Gradually Then Suddenly: 31 Kilometres Over Lactate Threshold

I tried one roll in Sunshine Bay when we got back from the day’s paddle but was so fatigued that my kinetic chain was a loose rope and, after flopping back over, I had to resort to a Pawlatta roll. The upwind/downwind run was 31 kilometres today, leaving, as is often the case, from Sunshine Bay, north to land on Emily Miller Beach for a rest while the wind built. Out to sea, into the wind to try and find a clean run south and then the vomit inducing, well above lactate threshold sprint back to Sunshine Bay.

Trolleying the boat up the hill home I thought about how these upwind/downwind paddles have evolved over the last couple of years. Initially, Doug and I would go out occasionally on summer days, leaving Sunshine Bay before the wind got up, paddling to North Head, drinking tea and strolling up to the lookout while the wind built, and then paddling the 6 or 7 kilometres back with a following wind.

Then Splashalot showed up and we would get a call, “good day for a downwinder, meet you at 2:00 pm.” By afternoon, of course, the summer northeasterlies were at their acme and we would plug into the wind to North Head, have a brief stretch out of the boats, and then catch runners back to the bay. The entire episode was over in two hours or less.

“Gradually, then suddenly,” to quote Ernest Hemmingway, the upwind/downwind paddles have got longer and harder. First, we extended from North Head to 20 minutes paddle past North Head. Then we went to Richmond Beach, then 20 minutes past Richmond Beach. Yesterday, we talked about Dark Beach but went further to Emily Miller Beach. And, of course, it does not end there. After a rest on the beach we paddle into the wind for a further kilometre off-shore to get the best angle for a downwind run.

Gradually then suddenly, the upwind/downwind runs are over 30 kilometres long, which goes some way to explaining how shattered I felt at the end, and my total punt on the last six kilometres, when, if I caught a runner at all, it was simply luck not speed, stroke, or any other paddling accomplishment. The last kilometre, my mantra was “just keep paddling, just keep paddling.”

Hard Things project update, day 53 was rolling, day 54 was eschewing my comfortable evening at home (which I love) and going out, day 55 was this way over lactate threshold paddle.