Author: Mike Scioli

Safety first!

The information in this post applies to all paddlers … old-hands, newbies, guests, etc. … there are no exceptions.

In light of the recent tragedy on Lake Ray Hubbard, a new safety policy has gone into effect as of 22 September 2019. [The paddler was on an OC2, not a kayak, as reported. Neither he nor his paddling partner were wearing PFDs.]

1) Every paddler must procure their own personal flotation device (PFD) and bring it to all workouts. Your PFD must be in serviceable condition.

Your steersmen will not provide these.

2) Until otherwise proven / demonstrated to coach / president, Justin McGuire, all paddlers must wear their PDF during workouts.

3) If you can prove to Justin that you can swim 250 meters and / or tread water for 10 minutes, then you will be permitted to paddle without wearing your PDF; however, it must be present in the canoe and ready in case of an emergency. Austin OCC, Inc. still recommend that you wear your PFD.

Please note : It is strongly recommended that any inflatable PFD also have an oral inflation tube.

The U.S. Coat Guard informs us that a PFD is considered to be in serviceable condition only if the following conditions are met :

(a) No PFD may exhibit deterioration that could diminish the performance of the PFD including :

  1. Metal or plastic hardware used to secure the PFD on the wearer that is broken, deformed, or weakened by corrosion;
  2. Webbings or straps used to secure the PFD on the wearer that are ripped, torn, or which have become separated from an attachment point on the PFD; or
  3. Any other rotted or deteriorated structural component that fails when tugged.

(b) In addition to meeting the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section, no inherently buoyant PFD, including the inherently buoyant components of a hybrid inflatable PFD, may exhibit :

  1. Rips, tears, or open seams in fabric or coatings that are large enough to allow the loss of buoyant material;
  2. Buoyant material that has become hardened, non-resilient, permanently compressed, waterlogged, oil-soaked, or which shows evidence of fungus or mildew; or loss of buoyant material or buoyant material that is not securely held in position.

(c) In addition to meeting the requirements of paragraph (a) of this section, an inflatable PFD, including the inflatable components of a hybrid inflatable PFD, must be equipped with :

  1. Except as provided in paragraph (d) of this section, a properly armed inflation mechanism, complete with a full inflation medium cartridge and all status indicators showing that the inflation mechanism is properly armed;
  2. Inflatable chambers that are all capable of holding air;
  3. Oral inflation tubes that are not blocked, detached, or broken;
  4. A manual inflation lanyard or lever that is not inaccessible, broken, or missing; and
  5. Inflator status indicators that are not broken or otherwise non-functional.

(d) The inflation system of an inflatable PFD need not be armed when the PFD is worn inflated and otherwise meets the requirements of paragraphs (a) and (c) of this section.

Austin’s August climate : Fun facts

Weather versus climate

As I type this post, I hear thunder outside and I can see some falling rain. Toss in a relative humidity reading, the current windspeed and you have weather.

Climate is a long-term summary of weather data. Meteorologists use a 30-year summary of the previous three decades (currently, 1981 – 2010) to determine the so-called “norm” for the year, the month, the day.

Your tax dollars at work!

The conclusions / summaries of Austin weather are derived from climate data freely-available from the National Climatic Data Center (NDCD). These are good folks, hard-working and dedicated. They make certain that the probability of bad data being entered into the summary is LOW.

OK, back to Austin

A quick-and-dirty summary of Austin’s August climate is :

  • Average daily high = 97 °F (+/- 2 °F)
  • Average daily low = 75 °F (+1/-2 °F)
  • Average daily humidity = 64%

Would you like a little more? Here are some more Austin August averages based on data from 1981-2010.

  • Number of days with daily high temperature ≥90°F = 29
  • Number of days with daily low temperature ≤70°F = 2
  • Wind speed = 7.4 mph
  • % of sunny days = 74%
    (303 hours of sunshine or
    13 hours and 11 minutes per day)
  • Monthly precipitation = 2.4″

Some Summer records

112°F : The highest daily temperature ever recorded in Austin on 2011-08-28 and 2000-09-05.

90 : The greatest number of days with daily high temperature ≥100°F occurred in 2011.

27 : The greatest number of consecutive days with daily high temperature ≥100°F (2011-08, Camp Mabry). By contrast, as of today, we appear to have broken our streak of 19 consecutive days with high temperature ≥100°F.

We’re nearly out of the woods

The good news is that we are closer to cooler weather. The bad news is that we are not done with the hot weather, yet.

Stay well-hydrated, my friends!

Fundraiser for Austin OCC on 09 November 2019

“A boat is a hole in the water into which you throw money.”

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As you may already know, a boat is an expensive proposition. It is expensive to purchase. It is expensive to operate. It is expensive to maintain. It is expensive to store.

To that end, we are raffling-off two beautiful hand-made items. Tickets for either are $10 each or three for $25.

Print as many as you would like of the two ticket images below. Fill them out completely. Hand them, along with payment (cash or check), to Tracy Quon (treasurer), Joy Emshoff (secretary), or Denise Scioli (vice-president).

