Read Rapid’s coverage of the 2014 North Fork Championship Expert Division Race here, and Elite Division Race here.
Full event results at www.northforkchampionship.com
The North Fork Championship Elite
The morning of the Jacob’s Ladder Giant Slalom race, athletes gathered to eat breakfast at The Dirty Shame Saloon in Crouch, Idaho, where later that evening they would meet back to share beers and celebrations.
It was a slow Saturday morning and you could feel the vibe of concern and focus—Jacob’s Ladder is half a mile of whitewater many people wouldn’t attempt to run, let alone race on. Paddlers were talking about lines, holes to avoid, and most of all gate two.
Gate two is the crux of the whole race—a tough ferry across the raging current above a feature called the Rock Drop. You have to get to the other side of gate two in order to not be penalized with more time on your run. After a meeting and some interviews for a video, the paddlers hopped onto the shuttle bus to head up to the race. During the drive, conversations were amongst the small group of Elite Division paddlers, but after turning the corner toward Jake’s, people started peering upstream.
Whistles, yells, and deep stares filled the bus for the brief second that you can see the whole rapid, top to bottom. It was as if they were seeing it for the first time, though at this point, most had lapped it multiple times, more than many would hope to do in a lifetime.
After a moment of silence for those we have lost on the river, there were deep exhales and stretches, as paddlers got ready. The first to paddle officially in the race were the Wild Cards who qualified for the race by placing top five in the Expert Division race on Thursday.
Paddler after paddler launched off the Red Bull ramp at the start of the race and everyone watched to see which lines were effective, to see who hit and who missed the move at gate two.
After all of the athletes went through, it was tough to tell who had run the best lines, and it wasn’t until the award ceremony in Crouch that we would hear the results.
Dozens and dozens of kayakers gathered around for the awards ceremony and, as the sun set, Jules Domine was crowned King of the 2014 North Fork Championship. A huge roar from the crowd made it ever so special for this paddler to receive his title and winnings.
For the third year in a row, the North Fork Championship has told a unique story. This time around it ended with Domine, who only paddled Jacob’s Ladder during the race—no practice laps required. Katrina Van Wijk also raced this year as the first female competitor in the Elite Division.
The community and joint effort of every volunteer and member of the crew made this event what it is and what it will be for years to come, a unique and utterly raw race, the biggest and most full on of its kind.
Andrew Holcombe misses gate 2 and accepts defeat. Photo: John Webster
Wild Card qualifier Momo Castillo at gate two, approaching “Taffy Puller” in Jacob’s Ladder. Photo: John Webster
Click to see results from the 2014 North Fork Championship.
See news and results from Thursday’s Expert Division Race here.
John Webster is a professional adventure photographer based in Boise, Idaho. He has a degree in Communication with an emphasis on video from Boise State University. Passionate about the outdoors, John shares his experiences through the medium of digital photography. You can check out his work atwww.webstermediahouse.com or at Webster Media House on Facebook.
Two Solitudes
Tom and I went on our first canoe trip together last summer. We’d ben engaged for a while, but we had never pushed off for a long trip. Both of us are paddlers, so we had nothing short of a lifetime of shared happiness—or misery—on the line.
It took us a while to agree on a plan. He wanted to paddle the Nahanni or race in the Yukon River Quest. I wanted to disappear for a few weeks in Temagami, Kipawa or Quetico. We settled on a two-week lake trip in Quetico Provincial Park so Tom could at least check off an area he hadn’t been to before. I felt a twinge of alarm when I loaded the paddlers in the car; his gleaming bent-shaft racing paddle, mine a battered old Lolk.
As we pulled away it was like paddling with a machine. Tom hauled gallons of water with each fierce stroke. He paddled so fast either had to cut my sterling stroke to a quick draw or pry to ignore his pace completely. I didn’t know any camp songs fast enough to match his rhythm. I tucked my head down and dreaded the next 14 days…
Continue reading this article in the digital edition of Canoeroots and Family Camping, Early Summer 2007, on our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it on your desktop here.
