Tracey Barnes-Priestley: Hi, I'm Tracey Barnes-Priestley.

This week on "What's on Your Bucket List?," we take to the water with our truly adventurous guest as she tries something that has always intrigued her.

After that, an inquisitive woman tries her hand at a colorful pursuit that will take us up, up, and away-- ♪♪♪ Tracey: --coming up next on "What's on Your Bucket List?"

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Tracey: We're gonna have a good day.

Tracey: I was happy to meet my first guest on the boardwalk next to beautiful Humboldt Bay.

Tracey: We are here on one of those lovely Humboldt days full of sunshine with Mary Ann Madej.

Mary Ann, what are we checking off your bucket list today?

Mary Ann Madej: I have seen people stand-up paddleboard for a few years now, and I was intrigued by the thought that "how do they do that?"

So that's what I wanna try.

Tracey: That's right.

We are here at the wonderful HBAC Center, Cal Poly Humboldt, and we're gonna give you a paddleboard lesson, hah-hah.

Now, when I read your application, one of the things that struck me was you had a--I think you called it a big bucket list and a little bucket list.

Explain that for me.

Mary Ann: Well, I guess it goes back to when I was raised in South Side of Chicago, it's not actually known for its nature.

So I give credit to the Girl Scouts for taking me out on forest hikes, learning how to camp, and it really got me hooked on the outdoors, and so I started doing all these big bucket lists, you know, seeing northern lights in Alaska, snow camping on Mount Rainier, jungles of Costa Rica.

COVID was a big thing that made me look closer and to see what can I do around here that would be new and exciting.

And then the other big thing for me, in the last year, is I became a grandmother for the first time, and so that really made me reevaluate, you know, what are my values?

What do I want to model for my grandkids?

I want to make sure that they grow up curious and eager to try new things.

And I thought, "Well, if I can get out of my comfort zone, maybe it'll give them more freedom to get out of their comfort zone."

Tracey: I really admire that kind of thinking.

I mean, that's, kind of, one of the basic premises for this whole show is that get out of the comfort zone.

Do somethin' new and different and to show people that aging doesn't have to be a negative experience, right?

Mary Ann: Exactly.

Tracey: Now, as I understand it, you have a very rich and full background with water.

What's your education in, and what did you spend your career doing?

Mary Ann: So, I am retired now, but my career was as a fluvial geomorphologist-- when people roll their eyes, right?

Ha-ha, ha-ha-ha--which is a river scientist, so I spent my career working with fish biologists and forest ecologists on river restoration mostly.

Tracey: What do you think are your biggest reservations?

Mary Ann: If I fall over, I don't know if I could pull myself back on the board, hah-ha, ha-ha-ha.

Tracey: I understand that, hah-ha, hah-ha, but, fortunately, when I did a walk-through, there's a really easy way to get back on the board, and your instructor is gonna show you, so I think you can check that one off.

Mary Ann: Okay, ha-ha-ha.

Tracey: I introduced Mary Ann to Jason O'Connell, manager of Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center, and then asked him about the programs HBAC offers.

Tracey: So, tell me, what all happens here at the Humboldt Bay Aquatic Center?

Jason O'Connell: We do a Paddlefest every year.

We also do a "Get Out & Play Day" with the city of Eureka, which we just hosted.

We had almost a hundred people come down and enjoy us for a couple of hours.

Just good to get down on the bay and try out some stuff that they've never done before and, we're lookin' to do some more as we get going in this fall semester too.

Jason: Well, we do normal rentals of all of our equipment: kayak rentals, stand-up paddleboard rentals, sailboat rentals, all that kind of stuff, and then we also offer lessons, so we're doing a stand-up paddleboard lesson for you today.

We do kayak lessons, sailing lessons, all those kinds of things.

Tracey: And for the community at-large.

Jason: And for the whole community, yeah.

Tracey: Okay, so you don't have to be a Humboldt student or alumni.

Anybody can come down here and learn water sports.

Jason: Yeah, we offer a slight discount for Cal Poly Humboldt students, but everybody's available to come.

Tracey: Oh, I didn't know that.

Jason: Mm-hmm.

Tracey: Jason, I wanna thank you for helping me put all of this together 'cause it's takin' a few moving pieces.

