Everyone, this is Slim Jim.
Slim Jim, this is everyone.
Slim Jim and I have been mates for a couple of weeks now and we’ve been pretty much going exclusive for the whole Christmas/New Year period.
Slim Jim and I spend several mornings a week together, early on before the wind kicks up but not too early because it is, after all, the holiday period. Sometimes it’s just us and sometimes other people come along, although even when they do Slim Jim and I are joined at the hip.
I used to spend time with my other mates, but now they lounge around (moping, I imagine, while they gather dust) because Slim Jim and I have a special bond at the moment. Yes, that’s right - the bond of the “new toy”.
I have a pretty embarrassing habit of naming my toys, although I don’t usually tell people about it because I think it’s pretty lame to name your possessions and talk about them like they’re people. Nevertheless, now that I’ve admitted to it and now that it’s public (even though I suspect no one reads these articles and that my web guy just set up a fake stats page to make me feel good about myself), I may as well keep on sharing.
Bella is my sea kayak, because it’s beautiful and whenever I saw it on the car I’d think, “wow, that’s a beautiful kayak” (because it is a beautiful kayak). Lil is my white water kayak, short for Li’l’ Fella, because it’s so short and stocky (my boyfriend’s sister calls it a clog). My road bike is called Larry, short for Larry the Leper, because when I first got it various bits kept on falling off at very unfortunate times, like in the middle of a big race when the rear derailleur fell off, for which I’ve never forgiven the bike shop. The mountain bike doesn’t really have a name but I do still talk to it (mainly things like “come on, come on, don’t be such a f*&^ing wuss you big girl” because I’m a pathetic mountain biker). Luckily climbing gear doesn’t lend itself to being named or we might be here all day.Slim Jim was named on one of our first outings and is called that because, well, he’s slim and that rhymes with the name Jim. Unfortunately it stuck in my head and won’t go away - not unfortunate because of the name (which I quite like), but because we have a skinny friend called Jim. However, now it’s stuck there’ll be no getting rid of it.
Anyway, while Bella and Lil are lounging around in the garage, I’ve been out gallivanting with Slim Jim several mornings a week. In fact, one week I went out so many days that my arms felt like lead weights and I decided that it was probably time for a rest day because I could no longer lift my arms above shoulder level. My calf muscles are slowly atrophying and I’ll probably start bursting the seams on my t-shirts soon.
Slim Jim is incredibly popular at the moment because he’s a new toy and I’ve got new toy syndrome. And for good reason! I’ve wanted a fast racing kayak and a “new sport” for ages and Slim Jim is truly spectacular - fast, streamlined, classy looking and very, very sexy. My feet have been liberated from the confines of a kayak and I spend my morning paddles watching my toes go all wrinkly, which is a very novel experience for a kayaker.
All in all, new toy lust moved to new toy love very quickly, and I’ve bonded successfully with Slim Jim in the calm morning conditions on the mighty Derwent. However, I can’t help feeling bad about leaving Bella and Lil and Larry lounging in the garage, collecting spiders and ant poo (Larry even has a flat tyre I haven’t got around to fixing), remembering bitterly the time when they were the favourite toy. And there’s Slim Jim, hung up away from the dust and spiders (because crossways is the only way he fits in the garage), tenderly washed after every paddle and with every new scratch tutted over, lording it over the old toys like Lord Muck.Don’t worry Bella, Lil and Larry! Slim Jim is not much use for a leisurely afternoon or overnight paddle (much too difficult to keep upright) and Bella, we can sit together for hours and you can carry a huge range of camping equipment, including bottles of wine). Lil, you can carve it up in the surf and spin on a river wave like no other. And Larry, if I want to go for a spin up the mountain then Slim Jim is hardly going to help with that, is he? I promise I’ll fix that tyre soon.
I haven’t replaced the old toys, I’ve just expanded my repertoire of activities. It’s simply the first flush of new toy love that means all I do these days is paddle Slim Jim. Don’t worry Bella, Lil and Larry - your day will no doubt come again.
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Kelly says that her best accomplishment has been turning what she loves into what she does every day. She says that she loves her job and her life, and sometimes has difficulty calling her job work because she enjoys it so much! Even though she has her dream job, Kelly has continued to pursue qualifications and experience, obtaining her Diploma of Outdoor Recreation last year and currently studying Adventure Based Youth Work.
