I spent the last 44 days of break rain dancing and praying for water so I could run more stouts. Our entire first week back in Pucon was cold and rainy, but it was great because the river levels were coming up. The only problem? Now more rapids were it  finally in and school had started. This time I was lucky, my mom had been visiting for a little while and was able to sign me out of school to go kayaking. 

Brown Deere

Dropping in, no turning back

I love free fall!

Our hostel in Choshuenco was small but in a perfect location. It is only ten minutes away from the put in for the lower Fuy or twenty away from the put in for the upper, making it easy to go for a quick paddle after a long day of school. The upper section is a fun run with a few bigger drops. It has a 20+ footer that is easy to walk up to run as many times as you desire. There are a few other fun drops and technical rocky rapids on the upper. On the lower section of the Fuy there are lots of fun bigger volume rapids with less rocks and more flat water. This part of the river empties out into the lake near our hostel so when running the lower we would take out on the lake and walk back to the hostel. The convenient location of the lake also made it possible to paddle for morning workout, which was a great experience. The lake was even more beautiful with the fog rising off of it in the morning. Overall, our time in Choshuenco was amazing. I know I will miss it!

The beautiful beach in Choshuenco.

Rule of Thirds

In any photography class or instructional video, it is more than likely that the first thing you will be taught is the rule of thirds. The rule of thirds is the rule that when taking a photo you should place your subject in a third of your frame. This is done to keep photos more interesting with no dead space.

The tree in the right hand side allows for an interesting use of space in my photo.

Balancing Elements

This technique has proven to be one of the more difficult ones that we were assigned in class. It is when a picture has two elements that are similar in shape and size in a photo and they balance each other out.

In this photo I balanced the cowboy spurs with the two wine bottles.

Leading Lines

Leading lines is one of my favorite techniques to use when taking photos. It is when you use any type of line to lead the eye in a photo. It could be lines of a street leading to a car or lines from a building leading to a person. You can get very creative with it and it definitely makes interesting photos.

The line of the fence creates an interesting leading lines shot.

Symmetry and Patterns

This technique makes for some very compelling photos. It is all about finding something that strikes you as symmetrical or something that had an interesting pattern and taking an interesting shot of it. For these photos a centered, straight on photo can be strong or you can get creative and use different angles to enhance the pattern.

An interesting pattern I found outside a house in Choshuenco.

View Points

Some things look a lot better if they are shot from an interesting angle. This technique is about shooting from a different angle that does the subject justice. Sometimes getting to such angles can be difficult but it if definitely worth it for the photos that it produces.

A shot of the waves of the beach from an interesting perspective.

Background

When you want your subject to really stand out, use this technique. This is a very simple one.  Either place or find a subject that is in front of a solid colored background and snap a shot. They will seem to pop out of the photo. Try to make use of the color of your background to complement your subject. Black and white backgrounds can also make strong photos.

I used the nice blue background to enhance the subject.

Depth of Field

Depth of field is great when you are taking landscape photos. It allows you to take a photo that focuses on the whole picture by using different levels up depth. For example you can have something in the front of your photo like a vehicle that is close to you then also have focus on mountains in the background. This technique is also good for taking close up shots because you can emphasize the depth of your subject by taking a shot very close to it.

The tree in the foreground adds depth to the rest of the photo.

Framing

This technique is used to create a frame for your subject out of something in your photo. For example you can use trees hanging over the road to frame your subject that is on the road. It is a great technique to make landscape photos more interesting.

The trees above the sidewalk create a frame for the boy.

Cropping

Some photos are a lot stronger if you only take a part of them. To crop something you do this by cutting off a part of your subject. Cropping makes a strong photo because it puts more emphasis on the part of your photo that you are cropping. This is good for close ups and can make portrait photos more interesting.

I used cropping to make a more interesting photo of the already beautiful flowers.

Experimentation

Experimentation is where you get creative with your photos. Try anything! This technique is exactly as it sounds. Experiment with your shots until you get something cool. Sometimes experimentation makes the best photos.

Experimentation is my favourite element of composition!

Using edge control to drive a boof stroke on the first drop of the Upper Palguin.