If you wish to pay via PayPal, our recipient e-mail address is paypal.payments@austinocc.org

“B-O-A-T = Break out another thousand.”

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The first item is a gorgeous hand-made cedar coffee table with wave design. This table was created by Joy’s husband, Bob Spain, for our fundraiser.

Coffee table raffle ticket
Coffee table raffle ticket

Hand-made red cedar coffee-table crafted by Bob Spain (side-view).

Hand-made red cedar coffee-table crafted by Bob Spain (top-view)

Hand-made red cedar coffee table crafted by Bob Spain (top-view 2)
Hand-made red cedar coffee table crafted by Bob Spain for Austin OCC’s fundraiser (top-view 2)

The second is a beautiful hand-made quilt. The top was designed, hand-appliqued, and machine-pieced by Denise Scioli. Then Denise, Tracy Quon, Tina Ho, and Joy Emshoff hand-quilted this treasure.

Denise has been designing and making award-winning quilts since, at least, the early 1990s.

Quilt raffle ticket
Quilt raffle ticket

Hand-made quilt for Austin OCC fundraiser raffle.

Hand-made quilt for Austin OCC fundraiser raffle

“A boat is a hole in the water, surrounded by wood, into which money is poured.”

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Water advisory for Lady Bird Lake

Update : 2019-08-14 See the City of Austin page on the expanded area affected by the cyanobacteria and their neurotoxins.

As the summer air temperature continues to heat up, so does the surface water temperature.

The increased water temperature, coupled with decreased water through-flow, and consequent nutrient build-up, result in algal blooms. Normally, these are harmless … unsightly and a bit smelly.

At the moment, Lady Bird Lake seems to be having a problem with cyanobacteria (so-called “blue-green algae”). Two genera, in particular, Anabaena and Microcystis, produce neurotoxic compounds, at times.

Anabaena flos-aquae, aquatic cyanobacterium
Anabaena flos-aquae, an aquatic cyanobacterium, is capable of producing powerful neurotoxins. Photo credit to US EPA 2007.

While we await the results of testing by the City of Austin, an advisory has been issued for dogs (dogs are permitted to swim in these waters; humans are not).

With the exception of Barton Creek, nearer to the pool than to the river, you might re-consider going into the water or splashing river water onto your face (keep it out of your eyes and out of your mouth). Individuals with known sensitivity to these compounds should be especially aware.

Microcystis aeruginosa, aquatic cyanobacterium
Microcystis aeruginosa, an aquatic cyanobacterium, is capable of producing powerful neurotoxins. Photo credit to Kristian Peters.

See? Those hundred of hours of environmental engineering coursework back in graduate school might have learnt me a thing or two. 😉

Building our own ‘iakos (spars) for the outrigger canoes

Work on the outrigger canoes never stops around here. There is always another bubble in the gel-coat protecting the gunwales, another scratch in the gel-coat protecting the hull, etc. The Texas sun plays Hell with all exposed surfaces but, probably, takes its heaviest toll on the ‘iakos.

We always hope that the most critical work can wait until the months with more amenable weather arrive. [Austin, TX is sometimes referred to as the Land of Eternal Air-Conditioning. Many of us run the air-conditioning system for 9-10 months of the year.]

Traditionally, Hawaiian boat-makers used Hau (Hibiscus tiliaceus), one of the woody members of the cotton family (Malvaceae) for the ‘iakos. It should be no surprise that Hau is not available in Texas.

Sea hibiscus aka Hau (Hibiscus tiliaceus)
Sea hibiscus aka Hau (Hibiscus tiliaceus)

In the past, we have used relatively-inexpensive plywood to build-up laminated ‘iakos, a technique demonstrated for us by Carleton Kruse of Texas OCC. Those ‘iakos functioned well for a couple of years before decay and delamination set in.

I began exploring alternative construction materials / techniques and came across a reference to the materials and construction of the ‘iakos for the Polynesian Voyaging Society’s Hōkūleʻa.

I like what I see about the ‘iakos built by The John Williams Boat Co. (JWC), Mt. Desert Island, Maine.

I will report back about our progress and our satisfaction with the results of this journey.

Austin OCC 2017 Sprint event is in the books!

Wow! The 2017 Austin OCC Sprints at Lake Bastrop Noth Shore Park was a huge[1] event!! It was a lot of fun even though not without its problems :

  • the official NWS high temperature was recorded at 100 F,
  • the event got underway a couple of hours late, and
  • the water temperature in Lake Bastrop was hotter than anything in which I have bathed in decades!

Times can be found here. (No, actually, they cannot. The Wayback Machine at archive.org missed that one.)

Austin OCC thanks all of the teams represented at the event :

  • Texas OCC
  • Hoewa’a Dallas OCC
  • Team Hokulele
  • San Antonio OCC
  • Rio Grande Valley OCC
  • Austin OCC!

