Season's Greetings!

Trail to Lower Greeter Falls

Nearly five years ago I started kayaking. The first idea I had of kayaking was boaters running Baby Falls on the Tellico River one summer while swimming. From that moment on I knew I was gonna be a kayaker and that I wanted to run waterfalls.

Matt Wallace scouting Lower Greeter Falls

Photo Jeff West

This fall I set a goal of running some bigger water falls. With this focus I began looking for water falls to step my game up on. The southeast isn't blsesed with large clean verticle drops to practice on so it took alot of looking and alot of water. After running Hickey Gap Falls, Frogtown Falls, and the Middle Line of LRC Falls; I felt ready to step up to a fifty footer.

Matt Wallace running Lower Greeter Falls

Photo Jeff West

With three inches of rain widspread throughout the Southeast, Myslef and Jeff West decide it was time to go dodge the rangers and give Lower Greeter Falls a try. Upon arrival we found a perfect water level, after a thorough scout we geared up and walked back down the trail. After a quick game of paper, rock, siccors, it was determined I would go first.

Matt Wallace Tucking tight on Lower Greeter Falls

Photo Jeff West

After a final scout of the lip, I was ready to go. I slowly approached the lip, loooked down, and tucked up. The hit was hard and snapped my paddle in half. I came up behind the falls a little dis oriented and hopped out. Jeff soon ferried across the pool and gave me some hand paddles, I ferried across, set up safety and camera, and waited for Jeff to fire her up.

Jeff West approaching the Lip of Lower Greeter Falls

Photo Matt Wallace

As Jeff gave Greeter a final scout I waited nervously below. As I saw him approach the lip, he had a perfect line completely verticle fell off the falls and disappeared. Jeff was gone for about 4 seconds before he resurfaced. He rolled up with a broken paddle and C-1'd it through the next rapid catching an eddy with a huge smile on his face.

Jeff West with a Perfect Line of Lower Greeter Falls

Photo Jeff West

All in all the three inches of rain and our first 50foot waterfall was the perfect early Christmas present.

Happy Holidays,

MW

The Green Race Experience

Photo Chris Bell www.boatingbeta.com

Matt Wallace about to Boof into the Stadium

5,4,3,2,1....Go!!! Your muscles, your gasping for breath, and then you round the bend. You seem them hundreds of people, you hear the roar of the crowd, and suddenly you are reenergized. This is a feeling most athletes experience. The energy and excitement surrounded with a big game, the way the crowd pumps you up and can enhance your performance. As a kayaker this is a feeling one typically wouldn't expect to experience, considering we spend our time in small groups descending down steep rivers and creeks in inaccessible and isolated canyons and gorges. Then there is "The Green Race"! Kayakers from around the world spend their entire year in anticipation for the first Saturday in November. On this Saturday, the Green River transforms from a lonely isolated gorge to an outdoor stadium jam packed with fans coming to see "The Greatest Show on Earth." Over a thousand people hike and paddle into the Narrows of The Green, to watch some of the best/craziest kayakers in the world race some of the steepest and most intense rapids found. Racers spend weeks training in an empty gorge only to be gifted with a crowd buzzing with energy on race day.

http://lookoutdoornews.com/content/sam-silvey-photography

Matt Wallace in Go Left

Photo Nate Rozell. Matt Wallace Going into Zwicks

Photo Nate Rozell Matt Wallace in Zwicks

As a racer your nerves are on edge for weeks before the race. Training laps whether solo or with a group are lonely. It's the constant running of race laps in one's mind. The questions, "Will I have clean lines?, "Will I crash?" , "Will I finish?". You hear the tales of carnage from some of the best paddlers, and you are scared. Then there is the Gorilla, the proverbial monkey on every racers' back. Gorilla is the largest rapid on the Green River and is the heart of the race course. This rapid conjures up fear and excitement in every racer and spectator. Half the battle or racing the green is just surviving until race day. Then the weeks of training, all come down to one shot. You get one lap, to post the fastest time you can.

