Archive

Where do New England paddlers go to get down in the heat of summer? They descend on the Zoar Outdoor Center's Deerfield River Festival, now in its 17th year following the 1994 signing of a precedent-setting re-licensing agreement between American Whitewater, the New England Power Company, anglers, conservationists, and government agencies that addressed the management of the Deerfield River...

Place your bets on who’s going to win this one. On Aug. 8, First Descents Inc., a Colorado-based young adult cancer nonprofit founded by kayak star Brad Ludden, commenced trademark infringement litigation in the U.S. District Court against Eddie Bauer Licensing Services LLC and Eddie Bauer LLC to protect its trademark rights, reputation and goodwill. Our hunch: Ludden will navigate these waters as deftly as he does a river...

Paddlers like to get wet. No where was this more evident than day one of the Outdoor Retailer tradeshow in Salt Lake City, where paddlesports took center stage in the outdoor industry at the Open Air Demo at Jordanelle State Park in Park City. Bonus: a record number of people on SUPzilla...

Sometimes even the best-laid paddling plans can fall prey to Mother nature. Such is the case with the recently planned Shetland Bus expedition. During World War II, Norwegian fishermen traversed the North Sea between the Shetland Islands and Norway's west coast carrying agents, saboteurs and weapons in daring operations known as the “Shetland Bus.” On July 16, three kayakers tried to attempt the same stretch, only to be forced back by weather and abort the mission...

Once a year, industry bigwigs gather in Salt Lake City for the annual Outdoor Retailer tradeshow, where those lucky enough to attend can ooh and ahh over paddlesport manufacturers' new designs for the upcoming year. For those smart enough to stay on the water instead, here's a quick PL sneak peak of what the tradeshow cronies will see...

They call it “The Floateo,” where anything that floats goes. And pretty much anything goes anyway at the Black River Festival in Watertown, New York, one of the whackier, more festive river festivals in the country, kicking off the Whitewater King of New York race series...

Funds are being raised to present the students at Carnegie Mullen University with the challenge of addressing the physiological differences between men and women in designing kayaks.

The paddling world lost one of its up and coming stars in late June when Connecticut’s Stephen Forster, 19, died while paddling Idaho’s North Fork of the Payette River.

Boardworks Surf has a new fish in its SUP and surfboard school...a bad fish. The company recently announced that it will start making Badfish river boards, owned by Zack Hughes and Mike Harvey of Salida, Colo., taking the manufacturer from garage-maker to gargantuan. PL catches up with founder Hughes for his take on all things river Sup...

At 73, the czech-accented and bushy eye-browed Stan Chadlek will still crush you. As we speak, he’s heading back to Alaska’s Aleutian Islands for the fifth time, this time to paddle 250 miles around tidal-colliding Unalaska Island with fellow adventurers Rob Avery and Ron Monkman. Throughout the 24-day expedition, filled with treacherous crossings, he also plans to placate his thirst for finding ancient mummies. “It could be my last big trip,” says Chladek, whose book on exploring Central American caves will be released this June. “I think the French have done it in doubles, but no one has ever done it in singles...” PL caught up with him to get his take on all things Aleutian...

Forget about the Jackson Five...call them the Jackson Three. The Jacksons -- dad EJ, son Dane and daughter, Emily -- won the overall title in five of six categories as the country’s best freestylers converged on the country’s newest whitewater park in Cascade, Idaho, for the USA Freestyle Kayaking Association’s National Point Series Championships July 8-9, 2011.

S2O Designs company slogan is "Reinventing Whitewater". Now, the Boulder CO based company founded by Scott Shipley is taking a run at reinventing itself. Already hailed as the worlds premier design and engineering company behind the planets' most successful white-water parks, S2o Designs has hired new talent and launched a new website. Here's the press release.

Despite high water giving organizers conniptions about holding a point series event for the National Freestyle Point Series circuit, the Montana Whitewater Championships went off with flying colors and freestylers to kick off July. PL checks in with organizer Kevin Brown on the success of the event and Brennan’s Wave, as the point series now heads to Cascade, Idaho, for the season finale...