You might be asking, why should I improve my edge control? The answer is simple : If you can’t control your boat, you are not going to be able to control where it goes.

Everything in kayaking comes back to the most basic skills, especially edge control. Edging your boat teaches you balance, and it makes you more comfortable with your boat. How you weight your edges determines how your boat turns and interacts with the water, whether it is a skill as fundamental as peeling out of
an eddy or attempting a McNasty.

One drill I really like to work on edge control in the flat water is practicing tilting your boat on edge while keeping neutral and centered. This is a great drill to try to do without having your paddle in the water. Keeping your paddle out of the water teaches you balance, and forces you to use your abdominal muscles.

This is what you are going to do. Keeping your body neutral, pull your right knee up, keeping your left edge in contact with the water.

To make yourself more stable, make sure that your body position isnice and forward over your cockpit. Look straight ahead, finding a point to focus on. Some coaches will have you look down towards the water, to emphasize the proper body position for this drill, and to clearly see how far you can maintain holding your edge out of the water.

Try and balance without placing your paddle blade in the water! If you need to brace, or start to lose your balance, decrease the amount of edge you are using.

Once you have this drill dialed on both sides, try rocking your boat once you have it balanced on edge. You don’t do this by thrusting your paddle back and forth in the water. Your body weight is responsible for the movement of your boat. Your paddle is only there to give you a little extra leverage.

Start trying this drill without using your paddle first. You want to hold your boat on edge, while throwing your body back and forward, first towards the stern and then towards the bow. It is easier to throw towards your stern first because your stern has less volume, and is easier to slice underwater. The momentum from throwing back will help slam your bow forwards and under. This will help to transition into working on the double pump.

Another  drill I like to do is when you are on edge, try paddling in a circle while maintaining the edge. If you have your right edge engaged, you are circling towards the left, and visa versa. This is a great drill to try in a pool, where you can easily pick visuals to guide your circle, starting and stopping in the same spot. I always have people start by trying to only paddle on the outside of the circle. This is because having your paddle on the outside of the circle helps guide your boat into the circle more easily.

Make sure you try these drills on both edges!

Charging

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I was lucky enough to get a GoPro camera over break, and have had a lot of fun so far testing it out on the rivers in Chile over my break. The majority of the school went home for Christmas, but I got to stay the entire 6 weeks in Chile, running some stouter rapids. One of the rapids I was most excited to run was “Stout 10″: a burly 10 foot boof that is right above the Middle Palguin, a 70 foot waterfall into a flat pool.

Still Charging

Line Up

Boof

Land

Style

Throw a Brown Claw

Ferry

Feel the Rush

Enjoy The View

Ride It Proud

Check Your Vitals

Fist Pump

Here is a photo sequence I took with my Go Pro of running Stout 10 on Middle Palguin in Chile. I had great lines on both and great fun! I will let the photos say the rest. Hopefully you can get a sense of what it was like to run it.  Enjoy!

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Its Easy to Apply to New River Academy

Using Torso Rotation to Pan Am on Nile Special

New River Academy is back in Chile to kick off our spring semester. We are excited to welcome Jackson Team member Stephen Wright to the team as our Head coach for our time in Chile. Our first day out, we took advantage of our location on the banks of the Trancura river to do a flat water workout. It was great to get everyone back on the water, and to start off the semester by re-emphasizing some of the foundational skills inherent to improving as a kayaker. The following day we had a team paddle on the upper Trancura, where we worked on increasing power in our forward strokes.

Both days, whether river running or playboating, one of the main points that we kept coming back to was the importance of torso rotation for kayaking, and how few paddlers use torso rotation properly. But what exactly is torso rotation? What can we do to improve upon it off the water?

Uppavista Navasana: Feet planted on the floor, belly button drawn up and in.

Lift your torso up out of your hip sockets, rotate to the right, leading from the belly button.

Lean back slightly as you open your arms. Focus on rotating from the belly button, opening your chest and shoulders.

Torso Rotation refers to the action of rotating your torso, or upper body area to gain power for paddle strokes and other motions. Through rotation, the large muscles in your core “wind up”, rather like a spring. When you unwind, these muscles release, allowing for a short burst of power.