Photo Nate Rozell Matt Wallace Heading Down Stream

Photo Kat Levitt

Race day surprisingly brings a breath of relief. You know you have made it and in a couple hours you will have posted your time and this" foolhardy" speed paddling of Class V can be over for another year. There is a sense of focus and excitement in the parking lot, as all the racers collect their bibs, discover their start times, and wait for Jason Hale "to fire them up" with one of his motivational pre-race speeches. After the speech it is a lonely walk down the trail to the river. This must be the way the Gladiators felt as they slowly drudged from the bowls of the Coliseum to take center stage.

Photo Kat Levitt Matt Wallace Flying Squirel Boof

Photo Kat Levitt Matt Wallace Heading into the Notch

Photo Chris Bell www.boatingbeta.com

Matt Wallace " Spankin' the Monkey"

www.greenriverextrem.com

Matt Wallace Gorilla

5,4,3,2,1! You are off. You are all alone, it's just you and the river. You paddle as hard as you can, you focus on your lines. Then you hear them, the roar of the river is drowned out by the crowd. Then you see them, hundreds of people lining both sides of the river. You become excited and reenergized, You must re- focus and put the blinders on, it's time to "Spank the Monkey." After careening off Gorilla you put the hammer down, you paddle as hard as you can through the final section of the course. You can no longer breath, you feel like vomiting, you want to quit, but the crowd urges you on. As you slam into the rock marking the end of the course, you feel a since of pride. You finished! You have just completed the toughest extreme race on the planet. You regain your breath, then with rubbery legs you hike into the crowd to greet all your friends and cheer on the rest of the racers.

Photo by Joe Williams

Photo by Joe Williams

Nate Rozell "Spankin the Monkey" WTF??? Why didn't he race??

Photo Matt Wallace

Special thanks to everyone that makes The Green Race possible: chris bell/ www.boatingbeta.com, LVM, The Green River Community, and all the racers.

Thanks to everyone who came out to support all the racers.

Thanks to all my friends that came out to support me, all the boaters I trained with, and Mark for welding my boat last minute before the race. www.walden'sridgewhitewater.com

MW

Another CO Video.

Here is another sick Video Adam made from our CO trip.

Colorado 2009 Part 1: The South Platte from Adam Goshorn on Vimeo.

The End.

Here is a nice video from the last of our Colorado trip. Yeah that's me swimming at the end.

CO 09 Part 3: Clear Creek and Big South from Adam Goshorn on Vimeo.

Colorado Video: The Crystal

Here is an Awesome video Adam Goshorn put together from our summer trip. My Good friend Jordan Sherman, also on the trip, wrote and performed the song. Enjoy!!!!

Crystal Headwaters 2009 from Adam Goshorn on Vimeo.

WaterFalls

It rained alot here in the Southeast. The rivers filled up and we decided to go run some waterfalls. Everybody enjoys some waterfall pictures. So here you go.

Matt Wallace on Frogtown Falls

Matt Wallace Center Line LRC Falls @ 30 inches

This next group of Photos were taken byDiane Holderfield. Many thanks to her for the great shots and allowing us to use them.

LRC Falls


Matt Wallace Top Drop LRC Falls Left Line



Andy Jordan LRC Falls




Jeff West Lrc Falls

Jeff West LRC Falls

Jordan Sherman LRC Falls Top Drop

Jordan Sherman LRC Falls 2nd Drop

Ben Davis LRC Falls.

Thanks Again Diane for the Great Shots.

On a side note here is a new project I am working on feel free to check it out: http://mdubbphotography.blogspot.com/

MW

Just a reminder "The Greatest Show on Earth" is November 7th, 2009 at high noon.

Be there!!!

Karnali

Finally the rains have returned. The pent up creek boater inside the Dam Release Summer Play boater was finally unleashed. With 10 inches of rain falling in the Chattanooga area it was time once again to go creeking. I spent this week paddling a new boat, the Large Karnali. Here is a short review:

My Specs: 6' 2", 185#'s, with size 11 shoes.

Previous Creek Boats Paddles: LL Gus, Jefe Grande, and Bliss Stick Huka

Testing Grounds: Little River Canyon, AL; Little Possum Creek, TN; and Bear Creek, GA

Karnali Specs: 8' 5" & 80 gallons

Karnali's Connect 30 outfitting: First off the out fitting is extremely simple to work with. I had the boat completely outfitted for me in less than 15 min. I really like the ability to adjust the height of the back band. I personally like my back band higher on my back and the Pyranha outfitting allows you to set it exactly where you want it on your back, with the use of attached bungee cords. The Outfitting also allows you to easily access the room in the stern of your boat.

