Paddling as a kid!

I’ve been meaning to write this for a while but sometimes you just don’t get around to things for a bit. It’s actually sort of fitting as I’ll be turning 30 soon (this puts me well out of the being a kid range at least in the strictly age category) which means I’ll have been kayaking for 23 years and paddling in general for 28. Several of my friends have young children of there own have asked me how my parents got me interested and got me to stick with kayaking. I think that on some fronts I had some pretty special/lucky circumstances as far as where and who I grew up with. However I do think that my parents did some pretty key things that have a lot to do with why I chose kayaking over basketball. Keep in mind that this is from my perspective looking back so its not necessarily how it really went but this is what I remember. I’m thinking I’ll try to follow this up with an interview with my parents so I get both sides of the story in there:)

The biggest thing I remember is I felt and still do that kayaking was always my choice. Now I doubt that this is totally accurate, pretty sure my parents pushed me at least a little, but what I feel is important is the fact that I remember it like this. I don’t remember my parents ever pushing me towards kayaking or once I started trying to get me into any one particular area (like slalom, freestyle, or working). At each critical junction of my paddling career I remember being the one to decide “yes I want to do this”. The fallout of this, at least in my opinion, is that I’m still paddling 20 years later cause in a selfish sense its what I want to do.

20 years later on the Grass River, NY

The other part along these lines is I don’t remember feeling like my parents really wanted me to start kayaking at a specific age or point. Both of my parents took both me and my sister rafting and canoeing from the get-go (my Mom swears she had me in a raft at around 6 months) but even when they bought us both kayaks they were always there as more of toy. We played with them in the lake almost like pool noodles or something. We also went camping from the canoe’s and rafts. On top of just having fun being outside this also just got me familiar with the river and the concepts of paddling so this wasn’t a new concept once I did get into my own boat. In short I feel like we did a lot of activities that had to do with being on the water but that was only part of the equation.

My friend and Anne and her son Port enjoying a bit of an afternoon paddle. Getting used to being on the water at a young age in a mellow way made me the kayaker I am today.

My stepmom and little sister. Again keeping it fun and just getting out on the water!

Once I did start to kayak my parents were pretty quick to put me into some classes. I think the biggest thing I got out of this was to learn and hang out with other kids my age. Don’t get me wrong I paddled a bunch and learned a ton from my parents but not learning everything from them especially at the beginning was a pretty good thing in hind sight. I think all parents would agree that teaching their children things can sometimes present interesting challenges.

In addition to putting me in a position to learn from others my parents also did an amazing job of letting me continue to kayak with other people. This is one area I feel like I was very fortunate in because there were lots of people that my parents knew that could and were willing to take me paddling. But I’m sure its hard as a parent to let go and send your kids off with other folks especially as I started to run harder and harder things. The only thing I really ever remember them saying is that they trusted me to make good decisions. As a young teenager this really meant a lot to me, although I’m sure that it was occasionally terrifying for my parents when I told them some of my stories. I feel that this ability to let go in a sense and trust me was really important in my early years of paddling. No again I have since been told by folks that I paddled with that it wasn’t always that smooth but again that’s how I felt:)

As I’m finishing this up I’ve kinda of realized that for me it all boiled down to a two things really. I feel that above all my parents always kept it fun and they really did let me make a lot of my own decisions. I’m sure that’s harder to do than it sounds but I’m really grateful that they did this because kayaking is a huge part of my life and continues to be something I really enjoy doing with all of my family. I would really encourage parents to take this laid back approach because I feel like that’s why I’m in the position to make my children fourth generation paddlers!

My stepmom, dad, and little sister keepin it fun and a family activity

See you on the rivers

be safe
Andrew Holcombe