This rotation and release is where majority of your power comes from for the kayaker. It  helps to load and power even the most basic forward and sweep strokes, and it is torso rotation that allows for the majority of freestyle kayaking moves- from the simple cartwheel or bowstall, to blunts and other more advanced moves.

One of the main reasons torso rotation is done improperly is that many kayakers rotate from the shoulder girdle, rather than from the lower part of the torso. This is a common mistake in many yoga poses as well. This means that even though your shoulders move from side to side, your ribcage, lower torso and the majority of your abdominal muscles remain still.

I find one of the best visuals for proper rotation is to imagine as though your belly button had a flashlight in it. To rotate properly, you want the beam of the flashlight to move. This means lifting the torso up out of the hip sockets, and leading the rotation from the navel.This twists the lower part of the core, leaving the shoulder girdle quiet and the spine in a single, straight line from hip to crown.

Upavista Navasana : Variation with rotation. 

One great exercise to build core strength and aid in proper rotation is this variation on upavista navasana- or upward boat pose. Core strength is essential for any kayaker- and any yogi! Having a strong core helps protect your spine, support your posture and power your paddling/poses

.

Start seated, knees bent up towards the sky, feet planted firmly on the ground in front of you. Crown of the head is lifted, belly button is drawn in towards the spine. Palms are together in prayer, in front of your heart, elbows out to the side.

Inhale, lift your torso up out of your hip sockets, exhale, rotate to the right, leading from the belly button. Inhale lift, and rotate back to center. Exhale, repeat to the opposite side.

For added variation, as you exhale and rotate, open your arms and lean back slightly. Inhale, hands return to prayer as you lift and rotate back to neutral.

For those who like an additional abdominal workout, try lifting your feet off the floor. This  balancing forces your core muscles to work harder to stabilize your torso as you rotate. I find it is easiest to start by lifting one leg at a time, finding your balance before you begin your rotation.

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Futaleufu is a Classic Chilean paddling destination. Soon to be the Kayak Schools home in Patagonia.

After a beautiful but dry Christmas break at home in Idaho, snow flakes and flurries were forecasted to flood in just about the time I was supposed to take off for my much anticipated return to the kayaking promised land of Chile.  Luckily, everyone’s flights just snuck through between storms and we are all happily back at our home base in Pucon and ready for a semester filled with local creeks and rivers, as well as journeys and stays to the waterfalls and big waves of the Fuy and the Futaleufu.

Chile is the land of perfect waterfalls for kayakers of all skill levels.

This quarter, we are indescribably excited to have Stephen Wright as our full time head coach.  Since we arrived a week ago, the students have already indulged in his succinct and bottomless knowledge on the sport of kayaking in the disciplines of both freestyle and creeking.  While in Pucon, the team will continue to paddle and play on the Palguin, the Trancura (our back-door river), and the Liacura, which has an excellent play hole in right now.

Tomorrow, we take off for a ten-day stay on the Fuy River, which is known for it’s beautiful water, jungle setting, and mix of fun surf and waterfalls.  Its different sections offer all levels of paddlers challenges and it is the perfect place to practice boofing, plugging, precise river running, and wave and downriver freestyle moves.

We are looking forward to a group of parents meeting us on the Fuy River for the first leg of the New River Academy Parent Trip.  The trip is being led by Clay Wright and Kurt Casey, two of the best and most well-known paddlers in the world… only the best for New River Academy parents!  In between hikes, optional kayaking, and other ventures, the parents will be able to visit and attend classes, watch kayaking practice, and see first hand the wonderful opportunities that their children get to experience every day.

Chile is no stranger to stunning scenery. Like this view of Rio Yesso.

After a brief return to Pucon, the team will head south to the world acclaimed Futaleufu River in Northern Patagonia.  A truly magical valley of steep and stunning mountains and unbelievable bright-blue water, this is a river that captures the hearts of everyone who has the privilege of visiting.  We will be based right on the Futa and will have big water rapids and play waves right outside our tents and cabins for three entire weeks!

I certainly am excited for what’s to come… it seems you just can’t beat Chile!

Paul strikes a pose, and looks suspiciously like Galen.