Pura Vida means “pure life” in Spanish, which is what Tierza Davis provides to the people who attend the surfing and yoga retreats in Costa Rica. Pura Vida Adventures was started in 2003 by Tierza Davis, who realised while travelling in Costa Rica that she wanted to share the experience of surfing and travel with others. She wanted to give surfers, particularly women, a positive experience by providing expert surf instruction in a non-competitive and supportive environment. Tierza had been practicing yoga for fifteen years and realised it was the perfect complement to surfing, providing the flexibility, awareness and balance that is so important in the sport.
Tierza didn’t start surfing until the age of thirty-two, but once she started she was hooked. When she lost her job in internet advertising thanks to the dot.com era, Tierza went travelling - that is, until she reached Malpais in Costa Rica. She says she was drawn to the area and the people, and remembers never being as happy as she was in Malpais. She now shares the “pura vida” vibe and Costa Rican cultural experiences with others, and has never been happier herself!
Tierza’s clients range in age from their mid-20s to their 60s. The retreat is seven days and six nights, and combines surfing, yoga and cultural experiences in a rainforest/beachfront setting. Fresh fruit and local delicacies are served up during the day, to provide the energy for surfing and yoga, and to help with relaxation and rejuvenation. If you’ve never been surfing then that’s ok - the instructor to student ratio is one to three or less, there are a range of classes for people of different experience levels and every guest is personally helped with their surfing skills. What’s more, you get to surf several different breaks throughout the week! 
Sounds pretty relaxing, right? Tierza says that her job is incredibly inspiring, and that she has enjoyed building a community that inspires women to embrace the experience of surfing, face down whatever fears they have, and introducing them to the Costa Rican culture. Tierza says that women leave Pura Vida Adventures feeling stronger, refreshed and confident, and that she enjoys reminding women that they have the courage and strength inside them to pursue their goals and live their best life, no matter what that is.
If you’re after some relaxation, rejuvenation and a special cultural experience, consider Pura Vida Adventures. For more information go to the Pura Vida Adventures website, call (415) 465-2162 or email info[at]puravidaadventures.com.
Welcome to the December 11, 2009 edition of the Women and Outdoor Adventure Blog Carnival! This will be the final edition for 2009, and reflecting the number of Northern Hemisphere readers & contributors, this month features articles on skiing and snowboarding. For us Southern Hemisphere readers there are also articles on how to protect yourself from the sun and how to keep fit in all seasons.
‘What next’, indeed! I’ve always enjoyed immersing myself in activities and stretching the limits, biting off big chunks which usually end up more or less chewable (some more than others). This attitude has led to many adventures, many epics and many good friends, in many different activities. I have a very healthy, very Australian, very chilled out “she’ll be right” attitude, which I believe is what has made life so interesting up to this point. So when I found out about a Rogaine (a long orienteering course where you plan your own route) being held near Hobart, I thought that would be a fun thing to do. And because you need a partner for these things and Dave is not just a partner but also an experienced adventure racer and wonderful navigator, I talked him into signing up as well. There were two choices - the 8 hour or the 24 hour event - and I’ll let you figure out which one the old “she’ll be right” attitude signed us up for.
And so the weekend of the event arrived - pouring with rain and pretty miserable, really. Dave and I managed to pack for the entire event in less than two hours, the morning the whole thing started, which is actually quite slow for us (our packing record for a sea kayaking weekend is just over half an hour). The event was held on farmland about an hour’s drive from Hobart, and we arrived well within the recommended two hours before the event, definitely not the first people there. Two hours!! Surely (I said to Dave) two hours is far too much time to contact a map and plan a route amongst the cows - she’ll be right! Luckily Dave is familiar with the “she’ll be right” attitude and we got there with about the right amount of time to spare - it turns out two hours IS just about the right amount of time to contact a map, plan a route, put the tent up, don the wet weather gear and work out how the clicky flashy timer doodads work (we just had a card and special punches at the control in my day).
What a remarkable 24 hours it was! We did stop midway through and grab a few hours sleep, but we went at it for what felt like many, many hours - in fact, I even dreamt about it so that probably counts for even more hours, despite the fact I didn’t get to any actual control points from bed. I discovered that I have absolutely no aptitude whatsoever for climbing fences, something that entertained Dave no end (how I can rock climb but not climb fences eludes me). I discovered that a lot of people who do rogaining look old, but are actually supremely crafty and very speedy and usually overtook us between checkpoints. I discovered that contact doesn’t keep rain out of a map very effectively, and that my idea to fold the enormous map in half before contacting it was actually a very bad one because that meant that one of the “edges” that got wet was in fact the middle bit of the map which was important because it had the hash house (food, tent, drinks, etc) on it. I discovered that if there was an important and life saving compound that resided in thistles, then we Tasmanians would be the most successful farmers in the world, because gee can we ever grow thistles. 
