June 9th: Two 1000m time trials. First 5m43s, second 5m30s. PB: 5m12s. Seven and a half weeks until Nationals. Time and room to improve, hone, get faster and smoother.

June 18th: Run down the North Fork of Nooksack Canyon in the end hole C-2. Great fun, good workout.

June 20th: Three 1000 meter time trials in wind and waves.
First 5m 50s
Second 5m 50s
Last 5 min 47s

We will try to get a low wind trial this week before Rich leaves town to see where we are at in the speed department.

Parenting and Paddling

I thought that parenting and wildwater paddling wouldn't be that hard a juggling act. Well, it isn't. That is, if your priorities are clear. Rich and I are sitting out the NW Wildwater championship at Salmon la Sac this weekend. Both my 2 and 1/2 year old and 7 month old children are sick. I was really looking forward to the races, seeing old friends and playing music around the campfire. When it came time to decide not to go to the race, it was surprisingly easy. Rich totally supported the decision too. It is nice when you and your C-2 partner can agree on the same routes down rapids and life. Thanks again Rich.

Mike

Sights on Nationals

With a little bit of warmth in the air, Rich and I have got some decent flatwater workouts in. Last month, Rich had been down on the Salt River for a kayak/camping trip and I nursed my sciatic back. I am about 80% on the back mobility, and Rich is in great form from living out of a kayak for a few weeks.

We had to put the families first this year, so the World Championships in Sort, Spain are out. Rich's daughter graduates from high school the same day as his son graduates from college. This is also the same day as the World Championships. I am also needed at home to chase my 2 1/2 year old son, Noah and spoil my 6 month old daughter, Camille.

With the international scene out of mind, the National Championships on the Skagit are our focus, to paddle, and to organize. We are truly stoked to help put the race on, and to paddle in it!

Mike

C boat Paddling Machine

We have been using a paddling machine this winter that Mike built for inside workouts. This paddling machine is for resistance training of the same muscle groups you would use in paddling a slalom or wildwater C-1 or C-2. It differs from most paddling machines in several ways. The first way it differs is that you move, not a flywheel. You have to drive the “boat’. You have to overcome inertia every stroke. It is a good tool for working on starts, sprints or reaccelerating the boat. Another way that it differs from paddling machine is it is quite high resistance. When set at the higher level, a set of 50 x 3 is a tough workout. We like the idea that the weight you are lifting (your body) is building the muscles that directly transfer to making the boat, on the water, go faster.

We have been pretty quiet this fall as I, Mike, have been spending mucho tiempo with my family. My wife, Franny Perez, gave birth to our daughter on October 16th. We named her Camille. The other project has been helping prepare hosting US Wildwater Nationals on the Skagit in 2010. They will be held July 31 & Aug 1. Rich has been in his K-1 a bit, and I have been recovering from a case of sciatica. Picking up my 30 pound 2 year old, during a tantrum, takes its toll. I have managed to spend some time lifting weights and working out on my paddling machine. We are very excited about hosting and racing on the Skagit.

Fixed Gear Bikes for Wildwater Cross Training

With the Nationals behinds us and no big races until next year, Rich and I have not spent as much time in the C-2 as we did this spring. We did do some runs on the North Fork of the Nooksack in creek boats. It was nice to let the boat go sideways to the river for a change. We both put in maintenance time in our wildwater K-1 and C-1s on flat water. One other piece of cross training has been on bikes. Rich has been on Galbraith Mountain on his mountain bike, and I, Mike, have put in some miles on my fixed gear road bike.

With a fixed gear bike, the peddles never stop. They are in constant, direct drive with the rear wheel. there is also only one speed. Usually, this is a high gear. This forces you ride fast and to attack hills at speed so you don't get bogged down.It is a fun, simple type of biking.

While riding this summer, I noticed some parallels between paddling wildwater boats and peddling fixed gear bikes. First of all, the forward action never stops. You never glide down a hill on the fixed gear bike as you never rest on a brace in a wildwater boat. Both tend to be built for speed. Wildwater boats handle much better at speed. With the gearing of most fixed gear bikes, you tend to ride them fast. In climbing hills, you have to stand up and stomp or get off and walk. I also like the simplicity of the gear in both sports. If you can get on a fixed gear bike, go for it. This is one of the better sites explaining fixed gear bikes-http://www.sheldonbrown.com/fixed.html

2009 U.S. Wildwater C-2 Champions

This is the first post of the Wildwater C-2 team, Rich Roehner and Mike Baker. The purpose of this blog is to share our experiences training and racing Wildwater C-2. Our hope is that this may be helpful to those that are interested, new or experienced in Wildwater racing. The date of this post coincides with the 2009 National Champions listed -

www.daveyhearn.com/US%20Team%20Alumni/National%20Champions/national_wildwater_champions.htm

The C-2 races at 2009 Wildwater Nationals were the tightest we have ever been in. The C-2 teams of Nic Borst/Chris Wiegand and Rob Murphy/Jon Pinyerd are formidable competitors. 3 of 4 of these paddlers are former national champions. In the sprints, Nic and Chris were only 1.68 % or 3.5 seconds behind us. Rob and Jon had a swim on their second run. On the classic, Rob and Jon beat us by 1.32% or 16 seconds. They were effectively out of the Overall Championship title from the swim in the Sprint. We had to have a good run in comparison with Nic and Chris in the Classic. We were only o.43% faster or 5.28 seconds in a 20 minute race. Close indeed!

The Junior C-2 team of Gaudet/Kieft gave there best in their debut in a National Championships. They had a few tough swims, but kept at it. We wish Patrick and Charlie well in the Junior World Championship this summer!