Keeping Your Ducks in a Row, Row, Row...

On Saturdays, while I am at my aqua fitness class, Bob has been helping out with the Adaptive Rowing program on the river. It is a wonderful program that encourages and enables people with physical or mental limitations  to get out on the river and row. 

Rowing is an excellent form of exercise; for the people in this program, there is a physical therapist who  assesses their ability to use their arms and/or legs, and the boat is then fitted for that person with a special seat or harness or whatever is needed.

 A second person usually rows along with the person, just to help out, and to make it safer.

Beth, the woman Bob was rowing with today, is fairly new to rowing, but has taken to it very quickly.

They row in a narrow chute beside an island in the river. That provides some protection from the wake from barges and pleasure boats.

Occasionally, the person with special needs will go out in a "single," a boat for just one person. The young man in the wheelchair was waiting for a single, and was flirting with a girl out in a boat while he was waiting. 

As Bob pushed Beth back up the ramp, he observed that gravity was not his friend today; but he also said it was harder going down the ramp than it was going up. 

WOW!  Talk about trusting someone.

Today was  also "National Learn To Row Day", and I stopped by the river after my exercise.

People from the Louisville Rowing Club and the University of Louisville Rowing team were taking novices out to try to get converts to rowing.

It was also the day that mama ducks were out with their baby ducks, and there were some good Kodak moments. I also saw herons and Canada geese.

My own rowing is limited to using the rowing machine on my porch. It is a good workout, for arms, legs and back. I'm not sure I could get in and out of that narrow boat without losing my balance and landing in the water.  I'll stick to dry land!

But it was wonderful being outdoors on such a beautiful day.