Hard Rock Adventure

My son and I had an unusual adventure this weekend. A friend of mine, Tony, is proprietor of a rock club in town called Murray Hill Theater. It is a drug and alcohol free venue which promotes various music acts and shows. It is extremely popular with local youth, including my fourteen year old son. He asked our permission to attend a particular show this weekend headlined by a local band, Second Thief. After talking to Tony, the owner I decided to let him go. However, having quite a history of rock concerts under my belt, I said I would go along.

Let me first tell you I was warned by Tony, who is my age (47) that hard rock by today's standard compared to the 70's brand of hard rock is like comparing the Scorpions to the Partridge Family. I will say that comparison turned out a little extreme but it was shocking none the less.

I ended up volunteering for the inside security detail. Frank the security chief, and looking the part I might add, set me up guarding the rear access door backstage. This turned out to be a great vantage point for a close up view of the acts and thankfully was situated behind the very loud forward facing speakers. Even though I had my earplugs I was still greatful to be where I was as opposed to the high security "pit" in front of the stage and the loudspeakers.

The pit, as you may know, is an area where kids "dance" a sort of free for all karate gone wild kind of flailing around. The security guys let them go at it though mainly protecting those around the perimeter. Most of the kids around the perimeter were seasoned at this and seemed to participate by deflecting the dancers back into the pit when they got too close.

I had a chance to briefly speak to many of the performers over the course of the evening and was quite impressed by their demeanor, their manners and respect for each other and their fans. This was in spite of the fact that other than a few nice guitar riffs and drum solos, I really had a difficult time relating to their style of music and I have no idea what they were singing about, assuming the sounds the vocalists were making actually represented words. I think they did because it appeared the kids in the audience were singing along.

I don't think my son's style was cramped too bad by having Dad on the security detail. We both had a good time doing something together. I was able to feel comfortable by being there, while I would not have felt comfortable letting my fourteen year old go to a rock concert alone (remember I've been to plenty). He had several friends there and my older daughter is friends with the lead singer from Second Thief and he had a chance to introduce himself to the vocalist, while mentioning his sister.

We had a really nice conversation on the way home critiquing the various acts and performers. We did find ourselves virtually screaming at each other to talk over the loud ringing in our ears though! All in all any time spent with the kids is priceless and rewarding, even on their terms.

Preparation for Adventure

The first step in expedition preparation is to foster excitement. This comes easy for me because of my background in wilderness sports and activities. Conveying the passion is just a matter of expressing myself and including my son in discussions with his friends and their dads. If you are tentative because of your lack of experience, a wilderness trip like this is an opportunity for you and your child to learn together. The planning period will be a beneficial process and great time of bonding and communication for you and your child. It could potentially be the most memorable father/son experience you share with your child during his youth.

My second son, now fourteen, is well aware of our upcoming trip. He knows we will make the trip the summer of 2009 and he knows the focus of the trip is our father/son, one-on-one time, and his rite of passage ritual to manhood, a tradition in our household. He knows I will not be distracted by cell phones or blackberries, laptops or chores during this time with him, and that we will conquer the wilderness together.

Our next step in preparation is recruiting two or three father/son teams to join us. An expedition like this works better with a team. The dynamics of primitive wilderness camping with duties like setting and breaking camp daily, cooking, portaging, etc. are better handled with multiple hands than a couple. The Quetico park restricts group size to eight persons. This is to minimize stress on the ecosystem, and maintain the serenity of this pristine wilderness setting. This fits well in my plans, as in my experience six to eight is the optimum group size.

My son and I will soon begin to strategize on who we would like to make this trip with. It is important that he is a big part of this decision since this trip is about him. We will approach the families we decide to include no later than early this spring. Due to the extensive planning and preparation required, commitments will need to be made and then the fun begins.

Dinner at our house with the potential participants will be planned. We'll break bread, look at photos of my past trips, and discuss the demands of a trip like this. The physical demands, the financial component, basic outfitting and the attributes of the park itself will be primary topics.

After our "expedition team" is solidified we will plan some local trips together for all to gain some experience on the water, in canoes, and in the wild. We will begin discussing routes, goals, expenses and gear in subsequent Adventure Dads posts. Thanks for your visit!

Adventure Spawn

I had the unique opportunity to participate in what we’ll call an expedition canoe trip into the Canadian wild at age fifteen. The trip was organized by a youth summer camp and our group consisted of eight kids and two leaders. We were in the wild nineteen days paddling and portaging our way through the picturesque Quetico Provincial Park. We traveled a circuitous route, finishing where we started and covering close to 150 miles of the world’s best smallmouth and walleye lakes in the world. The trip had a profound impact on me, and my appreciation of God’s creation.

Eleven years later as I was planning to marry my sweetheart, I revealed my desire to take our potential son to Quetico when he turned fifteen. Over the next eight years my wife gave birth to not one, but three sons and a daughter. (The trip she took with our daughter at 15 is a whole different story!) I frequently considered not one but three wilderness trips to Canada, while calculating my age when the youngest would reach fifteen and speculating on the physical condition I would find myself in at fifty years of age.

I’m now forty-seven and have the first of those three trips under my belt and am beginning preparation and planning for the second father/son expedition into the Canadian wilderness. This second son, now fourteen, is reaching the age that doing things with Dad just doesn't hold quite the intrigue it once did. He enjoys a wide variety of activities and is aching to make his mark on the world and isn't sure that a wilderness trip is the way to get there. I know that this experience will help propel him to become the leader he can be, and will actually be a passage from boyhood to manhood when he looks back on it. His attitude reflects his older brother's, mine at age fourteen and probably a majority of boys his age. Fortunately he has seen first hand the affection and regard his older brother holds for his Canadian wilderness trip and, in spite of all the contrary influences, he is embracing the adventure to come.