Performance

Speed: The Karnali is fast. It only takes a couple strokes to get this thing to full speed. Once at full speed the Karnali tracks like a champ.

Maneuverability: A lot of boats with a lot of speed sometimes lack maneuverability; this is not the case for the Karnali. It turns on a dime, easily zipping in and around boulders with great speed.

Boofing: The Karnali has noticeably less rocker than many other creek boats. This may lead you to believe it is harder to boof than other boats. Let me tell you this is not the case. The Karnali boofs with ease.

Rolling: I know this is a big deal for a lot of people out there. So how easy is the Karnali to Roll? It is the EASIEST ROLLING BOAT I have ever paddled.

Overall: After several days of paddling the Karnali, I have found my new "go to" boat. It handles big drops, technical boulder gardens, and pushy water with ease. I immediately felt comfortable in the boat, there was no awkward "new boat" jitters. It fits all paddling styles, whether you like to aggressively drive your boat or like to just relax and cruise. The Karnali will inspire confidence in your paddling ability. It is the boat for everyone! Whether you are a Class V Creeker or a beginner just starting out or looking to step up your game, the Karnali will provide you the performance to achieve your best on the river.

Rock City: One of the Many Ways to Fall Off Look Out Mountain.

The Secret Stash from Adam Goshorn on Vimeo.

Enjoy the show....

As seen in LVM 31 .....

Spring Update! from Adam Goshorn on Vimeo.

Russell Fork update

Here is a sweet little video Adam Goshorn put together from a trip we made this June ( See older posts.)

Check it out

MW

Russell Fork PSA and Rock Sledding from Adam Goshorn on Vimeo.

Answering the Call: Western Migration

There are certain laws in nature that cannot seem to be broken. One of these is: Snow melts, rivers rise, and paddlers migrate west. Like any good "learned" man knows, some laws just can't be broken. This year a mid summer tour through the Colorado Rockies, was calling my name. So I willingly submitted, answered the call, and began religiously studying the New Testament (http://www.coloradokayak.com/Whitewater-of-the-Southern-Rockies). Hoping to catch some of the late seasons classics Colorado has to offer, I found a like minded crew and we set a date for departure. We loosely made plans over email and paddling trips, discussing possible runs and the most efficient ways to travel through the state. But as we found out last year, "the best laid plans of mice and men oft go awry" So this year, we had no real plan other than to go to the drainage with the best available water. This seemed to work incredibly well. Secretly though I had 5 must do runs: Cheeseman Canyon, Black Canyon of the Gunnison, North Fork of the Crystal, South Fork of the Crystal, and Big South. Not to spoil the tale, but 4 out of five aint bad. We departed Chattanooga July 2nd and 26 hours later we were charging rapids.

Adam Goshorn Boofing on Chessman Canyon


Matt Wallace on Slide for Life
Jordan Sherman filming

Independence Day is a celebration of our Great Country's adoption of the Declaration of Independence from England. Most spend their 4th of July engaging in outdoor activities, i.e. fireworks, picnics, baseball, and watermelon. We spent our Independence Day in a slightly less traditional manor, though still engaging in outdoor activities. We even had fireworks, provided by Mother Nature via a Thunderstorm. Cheesman Canyon was our picnic in the park. Wanting to take full advantage of my Independence day I decided to complete a triathlon. The 1st Annual "Cheesman Canyon Choss Country" : an 8 mile chossy, sieved out paddle; a 3 mile up-hill hike; and a 17 mile bike shuttle back to the put in to get the truck.

