Just go

Editors note: I’d like to introduce a new contributor to the blog: Claire Chappell! Claire is an amazing river surfer and Badfish SUP athlete living in Glenwood Springs, CO. She’s an amazing writer and I’m happy to have her here to share her love for river surfing. Without further ado, here’s her first post…

As many of my stand up paddle friends are in Idaho this weekend at one of the biggest river comps in the world, it strikes me how different my relationship with the river has become. I can no longer do the multi-day river trips, I don’t road trip to distant waves much anymore, and I don’t make it to many of the high-energy and highly talked about competitions on the circuit. So yeah, a big part of me feels like I’m missing out. But an even bigger part feels proud that I am I’m pulling off a balancing act that would make a trapeze artist jealous. I want to recognize all the river people out there that are throwing down hard while secretly living a “traditional”, “9-5”, or what ever you’d like to call it, lifestyle.

Claire Chappell ripping at the Glenwood wave

Everyone that I paddle with works hard at whatever it is they do, so I want to be clear: no judgment one way or the other. I just think in social media there’s a lack of celebration of all the people who juggle their schedules, rush to and fro, and down right bend over backwards to just to get on the water, because they love it that much.

fellow 9-5’er Matt Ross throwing down a 360

They get out of a stressful day at a desk around 5 or 6. The car was packed in the wee hours that morning. The wetsuit is still wet from two days ago because it didn’t get hung up. What used to be a neat gear bag is now an explosion in the car, which may or may not be mingled with kids toys or work stuff or a recent home depot purchase. Dinner isn’t even a consideration, if the baby/kids/work/pets/house etc are taken care of for a couple hours, just GO. Get to the put in, get to the wave, go stand in a line up of 12, but dammit, even if it’s not til 8pm, get on the water. And those who don’t live quite near enough to make the weeknights happen, you let the river monopolize your weekends as much as possible and you drive, drive, drive.

Claire and Finn hanging out in the shade between sessions

For me, I wish I could tell you that the rushed feeling dissipates once I’m at the wave. It doesn’t. I have x minutes to get x number of rides, more clock watching. The only time I can truly zone out is while actually surfing. It’s one of the best things about surfing river waves; there is SO much going on and you are doing something with every muscle in your body, there’s no room in your headspace for anything else. Thankfully. The water rushing under you is pulsing, boiling, changing each and every second. Your board feels solid beneath your feet even as it juts between glassy face and surging foam. You finally shake the hypnosis and look upstream and even though you’ve done this a thousand times before, you’re still just a little startled each time you realize you’re standing on a wave in the middle of a river. I’ve been doing this almost five seasons and the butterflies are still there, every time.

Chris Menges shredding on the weekend

I don’t love the “American way” of hustle and bustle and “bigger better faster.” One of my goals in life is to slow the heck down at some point (good luck, right?). In the meantime, stand up paddling the rivers does so much for my sanity and my happiness that I will keep squeezing it in, every single week. To all the folks out there pushing yourself to do the same, I offer a sincere congratulations, it isn’t easy. And just in case any of you reading this were of the impression that this is a sport for the pro athletes or that you have to cruise around in an (awesome) RV with boards piled high from river to river…nope. You don’t even have to be good at it. Not only will you be welcomed, you’ll be cheered on. All you gotta do is push yourself a little bit (and maybe buy a board). Let the things that don’t matter go, be okay with the feeling of missing out sometimes, choose to pack the car and head towards that glorious cold river water, and ignore the beckoning of the couch (what’s a couch?). Time on the water can be squeezed into even our busiest weeks. You’ve stumbled into something exhilarating, something that will change your life…let it.

Written by | Claire Chappell

Claire is a team rider for Badfish Stand Up Paddle and Colorado Kayak Supply and is co-founder of Can I Surf That. She is a family practice PA and has a 6 month old future river surfer named Finn.