Aqua-Bound Shred Carbon Paddle Review
For less than two hundred bucks it’s hard to beat Aqua-Bound’s Shred. It’s an entry-level price point paddle that’ll take you well into your paddling career—we doubt there’s any blade out there that’s pulled more people into the sport than this one. The Shred’s shaft is made with Aqua-Bound’s T-700 carbon, which sits in the sweet spot between strength and weight. We love its four-piece ferruled breakdown option to pack it down small for travel but if you value increased durability over ease of transport, choose the single-piece solid shaft.
www.aquabound.com | straight shaft $184
Click here to find a river running blade for every budget in the free online edition of Rapid, Early Summer 2014 or download our free app for Apple or Android.
Tuesday Night Fun Races
Deep Cove Tuesday Night Paddlesport Races on Indian Arm in North Vancouver start in early April and run weekly until mid-September. All human powered floating vessels are welcome. Kayaks, standup paddleboards, canoes, surfskis, outrigger canoes, dug-out canoes, anything goes! Participation averages between 60 and 100 people. The TNR Paddlesport has been running for 14 years, with many people being longtime participants.
Races vary in length and each week’s course is different. Long and short courses are available, taking roughly 30 to 60 minutes to complete. Mid-summer when the weather warms up, multi-sport races with running and some swimming are also offered.
Don’t let the word race scare you away. There is a wide range of skill levels participating, and they are all about FUN! Find the schedule and learn more at tuesdaynightracing.com
When: Every Tuesday night, April–September 2014
Where: North Vancouver, British Columbia
Info: tuesdaynightracing.com
Film by David O’Brien: ex-static.com
Video: The Easiest Rescue Re-Entry
Want to know the fastest, easiest way to get back in your boat after a capsize? BCU kayak coach Gordon Brown demonstrates the heel hook re-entry “The heel hook takes advantage of the strength in your larger leg muscles” explains Brown. “It’s a fundamental rescue move, worth practicing until it’s second nature.” Watch the video to learn how it’s done.
Get more kayak instruction films at Sea Kayak with Gordon Brown. DVDs and downloads here.
The North Fork Championship: Expert Division Race
The third North Fork Championship started Thursday in Banks, Idaho, and the first event had over 80 paddlers racing the lower three miles of the North Fork of the Payette River. This class V section race was for Expert Division paddlers and served as a qualifier for Friday’s BoaterX race and Saturday’s Elite Division Giant Slalom event.
While some ran quick, smooth lines, others got banked onto sharp rocky shores—all participants were tested for endurance and fast technical abilities.
The overall vibe of Thursday’s registration and race was of excitement and anticipation—everyone was on the same page, ready to race, and above all, enjoying each other’s company on and off the river.
Paddlers discussed different lines and obstacles at the take out before packing up and heading to Boise, Idaho for The Melt Awards, an event presented by NRS and hosted by paddler Ryan Bailey. The Melt Awards showcased recent videos of paddling crews around the world and included a photo competition that displaying some of the best photographers in the business.
Bailey, dressed in a Rastafarian banana suit, announced the top five finishers in the Expert Division race:
1. Pangal Andrade
2. Tren Long
3. Momo Castillo
4. Alec Voorhees
5. Geoff Calhoun
These paddlers are the 2014 Wild Cards, meaning they’ve earned a spot in Saturday’s slalom event where they’ll compete against a pool of pre-selected elite paddlers, including Dane Jackson, Rush Sturges, Ben Marr and Nick Troutman.
The top 35 paddlers from yesterday’s event will compete again this evening in the BoaterX race at S-Turn rapid on the Upper section of the North Fork.
This race is on one of the less technical rapids of the infamous river section, but it still has significant challenges; a long rapid with a bottleneck beginning, means paddlers have to make tricky maneuvers right at the start.
Although tonight’s event is not a qualifier for the Giant Slalom race, nerves are still running high as paddlers prepare to race full throttle, six boaters at a time, down the class V rapid—it doesn’t help that it’s Friday the 13th.