Joey Jarrell Charing Down Chessman Cnayon

Cheesman Canyon has had a reputation of horrible access numerous arrests and assaults have taken place throughout the years. We on the other hand had a pleasant experience. We made arrangements with the Keeper of Sportsman's' Paradise and he led us across their property. Cheesman Canyon is your California experience in Colorado. The Hayman fire burned the forest exposing the rock. It is a very continuous, steep run. It has lots of mank, choss, and sieves. Portaging and Scouting are pretty easy in Chessman Canyon thanks to a fisherman's trail that runs high along river left. This trail is extremely useful do to the lack of eddies and continuous nature of this run. This is definitely not a pool drop river. We arrived to level about 475 cfs probably about 100 more cfs than you actually want. At least 100 cfs more than I wanted. I would like to return to a level between 300-350 cfs. Regardless we put on with the best of intentions. Despite the high water, we managed to run seven of the nine named rapids, portaging Penis Buster Parfait and Dos Chaos( though there are a few other mandatory portages). The highlights after Slap Yo Mamma and Slide For Life had to be Burmese Punji Stick. The finally of the run is the 3 mile hike out. It is long and steep, but on an old road so it isn't that bad. Needless to say Cheesman Canyon was on of the most memorable Independence Days, I have ever experienced.

Matt Wallace Starting the Hiking Portion of His Triathalon

"The water is really high today." - Park Ranger

"That's how we roll." - unnamed boater in above picture

Matt Wallace Boofing on Eleven Mile

Matt Wallace charging to the take out

Typical South Platte Rapid

Eleven Mile take out rapid on the South Platte

There are very few places in the world as Magical as the Crystal Drainage. These mountains have something for everyone, whether it is 4x4 driving, hiking, camping, skiing, or especially kayaking. This is quintessential Colorado, from the back country of the North Fork to the ever popular Crystal Mill Falls . We were lucky enough to spend a few days in this drainage exploring and experiencing the goods it had to offer. Access to these areas are some of the most rugged and harsh 4 wheel drive roads I have ever experienced. Navigating these roads with a truck loaded full of kayaks and camping gear takes a team effort. If you can block out the nerves you will find some of the most breathtaking views found in Colorado. The drive is not for the faint of heart, but the risk is worth the reward.

Matt Wallace paddling Cake

Anson Fogel Filming

Adam Goshorn sliding down Icing

Matt Wallace on the North Fork of the Crystal

Boofing Number 3

Jordan Sherman dropping the Classic Number 4 on the North Fork of the Crystal


We began by at the North Fork of the Crystal. This run boated like a Class V amusement park, short, steep, fast, continuous, and did I mention fun. This is a premier river set in one of the most beautiful spots in all of Colorado. We spent an entire day lapping these drops. The next day we decided to head to the Devil's Punch Bowls, found on the South Fork of the Crystal. This is a famed double set of 30ft waterfalls found along the treacherous Schofield Pass. These drops are found at high elevation well above the tree line. The wind whipped and the sun beat down, but this didn't stop us from hucking ourselves off these famed drops. On the way out we decided no trip through the Crystal would be complete without dropping the picturesque Crystal Mill Falls. This little park-n-huck drew quite a crowd, with some of us having better success than others. Needless to say we put on a show.

Jordan Sherman Hucking the Devil's Punch Bowls

Matt Wallace on the First Drop

Matt Wallace running the Second Drop

Jordan Sherman with a picture perfect line off a picture perfect drop

Matt Wallace with the not so perfect "Air Brace"

Typical Country Roads

More 4X4 roads

Matt Wallace in Rigo on Black Rock

Joey Jarrell in "Paddle B*tch"

Typical Free Campsite

Typical Crystal Backdrop

http://www.waldensridgewhitewater.com/

Adam Goshorn repping out West

No Words Necessary

Matt Wallace on the Big South

I am pretty sure this didn't end well.

Matt Wallace in Cool World

This ended much better.

Jordan Sherman showing why it's called " Fantasy Flight"

Headed into a "Bar Room Brawl"

Adam Goshorn Boofing his way down Big South




Our journey took us from Durango to Fort Collins and everywhere in between. We experienced classic runs like Vallictio and the Big South, while still managing to hit more obscure runs such as Castle Creek and Spencer Heights. We camped in some of the most remote and beautiful landscapes found in the Rockies and sampled some of its finest goods. Everyday was a new adventure, sometimes rising with the sun and and setting up camp well after dark. We paddled everyday for 14 days, we conquered some of the roughest 4 wheel drive terrain the Rockies had to offer, and we went days without showering. Flat tires were plugged, and showers were taken, and our western migration had finally ended. It was time for us to return home to the summer dam release runs of the Southeast. Time to meet up with old friends around rivers and campfires, swapping tales of western adventures and carnage, and making plans for next summer. But first it was a 26 hour drive home, only to immediately head to work for the night shift.