On to the World Championships by Will Richardson | Jan 1, 1970 | Whitewater | 0 comments August 24, 2006 By Devon Barker Dear Friends, I am so happy to tell you that I just made the US Freestyle Team for the World Championships in May on the Ottawa River! I won the event to boot with an outstanding final ride. It was incredible to kayak to my potential. I stayed on the Garbarator Wave for the full 45 seconds and as I paddled into the eddy I was throwing my fist into the air in happiness. Jackson Kayakers won every event but CI where Dan Burke was second. Our Farm House was pretty happy last night. EJ, Dane, Emily, and Jay all had outstanding rides. In the JR. Men, Ian McClaran from McCall placed 6th just missing the cut to the final five. He had outstanding rides. Here are the results for US Freestyle Team: Top 3 & Top 6 for Men K1 Women Devon, Tanya Shuman, Hanna Farrar K1 Men Eric Jackson, Andrew Holcombe, Rush Sturges, Dustin Urban, Marlow Long, Jay Kincaid (7th Stephen Wright, 8th Bryan Kirk, 9th Todd Baker, 10th Karl Moser, 11th Rusty Sage, 12th Clay Wright) K1 Jr. Men Dane Jackson, Evan Garcia, Alex Mohn (6th Ian McClaren, 7th Jason Craig) C1 Joe Stumpfel, Dan Burke, Seth Chappelle K1 Jr. Women Emily Jackson, Brynne Weeks OC1 Jeremy Lauks After the exciting men’s final where Karl Moser and Bryan Kirk had outstanding rides I went downstream to paddle back to the Farm House where we are staying. I was no more than a few strokes into my paddle home before I was crying my eyes out. My highs and lows are so strong. I was crying from all the raw emotion of this high. My best friend, Megan, tells me it is because we experience life to its fullest- highs and lows. Bless all of you for being there for me on the highs and the lows. This is just the beginning of the fall season as World Cup begins next weekend in Canada. Then we are off to New York, and then Tennessee for the final World Cup event. This is the first World Cup for Freestyle Kayaking. A World Cup is required before Freestyle Kayaking is eligible for Olympic status. The first two events of the World Cup will also determine the North American Champion. The season for freestyle & squirt kayaking will wrap up in West Virgina on the Gauley with squirt trials. Then a short break and the Surf Kayaking events will begin in mid-October. It is just an exciting time in our sport. I miss Idaho dearly and cannot wait to be back. Thank goodness we have lots of big waves in Idaho because the next World Championships will be on a wave called Bus Eater! I’ll be spending some time at Black Hawk, Chair, Gold Hole (wave) and the Bladder Wave. I cannot wait to surf with all of you at home on our waves. Lots of love always! Devon Airblunt Backblunt Garbarator Wave Submit a Comment Cancel replyYour email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *Comment * Name * Email * Website Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Δ