Sandy handed over his and watched carefully as Doug Henderson flopped it on the ground.

“Now the important thing to remember is balance. Sit in the middle of the raft with your knees wedged tight against both sides—like this.” He hopped in and demonstrated.

“Don’t tense your body but keep your legs firm. Make sure your middle is loose so you can turn your shoulders in both directions. You want to be ready to handle trouble no matter what side it comes from. Okay so far?”

Sandy and Mike nodded gravely.

“You fellows know how to handle a canoe?” They both nodded a second time. “Good. Then we don’t have to go into steering. Come on over here and I’ll tell you about the rapids.”

He led the way down to the end of the rickety dock toward the white water and launched into a lecture that took nearly twenty minutes.

It turned out that Doug knew every ripple and wave in the Kindergarten Rapids. He told them what to expect in the way of currents, where a whirlpool was likely to form, how to fight clear of the rocks and what to do if they got thrown into the water.

When he finished, he turned to them with finality. “And now you’re ready to try it,” he announced. “You’ll get dumped but don’t let that bother you. Everybody does. But you’ve got to remember to take it easy. If you stiffen all up, you’re bound to tip over. Ready?”

Mike scratched his head and shrugged his shoulders. “Nope. But I guess that doesn’t make any difference. Who’s first?”

“We’ll all go together,” their freckle-faced instructor ordered. “You two go on ahead and I’ll bring up the rear. That way I can tell you what you did wrong when we get through the run.”

“If we get through,” Mike muttered, sliding his raft into the water.

“Oh, you can’t help getting through,” Doug called out reassuringly. “Even if you’re dead, the current’ll carry you.”

“Thanks a lot,” Mike said as he got ready to cast off. “That takes a big load off my mind.” The next instant the current was carrying him into the middle of the river.

Sandy took a firm grip on the sides of his raft and followed. Even as he scrambled to keep his balance, he could feel the river tugging insistently at his tiny craft. Bracing his knees, he reached down 

 Prev. P 12/97 next