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Paul drops into Garberator on the Ottawa. The funny thing is that Hayley, Paul, and I were on the Ottawa at the same time this year, but didn't meet until now!

Hey everyone its Drew McEachern here again, back in Chile with NRA for the start of our second semester. Now the big question at New River Academy right now is “who is this new student?” He looks like everyone would imagine Paul Bunyon the lumberjack with the big cow! But who is he really? Well, his name is Paul Raymond and he is joining the New River crew for the rest of the year. He was in the gap year program at the start, so none of the students really knew who he was. But once we all meet up in Pucon we found out he was in the school and not in gap year! Paul is 18 years old from Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, he has been paddling for the past 7 years or so and rocks a big bushy beard. Now that Seth has shaved Paul has the best beard outta everyone in New River Academy. Here is our interview with Paul:

Thanks to Hayley for her help on the interview.

DM: What made you want to come to NRA?

PR: 5 years ago, My older sister Taylor and I went to the Nantahala river with her friend Joey Hall. Joey was impressed by my paddling and recommended the school to me.

HS: Does your sister taylor still kayak?

PR: Yes, she still has my first boat, a yellow kingpin 6.2 when I grew out of it. She still has it and paddles when she can

DM: What inspired you to grow a beard?

PR: The fact that I could, and it keeps me warm. And it makes me look older than I am.

HS: What do you like to do besides kayaking?

PR: Scuba diving, anything involvolving boats, like fishing, sailing, waterskiing. Anything involving a boat. I grew up in South Florida where everybody boats. Its natural. My parents own two boats, a 32 foot ocean master, with 250 HP Yamaha fourstroke, and my boat was a gift for going to college, an 18 foot grady white with a 150 four stroke Yamaha.

DM: What were you doing in college?

PR:I was taking engineering classes during my sophomore year in highschool at Florida Atlantic Univeristy. It was a little boring, and I had to write a 20 page thesis paper at the end of it, but it good.

HS:Where is your favorite place to scuba dive?

PR:My favorite place is probably off the coast of Mexico at cazumel. There are sheer cliffs underwater at 150 feet, which just drop off into the abyss. There are caves, it was amazing. I have also been to the Great Barrier reef in Australia. I have logged hundreds of dives, some off the coast of venezula, Hawaii and California (which was the coldest place!).

DM:Does Scuba dive help kayaking at all?

PR:No- but I heard a story from Tino about Steve Fisher in the Congo, and he was using a rebreather  tank like we use in Scuba.

HS:What are you excited for with your time at New River?

PR :Graduating Highschool!

DM: Are you going to go University next year?

PR: I think I might take a semester off, and go in the spring, but I haven’t applied yet, and don’t know where I want to go.

HS: What has been your favorite part of Chile so far?

PR: I got here on the 11^th of January and went to Maipo with the Gap year program, before surfing at Pichelemu and coming down to Pucon. My favorite was probably the time we spent at Cascadas de las Animas where we stayed in Maipo with the Astorga family.

DM: What is your background in kayaking, do you do more freestyle or riverrunning/creeking?

PR: I don’t particuarily enjoy playboating because I have found that sometimes they are arrogant- they are paddling to better their image, rather than themselves. I like to relate them to attackmen in Lacrosse. I have played Lacrosse even longer than I have been kayaking, 11 or 12 years. I play defense, but the attackmen don’t do any work. They get the ball passed to them, and they are really good at one thing, which is throwing the ball into the net for the goal, but that gets them all the glory. That is how I see playboaters.

HS: Do you feel that way about all playboaters?

PR: It’s a generalization, there are plenty of playboaters who are very humble and great to paddle with. You have to know someone really really well before you can judge them. It isn’t that I don’t like playboaters, I just don’t like the mentality that comes with it. It is when people kayak not for themselves, but to show off that I don’t enjoy it.

HS: How do you like the quarter so far? Is it different than what you expected?

PR:Its good, its different. Yeah, I suppose.  Part of why I was here is because this has been a dream of mine for a long time to actually come here, so sometimes it is hard when dreams become reality.

DM: Well, I don’t agree with all of your opinion about playboaters, but were excited to have you here Paul!

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