This week rounds out an absolutely spectacular trip to Switzerland for the Worlds

By Jessie Stone

. It is hard to believe how quickly time passed and how exciting and fun it was to be a part of the event. The level of paddling was very high in all disciplines and the venue and participation from the town and locals made the entire event terrific. Since the wave is right in the middle of town, at any moment in time, people were gathered to watch and check out the action. You would regularly see people you knew from kayaking in another country or another time in life – they all seemed to be here and that added to the energy and atmosphere of the event. I saw paddlers from Uganda, Zambia, Chile, and Costa Rica to name a few. It was wonderful to have everyone gathered together!

Being my first Worlds, I enjoyed every aspect of the experience – changeable practice times, changeable wave, hot weather, cold weather, great local coffee, great local pie, great local pizza, great Swiss beer, etc. Though I had been at the World Cup last summer and the last event was Thun, this year was very different. There were so many more paddlers and spectators involved as well as events after the competition each night. Simon Hirter, the organizer, did a stellar job pulling everything together and making things run smoothly. He worked a long time to make it all happen and his hard work paid off! It was also super cool to have so much support from Team JK there too. Everywhere you turned was someone to cheer you on and support you – that made a big difference during the competition. And for me, it was really special that the event was held just a few miles from where my boyfriend lives. He and many of his friends and family came out to support the event and enjoy the kayaking. All in all, it couldn’t have been better. Though I was sad when it ended, I am already excited for the next worlds.