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By Billy Harris

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We Blasted home from Thunder Bay after paddling there with a couple guys that paddle up there and visiting wilderness supply kayak shop, There is a video up at www.outtanowheres.ca if you want to see the photos and video the creekin is amazing up there check out the website. Peter G was our guide and a wicked resource for that area. Did I mention he paddles constanly took us to run the Mackenzie River close to town with the good old boys. (see photos at the site) However we never got to stay long before pushing on, stopping here and there to ride moose, catch fish at my brothers and make as much time as I could getting back home to run the MKC Demo and clinics back home. I managed to stop to see my brother, he’s got a wife and 2 kiddies, and loves flying more than anything in the world. He’s written every test written to be a pilot and has been in the middle of know where flying fire watches for the MNR building up ‘twin time” whatever that means. Anyhow we caught some Walleye and had a great time seeing him again. (photo of Rob and I with the fish, ya I caught the big one)

Working for Madawaska canoe Ctr is always a treat rolled in tires still hot from the trip home. I come away living again and again in awe over German efficiently. Amazing how that place is run, every moment is planned to make the most of your day. Shuttles, meals, snacks, coffee clinics on the side of your normal kayak school education. The Owners made the first decent on the Grand Canyon, pioneered the first kayak school in Canada and after 21 years still rock Anyway So basically I go to fatten up, between the snacks, the food and the beer I am not sure what put the weight on me faster forget about the fact that there is “Crack” in small doses put in the coffee, I am sure its better than Timmy ho ho coffee. I cut myself shaving last year but had about 6 cups before I started and didn’t stop bleeding for 4 hours. Walking around holding a rag on my face people kept asking me what’s going on with the blood. Totally embarrassing, not to mention the moment it got wet Each morning we have a meeting to organize Billy. They set me up for the day, plan around whatever hair brained tweaked out idea I have for the freestyle group that day and send me on my merry way, snacks, fruit and whatever else I need. Gas cards, phone numbers, first aid packs, deets on history of each of the students what they like what they don’t. I don’t think for a second I could be as organized on my best day…. Ever. So I just spent a week with 5 students plus the Prodigy child. Some kid from god knows where joined the class because, “he learns too fast”. Jeremy is his name, his dad never let him run white horse falls on the gull and He learned to blunt in about 15 min both ways at Earls hole above Whitehorse falls, he he…. The last time I met a kid like that were Pat Camblin, Anthony Yapp Nick Troutman. Talk about gifted little people, and this kid is like his old man. A Doctor in there. Just what I needed, another little kayaking demy god to contend with for Sponsorship bucks and big wave titles in the future. It’s hard, doing what I do for a living and then running into this kind of kid. I meet them and think, good grief I have to help them but ohhhhh its goanna kick me in the arse later and it does. Troutman lay waste to the old guy at worlds this year…. So tough on the ego… Anyway, I had great students, Art a x Marine, his fresh new wife Marya. Brian and Leighton Kuntz and the ever so quiet David. Who drove me to the airport I type from now. Amazing people wonderful week. Special thanks to Da-Veed for driving me down. Wicked man, just look back on the spin OK….

Well I am off on another flight, flying into Toronto from Ottawa for Clinics on the Elora Gorge students lined up and ready for verbal abuse in a gorge. My beautiful wife prepared things beautifully for me. Right up to the point where I need to bring my gear, Camera charger, laptop, video tape to edit for the students I had over the week to prepare (I do a video for each of them with my voice taunting them and coaching them, highlights and funny stuff) I have to edit that and should be doing that right now. But I write this and think to myself, how did I forget my GEAR. Lifejacket, skirt, helmet. Its killing me, I am taking this UDO’s junk, paid 25 bucks to get a better memory but OH no do I remember my kayaking gear…. NOPE. It’s killing me slowly All I can think of is, “this udo dude better no show up in my neck of the woods cause I really wana suplex (the wrestling move) that guy. The only thing keeping to together this the fact that my life is SOOOOOOOOOOOOOO much fun, living in the White House ON wheels, going boating and coaching along the way… Anyway. If anyone is keen on coming to the Elora Clinics I’ll be wearing Chuck McDonalds Gear thanks to that dumb UDO’s guy thanks for nothin. But special thanks chuck for all the gear.

Billy Harris
PS: big shout out to to chuck mcdonald for lending me his gear… sorry about what I said about the Georgian Bay kayak SWIM TEAM, but its all true they got rubber swim caps with team logo’s.

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