Drug Free Lifestyle and the sport of Kayaking

On my kayak I have a black sticker with bold white lettering that says DRUG FREE LIFESTYLE. I'm proud of it. My friend Joey made it for me. My athlete bio clearly states my point of view on this matter. I have stated this out of respect for myself, my peers, those I influence, and those I look up to. Recently someone asked me why I chose to say that I'm drug free. They asked I why would promote Drug Free Lifestyle instead of proclaiming vegetarianism, pro-choice for abortion, a political party, punk rock or religion. Here's why...

THIS IS ME

Let me introduce myself. I am Spencer Cooke, I live near Asheville North Carolina. I consider myself a paddlesports professional, for ten years specializing in multimedia, primarily video production, sales representation as well as being a sponsored kayaker. I am 32 years of age and have a loving wife and son. I do not use drugs, alcohol or tobacco. This is my choice and I'm certain it's more than okay for me to be this way. To me it's about respect and honesty.

INFLUENCE
More so than why I choose to be drug free is why I choose to make it known. Simply put, I am in a position of influence and I feel I should take the opportunity to represent my friends, family, sponsors and myself in what I see as a positive and healthy manner. By speaking out about my drug free lifestyle will I change the ways of people who use drugs? I’m not sure, maybe, who knows. Honestly I don’t expect to. Though, I do think I can influence those who may be facing pressures to use drugs, alcohol, or even tobacco products. There are plenty of DAREs and Nancy Regans out there advocating against drug use whose images are frankly and unfortunately too hokie for most people to take seriously. Heck, maybe I am too. Regardless, this is where I believe it is the responsibility of opinion leaders like pro athletes, actors and musicians to speak up if they are drug free. They don't have to make a big stink about it. Just mentioning is enough.

INTERPRETATION
The word “drug” could be interpreted in different ways. When I say drugs I’m primarily referring to pot and heavier substances but not excluding alcohol or tobacco. Taking things even a step further one could view certain foods, clothing, prescription drugs and other products as “drugs.” I’m not going to that extreme but am in favor of healthy, drug-free living, however it can be made possible. I think everyone has to decide for themselves and be comfortable with their own interpretations. I personally have to be comfortable with the fact that I have to take prescription medication sometimes. It really sucks and I wish I didn't have to.

WHY?
Now, why I choose a drug free lifestyle. My reasons for this choice are rooted as far back as my pre-teenage years, though the reasons compound almost daily. At twelve years old I can’t say that I had many or any pressures to drink and use drugs but I did have one great reason not to do so. My older cousin was an all-star athlete and was adamant about staying away from drugs. At this time of my life the respect for my cousin, whom I looked up to as a role model, was reason enough for me to keep away from drugs and alcohol. Wanting to be an athlete just like him, I did as he did. I feel fortunate to have had such an excellent role model. Not to mention, my parents were incredible examples as well. Alcohol was never kept in the house. Nobody in the family smoked, nobody drank. Of course I was curious about alcohol and cigarettes like most teens but in the end I was able to make good decisions for myself. I also reasoned my decision with the legality of drugs and alcohol and my tendency to almost always get caught if I did anything wrong or against the grain. So, perhaps my guilty conscience kept me away from this stuff. If so, I'm glad. I should also add that in all this, my views, my career, my hobbies, I have the support of my wife who is the biggest advocate in all my endeavors.


SPORTS
As a kid and an adult I chose sports of individuality - wrestling, skateboarding, snowboarding, kayaking. I feel like these are sports that build strong character and teach important lessons. Organized, school sports generally provide kids with a coach, someone to guide them, which is a good thing. When kids join sports like skateboarding, surfing, rock climbing and kayaking, they are not often coached or guided and are left to make far more decisions on their own. This can be good and bad depending on the person. Many kids and people are so very impressionable and haven't the will power or self esteem to feel comfortable being the guy who doesn't smoke weed. I know this because I have been put in that position many times over. For those who are in the position or later find yourselves there, remind yourself that you don't have to partake to be cool, good at kayaking, or the who's who of the sport. Those who would have you think differently don't care about you, only themselves.

ONE STORY
When I was fifteen I broke under this pressure and smoked pot with an older, skateboarding friend of mine. We were out skating and I'll never forget what he said. As he assisted me in smoking he insists, "how do you think the pros do it," referring to the pro skaters being so good because they allegedly smoke weed before skating. That friend of mine ended up in prison for being an accessory to murder in a case where the man was murdered over marijuana. My friend was proven innocent, but not before spending months of his life in jail. He was simply in the wrong place, wrong time. I always thought he had a good heart. He was and is such a talented artist. I felt bad for him, but we don't talk much or hang out anymore. He's okay now and doing well as far as I now. I don't know how many times I have thought to myself about the fact that I could have been there, just as innocent as him and had my life completely turned upside down over a stupid stupid plant. I wonder how many kids on the river, on the street or in school are put in that same position of being lead to believe that drugs will get them sponsored, make them good, gain them acceptance? Too many I think.

