Page 102 - Wish Stream 2023 CREST

Exercise OARSOME-TIME
OCdt Tull
On the first day of our expedition, our instructor delivered the initial safety brief. The purpose was to demonstrate the standard that would
be expected throughout the week as nominated ICs. It covered equipment needs, meteorological considerations, safety points, route features, and key training objectives. The first day aimed to teach the basic skills and drills needed to safely use a kayak. The Exped team paddled an 8-mile route along Coniston Water, based firmly around Kolb’s (1984) experiential learning cycle which consists of a plan, do, review and apply.
The second day was now led by a nominated OCdt. We navigated an anti-clockwise route of 11 miles on Lake Windemere, which took us past Wray Castle and Belle Island. On route, we used ‘capsize drills’ as a vehicle to explore Adair’s Action Centred Leadership Model. The task was rescuing a capsized team member. The team had to support the casualty and each other in a rescue mission so that each individual built their skills and drills and overall confidence in the water.
Day Three found the team practising and mas- tering seal launches. A seal launch is where you insert into the water from a slopped ledge. This required some mental resilience as it was from a considerable height of roughly 2-3 metres above the water’s edge. While the first few attempts did result in capsizes, our failed launches soon turned into successes, resulting in team members master- ing a new skill.
Day Four on Lake Derwent water saw external challenges. These were mainly navigating to allow civilian boats like commercial ferries or rental speed boats to pass safely although the commercial fer- ries are on a predetermined commercial route which makes it easier to predict their movements. The civilian-for-hire boats were often piloted by inexperienced individuals and as such, predicting their routes of passage became much more diffi- cult. Therefore, the best course of action proved to be forming into a close arrowhead formation. This allowed the boats more opportunity to be aware of our presence. It also meant that we could all safely navigate the 10-mile route from potentially interfer- ing boats, rather than being too dispersed to coor- dinate our movements safely and effectively.
We concluded our last day with competitive ele- ments on Lake Thirlmere. Starting from a seal launch on the northern island, we raced 1 vs. 1 in a figure-of-eight circuit around the islands. This gave us the opportunity to practice everything we had learnt, as we had to paddle efficiently, corner and manoeuvre effectively, stabilise the kayak and maintain good situational awareness. Moreover, it gave our instructor a chance to give useful feed- back on performance as well as promote team bonding and a healthy competitive spirit. A high- energy serial to end an excellent expedition.
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