of it all less intimidating, so you come to understand that it’s all relative. But isn’t that true for all things in life? To me, opinions are merely a basis in which to describe one’s own experiences. Anyway, I also seem to be the bridge between paddlers and soft power people. Trudi is my camping neighbor and good friend (even though she’s a kiwi) who showed me the ins and outs when I first arrived. I’ve dragged her on rafting trips, to park and play spots, made her swim the rapids and have created a bit of a paddling groupie out of her! In exchange she encourages me to wash my hair and dress like a lady but I limit the whole skirt wearing business to once a week if possible. Our connection has also made it easy to encourage paddlers to spend a day or two volunteering for Soft Power, which to me is a great way to see a little bit more of the culture.

The last week has been quite entertaining so I’m going to do my best to summarize some of its events. I paddled with Hendrik, a South African lad who has spent multiple seasons working on the Nile and who has done some of its first descents. We decided to make a deal: he has to guide me down Itunda, and in exchange I would give him a Thai massage. Itunda is a massive Class VI rapid (Class V where I come from). It’s length, volume, and the consequences of screwing up make it extremely intimidating and therefore paddlers deal with it in one of two ways: either they don’t run it, or they put it off until a day or two before their departure and then make a quick mission of it. Anyway, as we were floating down the river discussing the details of our arrangement, a local fisherman yelled over to Hendrik from his boat; “I like her, I want to buy her”…. this culture is so fascinating and I couldn’t help but laugh aloud. Of course this man directed his comment to Hendrik who replied with; “You don’t want this one…she talks too much, she can’t cook, she’s bad in bed…” The man insisted that he had money to pay for me and he really seemed quite disappointed as we floated past him and continued downstream. It was brilliant!

Last Friday evening over some beers the boys at ADRIFT invited me on a 2 day rafting trip. The last rapid on the first day is Itunda, and so it was logical enough to assume that I would have the whole day to be nervous about running it. When we got to the flat stretch just above, all the guides and rafters wished me luck as if it would be the last time they would see me alive. Hendrik told me of the line, and afterwards we silently paddled towards the rapid. Just at the entrance was a beautiful hawk standing on the bank along the shore, and for Hendrik this was a sign of good luck and so I was not about to argue. It’s actually all a bit of a blur, but I do remember that I paddled harder than I’ve ever paddled before, stumbled over a few boils, narrowly escaped the ‘Ashtray’ (a massive hole), had a small surf in ‘The Other Place’ (another big hole), and eventually ended up at the bottom of the rapid upright and intact. Unfortunately I don’t have any photos or video and therefore no proof that I did it, which means I’ll be running it again before I leave. I have a great deal of respect for the river and therefore cannot assume that my next experience will go as smoothly. Of course I have the skills, but it’s more about the headspace that can be used to predict your experience on any given day. Letting go of the ego is a requirement if you want to have more positive rather than negative experiences, and this need for self-awareness is just one aspect that draws me to the sport, so I’ll let you know how my next run down Itunda goes! Anyway, the following morning I had to remove a few slugs from my boat before we set forth from the campsite for the second section. I actually thought about doing a more thorough check for other creatures that could be hiding in my boat, but then I got distracted by the toast and jam and so that was that. About an hour into the trip we ended up at the Hairy Lemon where I saw some friends swimming at the beach. As I was close to shore I felt some strange movement inside my boat and it felt unusually larger than the small insects I normally find in it. I paused and took a moment to convince myself that I was just imagining something, but when I felt it again I bolted out of my boat faster than a pack of lions on a baby zebra (oh c’mon I’m not being sick, this is Africa), and sure enough a rat followed suit and headed directly to shore. He was quite a good swimmer actually, and I must admit the witnesses were well entertained! Later on in the day I had to take some of the outfitting out of my boat so that Olo could try it, and I found a big frog hanging out behind my bulkhead. No wonder my shorts smelled so bad…a slug, rat, and frog all doing god knows what in all different parts of my boat! In any case I have since washed my shorts, and let’s be serious, if that’s my biggest concern at the moment….’NO COMPLAIN’ (as the Italians would say)!

 

 

WELCOME TO UGANDA 2/22/2006

Bujagali Falls (the spelling varies from sign to sign so I’ve chosen this one at random) is a small town a few hours from Kampala, Uganda’s capital city. Situated along the White Nile, it is a Mecca for whitewater paddlers and a popular stopover for those making their way from Kenya to South Africa by Overland Truck over the course of 58 days.
My tent is situated alongside a path that the local children use to get from their villages to the river to fetch water in 10 or 20-liter jerry cans. Some as young as 5 can be seen carrying either a baby or a jug of water, and no matter what they are doing I am always greeted with a big display of gorgeous white teeth in those beautiful smiles. Their easy-going nature allows them to joyfully interact with us ‘muzungus’ (white people), and when I go for jogs at 6:30am with a couple of other girls, the kids sometimes run alongside us just laughing and joining in out of curiosity. I’m sure they must wonder where we are running to and what could be so important that we are in such a hurry to get there. Speaking of which, nothing here gets done quickly and this makes it a fantastic environment in which to practice the art of patience…come to think of it, I ordered a coffee over an hour ago. Actually, once you let go of the western mentality of rushing around to accomplish things all day long, there’s no practice left. Instead you simply embrace their style of living and go with the flow. Life can easily pass you by without ever doing much at all, and in fact I was meant to be writing this last week, but this whole concept of living in the moment makes it challenging to meet your own deadlines for even the smallest of tasks.