If you would like to see some more photographs (and you are in and around Hobart in December), there is an exhibition at Franklin. 
When Jill was in her early twenties she joined the Canadian Military and did a six year stint as a Metals Technician working on aircraft. Her job was to repair the skin and/or structure of the aircraft, which involved four different kinds of welding and a lot of work with hand tools - obviously it’s not appropriate to carry a lathe around in the field! This was in 1973, at a time when women were not at all common, or even allowed to practice men’s trades. Jill says that in the 70’s, in that environment, women had to be twice as good at their jobs to be equal to the men. She says that she was accepted because she was good at her trade and the men could count on her to get the job done, experience that has carried through to her other experiences in male dominated environments.
After leaving the Canadian Military Jill opened her own business selling carving supplies and worked as a professional woodcarver, using the woodcarving skills she taught herself while in the military. Professional woodcarving (which includes competing with other woodcarvers) is also a very male dominated field, but Jill says that she was too stubborn to be pushed aside or treated like an obedient housewife! She attended competitions, signed her name as J. E. Ellis so she would be judged fairly, and went on to win several world class bird carving competitions from 1988 to 1990. In 1988 she took two carvings and won first and second place, in 1989 she took one carving which won first place, in 1990 she took two carvings and won two first places and the prize for best miniature overall (for more pictures, visit the Mantisland website). At this time Jill was also competing in Black Powder Shooting competitions, was the CAN-AM Women’s champion for several years, and won the Ontario Provincial Men’s 100 yard Offhand Championship several times!
Jill says that she got into the paddle making business by accident, by helping out a friend. Jill’s friend had suffered breast cancer and her treatment had involved the removal of all her lymph nodes and one breast. She was an avid kayaker and found that she could no longer paddle using a European paddle, so after visiting Jill went home, did some research, found a piece of wood left over from when she built her own home and carved her friend a Greenland paddle.
Every paddle built by Adanac Paddles is personally fitted to the client and hand carved out of Western Red Cedar by Jill herself. All Jill’s paddles come with a paddle bootie and the Adanac Paddles logo burned on - you can also “pimp” your paddle with your own logo for a small extra cost. For pricing and more details, go to Paddles and Pricing on the Adanac Paddles website (http://www.adanacpaddles.com/paddles.htm). Jill has made paddles for women who have had breast surgery, and for people who have suffered rotor cuff injuries or neck injuries. She has found that many people (not necessarily injured) want a high quality paddle that will fit them. Jill says that women especially like the fitted paddles - women’s measurements are different from men’s and some women have trouble finding a comfortable paddle off the rack.
Jill sees her business becoming more and more known in the world of women kayakers, growing each year but not getting so big that the quality in the paddles is lost. She wants Adanac Paddles to remain a custom paddle shop, carving the best paddles available. Please pass on the word, and consider getting one of Jill’s beautiful paddles for yourself or a friend - she can ship all over the world. Good luck to Jill and Adanac Paddles!
Welcome to the November 13, 2009 edition of Women and Outdoor Adventure! This month we feature bigfoot hunting, how to dress for hiking, hot springs, travel all over the world and a literary article, just for something different. 
“Follow Your Bliss” is the phrase that inspired Me-Shell to quit her corporate job in New York City and travel the world looking for waves to surf and other adventures. She went to Maui for a two month visit, but ended up unpacking her bags and planting her surfboard for good on the island. She founded SwellWomen because she realised that other women would be interested in a wellness program on a Hawaiian island, and she chose surfing and yoga because they are two of her own passions.
If you’re thinking about following your own bliss, Me-Shell has a few words of wisdom. She says that it’s important to enjoy the ride of life and by taking care of yourself, you can then spread the bliss to other people. For those interested in starting up their own wellness retreat, Me-Shell advises to have a solid idea of your vision and what sort of experiences you want to provide for your guests. She also says that adaptability and flexibility are important, because there are always times throughout the life of your business when these skills are needed.
If you are interested in a blissful Surf and Yoga Wellness Adventure Retreat on a beautiful Hawaiian island, please visit the SwellWomen website for more details. You can also follow Me-Shell on Twitter (@swellwomen), read the SwellWomen blog or call on 1800.399.MAUI.