Launching Into Canoe U!

From Canoe U

This weekend was the first River weekend of Canoe U! We had over 40 students, about 10 instructors, and a whole bunch of safety boaters. The weather was nice (cold in the evenings, but warm and sunny afternoons) and the level of the Kettle was close to 800 cfs on Sunday.

From Canoe U

I taught the Whitewater Refresher course with Bobzilla. We had a great student-teacher ratio with 2 instructors, 6 students, and 2 safety boaters - Jeremiah and Ben. Jeremiah was with us both days and had some rock-star rescues. Ben joined us the second day when we had very few swims, so both safety boaters were giving tips and assistance to the students instead of chasing gear. It worked great, and I think (and hope) that the students felt that way as well.

From Canoe U

Speaking of the students, we had Lynn, Drew, Dan, Tim, Derek, and Liz. Each student had some paddling experience, but wanted to get some additional technique work in to get the most out of this paddling season.

From Canoe U

We spent both days on the "upper" Kettle, the first day on the flatwater and then Blueberry Slide, and the second day running the whole river. The level was high enough to challenge everyone, and it pushed the learning curve a little steeper. While that led to a couple of swims on Day 1, it also led to noticeable improvements in ferrying, eddy moves, and general comfort in dynamic water by day 2.

From Canoe U

Day one was loaded with drills and stroke work to get a solid foundation of basics. Day two was putting those skills to use and incorporating water reading and river judgment to become more independent as paddlers. By the end of Day 2 students were picking their own lines, punching holes, catching mid-rapid eddy's and more. It was really fun to watch.

From Canoe U

Big thanks to all the students that participated in the class and made it so much fun! Also, huge thanks to Chad, Art, and all of the others who put in so much time and effort with the planning, logistics, cooking, and other behind-the-scenes work that made the weekend flow smoothly. Really looking forward to Graduation Weekend and the Continuum class!

Check out the "My Web Albums" link on the right of this page to see more pics. Thanks to Derek for taking a bunch of the on-water shots!