A Toke of the Hickon

I know I've been pretty bad about keeping this blog updated over the winter - it sucked to try to get some motivation back after Tasmania, and work kicked my ass and my motivation for a long time, untl I finally kicked back a bit.  My training has been "poor" and that is being enthusiastic about it.  But things might be turning around a bit.  Last weekend Colby Zebel and I headed to Tohickon Creek, just north of Philadelphia, for a few wildwater runs.  And it was fun.  In fact, it was really fun.  My last few times on the tohickon have been with a group of folks, including some teenage girls who like to whine (maybe they have improved by now, who knows?).  These runs were not fun.  But removed from any responsibility, with the exception that I still had the responsibility for motivating Colby past his hangover, car sickness and "food digestion" to actually get on the river, it was all good.  We (and by we, I mean I did it once, Colby did it every other time) biked the shuttle on single speed bike that can be politely referred to as "sketchy", but it was all good, even with a single speed on a pretty reasonable hill.  I had forgotten how good the Tohickon, site of the 2001 US Team Trials, was - it is narrow, fast and ledgy, so you need to know where you are going - it would make a perfect World Cup course.  The lines often need to be inch perfect to avoid hits (mine weren't) and there are a LOT of playboaters who tend to peel on to a wav just in front of you as you enter a ledge.  This time the playfolks seemed to be a better than normal, and moved out of my wave most of the time.  I responded by only shouting "MOVE!" as I saw someone peeling in front of me, rather than the typical "GET THE F**K OUT OF MY WAY YOU F**KING RETARD SHORTBOATER".  Maybe I am mellowing in my old age, but it seemed to work a little better.  Maybe we can actually all get along.  I guess I'll see this coming weekend when I go to US Team Trials on the Nantahala.