Taking the Plunge
By Rachel Dranko
Athletics have never been my forte. My lack of coordination made any sport nearly impossible. Sports weren’t the only thing I struggled with. Walking, for one, was a daily struggle. I trip on flat ground.
My brain and body have never collaborated nicely with each other. The word “graceful” was never in any description for me. Considering all these factors, one would be able to see my apprehension when my uncle decided he was going to teach all my cousins and me to waterski.
My family has been visiting Conneaut Lake for over 100 years. It is Pennsylvania’s largest natural lake, but if you were to look for it on a map, you might miss it, despite its claim to fame. The town of Conneaut is very small and everyone is on a first-name basis. My cousins and I always enjoyed our time at Conneaut Lake in our youth. We would spend hours constructing elaborate sandcastles on the beach, taking frequent breaks to jump off the barge into the lake.
One particular day I remember, the summer I was 10, we were in the middle of constructing our latest sand masterpiece and my uncle came out of the house. Wearing his favorite baseball cap with “Pittsburgh Pirates” sewn on and his favorite Hawaiian swim trunks, he came over to us and asked us one of our favorite questions: “Who wants to go on a boat ride?” We all shouted excitedly, rinsed off in the lake and made our way to the docks. We boarded the boat, all excited to get out on the water.
We hoisted the anchor, untied the ropes and set sail. Then my little cousin Sarah pointed to the ground and asked, “Uncle Mike, what are those?” I followed the line of her finger and saw she was pointing to two large skis on the ground. My uncle Mike put the boat in neutral, took the cigar he was smoking out of his mouth and pointed the slimy end down to where the skis lay.
“Those are water skis, Sarah; today, I’m going to teach all of you how to waterski!”
“Yay!” everyone shouted. We had always seen our older cousins going out and gracefully gliding across the water and doing cool tricks, and every time when they would come back, we would always ask our uncle when we would be able to learn. “Very soon,” he would say. “You’re not old enough just yet.” But today was the day! It was the day we were finally going to be like our big cousins.
“Who wants to go first?”
“Me, me, me, me!” we all shouted in unison. We eventually decided that my younger brother was the first to take the plunge.
“OK, now keep your body scrunched up really tightly and the skis out of the water and hold on to the rope and don’t let go,” my uncle instructed. “You kids tell me if he falls.”
The engine of the boat revved. My cousins and I were all sitting on the back seat, excitedly watching my brother.
“Ready!” he shouted from the water.
“OK, here we go!” my uncle shouted back.
My brother followed all of the instructions, and was almost up and then lost his balance and fell.
“You’re fine, try again,” my uncle yelled from the driver’s seat of the boat. A few more times and he was up.
“That a boy!” my uncle exclaimed.
We all gave a thumbs up to him.
After he went, it was my cousin Hannah’s turn. Same thing happened with her. A few stumbles and she was up. The same went for Alex, then Sarah and then Jessie.
"This should be a piece of cake.” I thought to myself. I strapped on my life vest, put the skis on and jumped in. The water was cold and it was really hard to swim with those big skis on my feet. I was clumsily treading the water trying to hold on to the rope. The sun was glistening off the waves as they bounced across the water. The waves were making me bob up and down, and my life vest had settled itself quite uncomfortably on me, pushing up against my neck. I followed all of the instructions: body scrunched, holding on tight to the rope, skis above the water.
“Ready!” I shouted as I prepared myself for the ascent out of the water.
“OK, here we go!” my uncle shouted. Just as he started the boat, one of my skis slipped under the water. Oh no! I was falling! I let go of the rope in a panic and splashed back into the water. My uncle swung the boat around and I grabbed hold of the rope again.
“That’s OK. You’ll get it this time!” he yelled. I tried again. Scrunched up, held tight to the rope. The engine revved again and I started to get pulled out of the water. I was almost up and then I lost my balance and did a nosedive into the water. I tried about five more times and still couldn’t get up. I climbed back onto the boat, totally defeated.
“It’s OK, Rachel, you will get the hang of it by tomorrow,” my cousin Hannah consoled me.
“Yeah, tomorrow,” I said weakly.
We pulled the boat back into its dock and headed back to the house.
“Well how was it?” my grandma asked.
“Grandma, it was so fun!” my brother cried.
“Yeah, it was so fun and so easy!” my cousin Alex shouted.
“You guys can come skiing with us big kids now!” my cousin Deanna said from the other room.
“Well, I’m glad you all had fun,” Grandma said. “Now go get cleaned up for dinner.”
We scurried off, washed up, had dinner, played for a little while longer and then headed to bed. The next morning right after breakfast, we were back on the water, everyone geared up for another day of skiing. My brother got up on the first try, and Alex and Sarah had a few stumbles but by the end of the day, everyone has gotten up at least once -- everyone except for me, that is. The next few days of waterskiing went by and once again, I was the only one who couldn’t get up.
