Archive

Sure, Freya Hoffmeister might have circum-navigated Australia. We’d like to see her keep up with the exploits of Australian Tanya Faux. This spring, Faux, a longtime creek and rodeo competitor and Australia’s2008 Adventurer of the Year, is leading a group of eight women into one of Australia’s most rugged and remote areas: a 30-day uncharted, unsupported, river exploration of the Kimberley region that aims to promote the Save the Kimberley campaign. Oh, and did we mention the Class V and crocs?

Confluence Watersports is now operating in full from its new campus in Greenville, S.C., and recently announced four key new hires supporting Confluence’s sourcing and supply chain, marketing and accessories teams. All four new hire investments underscore Confluence’s commitment to offering innovation, leadership and a profitable partnership opportunity to its family of specialty outdoor and paddlesports retailers.

Okay, all you free-loading dirtbags. No more free lunch. It's permit season. So get off your duff and send in your applications for your favorite river trip instead of waiting to get asked along. Plus, that way you can invite who you want (which hopefully will include us). Here's all the info you need...

It’s blog time here at PL, with who else chiming in but PL friend and mono-blader Benn Fraker, at sixth the highest-placing U.S. finisher at the Beijing Olympics who just took off to the land of Aus for a two-month training stint in preparation for the Games in London this summer. Tune in for his semi-monthly reports from the field. But first, this primer so you can get to know him...

Crossing Canada from the Pacific Ocean to the Hudson Bay under your own power would be a gruel no matter how you slice it, never mind trying it in a canoe. But that’s what Pete Marshall, Winchell Delano and Steve Keaveny are planning with their Trans-Territorial Canoe Expedition from May through to September 2012. PL checks in to see how their planning is going...

More paddlers will name be able to claim they’re Okies, if not from Muskogee, at least from Oklahoma City. USA Canoe/Kayak, the national governing body for sprint and slalom, just moved its headquarters from Charlotte, N.C., to Oklahoma City. PL reports on the move, with a special Q&A with CEO Joe Jacobi...

Finally, the Nantahala River has a sweet play wave. The Nantahala Gorge Organizing Committee (NGOC) will celebrate the grand opening of its new 2013 Wave on Friday, December 16 with a ceremony, reception and paddling exhibition starting at 12pm.

River guides rejoice: finally a book you can all relate to. Former river guide Tom Mahony’s Flooding Granite (Casperian Books) details the plight of river guide Zack Pruitt, a college drop-out who abandoned his girlfriend and young son when things got tough and headed back to the Sierra Nevada to guide. But he gets more than he bargained for. PL catches up with the author for a quick Q&A, and gives it a thumbs-up for those jonesing for whitewater action this winter...

After much time watching guests struggle during unexpected whitewater swims, Hamish McMaster, 20 year whitewater veteran and owner of the International Whitewater Company, Water By Nature developed the leg floaty.

The poach-fest continues. On Nov. 28, Southeast kayakers Pat Keller, Isaac Levinson and Chris Gragtmans dropped previously unrun 90-foot Noccalula Falls in Alabama's city-owned Noccalula Falls Park, causing park officials to scratch their heads and re-evaluate city ordinances. Bonus: Steve Fisher chimes in on a local news outlet's blog...

Finally, some accolades for all those walrus attacks, kayak-dragging, freezing temps and kidney failures. After completing the first successful circumnavigation of Ellesmere Island this summer, kayakers Jon Turk and Erik Boomer have been recognized as National Geographic Adventurers of the Year for 2012. And you, as paddlers, can vote to help them win the coveted People’s Choice award...

Proud of your summer paddling feat? That’s peanuts compared to Nepal's Sano Babu Sunuwar and Lakpa Tsheri Sherpa’s Ultimate Descent, going from the highest place on earth to the sea in one continuous non-motorized descent, with kayaks playing the final role...

In the latest merger news in paddlesports, Emotion Kayaks of Pennsylvania has been sold to Lifetime Products of Clearfield, Utah. PL checks in with Emotion founder Tom Strauss for the lowdown...

Worried about tipping over on your SUP in whitewater? Boardworks and partner company Badfish of Salida, Colo., recently unveiled a new inflatable paddleboard that will do wonders to keep you on the surface where you belong.

Holy tie-fest. Marking an event with the most ties in its 16-year history, this year’s 16th annual Green Race on North Carolina’s Green River was once again as carnage- and competition-filled as ever, with Isaac Levinson winning the crown and coveted “Glass” trophy for the first time ever. And for the women, Adriene Levknecht three-peats with a new women’s course record of 4:57...

The adidas Group announced that it has signed a share purchase agreement to acquire Five Ten, a leading performance brand in outdoor action sports, with the move possibly meaning increased attention directed toward the watersports division...

Ann Raiho and Natalie Warren have some blisters and a place in the record books, just becoming the first all-female team to ever paddle from Minneapolis to Hudson Bay...

The Cuban Team finished on top of the medals table with nine medals, including four Golds, while the Canadians grabbed seven medals at the 2011 Pan American Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. Led by Carrie Johnson with two golds, Team USA claimed the third position on the medals table, earning two starting positions at the London 2012 Olympic Games...

The U.S. might be slaying it in the stand-up surf scene with the likes of Slater Trout, but when it comes to surf kayaking, Basque Country and the UK are barreling to the top of the line-up -- and podium. That’s how things played out, at least, at this year’s World Surf kayaking Championships, which recently wrapped up at North Carolina’s Outer Banks....

For the second year, the Save the Colorado River Campaign Fund has made donations to 15 environmental groups up and down the basin – from Denver to Las Vegas to San Diego – to help protect and restore the Colorado River. The river’s water supplies are being stretched thin, and the river itself has been stretched beyond the breaking point. This year the Colorado River’s 5 trillion gallons of water were once again drained completely out and never reached the Sea of Cortez in Mexico.

In a sign that the paddlesports retail world is, if not riding a wave at least creating ripples, on October 22 the Nantahala Outdoor Center opened the doors of its groundbreaking experiential retail and outdoor activity concept shop, NOC Asheville, inside Asheville, N.C.'s The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa....

After nearly a century, Washington's White Salmon River in south central Washington is flowing freely again. Earlier today, a hole was blasted in the base of Condit Dam, and its reservoir - Northwestern Lake - began to pour through it. The reservoir is expected to be fully drained by sundown...

The International Whitewater Hall of Fame (IWHOF) moved to the banks of the South Fork American River Oct. 14-16 to honor members of the Class of 2011, including this year’s inductees: Explorer - Richard Bangs (USA); Champion - JP Burny (Belgium); and Advocate - Oliver Cock (UK)...

The Adventure Travel Trade Association World Summit provided a fitting background for today's announcement of a groundbreaking partnership between an American kayak manufacturer, the Mexican tourism industry and the adventure travel industry...