Bunny Johns: 2008 Boater Chick

During the closing ceremonies of the 2008 Boater Chick Festival, I had the honor of presenting Bunny Johns with the 2008 Boater Chick Award. It could not have gone to a better person!I always tip my helmet to fellow-boaters that recognize the achievements of those paddlers that came before us. There were so many valient paddlers who trundled down rivers in the likes of 13 foot+ boats, at a time when words such as "boof" did not even exist. So when Anne--organizer of the 2008 Boater Chick Festival, asked me to help her present Bunny Johns with the 1st Boater Chick Award, in my tongue-tied way I was honored--and fired up to do so. I am happy to share the full presentation (minus a few hmms and umms) for everyone to enjoy.

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Women and Kayaking and College and Boys and Thoughts for Other Women

So you want to talk about women and kayaking? How about hearing it from a group of women who are in the midst of their college education at an all-womens college (hence the school colors pink & green); all whom have found their way into the college’s outdoor program…. kayaking specifically!...and all of whom stand to take away some pretty amazing life skills when they graduate from college.
Enjoy sharing time with a cool group of kayakers at the latest of our roundtables.

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Bridging the Generations: A Roundtable Discussion

There is nothing like getting together after a good day of paddling and telling stories!
While the group consisting of Maria Noakes, Whitney Lonsdale, Beth Rypins and Juliet Jacobsen Kastorff could not work it out to actually spend a day on the river together, we were able to take time out of busy schedules to enjoy some reminiscing, stories and laughs.

Enjoy this roundtable discussion about Bridging the Generations!

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No Girls' Category Needed for this Lady!

Ask Maria Noakes which "hat" she has on today and it can be one of many: Mom, wife, company co-founder, respected whitewater paddler, international traveler.... oh, and a girl not scared to compete against the big boys-as she so proved placing 18th overall in the Greenman Category of the 2008 Jerry's Baddle event on the Green Narrows just recently.

Maria Noakes has been a familiar face on the whitewater circuit for a good long while now. It is never a surprise to run into her on any of the toughest runs in the southeast, or popping up in Nepal, Canada, Bhutan or her hometown rivers of New Zealand. She stands out in the paddling crowd not just because she is blond, athletic, and has a full-of-life personality, but because often she is not just toting her kayak on her shoulder, but one--or two of her tow-headed boys ages two and four. Try beating that!

After placing 18th at the 2008 Jerry’s Baddle, we managed to pin Maria down for a few minutes(which is not always easy to do considering that her daily to-do list includes keeping up with two little ones, as well as keeping up with her part of running Smoky Mountain Jet Boats—the company she and her husband, Nick, co-founded).

Wow Maria, you don’t have much in the way of down time these days. So let’s get right to it: Thinking back, when was your first run down the Green Narrows and who was with you?
My first ever Green run…. I was gripped with the tales of the Narrows of the Green, but I was with the stout crew of Tommie Decuir, Doug Geiger, Scotty Lovell and Whitney Lonsdale. Year? That was the summer of creation of Johnny Utah, so that's a teller. I remember pretty vividly the drive to the take out, thinking if the river drops at the gradient of these bends, it's going to a wild in there!

Okay, we won’t calculate how many years ago that was...if you will share your thoughts on running the Green after all this time being a mom/girl/stud...
Not sure about the stud part but I am a girl and a Mum (of two rambunctious riots) and it's all good to go.

What was the inspiration to participate in Jerry's Baddle this year?
Because it's a great event for a great cause, supporting people who have ALS and the group of girls who compete in it are super fun and pretty competitive!

What would you attribute to placing so well this year? Training? Experience?
I would have to say that paddling a Remix helped me in the scheme of things, along with Andrew Holcombe and Shane Benedicts favorite tips of the Green, this combination appeared to keep me in good stead.

So placing 18th overall, how does it feel to have been hot on the stern of the likes of Pat Keller?!?!?
Maybe he got a flat tire.

Thanks Maria! Hope we see you on Cheoah this weekend!

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Whitney Lonsdale Back to support the ERA Ladies!

News Update! super-kayaker Whitney Lonsdale is taking a breather from running in a million different directions this summer, calling the Nantahala Gorge home for a few months. And sharing time on the river as ERA friend, instructor and guide again this summer.