I was so upset that the next day when all my cousins went out to ski, I stayed in my room. My mom came in a while later and asked what was wrong and why I wasn’t out on the boat with the rest of the kids.
“I can’t ski! I try and I try and I try and I just can’t do it!” I sobbed.
My mom gathered me into my arms and attempted to calm me down.
“Let me tell you something, Rachel,” my mother said. “When I was just about your age, your grandpa used to take the kids out to waterski, too. Like you, I was the only one who couldn’t get up on the skis. So you know what I did?”
“Gave up?”
“No. I kept trying and trying and trying and you know what? Eventually, I got up and I was the best skier out of all my cousins.”
“Really?” I questioned.
“Really,” she replied.
“OK, well then tomorrow, I’m going to get out there and waterski!”
“Good for you!”
“Will you come on the boat to watch me?”
“Of course,” she said as she hugged me.
The next day, the sun was shining brightly. There was not a cloud in the sky and we made the trek to the boat.
“Who wants to go first today?” my uncle asked. I looked over to my mother who gave me an encouraging nod.
“I-I will,” I stammered. I geared up, and plunged into the water. It was so cold but I barely noticed because my adrenaline level was so high. The water was so choppy that day. I could barely see over the waves they were so tall.
“Ready?” my uncle bellowed over the roar of the waves.
“Uh-huh,” I said meekly, and barely audible. I tightened my grip on the rope. The engine revved. I got into position and then the skis begin to rise.
“Oh, no,” I thought. "I’m not going to be able to get up. It’s too choppy. It’s never going to work."
And then all of a sudden, I was up. I was on top of the water, and the skis were below me. I was doing it! I was actually doing it! I looked up and saw my cousins cheering from the boat. My mom was giving me a thumbs up and was mouthing the words, “Great job!”
I only managed to ski a few hundred feet and I fell. I didn’t care, though because I had gotten up. I was officially able to waterski!
I was able to get up on the first try every time after that. We all began going out early in the mornings with our older cousins. I didn’t become the best out of all of them as my mother was, but I did get pretty well. I eventually was able to go outside of the wake so that I was parallel to the boat.
I have been waterskiing for 10 years now and recently was able to slalom ski, which is skiing with one ski and is a
lot harder than two skis. It took me a while to get the hang of that, too, but I kept pushing and I never gave up. I realized that although it may take a while to achieve what you want to, you have to keep pushing through and try your hardest, no matter how hopeless it seems. Going that extra mile will give you the ability to achieve great things.
Read more about Rachel Dranko on her personal blog here.
Athletics have never been my forte. My lack of coordination made any sport nearly impossible. Sports weren’t the only thing I struggled with. Walking, for one, was a daily struggle. I trip on flat ground.
My brain and body have never collaborated nicely with each other. The word “graceful” was never in any description for me. Considering all these factors, one would be able to see my apprehension when my uncle decided he was going to teach all my cousins and me to waterski.
My family has been visiting Conneaut Lake for over 100 years. It is Pennsylvania’s largest natural lake, but if you were to look for it on a map, you might miss it, despite its claim to fame. The town of Conneaut is very small and everyone is on a first-name basis. My cousins and I always enjoyed our time at Conneaut Lake in our youth. We would spend hours constructing elaborate sandcastles on the beach, taking frequent breaks to jump off the barge into the lake.
One particular day I remember, the summer I was 10, we were in the middle of constructing our latest sand masterpiece and my uncle came out of the house. Wearing his favorite baseball cap with “Pittsburgh Pirates” sewn on and his favorite Hawaiian swim trunks, he came over to us and asked us one of our favorite questions: “Who wants to go on a boat ride?” We all shouted excitedly, rinsed off in the lake and made our way to the docks. We boarded the boat, all excited to get out on the water.
We hoisted the anchor, untied the ropes and set sail. Then my little cousin Sarah pointed to the ground and asked, “Uncle Mike, what are those?” I followed the line of her finger and saw she was pointing to two large skis on the ground. My uncle Mike put the boat in neutral, took the cigar he was smoking out of his mouth and pointed the slimy end down to where the skis lay.
“Those are water skis, Sarah; today, I’m going to teach all of you how to waterski!”
“Yay!” everyone shouted. We had always seen our older cousins going out and gracefully gliding across the water and doing cool tricks, and every time when they would come back, we would always ask our uncle when we would be able to learn. “Very soon,” he would say. “You’re not old enough just yet.” But today was the day! It was the day we were finally going to be like our big cousins.
“Who wants to go first?”
“Me, me, me, me!” we all shouted in unison. We eventually decided that my younger brother was the first to take the plunge.
“OK, now keep your body scrunched up really tightly and the skis out of the water and hold on to the rope and don’t let go,” my uncle instructed. “You kids tell me if he falls.”
The engine of the boat revved. My cousins and I were all sitting on the back seat, excitedly watching my brother.
“Ready!” he shouted from the water.
“OK, here we go!” my uncle shouted back.
