A view from the beach

This past weekend I was a student in an intense 3-day kayak training program called the Level IV Coastal Waters Instructor Development Workshop (IDW), hosted by the American Canoe Association (ACA). The IDW is a prerequisite for eventually taking the kayaking Instructor Certification Exam (ICE), which is also a 3-day event. I came away from the IDW fairly confident about my communication skills. There are definately knowledge areas that I need to study, and I also need to work on some of my on-the-water skills. So, I'll be spending time on all those things between now and the end of September when I take the ICE. Last evening as I was preparing to launch on Lake Michigan, I struck up a conversation with a guy on the beach who was there with his two young daughters and a nice camera with a long lens. He asked if it was OK to take pictures of me. I said "Of course." He could have taken them without my permission but it was nice of him to ask. This morning he sent me some of them. It's fun to see what it looks like from the beach. But I'd rather be the guy out on the water.