Jason: Yeah, of course.

All of our weather, all of our tides, everything like that is hard to work with around here, so I'm glad we were able to get you out on a beautiful day like today.

Tracey: Oh, it's gorgeous, it's gorgeous.

Tracey: Next, I spoke with Tanner Harrold, Mary Ann's instructor for the day.

I was curious about what he thought was the most challenging part of learning how to use a paddleboard.

Tanner Harrold: I think it's gaining the confidence to be able to stand up.

I think, a lot of people, they have the skills, they have the balance, but it's all about, you know, getting out of your mind and just being comfortable-- Tracey: Yeah.

Tanner: --comfortable on the water and trusting yourself.

Tracey: That's really true, isn't it?

There's that sense of-- there's a water sense, you know?

And I think you'll find, with Mary Ann and her professional history, she's got the water sense, so let's see how she does.

Tanner: Oh, yeah?

Awesome.

I'm excited to see.

Tracey: Thank you.

Thank you so much for today.

We really appreciate it.

Tanner: Yeah, no problem.

Tracey: Shall we get Mary Ann on the water?

Tanner: Absolutely.

Tracey: All right.

Tracey: Finally, it was time for Mary Ann to get ready to paddleboard.

Tracey: And here's Tanner, your instructor for the day.

Tanner: Hello.

Mary Ann: Hi, Tanner.

Good to meet you.

Tanner: It's so nice to meet you.

We've got some wet suits for ya, and we can go get changed.

Tracey: All right.

Mary Ann: All right.

Tanner: All right, let's head to the boards.

Tracey: Beginning with safety first, Tanner gave Mary Ann a thorough lesson on how to use her board, but the question on all of our minds was-- Tracey: In the event that Mary Ann noodles into the bay-- Mary Ann: Hah-ha.

Tracey: --how does she get back on the paddleboard?

Tanner: That's a great question.

Yeah, so I will come speeding over to the rescue, and I'm gonna be stabilizing your board.

Make sure to keep hold of your paddle.

Your paddle's got a float, so it's definitely not gonna sink.

Mary Ann: Oh, good.

Tanner: Yes, so, just keep hold of your paddle.

You're gonna swim over to the side of the board-- and I'm gonna lay down for a sec.

You can hand the paddle to me, and I'll be right over there, and what you wanna do is grab onto the side of the board, kick your feet, kick your feet, kick your feet until you're as parallel to the water as you can, and then, from here, you're just gonna kick, kick, kick, kick, kick, kick, kick, kick, kick, and pull yourself over, and then you can flip yourself around like that.

Mary Ann: You made it look easy.

Tracey: I was gonna say, "Piece of cake, Tanner."

Tanner: And I'll be there to-- I can give you a tug as well, so, yeah.

Tracey: All right, questions?

Mary Ann: Let's go.

Tracey: Jason and Tanner carried the boards down to the dock, and then it was finally time for Mary Ann to get on the water.

Tanner: All right, so, yep, first things first.

Paddle perpendicular to the board, and then you can go ahead and sit on your knees, and then reach across the board on the paddle, yep, and then one knee at a time.

Beautiful.

Tracey: Atta girl, all right.

Tanner: Just like that, awesome.

Mary Ann: Okay.

Tracey: Bon voyage, Mary Ann.

Mary Ann: Hah-hah, ha-ha-ha-ha, whee.

Tanner: There you go.

Mary Ann: Woo, woo.

♪♪♪ Tracey: For safety, we all followed along in a small boat.

Tracey: God, she's doing so well.

Jason: Oh, yeah.

Tracey: She really is, hah-ha.

Tracey: Mary Ann took a few minutes to adjust the length of her paddle, and then she was ready to try standing up.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Mary Ann: Ahhh-- Tracey: Almost.

Tanner: There we go.

Tracey: Almost.

Tanner: That was really close.

♪♪♪ Tracey: How're ya doin'?

Mary Ann: Well, it's harder to stand up than I thought.

Tracey: Yeah, yup, heh-hah-hah.

♪♪♪ Tanner: You feel like you wanna try again?

Mary Ann: I wish I had something to hold onto, heh-heh, heh-heh.

