(I told this story at a local storytelling event a few years ago. This comes from my Booby Naked collection of personal stories). By the way, if you wish to visit this fun place, go to the page about tubing on the Comal . See also more of my Central Texas aquatic photos .
When I was 11, my family took us tubing at the Chute in New Braunfels. My brother and sisters were all accomplished swimmers, and so of course we were eager to go swimming at the Comal River. We had never done anything like it.
The first part to the tubing adventure was the Chute. The Chute was a curvy slide that shot you into the river at lightning speed. The first time you do it it’s terrifying and exhilarating. When you see that final drop, you experience that loss of control; you know you are the mercy of this water slide; it can toss you anywhere — and that was the fun of it–you didn’t know whether you going to go left, straight down the middle or to the right.
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