Big Water Beat Down Thursdays: There’s a Method to the Madness - Taylor Conklin

Thursdays on the Ottawa river are spent engaging in what OKS Keeners has named  Big Water Beat Down Thursday. To sum it up, the day is spent pushing the limits of white water and challenging yourself in new ways. While the idea of tumbling wildly out of control in a hole sounds horrific to most kayakers, the Keener program has welcomed the idea of becoming comfortable in the uncomfortable.

The day proceeded with each kayaker throwing themselves into the infamous Phil’s hole on McCoy's rapid. By the end of the morning even those that questioned the sanity of the activity at first had built up the courage to paddle into the hole. The group dynamic could not have been more perfect for a day like today, as everyone was supportive, encouraging and stoked to watch a good beat down. Of course no one was more excited to watch than Steve-O on the other side of the camera!

Fun and games aside, in my opinion, Big Water Beat Down Thursday is the perfect environment to put yourself out of your comfort zone. Growing comfortable in sticky situations such as a beat down on the river is such a vital skill to have as a kayaker. Having confidence in yourself in these situations doesn’t come easily and takes patience and practice. This goes for the boater and the rescuer as both can be equally intimidating.

Today especially, I realized how important it was to get yourself outside of your comfort zone in order to grow comfortable in the uncomfortable. This really hit home for me today as I willed myself to drift into Phil’s time after time. Although the hole never started looking smaller, and although I never got less nervous sitting in the eddy above it, I knew that the only way to significantly grow as a kayaker was to push my limits.

On the outside Big Water Beat Down Thursday might look like a hot mess, but in reality it teaches lessons that you would never learn if you always made the perfect line. Cheers to more Thursdays to come.