Tracey: For Mary Ann's second attempt to try standing up, Tanner stabilized her board.

Tanner: Perfect.

♪♪♪ ♪♪♪ Tanner: All right, wanna come back down?

Mary Ann: Ahhh-- Tanner: I know.

♪♪♪ Tracey: Mary Ann was determined, and the third time was the charm.

Tracey: That's it, that's it.

Tanner: Perfect.

Tracey: You got it.

Hah-hah, ha-ha-ha, she's up, woo-hoo-hoooo.

Mary Ann: Ahhh-- Tanner: There you go.

Tracey: You got it, Mary Ann.

Tanner: All right, you wanna try on your own?

Mary Ann: I feel like I need to move my shoulder a bit.

Tanner: All right, go and take--get yourself nice and-- Tracey: She did it.

Impressive.

Mary Ann: Okay.

Tanner: All right.

Very good.

♪♪♪ Tanner: And you're off.

Mary Ann: Okay.

Tracey: It's like ridin' a bike.

Tanner let go.

Look at you.

♪♪♪ Mary Ann: Oh-- Tracey: Ohhh, whoa.

Woo, you okay?

♪♪♪ Tracey: Yay.

Tanner: All right.

Tracey: Yay, Mary Ann.

Tanner: You got back on, heh-heh-heh.

Tracey: Woo.

Tanner: You all right?

Tracey: Well, what was that fall like?

Shocking?

Mary Ann: Well, you-- started to fall, right?

Tanner: Yeah.

Tracey: Thumbs up, my dear.

Atta girl, hah-hah, hah-hah.

Tracey: We all decided Mary Ann had more than earned a ride back to the dock.

Tracey: Welcome aboard, Mary Ann, hah-ha-haaa.

There you go.

Have a seat.

Mary Ann: Okay.

Tracey: You made it.

Mary Ann: Woo.

Tracey: Woo, hah-ha, hah-ha, hah-ha, wow.

Tracey: Well, I think, for the first time out, it was very--I mean, it's easy for me to say.

I wasn't out there, but you got on your feet.

Mary Ann: Yeah, and, I mean, it was a lot of fun to be on the board.

Tracey: Was it?

Mary Ann: Yeah.

Tracey: Yeah.

Mary Ann: It was just-- Tracey: Hard work.

Mary Ann: Yeah.

Tracey: You made it.

Mary Ann: Woo.

Tracey: Hah-hah-ha-ha-ha-ha.

You're back on dry land.

Mary Ann: I am, I made it.

Tracey: You made it, yes, hah-ha.

It was amazing.

Well, okay, you've checked it off your bucket list.

What did you think of the experience?

Mary Ann: Well, it was fun to do, but it was hard to do too.

It was--you know, it does take some upper-body strength, and then trying to stand up on a wobbly board was more challenging than I thought.

A nice paddle down to the bridge because we had the tide going with us, but coming back, it was, like, definitely harder to paddle.

Tracey: And then came--what do you call it?

The noodle?

Mary Ann: The wet noodle, yes.

Tracey: The fall.

How shocking was that?

Mary Ann: You know, it happened so quickly, it's like, "I don't think I can stop myself.

I'm goin' in."

Tracey: And you bobbed right back up.

So you've checked it off your bucket list.

What would you tell others about bucket list?

Mary Ann: Oh, I think it's great.

I feel so energized by doing something out of my comfort zone, and it's nice not to be complacent, to be kicked into a different situation, and so I feel great, hah-ha, ha-ha-ha.

Tracey: All righty, well, we sure thank you.

It was a great segment to tag along on, and I know Tanner-- come in here, Tanner, ha-hah, ha-ha-ha.

You two were so brave.

Mary Ann: Tanner-- Tanner: Thank you so much.

Mary Ann: Tanner was a great guide here for--a good mentor the whole way through.

Tracey: Thank you.

Tanner: It's a pleasure having some fun.

Tracey: Okay, thank you both.

Mary Ann: Thank you, everybody.

Tracey: It's a wrap.

Tanner: Thank you.

male: That's a wrap.

Tracey: That's a wrap.

Mary Ann: You are off duty.

Tracey: Just down the bay, we met up with our next guest at a very colorful celebration.

