For almost a year this little grey update box has sat empty while my email inbox has steadily filled with people wondering if I’ve dropped off the proverbial waterfall at the edge of the planet. The truth is, my health situation has been pretty rough lately and I’ve been quietly hoping things would improve before I had to write again. For those of you who are new to the site, a long fight against chronic illness forced me to shut down Cape Falcon Kayak classes at the end of 2014, and an ongoing medical investigation revealed a fairly advanced peripheral neuropathy, widespread autonomic dysfunction, and a host of other devastating cardiac and neurological symptoms that have yet to be explained.
Needless to say, this was not part of the plan.
Over the course of the last year I’ve had a hard time reconciling my faith in power of the the human body to heal, with the reality of a personal situation that has proved thus far unresponsive to that sentiment. Staying positive while living with disabling pain levels, dwindling finances, big changes in my living circumstances, and the inability to do almost everything I formerly enjoyed is beyond challenging. I’ve always believed that with enough positivity and determination that anything is possible, I don't think I'll ever stop believing that, but you can imagine just how difficult it is to be proven wrong day after day. It's a complicated existence, and one I'm still struggling to find my footing in. On a more positive note, it inspired me to get a cool new tattoo. :)
Needless to say, this was not part of the plan.
Over the course of the last year I’ve had a hard time reconciling my faith in power of the the human body to heal, with the reality of a personal situation that has proved thus far unresponsive to that sentiment. Staying positive while living with disabling pain levels, dwindling finances, big changes in my living circumstances, and the inability to do almost everything I formerly enjoyed is beyond challenging. I’ve always believed that with enough positivity and determination that anything is possible, I don't think I'll ever stop believing that, but you can imagine just how difficult it is to be proven wrong day after day. It's a complicated existence, and one I'm still struggling to find my footing in. On a more positive note, it inspired me to get a cool new tattoo. :)
Also a bit jarring is being back in the city after nearly 15 years nestled in the coastal rainforest surrounded by old growth spruces haunted by barred owls, dripping sword ferns hiding golden chanterelle mushrooms, blankets of moss overshadowing secretive herds of elk, thundering surf endlessly delivering the beach sand between my toes, and emerald rivers hiding the distinctive twisting flash of those gorgeous winter steelhead trout. I can't pretend that I don't miss it.
Still, if I had to choose any city to live in it will always be Portland, Oregon, so I count myself fortunate. Bookstores, good parks, great food, and a general warmth that is missing from most large cities. I try to focus on the good things.
Still, if I had to choose any city to live in it will always be Portland, Oregon, so I count myself fortunate. Bookstores, good parks, great food, and a general warmth that is missing from most large cities. I try to focus on the good things.
For those who remember the last update, I’d just purchased a 7.3L diesel Ford super duty van as a potential mobile workshop/home-on-wheels. Since then I made some significant upgrades in the form of a custom built interior that serves excellently as both a living space while still leaving plenty of room for supplies should I ever get well enough to take my classes on the road again. In addition to the clever storage and custom cabinetry, I also added a mini off-grid electricity system complete with solar panels on the roof to supplement the alternator power, an extra deep cycle battery, and a 2000 watt inverter (because lets face it, life without an electric tea kettle is simply not civilized). The build was the most fun I’ve had in a long time. Thanks to my friend Paul for helping me install a nice stereo system!
With the van complete, I wanted to take a road trip, and a client in Chicago who needed a Guideboat delivered gave me a perfect opportunity to offer some amazing customer service while saving on shipping. After dropping off the guide boat I figured:
"Hell, it's not like I have anything else to do, so I'll just keep driving."
...and so I did, circling the country and finally ending up in my beloved Moab, Utah, albeit a bit later in the year than is comfortable. While indulging my thirst for adventure along roads marked 4wd only, I caused a bit of damage to the van! (this is why we can’t have nice things.) My health was in rough shape at that point from too many consecutive long frozen nights, and with the van starting to feel more like a coffin than an RV I headed home to make repairs to both man and machine.
"Hell, it's not like I have anything else to do, so I'll just keep driving."
