American River Festival was a big air freestyle event!

April 25, 2005

Photos

Land of the Giants- Kernville to Sacramento
On the way from Kernville to Sacramento, we decided to take the 4-hour
detour through Sequoia National Park to see the largest trees in the world.
What an amazing place! This sight is definitely worth seeing. As we drove
up, the road followed the Kaweah River, which is a classic California
class V creek. Sequoia is a magical place-we highly recommend it!

Dinner with Dan Rubado’s
Mom
Cindy Rubado, Jackson Kayak Mom, had us over to dinner with my cousin
Marty Henderson. They live five minutes apart in Sacramento. Dan is still
in Chile’ but Cindy did a wonderful job on taking care of us while we
were in the area–including, cheering us on during the rainy weather on
the event day. Dan will be joining us for the Oregon Cup as he has been
video kayaking in Chile for the last six months. We were able to see a
little footage Cindy brought back with her from a visit a few weeks in
Chile. Amazing!

CCK Shop Visit
We spent two days training at Chili Bar before heading over to California
Canoe and Kayak for a shop visit. Stephen and I had a great time helping
the staff learn how to best fit people in the Fun and Star series. CCK
is full of demo boats and new Jackson Kayaks for sale. Check out www.calkayak.com.
Demany told me that a customer came in the next day who was at the demo
in Kernville where he tried a Fun, and then came to CCK to buy one of
his own. I ate dinner with him at the awards ceremony where he told me
he was going to sleep in his Fun tonight.

American River Festival
Event
During the week prior, to the American, we spent our time training at
Chili Bar with Tracy Brabant, Eddy Hake, and lots of other great paddlers.
We had levels all week ranging from "good wave" to "good
hole" to "frustrating wave", but it was really fun. Then,
on Saturday morning, all the vendors arrived and we started the freestyle
event. Dispite being a little flushy, the hole was perfect for huge loops,
godzillas, endless cartwheel moves right, lefty blunts, splits, tricky
woo, and even a post-buzzer fonix monkey! The Junior class was dominated
by Justin Patt, with a combination of big air, and smooth ends. The Pro
Women’s class was a close race, with 4 competitors vying for first. Devon
paddled well, in the end, no one could touch Tracy Brabant’s combination
of loops, cartwheels, and spins and she won. The men’s pro class had 17
competitors, and all of them paddled well. Out of Prelims, Stephen was
psyched to be in first place! They then cut down to the top 5 for finals.
Tom McKee was in first after the first round, but Stephen’s final 110-point
second ride won the event! Bobby Housend did a fantastic job of organizing
the entire event.

A few Results as we remember
them:
Jr. Men’s:
1 Justin Patt

Pro Women’s
1 Tracy Brabant
2 Brooke Winger
3 Amy Jimmerson
4 Devon Barker

Pro Men’s
1 Stephen Wright
2 Charlie Centers
3 Tom McKee
4 Rush Sturges
5 Philly Williams
6 Jay Kincaid

Clinic with CCK Team
After the event, I had the privilege of taking CCK’s Junior team down
the river for a freestyle clinic while Devon and Tracy played at the hole
and then ran shuttle for the clinic. Lise, Jess, and Ty are all incredible
paddlers who are hungry to improve and are a blast to paddle with! We
focused on strokes and concepts, playboating fundamental drills, and on-wave
freestyle moves. Keep your eyes on these three in future events-they are
ready to rip!

Arrival in Reno- Jason
& Linzy Craig-Fun 1
Stephen and I are here in Reno for a few days at the new whitewater park
on the Truckee River. The wind was hollowing today and all the mountains
are snow covered. It was cold as we changed into dry gear after our session
but then felt a little wimpy as the Craig Family pulled up to unload an
All Star and a Fun 1. Jason, 11 years old, and his dad Craig were headed
to the Third Hole and they were not thinking about the cold weather. Jason
first tried a Fun 1 last year at the Reno River Festival where he met
the Jackson family. He ordered one right away and has been learning to
spin and cartwheel in the hole for the last year. Look for Jason’s article
on kids and kayaking in the next issue of American Whitewater. We are
planning on kayaking with them after school gets out this week.

Update on Oregon Cup, Clinic, Shop Visits
Bend Alder Creek Shop Visit – April 29th
Canyon Creek- April 30th
Maximize Your Fun Clinic Hood River- April 30th
Boater Cross- May 1st
C Wave, Lower Deschutes- May 3rd
Hood River Kayak Shed Shop Visit- May4th
Portland Alder Creek Shop Visit- May 4th
Bob Hole- May 5 & 6th
Maximize Your Fun Clinic Alder Creek Portland- May 8th

Enjoy the photos,

Devon and Stephen