May 18 | Rules to Follow for SUP Surfing

by NRS Staff

Riding ocean waves looks so cool, and the experts make it look so easy. This video gives you the four golden rules to help you get started on the right learning curve for SUP surfing. You need to hone your flatwater paddling skills before heading into the surf zone. Practice without a lot of other paddlers or swimmers around, wear a leash and learn from other’s mistakes.

May 17 | 2013 Reno River Festival

by Devon Barker-Hicks

DevonTeam NRS paddler Devon Barker recently returned from a strong team showing at the Reno River Festival in Reno, Nevada. Here’s her recap!

 

The Reno River Festival (RRF) this year was a blast. NRS had Elaine Campbell, Jud Keiser, Stephen Wright, Alec and Hayden Voorhees, and myself representing at the 10th annual river festival. Going to Reno, NV to kayak always holds a special twist when it comes to the crowd who comes out to cheer on the paddlers. I was warming up before the freestyle event this year, when I began to hear a saxophone. I kept looking around for who was playing the music but it wasn’t until just before I went downstream to hole five that I saw a man along the shore, in the shade of a tree playing the sax. He gave a smile and a high five to me as I floated by. Continue reading

May 16 | Life of a River Gypsy

by NRS Staff

This article first appeared in the May 2013 issue of Canoe & Kayak Magazine, in a feature they called “Covert Operators.” About the seven boaters featured, they said, “The most remarkable paddlers are often the ones you’ve never heard of. These fiercely independent characters go their own way, without seeking attention or praise in, say, the pages of a magazine. Consider these seven covers blown.”

Well, Lacey wasn’t flying under everyone’s radar. In 2012 we ran three articles on some of her Mexico Boating Adventures: Part I, Part II and Part III. She’ll also be penning a series of articles in the coming months about recent and upcoming trips. Read here on how she has come to live the life of a…

River Gypsy

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Lacey taking a break from a long day on the oars. ©Lacey Anderson

When Lacey Anderson was held captive by an angry mob in farthest Guatemala, she came to a stunning epiphany. “I realized,” she recalls, “that this could be my last day.” For Lacey, the cold realization of mortality came with more irony than most. Lacey grew up in Southern California as a “wild child,” she says; reared through the foggy lens of addiction, growing into another high school dropout. Fortunately, an innate connection with nature provided some peace. She read how-to books on camping, and took her first backpacking trip at sixteen. Nature’s solace led her back to school, where she earned a GED and a teaching degree, and eventually her own classroom of sixth graders. She had two daughters. Life went on. Continue reading

Apr 19 | The Learning Curve: Episode 1 — Kayak Road Trips

by NRS Staff

We’re excited to introduce The Learning Curve, a unique paddling instruction series from Team NRS paddler, kayak instructor and videographer Chris Wing.

We all know there are lots of videos out there that cover paddling skills like rolling, strokes and safety. But what about those often overlooked details that separate mere paddlers from true boaters? The Learning Curve aims to share those little tricks that experienced boaters know but that the usual how-to books and videos don’t tell you. In this first episode, Chris and friends share some of their secrets for putting together awesome kayak road trips.