Dodgy Canoeing!!

When I was in my 20's I went on a canal boat cruise with a load of mates. One of them brought a canoe with him. Now I had not done much canoeing but I'd done some when i was a kid. so I thought I knew what I was doing. But there was one significant change - since the previous time - I was taller being fully grown!!

Anyway I was canoeing rather badly and the narrow boat was getting away from me (shouldn't really happen like that) and then I capsized. So there I was upside down in the canal - and I couldn't get out couldn't seem to bend in the right way to get my long legs out of the smallish hole, probably because every time I moved them the canoe moved as well, I'd lost hold of my paddle so I couldn't right myself. The others were about half a mile ahead of me and I didn't know if they could even see me, but I knew they were too far away to help. My life really did start to flash before my eyes. I thought I was going to drown.

Fortunately with one last effort I did manage to get out, ripping all the skin off my shins in the process. Once I was out it wasn't a problem - the water was only four feet deep. Dragged my self to the bank to find the gang all running down the tow path towards me. 

Never been in a canoe since!!