Is it passion or stupidity

A man builds a 76-foot, 22,000-pound pencil. Why?



I couldn't read any further, it just seemed so ridiculous, then I saw "Twenty Craziest World Records", so bizarre I refused to scroll to the last ten, so did an edit.



Then it got me thinking... I can only speculate that it is their passion to be a winner. All that energy, all that preparation... Is there really a loser in these types of record attempts?



When you manage to stay connected to your Energy stream, you always win. And you know what, somebody else doesn't have to lose for you to win. There is always enough. - Abraham-Hicks Publications

Answer: It’s what he does.

Top Ten Craziest World Records as Recorded by Guinness and Other Resources

1. Heaviest weight lifted with a human beard: 130.2 lbs. by a man in Lithuania



2. Fastest time to solve a Rubik Cube blindfolded: 5 minutes 42 seconds by Ralf Laue in Los Angeles, CA



3. Most figure eights with a kite: 2,911 figure eights in one hour set in 1988 in Ocean City Maryland



4. Leapfrog over most standing people: Andy Wiltz leapfrogged over ten standing people at Seaman High School in Topeka Kansas. He got a running start to clear all ten heads in a row.



5. Longest midget toss: Yes, this is actually tossing a little person and it is an annual event. The record is 11 feet 5 inches.



6. Fastest Furniture: 87 mph. This sofa is actually street legal



7. Largest collection of belly button lint: Australian Graham Barker has been collecting for over 20 years and has more than half an ounce of the stuff.



8. Largest collection of paper and plastic bags: Heinz Schmidt-Bachem has collected 150,000 bags since 1975.



9. Most accurate value of Pi: The number is too large to list here but Japanese mathematicians have calculated the number to 206,158,430,000 decimal places.



10. Heaviest neck tumor: A West Virginia woman had a neck tumor for 22 years it kept her from leaving the house or doing anything. It weighed over 8 kg.


I been talking with the Boo for sometime, eleven years and some change. About making a difference, leaving your mark or making a statement by leaving no mark at all. Emi has heard this as well and it is interesting how we all find our way. The things we attempt, the things we do.


What drives us to do the things we do? Passion or Stupidity.

I think I'll pull my eleven-year-old out of school and paddle for 300 plus miles on ocean with bunch of other "passionate" folk and contemplate. Oh yea... we might be setting a record. Go figure.

A great day for...

After a slow start on Saturday morning, things began to come together once Laura got up and said she was heading out for a run. Not to be out done, I dragged the paddle simulator to the T.V. room and got in an hour and a half, some core work and a upper body strength training routine.

Sunday morning found us looking at 1 degree Fahrenheit (needed to wait to see which way the mercury was going to go), we went for breakfast and pondered the day.

Upon our return, I started boxing up gear that Boo and I sorted last week. Laura had a TriBabes meeting, but our plan was to get in another good work out. Laura returned and said she was going to put in 2 hours on the bike trainer. Yikes!! I decided to hunt for open water - I heard the Oconomowoc River was open, so I grabbed the Summersong and hit the road. Am I glad I did.

A great day for a paddle. Mid-20's and lots of sunshine. Doesn't get any better then this -January in Wisconsin.

Glassy conditions sheltered by the tree line, made for an outstanding paddle.

Met up with Brian and Dan taking advantage of the open water. Turns out they have kids. Shared some PEAK Camp stories. Looks like we may have a couple more takers for the paddle trip in June.

We made it up to the Dam on Oconomowoc Lake. Hung out on the water for awhile, the stories continued.

Heading back down river. Got in 40 minutes of intervals which turned to cruising and grabbing some pictures.

Far end of the Oconomowoc river, the Lac La Belle Cemetery. Everything so crisp and bright in the sunlight.

As the sun sets, so does the paddle. It felt so good to get out on the water today.

Perfect- The Capt'n

Large helping of

Picture from 2005 - Somethings never change.

No stranger to the buffet, I went in for a large helping of motivation this morning and I think I got it. There are some outstanding "dishes" (tales of adventure) out there to feast on.



Now into my second mug of coffee and blogging... I stare at the paddling simulator wondering if I have the moxy to put in a couple hours watching reruns of Leave it to Beaver and get a workout in?



Then like a lightening bolt, it occurs to me that the temperature has risen by nearly 30 degrees... a balmy 18 degrees Fahrenheit... sweet.



Question is, can I find open water within reach of my mug of coffee and the buffet of inspiration which is the Internet?



A jaunt outside to assess, brings an appetiser of a fresh snow fall... another 1 1/2". Just enough to breakout the snow shovel. Drats... motivation waining... more hurdles to over-come... The boathouse door is completely frozen shut and the Sea Wind is on the far side of the garage with a labyrinth of gear to navigate through.