My brother followed all of the instructions, and was almost up and then lost his balance and fell.
“You’re fine, try again,” my uncle yelled from the driver’s seat of the boat. A few more times and he was up.
“That a boy!” my uncle exclaimed.
We all gave a thumbs up to him.
After he went, it was my cousin Hannah’s turn. Same thing happened with her. A few stumbles and she was up. The same went for Alex, then Sarah and then Jessie.
"This should be a piece of cake.” I thought to myself. I strapped on my life vest, put the skis on and jumped in. The water was cold and it was really hard to swim with those big skis on my feet. I was clumsily treading the water trying to hold on to the rope. The sun was glistening off the waves as they bounced across the water. The waves were making me bob up and down, and my life vest had settled itself quite uncomfortably on me, pushing up against my neck. I followed all of the instructions: body scrunched, holding on tight to the rope, skis above the water.
“Ready!” I shouted as I prepared myself for the ascent out of the water.
“OK, here we go!” my uncle shouted. Just as he started the boat, one of my skis slipped under the water. Oh no! I was falling! I let go of the rope in a panic and splashed back into the water. My uncle swung the boat around and I grabbed hold of the rope again.
“That’s OK. You’ll get it this time!” he yelled. I tried again. Scrunched up, held tight to the rope. The engine revved again and I started to get pulled out of the water. I was almost up and then I lost my balance and did a nosedive into the water. I tried about five more times and still couldn’t get up. I climbed back onto the boat, totally defeated.
“It’s OK, Rachel, you will get the hang of it by tomorrow,” my cousin Hannah consoled me.
“Yeah, tomorrow,” I said weakly.
We pulled the boat back into its dock and headed back to the house.
“Well how was it?” my grandma asked.
“Grandma, it was so fun!” my brother cried.
“Yeah, it was so fun and so easy!” my cousin Alex shouted.
“You guys can come skiing with us big kids now!” my cousin Deanna said from the other room.
“Well, I’m glad you all had fun,” Grandma said. “Now go get cleaned up for dinner.”
We scurried off, washed up, had dinner, played for a little while longer and then headed to bed. The next morning right after breakfast, we were back on the water, everyone geared up for another day of skiing. My brother got up on the first try, and Alex and Sarah had a few stumbles but by the end of the day, everyone has gotten up at least once -- everyone except for me, that is. The next few days of waterskiing went by and once again, I was the only one who couldn’t get up.
I was so upset that the next day when all my cousins went out to ski, I stayed in my room. My mom came in a while later and asked what was wrong and why I wasn’t out on the boat with the rest of the kids.
“I can’t ski! I try and I try and I try and I just can’t do it!” I sobbed.
My mom gathered me into my arms and attempted to calm me down.
“Let me tell you something, Rachel,” my mother said. “When I was just about your age, your grandpa used to take the kids out to waterski, too. Like you, I was the only one who couldn’t get up on the skis. So you know what I did?”
“Gave up?”
“No. I kept trying and trying and trying and you know what? Eventually, I got up and I was the best skier out of all my cousins.”
“Really?” I questioned.
“Really,” she replied.
“OK, well then tomorrow, I’m going to get out there and waterski!”
“Good for you!”
“Will you come on the boat to watch me?”
“Of course,” she said as she hugged me.
The next day, the sun was shining brightly. There was not a cloud in the sky and we made the trek to the boat.
“Who wants to go first today?” my uncle asked. I looked over to my mother who gave me an encouraging nod.
“I-I will,” I stammered. I geared up, and plunged into the water. It was so cold but I barely noticed because my adrenaline level was so high. The water was so choppy that day. I could barely see over the waves they were so tall.
“Ready?” my uncle bellowed over the roar of the waves.
“Uh-huh,” I said meekly, and barely audible. I tightened my grip on the rope. The engine revved. I got into position and then the skis begin to rise.
“Oh, no,” I thought. "I’m not going to be able to get up. It’s too choppy. It’s never going to work."
And then all of a sudden, I was up. I was on top of the water, and the skis were below me. I was doing it! I was actually doing it! I looked up and saw my cousins cheering from the boat. My mom was giving me a thumbs up and was mouthing the words, “Great job!”
I only managed to ski a few hundred feet and I fell. I didn’t care, though because I had gotten up. I was officially able to waterski!
I was able to get up on the first try every time after that. We all began going out early in the mornings with our older cousins. I didn’t become the best out of all of them as my mother was, but I did get pretty well. I eventually was able to go outside of the wake so that I was parallel to the boat.
I have been waterskiing for 10 years now and recently was able to slalom ski, which is skiing with one ski and is a
lot harder than two skis. It took me a while to get the hang of that, too, but I kept pushing and I never gave up. I realized that although it may take a while to achieve what you want to, you have to keep pushing through and try your hardest, no matter how hopeless it seems. Going that extra mile will give you the ability to achieve great things.
Read more about Rachel Dranko on her personal blog here.