Abby’s Year End Review!

Year End Review

Summary:

This year was one of my best kayaking years yet! I learned many new freestyle tricks including Cartwheels, Splitwheels, Back Blunts, Orbits, McNasties and more which I am so excited about! My year started off with a 285-mile self-support Grand Canyon trip which was incredible as it’s a 12 day trip in the heart of the Grand Canyon! After the GC we went to California where we went surfing in the Pacific Ocean with our kayaks! We then headed East just in time for the National Championships in Columbus, Georgia! After lots of kayaking in the southeast, we headed to Colorado! I had a great CO tour with a couple of wins and was a finalist at GoPro Mountain Games! I had an even better summer in my boat which included a five-day expedition on the Magpie River where we had to use a helicopter to get to the put-in!  After fun on the Ottawa, we headed South! I had a blast this fall kayaking in the Southeast and CO, where I gave the keynote presentation at Colorado Whitewater’s Fall Dinner! So far my paddling this winter has been great with lots of playboating in Rock Island and river running and creeking whenever the play isn’t as good! Some of my goals for the New Year include getting my offside McNasty more consistently, Backloops more consistently, figuring out how to Trickywoo, and maybe a Lunar Orbit! I also want to spend more time in a creek boat and getting a more confident boof! I really hope to make the USA Junior Women’s Freestyle Team but most importantly I just want to have fun in my kayak next year! I am super excited for next years paddling season with Team Trials and then traveling with my family to Europe! I’m really looking forward to kayaking at Makinto, Nottingham and of course, Sort!

Competitions:

Paddle South Freestyle National Championships

3rd place Cadet Girls Freestyle

Live Like Maria Freestyle Classic

2nd place Cadet Girls Freestyle

PaddleFest

1st place Cadet Freestyle
3rd place overall Milk-run Sprint
4th place Pro Women’s Numbers Race

Lyons Outdoor Games

1st place Cadet Freestyle

GoPro Mountain Games

5th place Pro Women’s Freestyle

FibArk

4th place Junior Women’s Freestyle

6th place Pro Women’s Freestyle

Montréal Eau Vive

1st place Overall Pro Women’s
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4th place Pro Women’s Freestyle
2nd place Pro Women’s Boater-cross

Slalom Nationals

2nd place Junior Women Boater-cross

Pfds and Favorite Rivers:

Shoshone New Years Laps – Colorado River, CO

Self Support Grand Canyon Trip – Colorado River, AZ

San Marcos River, TX

Blue River, OK

Ouachita River, AR

Ocoee River, TN

Chattahoochee River, GA

Nantahala River, NC

Potomac, MD

Cheat River, WV

Charles City, IA

Numbers, Fractions, Royal Gorge – Arkansas River, CO

Stephens Down – Poudre River, CO

Lawson – Clear Creek, CO

Snake River, WY

Gros Ventre, WY

Hoback River, WY

Granite Creek, WY

Kelly’s WW Park – NF Payette, ID

SF Payette, ID

Ottawa River, Canada

Magpie River, Canada

Gatineau River, Canada

Saint Lawrence River, Canada

Tewkesbury River, Canada

Gauley River, WV

Zdam – James River, VA

Rock Island Falls – Caney Fork River, TN

Westwater Canyon – Colorado River, UT

Crab Orchard Creek, TN

Tellico River, TN

Clear Creek, TN

36 States

2 Canadian Provinces

32 Rivers

and one amazing year full of rivers both new and old, meeting new friends on the water, many competitions that were a blast and then some, and so much more to make one of my best paddling years so far!

Happy New Year! See you on the water!

-Abby 🙂