Tracey: We could not have asked for a more exquisite day.

Welcome to my guest, Laura Fisher.

Laura, why don't you tell people what we are going to be doing here today.

What are we checking off your bucket list?

Laura Fisher: I'm gonna be learning how to fly a two-string kite.

Tracey: A two-string kite?

Laura: I've always wanted to do that.

Tracey: Yeah, and I--when I read your application, I thought, "Oh, that sounds so much fun."

I've seen them, but I know absolutely nothing about them.

Where did the idea come from, for you?

Laura: Oh, I used to watch these shows with the kite festivals in Japan, where they have all the giant kites, and they have kite flights.

Tracey: Did you fly kites as a kid?

Laura: Yes, that's when I did it.

Tracey: Did you?

Laura: Yeah.

Tracey: Would you make kites or save up your allowance?

Laura: I tried to make a kite once, but it didn't turn out.

Tracey: No?

Laura: No.

Tracey: No.

I should tell our audience that we are at the Redwood Coast Kite Festival and Artisan Show, here at the waterfront, on the Halvorsen property.

It's just a gorgeous day with all these kites.

I can't believe it.

They are back after COVID, and lucky us, we get to be here.

When you were deciding to apply for the show, what was that like for you?

What made you apply?

Laura: Well, as I've always been thinking about my bucket list, didn't think I was gonna get to check anything off of it because my exploring partner and adventure partner died, about 15 years ago, and I've just been kind of stayin' at home a lot since then.

Tracey: Yeah, it's a lot more fun to do things with our best buddies, isn't it?

Laura: Yes.

Tracey: Yeah, it really is.

So, but you decided that maybe this-- you would branch out a little bit?

Laura: Yes.

Tracey: Yeah?

Laura: Yes, I saw that ad for the bucket list adventure, and this is my chance.

If I don't do it now-- Tracey: Somehow it spoke to you.

Laura: Yes.

Tracey: Yeah, yeah, well, good, I am so glad.

I think we've got a really special treat lined up for you today.

You're gonna get your own lesson, and were gonna be here to watch it and see how well you do with a two-string kite.

Laura: Cool, I hope I can get it up in the air.

Tracey: Well, you know, there's enough-- well, we're using these mics 'cause there's enough wind that I think you're gonna be able to do just fine.

Tracey: Next, I spoke with Jimmie and Mark of Humboldt Kiters.

Tracey: So, Jimmie, how did you ever get started in kites?

Jimmie Nord: Well, I was at a family reunion on the coast of Oregon, and we were gonna the beach with all the family.

The kids were all gonna be there, and so I went to a store, and I found a kite, and I've always wanted to have this kind of style kite, and I was also thinkin', oh, it's somethin' that we can do with the kids.

You keep 'em entertained.

And so we went out to the beach.

I got it up flying, and I hand it off to the kids, and they were playing with it, and before I knew it, I was--"Ooh, my turn, my turn."

And before I knew it, I had well over ten-plus kites and then keep on counting, and it just-- Tracey: Grabbed ya.

Jimmie: Yeah, it grabbed me-- a quick obsession, you know?

And it's an art form.

And then, coming out here, and then people coming and watching it, and I realized kite flying wasn't just for me.

It was I was decorating the sky, you know?

And people enjoyed it, put a smile on their face, so my obsession became even more.

Tracey: It's a beautiful way to put it.

You're decorating the sky.

Now, I think your story, Mark, is fascinating how you got involved because you just were driving by one day, am I correct?

Mark Ahrens: Yeah, I was drivin' by, and we were in the midst of this everybody gettin' locked down and not goin' anyplace.

I was on sabbatical for a year, and things were like, "What am I gonna do, you know?

Everything that I had planned is on hold right now."

So I called up my mother, and I said, "Hey, do you still have that kite-making book that I remember seein' in 1984?"

And she said, "Well, yes, yeah, I do."

And I said, "Well, I've got a sewin' machine.

Can I borrow the book?"

Tracey: So you sewed the whole thing, put it all together and then came down here and flew-- I mean, then what happened?

Mark: So I put the anchors per the measurements where they're supposed to go, and I came down here to fly it one day to test it out, right?