Re-assessing... Stop the Tom Foolery, I could have had almost an hour on the paddle simulator, if it weren't for my paddle dreaming. I've wasted too much time thinking about it rather then doing it. Now I'm hungry, and Mr. Bagel calls to me...


Another hour passes...

With a click of a mouse, I wonder what Sandybottom and KiwiBird are doing? - The Capt'n

Paddle on

Bushwhacker Challenge 2008

The word on the river... "Tough as nails" - The Capt'n

Canoe sailing...

Click image

An on-line publication that encompasses the entire sport of canoe sailing, from historical and classic craft up to today’s high-tech recreational and competition canoes. Just stumbled across their site.

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It has possibilities. - The Capt'n

More then a tale / tail

Marissa (Boo) tells a good tale of our weekend planning and sorting gear, but forgot to mention our sub zero - 13 degree rescue of a kitty from a drain pipe.

We spent about an hour gaining the confidence of this little kitty we saw running across a parking lot and seeking refuge in a drain pipe. Emily and I finally got the kitty to come out when a couple ran to the pet store and got us some Salmon cat food to lure him from hiding spot

Paws are a little tattered and some frostbite on nose and ears, but the kitty now named "Ray" is doing well.

Marissa and her Aunt Jenny went to the pet store and dropped $65.00 bucks on the fixings for Ray. Life went from totally bleak to totally sheik for Ray.

With further investigation, we summarized that someone dropped the kitty off in the area as there was a towel and some dry food staged in the pipe.

Ray is now on a fluffy pillow at Aunt Jenny's....
All is well, you are loved.

Minus 9 and

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Not that I am complaining... minus -9 is a lovely number. :-/ But it cuts like a knife and any exposed skin will suffer its wrath.

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When you move away from the steam bath of Lake Columbia you become a very **frozen crusty likeness of yourself. ( You better know where your car keys are) Standing around pondering... not advised.

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The lovely power plant on the horizon that keeps this wintery paddle paradise open all year long.

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For another chilling tale...go to Journey on the ....

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**This is for Mark at Kruger Canoes... (i.e. our phone call). I don't want to be the crusty me anymore.. :-) - The Capt'n

Taking advantage...

Taking advantage of the beauty and the window of warmer weather on Monday, John and Patrick take to the Wisconsin River. Thought I'd share the photos John sent me.

Temperatures are dropping and we are under a winter storm advisory... welcome to Wisconsin. If you don't like it, wait an hour, it is sure to change.

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A wealth of knowledge, both John and Patrick have been very supportive of our youth camps. Thanks for sharing your photos!

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Another missed opportunity for a work'n man - The Capt'n

Pitch poled and then some

Going back some and dating ourselves, long time friend (Coast Guard) "Beezer" sent me this great picture of a Class A catamaran getting pitch-poled. We never won any races while sailing together, but we do hold a couple of records. Damn proud of them too.

In the record books

• 7 loaves of bread between the two of us at the Spaghetti Factory in Honolulu, Hawaii.
• 6 months of watching Bob Newhart reruns "The One O'clock Club" daily (should have been studying)
• Optimist Challenge 1995 5 race series on the Rock River. Match racing -"Beezer" takes it 3 to 2.

Protest still pending - The Capt'n

Technique

Here is a video that has been circulating on the Internet. Some outstanding canoe handling, Canadian Style. Great technique.

A canoe is a canoe is a canoe - Unknown

We are taking ...

More than 100 cars were involved Sunday in a series of pileups that killed two people on a foggy five-mile stretch of highway just east of the city of Madison. I was on I-94 40 miles away moving at a snails pace. The fog made it very difficult to see 30 feet in front of you. How do you prepare for a situation like this? SLOW DOWN!!

Wisconsin has gone from below zero as previously posted on this blog to in the mid 40's. Bring on the tornadoes and thunder storms. Wisconsin, we are taking a hit. We wont be able to control the weather on the EC either. So we prepare...

Mother Nature has away of dishing out some payback. I always have gotten along with Mother Nature. In my younger years I had a sixth sense on where the wind would blow. Time to hone the skills.

I bring this up as Boo has always been very nervous about the weather ever since we and about 15 other kids were pinned to the shore of the Wisconsin River some years back as a huge thunderstorm rolled through. Boo was six and has never forgotten the experience.

Teri Boo's mom has an appreciation of weather and the environment as well. Teri fell through the ice some years back on Lac La Belle. Completely submerged, popped back up, hanging on to the leash of our Shepard "Baron" (gone but not forgotten) as he pulled himself and her from the water up onto the ice. They skated home to safety. Teri has never forgotten that experience either.

It is interesting, that Boo hasn't made reference to this last set of Mother Nature Spankings. I think her comfort level and understanding has grown while communing with nature and paddling over the year's. Now to work on Teri.

Have I done all that is possible around making this adventure a safe as possible? I believe so. We are taking every precaution.

Enlisted 8 time Everglades Challenge participant from Kruger Canoes Manitucruiser (Mark) to shadow us down the coast.

