After a bit of rain in Mid Wales, a group of us went for a Park & Huck on one of the most beautiful, hidden away little gems in the area. The main event is a double drop in a fantastic gorge, and we spent a bit of time taking some nice shots.
15
Apr
14
Apr
Paddling the Everest
I’m just back from a month long mission in Nepal and Morocco for which I got my hands on a brand new Pyranha Everest for some multiday action. My first reaction on seeing the the massive Everest was ‘I’m never going to be able to paddle this’. At 75 kilos, I thought the Everest would be simply too big for me to enjoy.
I was wrong. With a bit of practice, and some adjustment of technique, I can attest that the Everest must be the best multiday expedition boat or big volume creek boat on the market at the moment. Larger paddlers will love the volume behind the seat, but even lighter paddlers can really appreciate this boat.
The first thing to say about the Everest is that it is not the Burn. The Burn is a classic in its own right, super manoeuverable and responsive and incredible easy edge to edge for rolling flares and boofs. My first day in the Everest on the Upper Bhote Kosi was a disaster as I was trying to paddle the Everest as if it were a Burn and as a result missing eddies, messing up lines.
But about half way down the Bhote Kosi, I began to paddle the Everest like it should be paddled; fast, hard and in a straight line. Gone are the subtle adjustments and edge control of the Burn, in favour of speed and power. The speed was incredible, charging over and through sticky ledge holes as if they didn’t exist.
On the Marsyandi (2 days) and Karnali (5 days), loaded with self support gear the Everest handled beautifully, with no noticable loss of performance (unlike the vast majority of creek boats which start handling like pigs with more than two or three days gear in them). In fact the main issue I had with the Everest was coming to terms with its tremendous speed and not overcooking moves.
The Burn will remain my boat of choice for technical, low volume creeks. But for multiday expeditions, and for big volume creeks like in Norway, the Everest is unbeatable.
Phots by Rosie Cripps and Rob Coffey
For more info on recent missions check out liveoncemedia.com
14
Apr
14
Apr
Road Trippin
I just got back from running around the West Coast premiering our new video “Pulse”. I was fortunate enough to hit some rivers in Cali, Colorado, and Idaho. Here are some photos of the action. This weekend I also competed in the Northwest Creeking Competition and will put up some photos when I get them, really looking forward to Little White Giant Slalom Race next weekend.
08
Apr
Something of a contrast…
Swapping play boat for creek boat, 40 degrees C to -5, sun for snow, big volume for low, Africa for Scotland…
The River Nile, steaming at sunrise, Uganda
Snow capped Etive Valley, Glen Coe, Scotland
The now ritual, Easter, low water, trek to the west coast of Scotland. With Snow capped hills and daily flurries whilst on the water it was a shock to the system to say the least! However getting back to grips with the Burn and getting back out on the UK rivers was awesome…
Photos from the River Etive
Thanks to Birmingham University Kayak Club, for organising the trip and creating much amusement both on and off the river
Stay Warm
Ben
11
Mar
Revin it up in Uganda…
The cold winter days get to you here in the UK, so winter sun is where its at. Armed with the new Rev and a pair of boardies we left the below freezing weather conditions of Europe and headed out to the equatial country of Uganda and the bath water temperature of the Nile…
 Blunting on 50 / 50
09
Mar
New River Dries
Massive rains in the Eastern US mean massive waves on the New River Dries. I bee-lined it for West Virginia to put the Rev through it’s paces on a big wave.
22
Feb
(No title)
A tough boof on the Riñinahue.
Still down here in Chile making the most of low water. A group of us headed south from Pucon en route to the Futaleufu to hang out and kayak for the remainder of our stay here in Chile. On the way we ran the Salto del Nilahue and got a possible 1st descent of 2 drops on the Riñinahue near by.
19
Feb
Looking good in the Rev!
Last weekend there was a big exhibition show in Munich – all about outdoor, caravans, sports… I was asked together with a friend to give some little freestyle shows in the pool of the water sports section there with our new Revs. The worked amazingly well in the flatwater, the loops were quite easy to control, heaps of fun! We actually had quite a lot of spectators, even though we made them wet all the time…