Today Susan showed me the course for the Wye Island Regatta which will take place mid-September. I had mentioned to her that I wanted to do the run before the race because of her now infamous Wye Island Circumnavigation Story. And she graciously offered to drive down from Philly and paddle the course with me. The Wye Island Regatta is a 12.4 mile race around the island. An island is a pretty hard landmark to miss. But last year she and Kathy did a pre-race run around the island and turned a 12.4 mile paddle into something like a 35 mile marathon paddle. They missed the turn around the island and basically headed out into the Chesapeake Bay and up a neighboring river. When I first heard the story I thought she must be directionally challenged. How difficult could it be to circumnavigate an island? It's a counterclockwise run. Just keep the island on the left. As it turns out, it's not that easy. Since Susan posted that story at least 13 people have written her to say that they too missed the turn around the island.



Susan is planning to paddle her Solstice and I'll be paddling the surfski for that race so we will not be paddling at the same pace. She carefully pointed out landmarks for me to take note of for the various turns and I took pictures with my digital camera. We kept a steady pace and chatted throughout the paddle. But unlike most group trips I've had with Susan there was no drama! Which is fine with me. I'm sure there will be plenty to blog about after this Saturday's Broadkill race.



Before we loaded up the kayaks Susan asked to sit in my S1-A. She didn't have the nerve to take it far from shore but she did remark that it felt alot more stable than she expected.

-Susanita