betcha thought this one would never arrive.
My dad recently purchased 4 kayaks from where else, but Costco. With Denver home, our family visiting, and Sam & Heidi & kids up for the weekend, my parents thought it would be the perfect activity for our Saturday-o-fun. In their little gated neighborhood there is a pond/lake thing (not sure what to call it). And while that would be the perfect area to just play around in the kayaks, paddle about, etc. . . . that wasn't enough. They decided to spice things up by adding the element of competition. A relay race with couples as teams (Denver & Mason were paired together) and prizes for 1st, 2nd, and 3rd place.
The plan was to do the race much later in the day (say, after dinner) when the sun wouldn't be beating down on us. So we spent the afternoon having a pool party and took the opportunity to acquaint ourselves with the kayaks in the pool. Denver even thought it would be a good idea to try to learn how to do a barrel roll . . . .
I really, really, really hoped this skill would not be necessary in our race. We checked out the lake 2 days earlier and it was green. It was going to be bad enough that I had to put my feet in it.
About 4-ish we got a call from Brian, saying that they were having a lightning storm over in his town, but it was perfectly clear at my parents' house. About 45 minutes later some ominous clouds started moving it, the temperature dropped 10 degrees, it was so muggy, and the wind was picking up. We figured if we wanted to do this race we better go down to the lake sooner rather than later (it only takes 1-2 minutes to get there). As we begin driving the thunder starts rolling and lightning is making it's appearance every few minutes.
When we arrived on scene my dad and brothers were already unloading the kayaks, but I was not feeling good about heading out in a kayak on open water with lightning still striking all over the place. Maybe I'm a wuss, but not my idea of safe okay! Then it started to rain. So we put all the kids in the jeep and decided to wait it out a bit. Meanwhile, lightning & thunder are still going strong and Denver, Mason, & Sam are out testing the kayaks.
Eventually the rain passed and the lightning & thunder moved farther away. With the weather drama behind us we were ready to begin!
At the starting block we have me, dad, Denver, & Heidi. The object is to paddle to the opposite end of the lake, touch the bank, and paddle back to tag your partner. Simple enough, right?
On your mark, get set, go! And they're off! Denver's in the lead with dad right on his tail. Shannon and Heidi trail behind, vying for 3rd position.
A few snippets of our conversation: "oh, I'm sorry for bumping you. I'll get out of your way. I really hope I don't tip over! Just take it slow and steady. Ahhh! Look out for the bush! How do you turn? Sorry again! I'll stay on this side."
I'm making my final approach. Heidi and I had a near collision that ended up sending us in opposite directions. Mason has already tagged in and nearly made it to the opposite bank. And mom tries to figure out what the heck she's doing.
Come on kids, cheer for your mothers!
Heidi and I make the trade-off to Sam and Scott for the final leg of the race. Mason has a commanding lead, Scott squeaks by Sam to position himself in second, and mom. . . . See the orange paddle peeking on the far right? She's over there after a slight detour towards the dock.
And we have a winner! The Denver & Mason kayaking team coasts into the finish line and walks away with a shiny, new . . . . . gift card to Target. Woo-hoo!
Back on the water, an intense struggle ensues for second place. And we've gained an audience. Two kids & a dog from the house across the lake have come down to cheer on total strangers.
In the end, Scott nabbed 2nd place for us and doubly gift cards to Jack in the Box. Sam took 3rd and it looks like he'll be taking Heidi to the movies with the movie tickets they won.
What a fun race! No one was hit by lightning. It was a great time . . . . Wait a minute, where's mom? Hey kids, look for Grammer she's lost.
Oh! There she is! How'd you end up over there?!
Never fear, Sam will come to the rescue!
Our brave hero saves the day! See the look of determination on his face? Well, maybe something more like determination to get to shore because that is actually a look of pain. While fetching mom near those poles, he stepped on something sharp and put a nice gash in the bottom of his foot.
You are now fore-warned that the following picture contains blood. I have to post it - the brothers want to see the carnage. But to accommodate the squeamish it is a small picture, but scroll quickly. Boys, click on the photo to get the full view.
It was a fun, fun time. I felt more comfortable in the kayak than I thought I would. Hmm.
Well, one race is all we had time for. We were anxious to get back to the house and throw some shrimp on the barbie! Literally. It was sooo good.
