Video Editing with Tommy by Jack Paulin

A huge part of the Keener program this year has been the focus on video and photo editing. In order to get lots of footage the two Keener Gopro's are assigned to two or three keeners every day. I myself have filmed on race day Wednesday of week one and Monday of this week. On Sundays we have film editing with one of our coaches, Thomas Fahrun. Thomas is one of the worlds most unknown directors of all time. Tommy has worked along side directors such as Stephen Spielberg and Peter Jackson, he is also great friends with Quentin Tarantino and he meets up for coffee with him every month to discuss film angles and what not. Thomas also invented the video camera. So on Sundays we get the privilege of having Thomas come in and show us how to make a kayaking video which he whips together in five or so minutes with his eyes closed. if you want to see the video we/Thomas made check it out here: https://vimeo.com/132037483. Im about to go paddling at the McCoys rapid with the munchasaurous sandman huge Ben.

Night Paddling with Ben Sandeman

Its the end of week 2 Session 1 of 2015 Keeners. Its been fantastic so far surfing some sick features including the wave where the World Championships of Freestyle Kayaking hosted by Wilderness tours is going to be held, the Garburator. Garb was in for a few days at the start of the week, this  was amazing since I got my first aerial blunt on which is worth 80 points which would be insane for me to land in a completion since my highest scoring ride so far is 45 points. In this post I will be giving a how-to go night paddling in 9 steps.

1.) Look at a moon calendar and preferably plan to paddle on a full moon or close to full moon since it will be not completely pitch black outside
2.) Find responsible and safe friends that have glow sticks on hand
3.)Watch some great Keener appropriate movies until it gets dark enough, usually 10 pm in July and earlier in late August
4.)Get the group going out together and get everyone to get a safety buddy that you shall be looking out for throughout the paddle for safety reasons, get glowsticks light up and put on lifejackets,paddles and/or helmets
5.) Get geared up and get on the water
6.)Paddle up to the bottom of McCoys and surf some horseshoe and babyface in the almost complete dark which is insanely cool and unique experience
7.)Throw some massive tricks that no one else knows you did since they can only see the flash of glowsticks in the darkness of the night
8.)See some strange lights up by corner wave and get really spooked then paddle really quickly back to Keenerville with the entire group leaving no one behind
9.)Look at the GoPro footage and cry when its all just black and the sound of moving water and realize how great it is to have safe play spots nearby so we have the possibility and going night paddling safely :)

How to: Seal launch off Moby Dick Rock. By Hamish MacKay

The best surfing wave on the Ottawa river at a low flow is with out a doubt Garburator. It's the bounciest, most out of control wave I have ever surfed, yet every time I'm on it I cant help but have a massive grin on my face.

There are a few ways of getting onto the wave, but the biggest thrill seekers choose the seal launch off Moby Dick Rock landing on the wave. I will give you the full step by step explanation of how to pull off this manoeuvre with all the style and grace of a pro kayak ninja.

1. Start from the eddy on the left side of the river beside Moby dick rock.
2. Paddle up to the top of the eddy sitting on the seem line proceeding to manoeuvre your boat onto the Moby Dick Rock (this can be tricky because the rock is so skinny and you can fall off).
3. Once your on the rock, try to stay on it by using your death grip while Steve-o (our Keener coach) laughs at you from his safe spot on the rock.
4. When you think its your turn you slide your boat to the edge of the rock getting ready to push off and drop onto the wave.
5. As your is about to drop off you see another kayaker cut in front of you and drop onto the wave from the eddy causing you to panic and grip the rock for dear life.
6. Wait while your shoulder starts to burn with pain looking over your shoulder to see if the line cutter has flushed off the wave, while muffling swear words so Steve-o doesn't hear and give you 25 push ups.
7. As muscle failure starts to kick in and your grip slips you proceed to drop off the rock keeping your balance to the right and bow up so you do not flip, not caring about the kayaker on the wave.
8. Knock the other paddler off the wave (you will hear shouts and boos) but do not let this deter you from catching the wave and surfing the best and most bad ass wave.

If you follow these steps to perfection you will without a doubt bust your shoulder, but more importantly complete the Moby Dick Rock seal launch onto Garburator which is the coolest seal launch on the Ottawa river.

Otis - week 2

On my second week of keeners the mighty river gods smiled upon us and lowered the water level, this meant that the waves Baby Face and Garberator where in.

