I'm on what seems to be a never ending quest to suck less as a paddler. That means I try to take a few classes each year. And in every class I try to learn one thing. So I was in a class in San Juans a few weeks ago. It was supposed to be a paddling in currents type class, but the big thing I learned ended up having nothing to do with that.
Another student and I were futzing about near the front of a pretty nice race. For some reason I looked to my right and watch as the other guys boat gets pushed to the left and he starts surfing right at me. Kinda quickly. Actually pretty fast. Alright, maybe not that fast, but at the time it seemed fast. So the etiquette of the circumstance (i.e. you're going to run someone over) is that you take the noble path and capsize. You know, so you stop. And don't break anyones ribs. So I'm watching this boat head right at me, quickly (yah, quickly. I'll settle on quickly), remarkably calm about the whole soon-to-need-an-airlift event unfolding waiting for the other guys chivalry to kick in and his boat to go upside down (as an aside, waiting for chivalry takes subjectively a very long time). Closer. Soon. Closer. No, really, soon. Closer. Soon. Please? Closer. Fuck, chivalry is dead. I capsize myself.
So I'm upside down. I just hung out for maybe, what, 18 minutes or so, waiting waiting for the other guys boat to run over me. That big clunk sound never comes though. Whatever, it's been, what, 18 minutes so I should probably roll up. I do my setup bit, start sweeping the paddle and clunk. I hit a boat. Not mine. Alright, let's try again. Clunk. Again. Clunk. Hmm. His boat must be on top of me or something. At this point though I've been a low oxygen environment for, what, 18 minutes or so, and I kinda need to breath a bit. Just to take the edge off. So I bailed.
It turns out that if I'm upside down in cold water for any length of time I get a little disoriented. Not terribly bad, but a little dizzy and it takes me a few seconds to get my bearings. So I'm swimming, a little out of it, and the other guys starts a rescue. Which is good. But he was being kind of polite about the whole thing. Me, being a little out of it, I don't help the way I normally do. Like he had ahold of my boat and I just stayed where I was instead of going to his boat. Finally he says, very nicely I thought, "Can you come to my boat?". Which I do. He does a few other things and starts handing me my bow so I can crawl along the deck lines and get back in. I'm not sure why, but I just sort of stared at the front of my boat until he asked, very nicely I thought, "Can you crawl along your deck lines?". Which I do. But by this point we're pretty far along in the race and here comes the coach. I won't bore you with the details, but in this race there is a real point of no return. And the coach knows this. So I'm in my boat, and I've started paying real attention to what's happening right now (as opposed to figuring out why I kept hitting the other guys boat) and realize my cockpit is entirely full. In a race. With, I dunno, 2 foot breaking waves. It was pretty rough. I announce that I can't paddle my boat full in these conditions. The coach apparently decides it's time to get seriously involved and starts giving orders. You! Go to the eddy. Rick! Get out of your boat. Come to my boat. Etc. Not very nicely I thought. But in about 45 seconds I'm back in my mostly empty boat, deck on, paddling for the eddy.
When someone swims they're no longer your friend, or partner, or fellow student, or anything like that. No, when someone swims they're your responsibility. Sort of like having a kid. Sometimes you take time to explain things, answer questions, you know. Sometimes though you're not. Don't run into the street for example. Orders first, explanation later. But in the moment there is no suggestion that now is the time to negotiate or you're going to be respectful.
And that's what I learned. Treat swimmers like kids running into the street. So if You happen to swim, and I happen to be the hero, don't be surprised if I treat you like a child. At least for a short while.
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