Owen Cenal

We had our last race in the WYC canoes, and our first as Kamehameha yesterday.

Some things don't look like they'll be changing.

Our mixed crew was battling for one of the top five spaces when they swamped at the buoy. They had to be towed back in.

The open crew did alright, considering that four of us were Novice A level. We had add some canvases to the canoe at the last minute, and had to race for the starting line. Which: par for the course. We paddled hard, and I didn't want to collapse from exhaustion twenty minutes into the race - so that was already a big improvement from last year's first races - but we never coalesced as a team, and never felt that racing glide. It was frustrating. Granted, it was windy and choppy and rough ... but still. We've done better in practice. There were maybe four canoes behind us at the finish. Again: better than last year's first race. But still, we could've done better. We're still waiting for the official results to be posted.

The thing is, I never know how much is me, how much is the crew lineup, and how much is just bad luck.

Even though I felt better during the race, I was still useless the rest of the day. I didn't eat anything beyond ice cream and sausages. I took a two hour nap, that was closer to being a coma than a normal sleep. I listened to music and drank beers in front of the tv instead of going out. I was wiped.

Next week: same course.