Beater - Lex

Who knew swift water rescue training was somewhat difficult? We learned some useful stuff like how to get over a log while swimming, rescue swimmers in different situations, the basics of the throw rope, get out of trapped gear, wade through white water, etc. After the first half of SRT today, I demonstrated how to unintentionally swim through big bus then get sucked underwater for six seconds. Then SRT was over for the day after a few more exercises, so we all decided to continue down the main channel which is when I showed the group how to be terrified when you get worked in a hole and swim through collesium. I guess I still have to work on getting used to big water but I had fun after I was rescued. Being from Western PA, I'm used to smaller rivers and creeks like the Slippery Rock Creek, the Cheat, and the Youghiogheny. When I'm paddling those rivers, I somehow find every rock and that skill I have transferred to the Ottawa. Basically I have a few scratches and bruises, I'm tired, I had a blast, and I gladly take the title as the beater

How to make Nutella pancakes - Ian Brown

If there is one thing that I’ve learned at Keeners so far, it is the importance of making Nutella pancakes in the morning. As you may or may not know, here at Keeners we are required to make breakfast for ourselves in the mornings. There are many options - eggs, bagels, cereal - but by far the most nutritious and energizing is the Nutella pancake. To make a Nutella pancake, you must first gain access to the basic ingredients: Nutella, pancake mix, and milk. As is often the case, our kitchen is out of one or more of these ingredients, so we must launch a search party to the other cabins to retrieve the proper resources for our Nutella pancakes.

Once the ingredients have been assembled, turn on the burner. Next, mix pancake mix and milk in a jug until the desired consistency has been reached. Pour the mix into two circles on the pan and dip a spoonful of Nutella onto the pancake. Wait a few minutes and flip the pancakes over, and once cooked to a golden brown color remove them from the pan. As a finishing touch, add another layer of Nutella on top of each pancake. Finally, enjoy the pancake while thinking about how stoked you are to get on the river.

keener breakfast by bright crosswell

Keener blog 2

How to make breakfast

The standard keener breakfast options are pancakes, eggs, bagels, and some other foods. Usually in the morning I make scrambled eggs and eat a pancake. Sometimes, when we have bacon I make a bacon egg and cheese sandwich or sometimes I eat just pancakes. On days when I don’t have enough time to make a full breakfast I eat either cereal or oatmeal. 

Movie Night: Graham

Yesterday at keeners, we went into town. On this trip, we eat at a mall, get some time to shop in the mall, then watch a movie in the theater, and finally go to Walmart. I started off my night with eating fast food Asian which to my surprise was extremely delicious. After this, I sat down and ate with Whit and Daniel and talked about how life was in Colorado. After this, the whole keener group went to the dollar store where we bought a ton of candy for the movie we were going to watch. When we entered the movie, we all sat down and uncovered our hidden candy and began snacking. Because of the enormous intake of sugar, the following Walmart trip was more fun than it should have been. Purchases were made that were unnecessary. After all of this, we returned

to keenervile and stayed up a bit to late and struggled to sleep due to the sugar we ate. 

The Half Way Point - By Daniel Hilleke

Tuesday night we went into town to go to Walmart watch a movie and eat dinner. When going into Walmart it is very important to know what to buy because you only get to go once the entire session. What I bought at Walmart, squirt gun, Hairbrush, chips. After dinner in the mall we went to watch a movie called dark Phoenix. Right before we went into the movie theater we went into the dollar store to buy candy for the movie. We finished at about 9:45 out of Walmart, and still had a 30 minute drive ahead of us. 

Why you should drink water on the river - Noah Harley

Staying hydrated is critical to good health and especially for anyone engaged in physical activity.  For kayakers it can be a challenge to even think about staying hydrated since we are in the water most of the time.  The water can keep us cool and feeling refreshed.  However, you should not be fooled by that feeling and assume it means you do not need to keep yourself hydrated. 

Hydration is key to optimal performance.  When you sweat, you lose electrolytes and that can cause muscle soreness and cramping.  There is nothing worse than starting your line into Phil’s and having your arms or legs seize up on you only to end up in a giant hole.  Staying hydrated not only helps your muscle perform at their best it prevents the risk of injury.  So if you love kayaking and want to make sure you can get out there as much as you can in our short summer season, make sure you drink plenty of fluids.  Hydration also help with endurance.  Do you really want to be the person that holds up the entire trip because you did not drink enough and now you are too tired to keep up!

In extreme circumstances, being dehydrated can lead to heat exhaustion or even heat stroke that can make you extremely ill taking you out of your boat for weeks.

So how should we stay hydrated? 

The best approach is to drink lots of water before and after paddling so you are in the best possible shape to manage the heat.  The recommended amount of water is 6-8 glasses per day.  When you are out on trip, try to remember to drink 4-6 big gulps of water every 15-20 min.  That might sound like a lot but it will only take a few seconds and that is worth being able to stay healthy and paddle all season. 

What about Gatorade/Power Aid drinks?

Well in extreme heat, they can be helpful because they contain lots of salt that help you retain water.  That said, they also have a lot of sugar so water really is your best bet!

So, remember drink lots of water and stay in your boat. 

See you on the river.

A day in the life of a keener- Elliot Gougeon

Your day starts with a sharp knock and or singing from James. Then breakfast . After breakfast we get our under layers on and meet in the thunder dome for a pre kayaking meeting were we go over what are we doing for the day. Then we sent off on the water getting the rest of our gear on and sliding into the water. Then our instructors lead us through some warm up stretches. Then we head out on the water , at lunch we help out cooking then we eat. We paddle down the rest of the river and take out. After we get back we change out of our kayaking gear and head out to dinner. After dinner we hang out for a bit and go to sleep.