So I get it up in the air, and it's not movin' too good, and it's dodging back and forth, and Jimmie's out here flyin'.

I didn't know Jimmie from anybody, and I only saw him flying down here one other day, but I just came out for a test, right?

And he goes, "Oh, where did you get that interesting sled?"

And I said, "I made it."

He says, "You gotta be kiddin' me."

I said, "No, I made it."

Tracey: And the rest is history?

Mark: Well, the rest is he goes, "You know, we could probably improve that bridle, and it'll fly straight."

And I said, "Really?"

"Oh, yeah, all you gotta do is this, this, this, this, and this.

Here, hook it up right there."

And it was flying beautifully.

Tracey: Wow, it worked.

It worked.

Mark: And then he became my best friend.

Tracey: Thank you for having us.

We are gonna follow up now.

Jimmie, you're gonna give her a lesson.

Jimmie: I am looking forward to it.

Tracey: All right, thanks.

Shall we, shall we get to that?

Mark: Let's do it.

Tracey: All right, let's do it.

Tracey: Laura Fisher, I'm happy to introduce you to Jimmie Nord, who's going to be your kite master today, teach you the magic of kites.

Jimmie: So, today, we're gonna be flying a smaller kite because the wind is really strong.

It's gonna move a little bit faster, but it's not gonna have the big pull of the larger kite.

A stunt kite, a dual-line kite, also known as a sports kite, has a spreader bar that open up the kite, and then you kind of open up these guys, and you could see that--how big the kite gets.

So with this one, we need to find our upper spreader bar, so here's our spreader bars.

So this is the top one.

It's the short one.

And then these two will attach down here, so, when that's on, how they-- and that's what's gonna hold the sail open.

One thing, when you're attaching it, I would hold it-- yeah, oh, look at that.

You already--you already know what you're doin'.

Tracey: She's a natural.

Jimmie: You have a leading-edge spar, and the spars are the--what holds the kite open.

It's kind of like your ribs, you know, that kind of keeps everything in its place.

So when I have you on that side, but I'll show you that, where it's opened up.

You have one in there, so I'll have you kind of just-- Laura: This one's already put together.

Jimmie: Oh, it's already put together?

Wow, it does it itself.

And so, when I put that-- and then slide that down-- and you can probably check that just to make sure.

And then you got your lower spreader bar.

And this is your center T, and this is where the bar-- they will hook into, like this, and then these will hook into here, but then you got your bridle, and this is the part that you're kite line will hook to.

So getting this, kind of, out of the way and making sure it's not gonna be under it, so it's just a quick little check.

So this is what makes it, kind of, more of a sports kite and being able to maneuver it on there because you could look at this way.

Now you have the sail and how this will create the wind and how the wind moves around it.

Now the most important part, we gotta put the end caps on.

Laura: Okay.

Jimmie: So that's a little bit, and that will stretch your sail.

Are you ready to get some line out and launch this?

Laura: Yeah.

Tracey: Ad then it was time to move out onto the field.

Jimmie: All right, and that's another thing.

When you have a lot of kites on the ground or flying around you, you kind of--you know, you have to kind of watch them, make sure they know they're there, and the fun part about it, if everybody's learning, everybody gets to crash together, laugh about it, and then untangle their lines and try it again.

Laura: Does that happen very often?

Jimmie: Oh, yes, yes, yes.

Tracey: Using red and blue marked lines, Jimmie showed Laura a reliable knot, then they attached the lines to the kite.

Laura: Do that again, hah-ha, ha-ha.

Jimmie: So let that go over, and then pull it together.

There you go, and then you just slowly put 'em on one, and that comes out.

Tracey: There you go.

Jimmie: There you go.

Tracey: Yeah, you got it.

Jimmie: Awesome.

And then now take that, and then you put it--and I like doin' that because that's two lines holding onto it and not just one.

Tracey: Making sure the lines stayed straight, Laura and Jimmie walked back to the spot where Laura would launch her kite.

Jimmie: And get ready, and this is where the fun part starts.

So when you fly the kite, I always just say, keep my hands down here.

Keep 'em right next to each other because, if they're locked next to each other, it's gonna prevent you from doin' this.

So just try to keep 'em close, and just pull it towards your belly.

