For almost a year, I've sucked at whitewater kayaking. I got a job as a whitewater raft guide last summer, bought a boat in early July, and spent countless hours trying to learn the basics of paddling.
I've made progress since then; but it's been slow, and at times, it's been frustrating. I'm still not very good - I'm really only a Class II boater, so keep that in mind while you're reading this article (check out the international scale of river difficulty, if you haven't seen it before).
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While I was deep in the learning process, I had the privilege of watching my best friends, who started kayaking months before I did, improve quickly and run some serious rivers. For example, here's my boyfriend kayaking a 35-foot waterfall at Little River Canyon, in Alabama.
I looked to my friends and the boating community as a whole for motivation, and kept going out to a local lake to learn how to roll - an essential part of whitewater kayaking, for those of you who aren't familiar with the sport. It was hard, and I spent a lot of time feeling really discouraged. I didn't get anything on the first try. I was terrified of being trapped in my boat underwater. There were several days where I would get off the water feeling like I was never going to be successful. Kayaking was not intuitive to me.
But here's the thing - I loved kayaking, and I still do.
I love it because it is an incredible and unique way to experience nature; it gives you a perspective that not many people get to see. Plus, the boating community is especially supportive. There is tons of advice waiting for newbies, and tons of people who are friendly and more than willing to show you down a river, or go with you to a roll clinic. The whitewater community shares a strong passion: for the river, for the planet, and for each other. That passion is obvious, and because of it, I kept pushing myself to improve.
There were (and are) days where I needed an extra push to get in my boat. In part, because whitewater is scary, and that's unavoidable - what is avoidable, though, is your comfort zone.
In fact, it's something that everyone should try to abandon at some point in their life.
For me, kayaking was a one-way ticket out of my personal comfort zone.
Going out of my comfort zone taught me that it was okay to be scared. Standing on the banks of the Upper Green River and scouting a rapid that I had never run before was intimidating. After watching the crew I was paddling with that day run it and repeatedly saying "I can't do this. I'll just walk it," I ended up running it. As my boat paddled up to the horizon line and dropped onto the right side, I let go of my inhibitions and focused on paddling down the slide. When I got to the bottom I looked back at it, and smiled a stupid grin and realized that it wasn't nearly as intimidating from the bottom as it was from the top. That feeling is so special, and I wouldn't trade it for anything. Going out of my comfort zone introduced me to that feeling. It's exhilarating, and it's something that is hard to find unless you push yourself to do something new, exciting, or scary.
Going out of my comfort zone taught me to be confident. Remember how, a few paragraphs ago, I said how hard it was for me to roll my kayak? Just this past weekend, I did it. In whitewater. It wasn't a huge deal, but it was a personal goal that I have had since the first time I sat in a kayak, and after working on it continuously since then, I did it! I learned that I could trust myself, and that I wouldn't necessarily have to swim out of my kayak or drown if it flipped over. In the moment when, after I flipped, my head came back up out of the water, I couldn't stop smiling. I was able to take care of myself in that situation.
This is NOT to say that everyone needs to jump in a whitewater kayak and run whatever river is nearest them (although if you're inspired to that after reading this article, I suggest you educate yourself, get the right gear, and find an experienced boater to guide you through the process). What I am saying, though, is that everyone should get to leave their comfort zone, in one way or another. Whether that means going to skate night alone, getting on a rollercoaster or signing up for swimming lessons. Do something to challenge yourself. Even if you aren't successful in whatever you choose to do, you'll be rewarded. It's worth it.
