May 12 | Good Decisions: How Smart Kayaking Safety Techniques Saved a Kayaker’s Day

by Sam Drevo

The following scenario occured during filming for THE NOMAD, the first short film in our OF SOULS+WATER video series. While NRS ambassador Erik Boomer dropped a 78-foot waterfall, a group of paddlers, including fellow NRS ambassador Sam Drevo, used kayaking safety techniques below. Here, Sam explains how a series of smart choices and quick thinking saved the day when a successful run suddenly turned scary.

Continue reading →

May 9 | The New England Whitewater Triple Crown

by Elaine Campbell

This was the 4th year of the New England Whitewater Triple Crown on the Farmington River in Connecticut. What another great event that was put on by the organizers and volunteers. It’s a downriver race, slalom, and freestyle competition, and and you get points based on how you place in each event. Saturday is the qualifying day, with individual prizes, and Sunday is the day the Triple Crown gets awarded. Continue reading →

May 6 | Mexico Boating Adventures: Part I

by Lacey Anderson

Lacey Anderson had one heck of a boating year in 2011, rafting over 30 rivers in the U.S. and Mexico. In this first of a series of articles, the longtime guide and author of the Camp Cooking WITHOUT Coolers cookbook lets us ride along for a second descent of Mexico’s Mulatos-Aros River. 

The five of us looked wide-eyed with disbelief at what lay in front of us. The normally dry creek bed was flashing!

Mexico Whitewater, Copper Canyon
Many of Mexico’s best whitewater rivers can only be rafted during the monsoon season, when little creeks become raging whitewater rivers. We were headed for the put-in of the Mulatos-Aros River to do a 150-mile exploration. This would be a second descent. Continue reading →

Apr 27 | We’ve Come a Long, Long Way, Baby

by Clyde Nicely

All the life jackets we carry are U.S. Coast Guard Approved. In Making Sure Your PFD is Safe, we explain how extensive the testing is to earn that certification. This testing goes a long way toward assuring that any jacket you choose will do its job to keep you safe while you’re on the water.

After seeing a girl get her “horse collar” Type II vest pulled off over her head as she “maytagged” in a hole, I began looking for alternatives.

We’re fortunate to have so many jackets to choose from. Whether you’re kayaking on rivers or the ocean, rafting, fishing, canoeing, SUP boarding, sailing or enjoying any other watersport, there’s a life jacket that’s perfect for you. And they’re comfortable! Pick one that fits you well and you can wear it all day, no problem. There’s just no excuse for not wearing one. As we pointed out in Let’s Stop Senseless Loss of Life, all those lame excuses for not wearing yours are just that – lame excuses.

It wasn’t always this way. When I started boating back in the mid-70s, the jacket selection was much more limited. Continue reading →