See the section of river hosting these competitions in this video from the 2013 North Fork Championships.
Click for news from Saturday’s Elite Division race down Jacob’s Ladder.
John Webster is a professional adventure photographer based in Boise, Idaho. He has a degree in Communication with an emphasis on video from Boise State University. Passionate about the outdoors, John shares his experiences through the medium of digital photography. You can check out his work at www.webstermediahouse.com or at Webster Media House on Facebook.
Youth on 2000-km Expedition
On May 26, 10 Métis youth from across Ontario left Ottawa on a once-in-a-lifetime adventure that is also one of the most unique and rewarding summer job experiences that any student could ever have.
In the course of 90 days, they will follow historic fur trade routes of their voyageur ancestors covering over 2,000 kilometers by canoe and portage.
During this incredible trek, the great outdoors will be a classroom and a work place for the students to learn skills that they will use to secure future jobs and advance their future careers. Also on this amazing journey, they will stop in 23 different communities where they will deliver presentations about Métis culture and heritage, be interviewed by the media and act as ambassadors of the Métis Nation of Ontario. The trek will end on August 22 in Thunder Bay. Learn more and follow the journey at www.metisnation.org.
Peak-Top Paradise: Adventure Sports Center International
It’s a view rarely seen by river dwellers. From the top of Wisp Mountain in McHenry, Maryland, rafters, kayakers and canoeists look over the lush mountains of West Virginia and Pennsylvania, across the top of the nearby Youghiogheny River valley. As the crow flies it’s within a few miles of the rock climbing, paintball, golfing and mountain coaster rides that characterize the area in the summer and spitting distance from the Wisp ski slopes, which unravel all around.
3,100 feet above sea level, Adventure Sports Center International draws river folk out of their valleys and onto the only mountaintop whitewater course in the world.
ASCI—”askie,” as the regulars call it—boasts world-class rapids with the convenience of park ‘n’ play access and a well-stocked on-site café.
ASCI’s executive director Michael Logsdon swears it “looks no different and feels no different” than any other river, but some paddlers have noted artificial-feeling quirks.
Jim Snyder, whose revolutionary boat building makes him one of the forefathers of freestyle, spent a half hour on the course and says the water runs much faster downstream than in a normal river—even the eddies churn harder—since water surges unimpeded over the smooth concrete riverbed. No foot entrapments here. ASCI’s water is about four degrees warmer than regular lake temperatures and aeration keeps the water remarkably clean.
In September this peak-top paradise will host the 2014 ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships, and paddlers worldwide will come to sample the artificial frenzy. The course offers a consistent, controlled flow that can push a calm river to a thrashing class IV set in a matter of minutes—the “soup to nuts factor,” as Logsdon calls it. The current can be customized to suit seasoned freestyle kayakers or first-time rafters.
When the course operator flicks a few switches, four propeller-style pumps with more than 2,000 combined horsepower shoot water from nearby Deep Creek Lake through the course at 250,000 gallons per minute, easily filling an Olympic-size pool in less than the time it takes to suit up and slip into a kayak. Like a kettle on a burner, it doesn’t take long for the water to start boiling.
The approximately 535-meter-long course has six adjustable features controlled by air bladders the size of Volkswagens. The bladders are hidden under movable hinged steel plates on the riverbed, and can create a surfable hydraulic, tighten up a hole, or send a seasoned vet to instant humiliation.
As Logsden puts it, “The course can transform from a very family friendly river all the way to the home of the World Championships.” KATRINA PYNE
This article first appeared in the Early Summer 2014 issue of Rapid Magazine. Subscribe to Paddling Magazine’s print and digital editions, or browse the archives.
The Melt Awards 2014
“Come out to The Egyptian Theater downtown Boise, ID on the night of Thursday the 12th of June to kick off the 3rd annual North Fork Championship and enjoy the best entertainment in the world of Whitewater. A night dedicated to those behind the lens, documenting the progression of whitewater kayaking!”
From The North Fork Championship.
Click for news and results from the 2014 North Fork Championship.