When Great Britain’s James Bebbington won the gold at the World Freestyle Kayak Championships in Plattling, Germany, it marked the first time the title has migrated off North American soil. Inside: a special PL Q&A with the new champ, plus his account from Palm on what it took to bring the crown to the UK (Bonus Video: Bebbington's winning ride)...

He’s nearly twice as old as the race is long, but that didn’t stop Durango's Andy Corra, 50, from paddling to his seventh title in the 26-mile FIBArk downriver kayak race on June 19, setting a record for number of wins in the 62-year-old race.

“See ya, pops, that’s for all the pointers.” That could well sum up a new Jackson dynasty as Dane Jackson, 17, son of four-time world freestyle champion Eric Jackson, dominated the International Canoe Federation Freestyle Kayak World Championships in Platling, Germany, taking home three Golds and a Bronze. Meanwhile, Brits Claire O’Hara and James “Pringle” Bebbington took the top crowns for the women’s and men’s division...

Holy upset, Batman. In an uncharacteristic early bow-out, four-time world champion Eric "EJ" Jackson was ousted in the quarterfinals of the Freestyle Kayak World Championships in Plattling, Germany, five points behind Germany's hometown hero Martin Koll, who earned the last semifinal berth...

Paddling enthusiasts have always been connected to each other through various (sometimes unspoken) networks. With the onset of high-speed internet connectivity and websites such as this one (you’re reading this at www.paddlinglife.net in case you’ve forgotten where you are), that network of information has grown bigger, faster, and stronger. Now, paddlers are embracing social media networks like FaceBook as the primary means to connect with other enthusiasts.

So the Bruins won the Stanley Cup and the Mavericks the NBA title. Big whoop. The real action is in Plattling, Germany, where 225 of the best freestyle paddlers in the world from 28 countries – including newcomers Slovenia, India, Argentina and Brazil – rip up a river-wide wave on the Isar River for the World Freestyle kayak Championships June 20-20. PL checks in, with a special look at who to watch for...

Kayak? I don't need no stinkin' kayak. That's the sentiment that could be shared by longtime kayaker Dan Gavere, who showed his versatility in the stand-up world by winning the SUP downriver sprint race on Gore Creek at this year's Teva Mountain Games, edging out rival Charlie McArthur by 13 seconds...

If you’re a paddler and it’s the month of June, then we know you’re in Colorado. Last weekend (June 2-5) the 10th annual Teva Mountain Games wrapped in Vail and upcoming this weekend (June 11th & 12th) the newly christened Rocky Mountain Surf Festival goes for the full Polynesian in Glenwood Springs. So, what if you’ve got a day job and couldn’t make it to Vail or Glenwood Springs? No worries, FIBark finishes off the tri-fecta in Salida the following week.

How much is a hundredth of a second? The blink of an eye? A drip of water off a paddle blade? No one knows this better now than Honza Lasko of the Czech Republic and New Zealand's Mike Dawson, who careened down Class V Homestake Creek at the opening paddling event of the Teva Mtn. Games for an unfathomable tie for first place, down to the nearest hundredth of a second, finishing at the exact same time of 3:34:62. PL checks in with both to get their take on the photo finish...

The weather might have been a bit on the chilly side, but that didn’t stop some of the world’s best kayakers from putting on a sizzling show at the sixth annual Paddling Life Invitational on Monday, May 30, in Steamboat Springs, Colo. And in an event sponsored by Chaco Sandals, Rhino Racks, Rocky Mountain Remedies and Steamboat in the Summertime, it was 17-year-old Dane Jackson, in his first pro-category debut, out-dueling Nick Troutman to take top honors in the combo creek/freestyle extravaganza, with Australia’s Tanya Faux besting Emily Jackson to nab the top spot for the women...

The water was cold, but the paddlers were hot. After a winter that was heavier with snow than usual Spring seemed reluctant to give up any of the goods. For the US Teva Whitewater Raft Teams competing in the 2011 USRA National Championships it was exactly what they trained for.