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Words of wisdom....

I grabbed this post (below) from a Minneapolis windsurfing forum.
Randy Johnson; motivational speaker and owner of The-House Board Shop in Minneapolis wrote this as a reply to a local kiter who took a serious bashing on the water. I found it really hit home with me, so I wanted to share it with you....

LAKAWA forum May 24/05
Posted by Randy Johnson

Who hasn't arrived at a site and wondered, "Should I or shouldn't I?" I've seen so many sailors stall out from either their fear that it's not enough or it's too much, unwilling to go into the "surprise" of the day. It's this willingness to go into "I don't know land" with the experience we've garnered, being able to find the gift in whatever comes...this is what our sport's about.
I now find it very humorous as we all try to find 'just the right size', 'just the right place', 'just the right equipment'...'cause there's really only 'just where you are now and what are you going to do about it?
I'm sure I've had a dozen life/death decisions through the course of my sailing career, and I suspect this is a small number compared to some of the rest of you. And then, in the end you see the gift of previous 'learnings, whippings, bashings, etc' is what gave you the presence of mind to survive. In this case, your willingness to share what you learned is what we can all take to the bank of experience as we face similar conditions in the future (i.e. sufficient neoprene to survive the big swim, helmet, and the wisdom to know that you can't count on someone to save you...although in your case you had some great citizenry going on)
I'm always amazed at the sense of false security we get, thinking someone's going to save us. My closest encounter with near drowning was only a few hundred feet from the Ramsey Cty Beach life guards, with dozens of sailors passing me from no more that fifty yards away. For sure, I advocate buddy sailing, but all too many times, when you're in extreme conditions, it comes down to your experience, ability to relax, and presence of mind to collect yourself for making it through a challenging situation.
I'm a big believer in 'exit plans' for when things don't go as expected. I'm always dismayed when I see sailors without neoprene when the air's warm and the water's frigid...they just haven't visioned an exit plan in the event of losing their rig. It's the learning from when things don't go as expected that we all evolve.

Posted by Brad at May 28, 2005 9:39 PM

Comments

Wow.......powerful words Randy. I hope the fella's 0k.
What happened?

Posted by: Big Al at May 29, 2005 9:35 PM

The guy was dragged, lofted, then his kite went into a power spin until the lines were so tight it broke his bar! He swam over to his kite and layed on top of it, then paddled himself for over 30 min. to shore, all while in cold water. A couple of windsurfers sailed by asking if he was okay and needed a hand (good citizenry) and continued to paddle himself in. The only thing that saved him from probably drowning was the fact that his bar broke.....

Posted by: Woody at May 29, 2005 10:15 PM

Good thing he was a strong swimmer.

Posted by: Guinevere at May 30, 2005 8:11 AM

I had some pretty close calls myself...especially when I said..."I do"!!! Ha, Ha, Ha,

Posted by: Woodette :) at May 30, 2005 3:51 PM

Hey bro, I don't understand the broken bar part.
I'm at whits to this jargon.
Glad the dude's 0k.

Posted by: Big Al at May 30, 2005 7:56 PM

A really good article, Brad and it wakes us aware of the potential dangers of a seemingly simple expedition. Like he said, "always have an exit plan" and the best one is sail with a buddy, wear the proper gear, etc. Happy summer sports everyone! Love Mom xoxoxo

Posted by: yorkshire lass at June 1, 2005 9:12 PM