Last week I had a chance to work with both Soft Power Education and Soft Power Health, one focusing on building and improving school facilities and the other on malaria awareness and prevention. After rallying a few of the French paddlers to join me with the other crew of SPE, we all loaded into the back of what looked a bit like a cattle truck and made our way to a school in Wakitaka. We spent the day painting and mixing cement between snacking on Jack Fruit and partaking in a traditional lunch consisting of rice, fried cabbage, and a meat stew of some sort garnished with a delicious nut sauce. The students came over during our break and sang us a lovely song to welcome us to their school. I had a look through some of the books from Form 7 and it is surprisingly advanced in comparison to what I remember learning at that age. In fact, while peering into one of their math lessons I struggled to comprehend what exactly they were working on…but then again I recall struggling during pretty much every math class I ever took! Anyway, part of their curriculum also involves more of the day-to-day life skills that I think our education system in North America lacks. Although English is the national language, many cannot afford the necessary uniforms, books, and supplies needed to attend an otherwise free education, and as a result the predominant form of communication lies in the many dialects of the Ugandan language.

Since foreigners cannot buy property in Uganda, Steve Fisher (international pro-paddler) has leased an island from the government that he is building on. In order to use the land, part of Steve’s agreement with the Local Chairman (every community has a spokesperson called the LC) is that he has to give back to the community in any way he can. I know Steve has done such things as employed local builders, paid for the repair of a water tank, and in the case that I want to expand on he facilitated a gathering of all of the local villagers where Jessie and her staff from Soft Power Health were able to educate on malaria awareness and prevention. Everyone gathered together so that Jessie could explain what malaria is and how it affects our body, while Jessica interpreted it back to the people in lusoga (local dialect). There are many myths about malaria, so it can be fascinating to search for words that aren’t lost in translation during the explanation…although it does make the experience both challenging and entertaining at the same time! In fact, I recall in one instance trying to explain in English that malaria is a ‘small animal’ (there is no translation for ‘parasite’) that gets into your body, and the reply was; ‘but look, the animals are just there, they are too big so it is impossible for them to be in our body…!’
After the meeting, we sold almost 100 insecticide treated nets for a subsidized price of 3000 shillings (approx. $1.50), and this can be difficult to afford when you have 7 children and when the average wage is 2000sh/day. Of course it would be great to give the nets away but unfortunately the people would instead turn around and sell them for profit.

One of the misunderstandings about muzungus is that because we are white, we are rich, and this can cause some discomfort in certain interactions between ‘us’ and ‘them’. Often you think a little kid is running to greet you, but are soon disappointed when they stick out their hand and yell ‘give me money’. Of course their parents have likely taught them to do this, and after the initial shock you learn to reply with; ‘give me your shoe’ or ‘give me your pen’, which they are not prepared to do and so they generally reply by running away.
It’s important to become more aware of peoples’ intentions at certain times, and anyone with a naÔve and trusting nature could be easily misled by those warm embracing smiles. It’s common to be invited over to your bota driver’s home (taxi by way of scooter), or to be befriended by someone who then invites you over to a ‘gift giving party’ (…and this even I questioned!). I can’t forget to mention ‘muzungu price’ where we are charged at least 300% more than the local prices, but this is prevalent in all less developed areas and is to be expected. They have so little that to give 2000 shillings here and there to send someone to school is nothing, but unfortunately it only creates habits that are strongly discouraged. This aside, I think their hearts really are pure and I feel very safe in my surroundings, which is a great comfort when traveling alone.

So far I’m still healthy, though I did go for a malaria test the other day because I had some of its symptoms, but it came back negative. I’m feeling fine now, and a few friends have contributed my illness to a 2-day hangover. In any case I did get to look under the microscope at a strand of blood that carried the parasite and it looks like a little pink paisley mark…very cool. So running with the sunrise, paddling in the midday heat, enjoying a Nile Special (local beer) with the setting sun, and making friends with people from all over the world are just some of the experiences that I won’t take for granted while I’m here.

Well, my battery is about to die so I need to sign off…and find out the whereabouts of my coffee!

FUNDRAISING EVENT: 01/25/06


RIGHT TO PLAY is an athlete-driven international organization that uses sport and play to promote opportunities for development, health, and peace of children and youth in the most disadvantaged areas of the world. In everything they do, they emphasize the best values of sport and organizational values – optimism, respect, compassion, courage, leadership, inspiration and joy.
The support of an international team of Olympic and professional athletes inspires children and helps raise awareness of the humanitarian potential of sport at both the local and international levels. Wayne Gretzky, Silken Laumann, and Ian Thorpe are among these ambassadors.

In just a few weeks I will have the opportunity to work with the organization as an athlete ambassador in Kampala, Uganda, just one of their many projects located around the world, and last Saturday a fundraiser was held to support my involvement with them.

Santosha Yoga was kind enough to donate the use of a studio at their Westboro location in Ottawa where Maripili, a good friend and yoga teacher led a hatha class, and Donna led one of her ‘powerful woman boot camp’ classes. In between, Stephanie volunteered her time to give some chair massages (mettamassage.com), and I was able to practice some Thai massage as well. During the course of the afternoon, Bridgehead supplied coffee and tea, and The Table supplied some great snacks. All in all, it was a great event despite the snowstorm and challenging driving conditions!

Thanks to all who came to support the cause, I hope it brought more awareness to the Westboro community about Right To Play, and a special thanks goes out to David (santoshayoga.com), Donna (movementtohealth.com), and Simon (thetablerestaurant.com) for donating their time and energy on a Saturday afternoon.