More thanks to offer :

  • Justin McGuire, Austin OCC president, for spearheading this effort.
  • Tracy Quon, Joy Emshoff, Ginsie Stauss,[2] and Denise Scioli for the hours of planning and printing the new shirt design, and the awards.
  • Tracy, Joy, Bob Spain, and everyone else involved in getting four lanes of buoys deployed.[3]
  • Denise and everyone else who helped at the registration table.[3]
  • Alma Forti, Becky Naddef, Jenny Tam, and everyone else involved in timing the race.[4]
  • Austin OCC members who provided the coffee, cold water, energy drinks, iced tea, breakfast items, fruit, salads, and side-dishes that complimented the chicken and brisket so lovingly grilled by J.D. Martinez.[5]
  • Phil Schafer and Jenny Tam for photographing the event for posteriety (that is a misspelling but the combination of posterity and notoriety is too good to correct).
  • Austin OCC members who were there until the bitter end, helping with the tear-down of the site, hauling equipment across the grounds, de-rigging the canoes, pulling buoys, loading everything on trailers and into vehicles.
  • All who paddled their hearts out in the heat.
  • All who were patient with late-afternoon lineup changes.
  • All who were patient as we provided opportunities for our newest members to paddle even if that made us less competitive.[6]

Notes :

[1] There have never been as many teams represented in a Texas outrigger event before. Nor have as many paddlers participated in a Texas outrigger event before. The sport is growing!

[2] Ginsie, we are so sorry that we did not get to distribute them at the event. The crowd began to thin as soon as the racing was done … long before we could tally the results.

[3] We learned a few things that we hope will make this faster at the next event.

[4] T.O.R.A. (Texas Outrigger Racing Association) rules need to be followed better next time. In particular, we need timing help from all clubs. Shade, cold drinks, and comfort need to be a forethought next time.

[5] We will have some significant improvements in place for your comfort before the next event. I am already in the process of re-creating a hand-and-utensil washing system to make your task easier and the whole process safer.

[6] After all, what is the role of senior and more-experienced paddlers if not to prepare our newest members and to provide them with such opportunity?

Wahine

Sandra Cormier
Joy Emshoff
Alma Forti (ground support)
Hong Hua
Backy Naddef
Tracy Quon
Angie Schafer
Denise Scioli
Ginsie Stauss
Jenny Tam
Kila Vare-Nixon

Kane

Aaron Braud
Wolf Dilworth (ground support)
Rob Forti
Binh Hua
Jim Jones
J.D. Martinez (ground support)
Justin McGuire
Phil Schafer
Mike Scioli
Justin Stevenson

Invasive pest species now infesting Lake Travis

[Updated 2019-08-12 : Lake Travis, Lake Austin, Lady Bird Lake, Lake Georgetown, and Canton Lake are now classified as ‘infested.’ Decker Lake (aka Lake Walter E. Long) and Grapevine Lake are classified as ‘positive.’ Lake Ray Hubbard is still classified as ‘suspect.’]

I heard this sad news on our local NPR affiliate, KUT 90.5 FM, yesterday. Texas paddlers should be aware that an invasive pest species, the Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) has become established in Lake Travis (now classified as ‘infested’).

Zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, photo credit to Amy Benson
Invasive species, the zebra mussel, Dreissena polymorpha, has reached Lake Travis. Photo credit to Amy Benson, USGS 1992-03-14.

Our sister club, Hoewa’a Dallas OCC, should be aware that Lake Ray Hubbard is classified as ‘suspect’ since Zebra mussel adults and larvae have been observed in recent years. All boaters – including canoeists and kayakers – are required to drain all water from their boat and onboard receptacles before leaving or approaching a body of fresh water in order to prevent the transfer of zebra mussels.

Further recommendations for reducing the likelihood that these pests reach Lake Austin, Lake Travis, etc. can be found at Texas Invasives.

The zebra mussel was accidentally introduced into the Great Lakes from the Caspian Sea via transport shipping in 1986. Click to see how rapidly the zebra mussel has spread from the Great Lakes since then through freshwater waterways.

2014 Texas OCC Paniolo Ironman Event

2014-08-16 Mud Lake (Clear Lake, TX)

Texas Outrigger Canoe Club (TOCC) hosted their annual Paniolo Ironman Event. The 2014 version was a 10-mile run from Mud Lake through the Kemah Channel out into the bay.

The participating crews were from the host club (TOCC), Team Hokulele, Hoewa’a Dallas OCC (HDOCC), and Austin OCC (AOCC).

The weather was surprisingly pleasant. The event was well-organized and executed. The company and the food were excellent, as always!

AOCC Women’s crew :
(1) Sandra Cormier / Carleton Kruse *, (2) Momi Kane ***, (3) Kila Nixon, (4) Tina Ho, (5) Christy Rodriguez ** (6) Denise Scioli

AOCC Men’s crew :
(1) Chris Almaguer, (2) Tri Bach, (3) Mike Brooks, (4) Ben Castro **, (5) Mike Scioli, (6) Justin Mcguire

* injury substitution, TOCC
** on loan from TOCC
*** on loan from HDOCC

The results are as follows :

PlaceWomenMixedMen
1st1:54:55 TOCC1:40:20 HOCC 1:45:35 HDOCC
2nd2:03:43 HDOCC1:47:20 AOCC
3rd2:20:48 AOCC1:47:20 AOCC