...and so I did, circling the country and finally ending up in my beloved Moab, Utah, albeit a bit later in the year than is comfortable. While indulging my thirst for adventure along roads marked 4wd only, I caused a bit of damage to the van! (this is why we can’t have nice things.) My health was in rough shape at that point from too many consecutive long frozen nights, and with the van starting to feel more like a coffin than an RV I headed home to make repairs to both man and machine.
On the business side of things, the downside of not running classes full time still has still upsides, notably letting me catch up on commissions and make some changes that I should have made years ago. I trained an assistant who amazingly hasn’t told me to get stuffed despite my obsessive perfectionism. Dan has been both an avid paddler and passionate skin boat builder since he first built his first kayak with me in 2008, so I decided it was finally time to bring him on board. Working together we’ve managed to get the turnaround time on custom kayaks down to less than a month and do some really cool things with customization that I never would have had time for when I was running classes full time. Recently we created a 25lb ultra-light F1, that is ultra-comfortable as well with the addition of a custom fitted Redfish kayak seat, (which may become the new standard for Cape Falcon Kayaks.) We also added foot bumps for a guy with huge feet that ended up looking really cool. I also have a couple of brand new standard F1’s for sale, check out the boats for sale page for more info!
To explore whether I might be able to return to teaching this year I decided to start small and spent a week building a pair of F1’s with my friend Holly in the living room of her house! We had an amazing time chatting and building and stopping for lunch in the kitchen less than 6 feet away. It made me realize how much I miss what I do, and watching her climb into her boat on a chilly winter day with a huge smile on her face is the moment I always live for!
So does that mean I’m going to be teaching again? The answer is yes, no, and maybe. The build with Holly was fun, but my body wasn’t thrilled. For right now I’m going to keep things confined to small one or two person classes. The days are short and easy, and I can bring the whole works directly to individual students, which opens up possibilities for people who might not otherwise be able to make it to a class.
While larger classes remain mostly off the menu for now, I am making one BIG exception! For years now I’ve talked about making videos and kayak plans available, in fact I actually started this last fall only to realize after a day of filming that it makes no sense to put that kind of energy into a project and not do it with quality camera equipment, and also a well lit professional quality shop space. In searching for a space I got talking with Sam Johnson the executive director of the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, Oregon, and he invited me out to visit their Barbey Maritime Center which is most perfect small boat building space I’ve ever seen.
While larger classes remain mostly off the menu for now, I am making one BIG exception! For years now I’ve talked about making videos and kayak plans available, in fact I actually started this last fall only to realize after a day of filming that it makes no sense to put that kind of energy into a project and not do it with quality camera equipment, and also a well lit professional quality shop space. In searching for a space I got talking with Sam Johnson the executive director of the Columbia River Maritime Museum in Astoria, Oregon, and he invited me out to visit their Barbey Maritime Center which is most perfect small boat building space I’ve ever seen.
Visiting with Sam and their resident Pygmy Kayak builder Chuck Bollong, we hatched a plan for a single Cape Falcon Kayak class this summer that will not only provide an ideal location for filming my instructional videos but will offer a once in a lifetime opportunity for students to come and learn the entire process, start-to-finish, while we build every single model of Cape Falcon Kayak in one room. The class will be open to people who want to build their own kayak and take it home, as well as people who just want to come and learn the process. All students will receive copies of the completed videos as well as full sets of plans for all 5 kayaks, a 1/2 day of on the water instruction, as well as opportunities to try all 5 kayak designs! Class runs June 29-July 8th. For complete details visit the Calendar page.
In the meantime, I’m just going to keep doing what I can. Going for short hikes in the city, petting stray cats, planting out the garden, and hoping my body will get with the program and let me return to the land of the living.
Finally, I'm not the kind of person who has an easy time reaching out for support, (to put it mildly) but I welcome prayers, advice, friendship, and material assistance from anyone with the means to offer it. It's especially helpful to hear from other people who have been through or are going through similar difficulties. A sincere thank you to everyone who has supported me through these difficult times, I hope there is a brighter future ahead!
Be well,
-Brian
Finally, I'm not the kind of person who has an easy time reaching out for support, (to put it mildly) but I welcome prayers, advice, friendship, and material assistance from anyone with the means to offer it. It's especially helpful to hear from other people who have been through or are going through similar difficulties. A sincere thank you to everyone who has supported me through these difficult times, I hope there is a brighter future ahead!
Be well,
-Brian
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