Wi
LL
a
Maso
N
bor
n: 1997
HoM
e: Chelsea, QC
Hei
GHT
lauRen BuRRess
: 4’11”
wei
GHT
13
: 86 lbs
boa
Ts: Composite Creations
splash,
WheReveR The Wave IS In, ColoRado
esquif Blast
Year
s Pad
dlin
Car
G: 11
eer H
Age has never stopped Lauren Burress from achieving her goals. When it gets in the
iGH
liG
H
HT
oM
:
e
g
r
eorgian Bay and French
way, she usually finds a sneak and knocks the neoprene socks off her competition.
iver:
o
r
ttawa
iver Fo
Witness Lauren’s debut at the 2005 Teva Mountain Games. The 10-year-old—outfitted
o
r
d: P
iver river
.B. and banana sandwiches
Sto
rive
r d
a
head-to-toe in her trademark pink paddling gear with just two years of whitewater experi-
Ys: 16 per year y & P
R
Han
diC
a
ence under her rescue belt—astounded competitors by entering in the adult category
P: “Not quite finishing my roll.”
seC
re
hoto
T w
(there was no junior class) and placing second in the amateur division. Since then, she’s
eaP
on a rainy day
on:
Friendship braiding in the tent
By P
continued to claim wins in freestyle, slalom and boatercross events around the country.
neve
r s
e
Lauren says her favourite aspect of kayaking is its self-sufficiency, “On the water
e H
er wi
THo
uT:
“My nose plugs.”
U
a
l Ma
you’re in control and you have only yourself to depend on.” Learning how to overcome
on
S
fears on and off the water is one of Lauren’s strong suits. She cites the 22-foot waterfall
she ran the day before her 10th birthday as one of those mind-over-matter occasions.
“I had run a 15-foot falls and I wanted to break my record,” remembers the precocious
teenager. “I knew I was capable but fear was holding me back. When I finally ran it I was
Dougie
so proud to have conquered that fear.”
Lauren’s parents, Kathleen and Nathan Burress, are astonishingly supportive of their
M
ac
g
regor
daughter’s paddling. The family has moved three times to further her kayaking, most b
orn:
2004
oN
recently into an RV so they can follow the river flows and events circuit, emulating friends H
oM
e: Quadeville, P By S
hoto
and mentors, the Jackson family. Kathleen says there are many rewards to the nomadic H
eiG
HT:
3’2” C
SC
ott Ma
lifestyle they have chosen. “We have seen so many beautiful places that we wouldn’t
we
iGHT
: 32 lbs
ott
have visited otherwise and paddling has brought us closer as a family.” Being so in-
boa
Ts:
Jackson Fun 1, Prospector
G: 3
M
C
G
volved in Lauren’s kayaking has also eased a lot of parental anxieties for the Burresses.
Year
s P
add
lin a R
CGR e
G
“When she was younger we worried that she was too much of a daredevil,” admits
Car
eer H
iGH
liG
HT:
Four days on the Petawawa
o
e
R
G
Kathleen, “but now we know what she’s capable of.”
river
o
R
Despite being shut out last year from the Freestyle World Cup series in Europe—she
HoM
e r
ive
r: Madawaska
gor
P
took first place at the Junior U.S. National Championship qualifiers but didn’t meet the
rive
r Fo
od:
M&Ms in the
minimum age limit for World’s competition—Lauren has her sights set on the U.S. Na-
rive
r d
aYs:
35 last year
tional Team this year.
Han
diC
aP:
r
eaching the water
.”
Global domination may have to wait until her 15th birthday…unless Lauren finds a
seC
reT
wea
Pon:
Zebco 404 fishing reel
uT:
“My stuffed dog, Buddy
sneak. —V.M.
neve
r s
ee
HiM
wi
THo
GYPsY QueeN: “i like to travel—
i go where the water goes.”
Photo Kathleen BURReSS
footloose
fReestyle
champion
2 Rapid early summer 2009
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48