Okay! I’ve accepted the challenge!
Like many of you, over the last two years at various races I’ve posed for photos with the index finger of one hand raised while someone beside me made two zeroes with their index fingers and thumbs. I must confess that at first I had no idea what I was doing, but it seemed to make people happy so it was cool.
This past year I learned a little more about the 100/100 Paddle Challenge and was stoked to endorse it with my fingers and thumbs when asked. I mean, how cool is it that people, many of whom are fairly new to paddling, have set a challenging goal that simply demands they get out on the water and paddle?
This season I’ve decided that if I’m going to be asked to make the 100/100 sign for a photo or two, I might as well actually join the challenge and participate.
They have a really cool challenge within the challenge called the “1%er Challenge”, which basically says for a SUP paddler you have to paddle 500 miles in 100 days. I’m going to run with that, but since I’m Canadian, I’m going to convert it to 805 km in 100 days.
It’s going to be tough and, truthfully, I’m not sure whether I might have bitten off more than I can chew. I certainly wouldn’t have a problem with that distance in normal circumstances, or with any of the other stipulations of the challenge associated with intensity and length of individual paddles. I’ve done it many times before in the regular course of my training. However I’m taking on this challenge in the middle of a Canadian winter, and that adds a massive amount of uncertainty to this undertaking.
Last year, we had one of the coldest winters on record and, in my 52nd year on this planet, for the first time I was introduced to the term “polar vortex”. We had numerous days in Toronto where the mercury hit minus values in Fahrenheit. The entire month of February was well below freezing. And you couldn’t even access Lake Ontario to paddle because of the massive ice banks that had formed along the shore.
So far this winter, a Toronto paddler’s best friend has been El Nino. Pretty much the entire month of December has seen temperatures above normal and while I’ve paddled every day, there’s only been one where I’ve had ice forming on my board or paddle. If I can duplicate the paddling I’ve been able to do in December in January and February, I’m very confident that I can reach my goal. But that might be a little unrealistic, even in a big El Nino year. This is Canada after all. If I do fall behind pace I’ll have some catching up to do in March and April, although the challenge ends on April 9th if I start on January 1st.
Like the other 700 or so paddlers setting personal challenges in the 100/100 Paddle Challenge I’m going to have to take this really seriously. It’s going to take a consistent, day-to-day effort, and I’m going to have to paddle on days when the weather is really crappy and I don’t feel like doing it. It’s going to take commitment, but I like the fact that it allows me a chance to catch up in later months if I do fall behind because of frigid weather in the depths of winter. Yes, this is going to be a three-month plus journey, and my focus is going to have to be as strong at the end as it is when I’m enthused about it at the beginning. I’m actually really excited to have this kind of challenge over the winter, and although I’ve paddled since I was 11 years old and figure I’ve done well over 75,000 km in my lifetime, this will be a unique, brand new experience for me. How cool is it that at 53, I can find an entirely new paddling/training challenge that I haven’t attempted before?
I’m looking forward to being part of group of paddlers, almost 700 strong, each with a similar goal. While our backgrounds and ability may be different, and the distances that we’re attempting to cover may be different as well, our experiences are going to be similar. I’m counting on that. One of the things I’ve realized long ago is that it’s often not the person who is best at something who is most inspiring. Rather it’s often the person who toils away quietly out of the spotlight, who has to overcome large obstacles with little chance for anything other than intrinsic reward, who in every way seems ordinary yet somehow achieves extraordinary things, and who takes on challenges for the purest of reasons. I’m looking forward to sharing my attempt at this challenge with them, and following them in theirs. I’m counting on them to hold me accountable and motivate me. And I’ll take seriously my responsibility to do the same for them. It’s going to be fun to see many of them over the summer and share a sense of satisfaction and camaraderie with people who have achieved their goals. And by the way, whether I’m successful in doing the 800 plus kilometers or not, I’m stoked about how well prepared this will leave me for the Carolina Cup.
Here we go! 805 km in 100 days. I can’t believe how much I love paddling!
::Larry's Technical Blog::
