One of the first things I did as part of the Fellowship was to spend some time with Jim in a small family business just outside Glasgow. One of the things we both found a challenge was to understand the unique challenges of a family business. As the second generation, the lady running this business felt that she held her Father's legacy in her hands, and you could definitely see that weighed on her shoulders. She had heard about 'the curse of the third generation', and I guess this speaks to an un-virtuous circle, where unless something gets really established, each successive generation sees the family business more and more as an albatross rather than an opportunity.

I thought I would share the story of a family business where this doesn't seem to have happened, and the strength of the family is a key part of the business. 25 years ago, Chuck and Sharyn Peabody bought a raft, and started taking folks out onto  the Kennebec River in Maine. The business grew a little, and as their kids started to grow up, Chuck and Sharyn bought another few rafts, and started to hire a few college kids to run trips at the weekends.

Now, things are a little different! Crab Apple White Water is the largest rafting company in New England, and operates in Maine, Massachussets and Vermont. The home base includes a swimming pool, a hot-tub, and accomodation for 200 people. 120 days a year, up to 150 people a trip get taken out on the Kennebec and have a blast. Last weekend, one of these trips included a few Saltire Fellows. As you'll see in the photo, we had a great time, and all managed to stay in the boat!

You'll see we're mastering the art of teamwork by agreeing to all have our paddles out of the water at the same time.

Yesterday we got a lovely card from Megan, our guide, thanking us for making the trip. Megan has been rafting since she was 12, and guiding since she was 18. The person she had to persuade to let her start guiding is a guy called Rob, who just happens to be the son of Chuck and Sharyn. On our trip, Chuck drove the bus, Sharyn ran the shop and Rob ran the trip. His sister Jen runs the site in Massachussets. Her husband drives the bus there. Something really struck me about the note thanking us from the whole family - CRM that big corporations just can't do.

Anyway, I suspect it was Megan's steering rather than our ferocious paddling power, but we hit most of the rapids pretty sweet - this is us conquering the fearsome 'Big Mama'.

Gnarly.

Ian