Baby face is a great wave because its slow, great for blunts and spins and it is right next to keenerville this means in the afternoon or weekend us keeners can have a 2 minute paddle to a great wave. Garberator however is down by the lunch spot and takes at least 15 minuets to paddle there, but is an extremely fun wave, its big, its hella fast and is great for pulling tricks like aerial blunts or airscrews.

Surfing Garb

In Keenerville I am staying in the prestigious white house cabin, where are many community bonding activities that take place in the white house this includes- Bacon rationing, to keep our supply of bacon high and to teach self discipline. Nightly foosball matches, to have a bit of competitive spirit into the group and to bond the whole cabin as a team. Also this week the keener program did the 'Wall mart trip' where everything is super cheap, for example 8 litres of bagged milk costs only 7$. On the trip I also purchased a tub of protein shake powder and a box of 10 grape flavored cool aid drinks.

How to be successful at Walmart by Ryan Jenkins

At least once a session the Keeners will get to go Walmart, and then watch a movie.
In order to have a successful Walmart run there are a few steps that one must take.

Step 1: Have at least $20 dollars to spend one food and other goods
Step 2: Have a plan, This means that you should think about what you and your house want to get, and should come up with a strategy for how to get it all in the short amount of time you have to make your purchases
Step 3: Ensure that your food will not spoil when you leave it on the bus during the movie
Step 4: Execute
Step 5: Enjoy the movie
Step 6: Take the food home
Step 7: Enjoy the food
Step 8: Make it last

If you follow these simple step you can be sure that your Walmart trip will be successful.

Sarah: On Being Ready for Keeners

I'm still waiting for that moment when all the dots connect, and i'm
finally able to reach my full potential and become the best kayaker I
can be. Coming to keeners, I was sure that I would learn quickly and
improve rapidly ( no pun intended) in every aspect. but reality is,
i'm stuck in a place where i feel like i'm unable to progress and
become better.

 I sit in my boat, watching all the more experienced and stronger
kayakers thinking " why c'ant I be like them?" or "how do they make it
look so easy?", I compare my abilities with their abilities. I watch
enviously at how quickly they learn a new technique or trick. i'm
confused at why I'm not improving equally as fast.All my efforts at
trying a bowstall remain futile. I cant stick a surf properly let
alone do a trick. My rolls are inconsistent. I swim constantly. My
confidence disapears nearly as fast as it gains. I cry in frustration.

At this point I wonder if I should even be here. Am I really ready to
be a keener?

I know that I am no where near as good as all the others, but the one
thing that I do know is that this means I have the most room for
improvement. I'm not going to give up. I will try my hardest to learn
and progress. i'll be invested in learning and try and get as much out
of this course as I can. i'll push my limits and go beyond my comfort
level. I'm here because there is a part of me that knows I deserve to
be here. I'm here because I love kayaking and everything to do with
water. I believe that every individual needs to go through a hard time
to become a better person, this goes for kayakers and every day people
alike.

Months before I came here, I read through all previous blog posts,
trying to understand what keeners was like from the inside. I was
looking for people who were going through trials. I needed to know
that if I wasnt the best, or if I made a mistake it wouldnt mean the
end.Now I write this for all those future keeners that have their
doubts about whethere they should become a keener. You're skills on
the water dont have to be superb; you can be medicore. youre
confidence doesnt always have to be rock solid; its okay if it
waivers. You wont always be sure with yourself; You will have your
doubts. Just know that to be a keener the one thing you do need is a
love of whitewater and a mindset in which you are keen to learn and
improve.

The Heart Of Keeners-Baker Casagrande

I am in the heart of Keeners right now. Eleven days in and sadly ten days out. I have enjoyed every minute of it. From the heart racing, adrenaline pumping surfs on garb, to just chilling in Robinson's cabin watching Top Gun, the entire experience so far is unique. Highlights of the first week are endless but I need to pick a few to talk about. Just today we did swiftwater rescue. We worked on throwing a throw bag, rescuing someone from a hole, swimming over logs and a lot more. I particularly liked learning to wading through the current. It turned out I was fairly good at it and was able to make it across the channel multiple times in a row.
There was also Big Water Beatdown Thursday. This was almost a full week ago, but this day was so much fun for me. It put me out of my comfort zone by throwing me in to Phills Hole, but in the end, I surfed the hole and it was awesome. This journey outside of what I was used to really helped me gain more confidence on the river.
Looking to the next half of Keneers, I am really excited for the next BWBT. I want to challenge my self even more and hopefully gain even more confidence.