What I Learned over 175 Days
One hundred and seventy-five days. Forty-eight percent of the year. That’s where my self-imposed challenge stood on Christmas Eve, 2017.
That number was a full twenty-five days shy of my eager goal I placed in my head twelve months earlier, and just five days short of my compromised goal that I was still shooting for when a single night of below twenty-degree temperatures froze virtually every readily available or safe body of water. Such is the challenge of paddling in the high desert of the mountain west — the limited surface area of water is susceptible to freezing, regardless of how numerous or deep our lakes and reservoirs seem to be.
But just under half of the year on water is nothing to be disappointed about. I managed to enjoy all the sensations that come with being on the water, in a myriad of conditions that came with an equally complex range of emotions and thoughts in a way that dominated nearly any other activity I engaged in.
The face value of this record may seem trivial to some, and I get it. Being someone who has engaged in endurance sports for most of my adult life, I have certainly had years in the past where I ran several miles a day for far more days than the number I spent on the water this year. A lot of long-distance athletes and gym addicts can easily say the same. Similarly, there is no doubt a population of paddle boarders who have the good fortune to live on or near friendly, accessible water who can easily get out on the water on a daily basis. However, to get out on the water in the high desert of Idaho takes a level of effort that is easily overlooked.
Those who know me or have read other pieces I’ve written know that I’ve made a habit of being self-reflective. Below are some observations and lessons that I’ve taken away from the past year of being on the water. Some are iterations of wisdom you may have encountered other places or from other people, but sometimes it takes thinking about specific experiences to realize the truth behind them.
1. Goals based on numbers are just numbers.
A lot of individuals and organizations make the mistake of solely focusing on numbers. True, I went into 2017 with the intent of hitting the water for at least 200 days. However, I also operated throughout the year within guidelines designed to protect myself. Most notably, even during the peak paddling months of summer, I imposed and stuck to a rule of forcing myself to cross-train at the gym at least once a week in order to avoid injury. I probably could have hit the number I was shooting for originally, but it would have come at a price or even backfired to the point of losing more days than gained. The number was arbitrary to begin with, and in the end, just a random goal. The actual days spent on water were anything but random and meaningless. Besides, if being bested by others in a race or competition whom you know for a fact had only put in a fraction of the days you had isn’t an opportunity to be humble and accept your limitations, then I don’t know what is. Numbers do not always equate success.
2. Showing up is the first step to success. Make showing up a habit.
There’s a lot of commentary around the importance of showing up, and frankly, that is half the challenge of being successful. It’s also fairly self-evident and obvious — you can’t achieve if you don’t arrive. However, what I find myself being surprised by is the lack of focus on making showing up a habit. One aspect of the seemingly obvious wisdom of showing up is that more often than not, you have to show up repeatedly before success reveals itself. It’s rarely enough to show up once, and it’s a mark of entitlement to think that showing up once will result in success. Be prepared to show up at every opportunity. Make it a habit that over time, feels like instinct.
3. Focus on improving your own abilities. Competition is for suckers.
While it may be humbling to experience being shown up by someone who has put in less time, it’s important to keep everything in perspective. Paddling, once you’ve learned the fundamentals, can often times feel like a zen-like exercise. Concentrating on your movements, your balance, what your feet are feeling on the board, the placement of your hands, the placement of your paddle, your body’s response to the paddle’s resistance — you and your body are the focus. If you allow yourself to become preoccupied with what the paddler next to you is doing, you will fail, or at a minimum, lose the ability to improve. I’m not suggesting that you can’t be competitive or aware of what others are doing. However, if you make others the focus of your concentration, you will forever be limited to the achievement and potential of others instead of your own.
4. Don’t be limited by your circumstances, but be realistic.
Few things, if any, go according to plan. This fact of life often leads to mentalities that are summed up with phrases like “it all works out in the end.” By that logic, a plane crashing into a mountain counts as a landing. No, what the world needs more of is a mindset that says, “OK. The original plan isn’t working, let’s find an alternative that won’t compromise our goal.” When my primary paddling destination was shut down by officials due to an e coli outbreak, I decided it was worth the extra twenty-minute drive to hit a local lake that is typically less desirable. Turns out, it was a great decision that actually led to my being challenged more and forced me to improve on technical skills that generally aren’t put to use at my primary spot. Flash forward to December when the surfaces of most water froze, it simply wasn’t realistic to pursue additional alternatives. Know and accept your limitations and acknowledge that circumstances can and will prevent you from your goals.
5. Habits require sacrifice.
Habitual behavior is an interesting thing. While much is said about the price of negative habits, little is mentioned about the cost associated with positive habits. Committing to paddle boarding at every opportunity in southwest Idaho, always requires travel, and that means time spent driving in addition to the time spent on the water. I have a half a dozen house projects that could really use my attention and my dogs have gotten really good at making me feel guilty. It is impossible to be successful at everything and for every success you have, you probably have a number of failures behind you. Choosing your priorities isn’t some flippant piece of common advice doled out by parents and teachers. What you choose to focus on will always come at the cost of other things if you want to be successful. Choose what you love.
Choosing your priorities isn’t some flippant piece of common advice doled out by parents and teachers. What you choose to focus on will always come at the cost of other things if you want to be successful.
Choose what you love.
6. Connect with your environment.
For a lot of people who have discovered paddle boarding, this is probably the most obvious and even a core part of why they enjoy the sport. However, it’s easy to be sucked into the hustle and bustle of modern life. Stop. Pause at the beginning or end of your workout. Take a deep breath and allow yourself to be aware of the natural world around you, even if that includes couch potatoes and their screaming children watching you from the beach. Feel the sun kiss your skin. The twenty mile an hour wind trying to knock you off your board. The rain that refuses to go away. Listen to the flock of approaching geese. Inhale the aroma of aquatic decay. It is all in the here and now, and you are participating in a way that is as unique as you are. Never take that for granted.
So those were some of the things I found myself contemplating while trying to navigate bucking motorboat wake or trying to break out of a rip current while my 11’ board was trying to pull me toward Japan. Ending the year on quiet water lit by a dimming sun with the whispering of goose wings just above my head, I found myself looking down into the pewter water and composed the following poem:
The autumn leaves
Beneath mirrored surface
Flames in glass
Regardless of what your goals are for the new year, my hope is that the pursuit of them results in memories that capture you at your best.
Don’t just count the days; be grateful for them.
