Pushing Limits

Dropping into Phils for a Handsurf. Its a good warm up for
Centre Slot

This tuesday was probably one of the most challenging days I have ever had paddling. I owe a huge thanks to Joel Kowalski for that day because I pushed my limits beyond what I had expected to in one day. On Tuesday I tried running lines I have never run on the Ottawa, some of which made me question my abilities slightly. It may not sound like much to most after seeing huge descents of drops and rapids, but for me, it was a big step up in my boating. I have  been pushing myself by running rapids backwards through challenging lines and surfing things that keep pushing my limits. This week I threw a wave wheel in to centre slot, a rapid below coliseum, and I had a massive beatdown and swam  after 1-2 minutes. May not seem like much but that was the toughest surf I have ever had and I got beat down pretty badly. After just this week i have eliminated almost 100% of my fear on the ottawa and and i hope to progress my skills by paddling other high volume rivers in future years.