The first two days of the games are over and the action was intense. Yesterday was the Dowd Chute Paddlecross event and today was both the Homstake Creek Race and Big Trick Competition. Graeme and Ross from South Africa and myself were representing for Fluid at this year's event.
(Ross led all the way to this point and got just too far Left for the gate.)
(Ross chasing down Tao.)
(EJ cleanly leading his heat with Graeme fighting with the others.)
The Paddlecross event was in intense timed race in order to get seeded into the head to head heats. The timed runs had a brutal 200 yrd flatwater sprint at the begining and then dropped into the class 3 rapids of Dowd Chute. On the way down the course you had to hit three orange stopsigns on the river right with you paddle and then finish in a small channel on river left. Grame and Ross both made the final 16 that raced head to head. I had a good run, except for the roll between the last two gates. The sprint at this altitude just killed me! Ross got off to a quick start in his heat and then got deflected going into the first gate. He managed to scramble back for a second in his heat. Graeme paddled strong, but ran into all kinds of traffic in his heat. Ross ended the day in 9th and Graeme in 12th.
(Graeme boofing one of the manky top rapids on Homestake.)
(Graeme trying to avoid the big piton rock on the river left.)
(Ross stylin' what I like to call the "piton drop".)
(Ross entering the second to last drop on the course.)
(This is me exiting the second to last drop.)
Today's big event was the Homestake Creek race. It is a 1/4 mile long course through some really manky rapids. The level was a thundering 50cfs!!! The creek drops about 460 ft/mile. I managed a solid first run putting me rite in the middle of the 43 person men's competitor list. Graeme and Ross were rite on my heals. Graeme and Ross both had solid second runs and both ended the day in the 20 somethings in the standings. My second run was really fast and I thought I had the whole thing in the bag. I lined up for the last drop and was rite on course for a sweet finish. As I went off the drop my nose fell to the right and I piton the right wall and got flipped and spun upstream into the curtain of the falls. Somehow my stern managed to wedge under the river right undercut and my bow was stuck behind the back of the falls. I had to pull my cord and swim for it, my first swim in something like 4 yrs! Basically my quick run turned into a DQ and possibly making the carnage real on National TV:( Sadly I don't have any picture proof of this, yet.
(Me trying for Big Air.)
The final event of the day was the big air contest. Basically this consisted of a loop off with each competitors getting three shots at the hole. I tried my hardest, but wasn't able to pull it together during the comp.. Many of the competitors just could dial in the rapidly rising river level and flushness of the hole.
I'm looking forward to checking out the Pro Rodeo, Bike events, and climbing events over the next two days. On Sunday there is an 8-Ball competition which should be fun. Stay tuned.
(Photos by: Laura and Myself)
See you on the river- Bryon
