The slide show above showing the guy 'seal launching' off of a pier is the source of the end of this trip report and the beginning of the next. With our friend and past Aqua Adventures employee (Matt P.) in town helping out around the store while Jen is in Wales it's been a bit like 'old home week' around here with other past guides (namely Berto) stopping by to visit. Of course you can't put Berto, Matt, and I in boats on the water together without some sort of shenanigans happening.
Last night Berto invited a few friends from school over to the shop after hours to do a little night paddle on the bay. A group of about 12 of us headed out for what started out to be a perfectly calm sunset paddle. Matt and I paddled the Prospector 17 canoe so we could play mother ship to all the kayaks. Berto meanwhile entertained the crowd by doing a bunch of rolls. When we neared the Barefoot Bar dock Matt eyed up the old unused pier on the south end of their cove and wondered aloud if it'd be possible to seal launch off of it. A quick probe with our paddles showed adequate depth (just barely) to pull off a soft landing below the five or six foot drop. All it took was a nod of the head toward the pier and the simple question to Berto "what do you think?" before the ear to ear grin and twinkle in his eye told us that our old 'crash test dummy' was on board. The slide show pretty much tells the next bit of the tale showing me giving our lovable 'boat breaker' a friendly shove off of the pier and his splashdown landing below.
What the video does show, but doesn't really reveal to the untrained eye, is the moment that I realized that my back isn't 21 any more. Somehow when I bent over and launched Berto off the pier I jacked something up in my lower back resulting in a pain like a dull screwdriver hand been jabbed in my spine just above my pelvis. The pain was instantaneous and overwhelming and it took most of my strength to not fall to my knees on the pier. I managed to hobble back to the canoe and finish the night fighting back waves of pain every time the canoe rocked on a wave. The next morning proved to be very interesting as it took me twenty minutes to find the right posture to allow me to roll off the couch then climb the furniture to get to my feet. The rest of this story continues on the next days post.
As for the Nova Craft Prospector 17 canoe itself. Of the canoes in our fleet it's probably my favorite. The slanted kneeling thwart makes paddling it solo very comfortable and as long as the wind isn't blowing on its ample free board it's very easy to move around. When the wind is blowing it can be a lot to handle unless it's loaded and pushed deeper in the water.
Prospector 17 Review
Manufacturer = Nova Sports Equipment Ltd.
Brand = Nova Craft Canoe
Model = Prospector 17
Material = Royalex
Length = 17'-0"
Width = 36"
Weight = 80 lbs.
Capacity = 1200 lbs.
Location = Mission Bay paddle with group of friends
Time = 7:00 PM
Distance = 3 miles
Duration = 1:30
Avg. Speed = N/A clowning around
Conditions = Calm and few clouds
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