The venue with which you have spent time with Whitney influences how you “categorize” her: been a student at World Class with Whitney as your teacher and guide--then she is your hero; and who you want to be (or marry in the case of some of the boys at World Class!) when you graduate from High School. Been on the river with her, whether Nepal, Ecuador, Idaho, China, Chile, the Green Narrows.... okay, okay enough with the list—it could go on for a long time. Anyways, in that capacity you think of her as a world class boater while coming across as kind of a little gal with a great smile when she steps out of her boat. And then of course there are her movie credits. Last year when Whitney joined the ERA Team, we figured out that the best way to make her blush was to suggest to a paddler that they take their newly purchased copy of Johnny Utah and ask her to autograph it. Okay, she is an awesome teacher, editor, river guide,instructor…but a bit modest.

So we were psyched to hear Whitney would be able to park herself back in the Nantahala Gorge this summer for a time and spend some time with the ERA Staff, guests and friends. Catching up with Whitney on her trip back to Asheville this past week, she had time for a couple of questions.

Hey Whitney—good to hear your voice! What have you been up to since departing ERA last fall?
This past year I have been working part time with World Class Kayak Academy and The Traveling School. Last fall I spent time with The Traveling School in South Africa and led a Women's Trip in South Africa as well. I also spent two weeks with World Class on the Zambezi and Nile Rivers. I also took on the editor position for Kayak Session magazine last November.

I also worked on diversifying my outdoor pursuits this winter spending 6 weeks in Montana skiing in February and March.

Favorite new river you saw in your travels this winter?
Even with all the traveling I did, I did not add any new rivers to my list this winter. It might be the first year in a long time that I did not get to explore new river territory.

What is it about being on the river that has you fired up to be back?
After a year of not being on the water nearly as much as I am used to I can't wait to get back to teaching kayaking this summer. I look forward to everything about it. Being outside in beautiful western NC, the daily sharing of excitement about kayaking, helping people improve their skills and get where they want to be with their paddling. Not balancing the cash register every day :) [Explanation: Whitney “volunteered” to run the ERA front line for most of last summer—gaining life experiences in all sorts of areas, including learning to balance a business out at the end of the day!!]

Last thoughts before we let you go?
I have a renewed appreciation for the time I get to be paddling and I look forward to sharing that enthusiasm with folks.

Here at ERA we are obviously psyched Whitney will be here.
And the ladies of ERA can’t wait to spend time on the river with her!

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For the Ladies: FLIRT!

What are the ERA Ladies wearing on their days out? Well the FLIRT of course.

The FLIRT is SnapDragon’s women’s specific sprayskirt. It has a conically shaped tube with a lower cut tube top. What that means is that it is easier to pull up over our svelte hips and more comfortable because the tube is not around our necks. And it comes in either black (which goes with everything) or a pretty blue color neoprene.

And hats off to SnapDragon-- they designed a womens-specific piece of gear without referring to/insinuating a body part (like we don’t want to be reminded that sprayskirts are hard to put on because we might have big butts!).

Only downfall of the FLIRT is that the boys like it too!

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2008 ERA Girl's Paddling Goals

The ladies here at ERA are preparing to embark on yet another wonderful season of whitewater; Life is tough! Deciding to list our goals for 2008 is a bit intimidating, but it also provides that extra motivational kick that we (mostly I) sometimes need! Looking at my goals for the season, written down on paper, makes me really look forward to this year.

We'll be posting updates as we progress throughout the season, so keep checking back!

Bran : )



Sara:
-Get out on the water as much as possible. The best way to get better is to practice and get out there,so that is what I want to do.
-I want to work on my water reading and skills by running new and more challenging rivers
-To get Brandy and Kelly to Costa Rica with me!
-To spend more time on the water with my girls, but to also improve to the point that I can go with the big boys
-To continue to earn respect and accountability as a kayak instructor
-I want to run the Green Narrows (and by run I mean style ☺ )

Kelly:
- Paddle more class III-IV rivers and creeks other than the Nantahala and Ocoee. Thanks to the drought and school, it’s been about 4 years since I’ve paddled natural flow, other than the Cascades.
- Get on the Ocoee with Brandy!
- Five eddies at Broken Nose (without breaking my nose this time).

Brandy:
-Nail my combat roll. Practice makes perfect (hopefully)!
-Surf, surf, surf. Become a good playboater. Play EVERYWHERE!
-Ocoee and Costa Rica with the girls!!
-Comfortable in class III-IV water.
-Get over silly fears, and recognize legitimate ones. Build confidence in my abilities.
-Get on the water as much as possible!
-I HATE to admit this one: Listen to my husband (and ERA instructor!), Ryan. Do what he tells me to do. He's been at this for years, and knows what's best for me.

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