ANOTHER POSITIVE INFLUENCE
In my life the other very bright shining star came along in about 1989. In 8th grade, I met this skater kid who just moved in from California. He was cool and different and he thought drinking and drugs were bogus. This guy had strong morals and you could tell that he didn't care what others thought about him. That is the ticket with all of this peer pressure to use drugs and drink. You have to be able to say "who cares" if people frown upon you for not conforming to them. That is what I learned from this great new friend of mine. Most of the kids that attended my high school were followers, sheep, all destined to smoke, drink and have children of their own by the time they were sixteen. I was more interested in skating and the Red Hot Chili Peppers. I was pretty alone until my friend came along. He reinforced and instilled confidence in me. If everyone could have a friend like him they would be lucky. We are still best friends to this day.

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A LEARNING PROCESS
I could tell other stories about how many river shuttles I've been on where everybody in the car was smoking weed like a bunch of dragons with no regard for me, suffocating on their inconsideration. In retrospect I don't see how it would have been any different if I had pissed all over everyone in the car. It's just as rude, just as inconsiderate. Now, myself and the reader also have to take into consideration that we're talking about a bunch of college kids who knew no manners. Hopefully they've grown up by now. I sure have. So, I have plenty of those stories, and some that even ended with people being arrested out of my vehicle for possession of drugs. How many times have I put myself on the line for a bunch of potheads? Too many... way too many! Driving shuttle or driving on road trips with people who are carrying drugs on their person or drugs in their kayak is a risk to you, a risk to me and downright rude. Anyway, it took me a while to find people who didn't have to smoke in, on, around and about the river. I covet those people. I still know plenty people who smoke, drink, or what have you. Granted, if it's being done around the river I try to avoid it at all costs. At least I know where I stand and they themselves. Again, to put things in perspective, a beer is a drink, a cigarette is what it is, a joint is what it is. It's not like people are going at one another with knives and guns out there. I'm just trying to explain the situation. It may be from a defensive, bias point of view , but it is my stance and this is my blog. I welcome a retort.

PUNK ROCK

So, growing up I had some other great and positive influences by the names of Minor Threat, Gorilla Biscuits, Four Walls Falling, Black Flag, Henry Rollins and more. This was and is punk rock for which I am so thankful. Now, the lion's share is not necessarily anti-drug, pro-health music but I really tuned in to the bands that were. Their lyrics and music meant more to me, gave me fire and motivation to further solidify and ground my opinion. Some of these guys were straight edge, which I don't consider myself, but I do agree with most of what they say. Minor Threat pretty much summed it up for me in the song Out of Step with a coarse delivery of lyrics by Ian MacKaye about not smoking and drinking and still being able to think. His version contains some profanity, but it gets the point across. That whole album drives the drug free lifestyle home with a vengeance and kicks anyone's tail who stands in its way. Just as profound to me is one of Henry Rollins' spoken word pieces where he talks about how ridiculous it is that some people's lives are "controlled by a plant," describing pot of course. Again, I couldn't agree more.

ENCOURAGEMENT
All of this stuff hits home with me, but sometimes I feel all alone, or lonely anyway. Maybe I would be better suited on a punk rock tour instead of kayaking tour. I might be out of step just like Minor Threat, a fish out of water in the sport of kayaking. As a matter of fact I was described to a reporter by an old business acquaintance of mine as "alone" when asked how I felt about the use of drugs in the kayaking community. I know it's not true though. Since I have mentioned this subject matter publicly I have had so much positive reinforcement and encouragement. It felt good to hear people acknowledging my willingness to put myself out there as a figure of criticism for this view. Like I have mentioned before, I really don't care if people disagree with this view. Please come argue to me publicly why we should use drugs. I will gladly accept arguments. It's not gonna hurt my feelings.

POLITICS
I wish more opinion leaders would speak up about these type of issues. Many people will not speak up simply because they don’t want to lose friends or business. I guess I understand. In actuality, more people would start their young children kayaking and other alternate sports if they had the assurance that it was a safe and drug free environment, thus growing a positive image, sales and the future of the sport. Unfortunately, a lot of the time it’s all about money and politics, and I think that keeps some people from saying what they really think. Some people choose not to speak and would rather just stay out of this type of controversial topic. That is completely respectable. Sometimes I think maybe I should have never said anything, but I have, that's my choice and I'm okay with it. This is not an elite club, it's not exclusive, it's just life and deciding how you're gonna live.

PROGRESSING
Now, my good friend Joey Hall and I have decided to start this blog. We even made some Drug Free Lifestyle apparel - some shirts, hats & stickers. We're not sure where that will go but if it did take off we'd love to see some money go toward a charitable organization of some kind, helping kids stay away from drugs and in safe environments. Something like that, perhaps even focused directly toward kayaking.

FUTURE
I have a one year old son now who I love more than I could ever love kayaking, skateboarding or anything. He is my passion and I want to involve him in kayaking, skateboarding and the outdoors, if he wants to be. In a few years I will have to face and discuss some of these issues and topics with him. I'm ready when he is. When I see how incredible and strong yet fragile and impressionable he is, how can I not care about other kids, other people and how these issues affect their lives?

With all sincerity,

Spencer Cooke