Kern River Festival 2011

Recently I was fortunate enough to get to travel to Kernville for the Kern River Festival. Reno World Kayak ambassador, Noah Fraser, was my copilot on this trip and we linked up with the Sages once in Kernville. We managed to get two quick laps on Brush creek the evening we pulled into town. It was my first time there and it was a blast to get to run Brush creek on simple verbal descriptions from the top of each rapid without looking at it. On our second lap it was time to start working on race lines for the coming race. Some were good and some were no so good that second lap but it served to let me start to memorize where the deepest water was on the run. We camped part way down the river valley that evening at a beautiful roadside campsite. The next morning I headed into town to clinic the good folks at Sierra South. We spent a few hours discussing the finer points of the JK product lines, and then it was off to spread the good word up at brush creek once again. We managed to get in two more laps on Brush, and then Noah and I jumped into our squirt boats at an amazing squirt spot just at the confluence of the Kern and Brush creek. It was a great spot for me to continue to practice on my way to the worlds this summer in Germany. Once we were sufficiently tired it was time to head down to Kernville to get some dinner at the Kern River Brewing Company, and then it was a short walk to the festival campground. We had great accommodations and some great boating movies to watch including Interference and Wild Water. Saturday morning we were up bright and early to get up to Brush for the race. The race was a blast! It was great to see the big bunch of boaters crammed onto this tiny piece of flat ground just above the 18 foot drop that starts the race course. There are two events that are part of the race, a simple down river and a giant slalom in the steepest part of the course. It was a great experience to race with my fellow JK team members Darin and Sage. Once again the Villain delivers as a fast predictable boat that is still my personal choice for all of my creeking needs. After the race it was back to the squirt spot for another long session with Noah. Once again we were exhausted, but it was time to head back down to the festival for the BBQ dinner and more movies as well as a video review of the race. Sunday brought on the slalom race and more brush creek laps. It was a great community event that will only get better once the WW Park in town is complete. A big thank you for all of the event organizers and volunteers! I cannot wait for next year.