Using the best possible configuration the Kruger Cruiser and Balogh BOSS.

Redundant safety protocols implemented, practiced and understood. Boo has been dunked catapulted capsized and been bobbing in the water many times. She's ready. Don't get me wrong...

We heed Chief's warning posted on the WaterTribe website. We take no un-necessary risks on this adventure. If we need to hold up our forward progress for better weather and conditions, we will. It's the real deal.

Safety gear -- 2 minutes ... Risk assessment -- 5 minutes ... A mishap that takes a life -- forever. -Unknown

Dazed and confused or is it just...

Dazed and confused or is it just foggy? 90 % of our snow is gone... Bring on the mud, tornado's? Crazy weather. Lots of damage and injury just south of us. We just have a damp basement. I can live with that.

It was magical out last night in the fog at the Waterloo River Basin. Took Scout out for a run. He went walk-about for 30 minutes. I was pretty much ready just to leave him out there as he would not return on the recall whistle. He can be the best and worst of the canine species. He showed up at the jeep, without a care in the world.

I feel pretty good alternating upper and lower body workouts... The balmy weather of late gives us hope that Spring is right around corner. Chasing Scout around is making it interesting! You can get lost in the beauty of the area, so mandatory headlamp rule in effect. :-)


As seen at the consumer electronic show in Las Vegas
The new waterproof SANYO Xacti E1 captures stunning digital video and beautiful 6MP photos...on land and underwater! Waterproof digital camcorder - 6 Megapixel still photos - 5x Optical zoom - 2.5-Inch LCD display
Up to 1hr. 20min. digital video per 1GB memory card.
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Boo and I are looking at our options for catching our Everglades Challenge Adventure on film. Well actually on SD card. CNN had a short discussion on the VPC-E1.

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An underwater camera under $270.00. So I looked it up on Amazon. Not out yet, they are taking orders. We are thinking disposable video camera anyway, like the one we used on the MR340 last summer. Trying to stay within our budget but thought I'd share the new technology.

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Going old school - The Capt'n

See ya Joe

An extremely good childhood friend of mine has passed away. Joe was an original.
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From 8 years old on, a very close group of friends roamed the waters of the Lake Country Area. sailing, skiing, swimming, extreme sponge tag, the bucket game and of course "glunking" (the bombardment of quality built US automobiles with horse nuts and apples)
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Our summers on Lac La Belle were a magical time.
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Though we grew apart after our days on Lac La Belle sailing X and C scows and I had not talked to him in years. I miss him already.
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See you on the other side - The Capt'n

This is what...

This is what I am talking about. Click on the image for some great pictures of some wonderful open bow wooden boats. Thank SOS for the link.

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Check out the SOS blog to see what Alan is building in his rec room turned workshop.No stranger to boat building, SOS and friends built a Wa'apa canoe for last year's Everglades Challenge in a storage shed.

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Beg borrow and appropriate, the lore that legends are made of.- The Capt'n

minus 4 minus 8... then what

OK... minus 4 degrees and minus 8 weeks and counting till the Everglades Challenge. Marissa is at her mom's house and I think she has just realized how close the Challenge is. Panic!!

It was kinda fun, as she was on the phone this morning when I dropped the entry and check off at the post office. There was a pause, then a "Wow, .... Dad, this is really coming up fast!"

Like clockwork (January 1st) I got a phone call from Mark at Kruger Canoes.

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Time to get the 2008 calendar out and block out weeks for our joint Peak Camp / Kruger Kids adventures. We have the dates, but we are perplexed on what to do? The possibilities abound.

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Some pretty outrageous ideas. Super Boo is setting the bar pretty high for the rest of the adventure kids with her bid to complete the EC 2008. I think the Hardcore Adventure Camp has turned a corner for the extreme.

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I think a tough decision was made not to do the MR340 this year. Though there are some changes to the event where we could build a canoe and jam up to 6 people in it. hmmm? , a 34 ft long Kruger freighter? :-)

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We had contacted Scott the event director a while back on allowing youth to participate in the MR340 under adult supervision. We thought we might turn it into a challenge camp event for our more advanced youth paddlers in PEAK Camp. But the answer was no do to insurance reasons.

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Ideas

Dawn (SandyBottom) has a list of places she wants to paddle and has done some research around them and shared ideas...

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John from the paddlin shop has offered on more then one occasion and has asked me to join him on one of his paddle /sail adventures...

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Mark and the Kruger Canoe crowed from Michigan have some great 100 mile plus ideas brewing. Plus the Michigan Challenge keeps coming up in conversations.

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Mike ( he and I and another Mike from C2C Adventures kayaked and and portaged 450 kilometers across Costa Rica in 2003) put the word out he too want to do something this summer.

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What to do what to do what to do? - The Capt'n

Happy "Old" Year!

.... Happy Old Year!! - The Capt'n