And if the kite starts pulling you, the best thing, this kite won't pull that hard, but maybe you have a larger kite.

The wind's higher, and you were ready for it?

The way the straps are, there's a easy way just to kind of let it go.

You're more important than the kite.

Tracey: Jimmie showed Laura the best way to hold the strings and then demonstrated some basic kite-flying techniques.

Finally, it was time for Laura to launch her kite.

Jimmie: Are you a little nervous?

Laura: Yeah, ha-ha, ha-ha.

Jimmie: This is fun, huh?

So you're gonna grab it and give it a good tug, and walk--okay, walk back, walk back.

Laura: Oh, dang, and there I was puttin' my arm out like that.

Jimmie: I know, it's so easy, right?

It's so easy.

Laura: Okay, what do you think I did wrong on that time?

Jimmie: You kind of just did this.

Laura: Yeah?

And I was supposed to do it out to the side.

Jimmie: Try to just go past your waist, and then get a good-- step back as well, but then stop, and slowly let it out as you're still kind of walking back.

Depends on the wind 'cause you gotta learn that wind.

So if it's a certain speed, you're gonna have to kind of do it.

So there are several different steps that you have to kind of do at once.

Laura: Okay.

Jimmie: But, remember, it's just a kite, and it's supposed to be fun, so no matter what happens, you know, it's supposed to be fun.

So you might wanna loosen this up a little bit.

Kind of let it more--hold it with your wrist than your hands, so kind of let it hold on your wrist 'cause, if you're holdin' with your hand, it's a lot of stress, so let it kind of get it tied around your wrist right there, and then you could use our whole hand, arm to move it.

Laura: Okay.

Jimmie: One, two, pull back, and walk--there you go.

There you go.

All right, belly, belly, you're gonna come back over here.

Left, left, left.

Oh, there you go, woo.

Laura: Woo, woo.

Jimmie: Pull it with your left hand.

Oh, you wanna come over more to me.

Laura: Oh, oh, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.

Jimmie: Left hand, left hand, left hand--in the tree.

Laura: Oh, no.

Jimmie: Oh, wait, wait.

Oh, here, let me try to help that.

Laura: Oh, no.

Jimmie: You know, one thing, we shouldn't be flying near a tree, but we had no other spot.

So that is okay.

That happens.

Laura: Aw, man.

Jimmie: All right.

Laura: I had to do the one thing I wasn't supposed to do.

Jimmie: You know what?

It was a bad spot to fly, but we had no other choice, so that's-- Laura: I got it up there though.

Jimmie: You did, you did great.

Tracey: Jimmie managed to rescue the kite from the tree.

He clearly had plenty of experience with the task.

Jimmie: Can I get a hug?

Laura: Yes.

Jimmie: Aw, thank you.

That was so much fun.

Laura: It was.

Thank you.

Jimmie: Yeah, that was great.

I really had a good time.

Tracey: All right, you got airborne.

Laura: Yes.

Tracey: Yes, you did.

I was amazed at you're especially a good teacher, and there's so much that goes into it.

What don't ya think?

Laura: It's so good to get it up there.

Tracey: Yeah, yeah, was it hard?

Laura: Yes.

Tracey: It seems like there's a lot to remember.

Jimmie: Yes, there is a lot to remember, and I encourage you just to go out, find a space to--that you just be by yourself or just a couple people and just crash, crash, crash, crash, and I promise you, you'll get better and better.

Tracey: Yeah, well, what do you think?

You checked somethin' off your bucket list.

Laura: Yes.

It was great.

Tracey: Yeah?

You had a good time?

You're a good sport.

Laura: Thank you.

Tracey: And you, Jimmie, are a great teacher.

Laura: Yes, you are.

Jimmie: Thank you.

Tracey: Thank you, and thanks to Redwood Coast Kite Festival.

We'll be back next year, yeah?

Yeah, you might see her next year.

Jimmie: Yeah, well, we have a demo field, so you find some music to kite to, and we'll put you out on the demo field.

Laura: Okay.

Tracey: Thank you, Jimmie, and thank you so much for joining us.

Laura: Thank you.

Tracey: All right.

Tracey: You can watch this and other episodes at keet.org.

Now, what's on your bucket list?

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