R I V E R S I G N A L S


Lunchtime at Palmer Fest. PHOTO: VIRGINIA MARSHALL


Kern River Festival, which he started in 1963. John- son was inducted into the International Whitewater Hall of Fame in 2006 for his six-decade-long contri- bution to paddlesports, including building the first fibreglass canoe in 1942; revolutionizing the sport through the design of the first roto-moulded plastic kayak, the Hollowform River Chaser, in 1974; and creating the Olympic training centre and slalom course on the Kern River. Look for paddling partners at www.boof.com—an all-whitewater, all-California forum with over 3,000 members. —Eds.


Trouble in Paradise My girlfriend is a local skier from Revelstoke, B.C., and she sent me a great letter that was recently printed in the Revelstoke Times Review. In light of Revelstoke appearing on your list of the 50 best places to live and paddle (“Best Whitewater Towns,” Spring 2010, www.rapidmag.com/rapid- mag_spring10), I thought your readers should consider this piece.


Cameron Dube PEMBROKE, ON


Praise for Palmer Fest


I had a great weekend at Palmer Fest. Thanks for a well-organized event.


Walter Brennan WHITEHORSE, YUKON


Thanks for another wonderful Palmer Fest. The logistical genius of the Rapid crew boggles the mind with the magic they accomplish. The instruc- tors’ pleasure in sharing their passion is amazing. Their patience and willingness to coach individu- als at the level they need shows a level of peda- gogical persistence and patience that any school board can only aspire to. And the films [of the Reel Paddling Film Festival] were inspiring. Looking forward to next year!


Gail Cowling TORONTO, ON


Thanks for a great weekend at Palmer Fest. My seven-year-old son, Oleksa, and I had a blast in the Intro Whitewater Kayaking Clinics. Ishtar [Lu- esby, kids’ clinics instructor] did a great job and my son is psyched to come back. We are hooked and very much looking forward to [next year]. I also saw Dougie Down the Pet [at the Reel Pad-


dling Film Festival]. Is that posted on You Tube or elsewhere? I would love to show that movie to my wife and younger son. We share a similar mindset on these matters. Hook them early in the stuff you love and you will have family activities for life.


Ostap Mojsiak TORONTO, ON


Dougie Down the Pet is a segment of the new ca- noeing film, This is Canoeing. Watch it at www. rapidmag.com/videos and buy the complete DVD at www.rapidmedia.com/store.—Eds.


Try Before Buying I read the review of the Esquif Raven (Boat In- sider, Spring 2009, www.rapidmag.com/rapid- mag_spring09) and was interested in the closing comment about the Raven succeeding the Esquif Vertige as a beginner boat. We don’t get a great


deal of whitewater here in the U.K., but having paddled the Vertige last year in Austria, I liked it immediately so figured I’d get one. After reading your review, my thoughts now are “shall I try the Raven?” My paddling at the moment is around class III and I like river running.


Les Connelly NORTHAMPTON, UK


We wrote Les the following reply this spring: “We’re of the mind that you must try a boat before you buy it. We’re also of the mind that if a boat feels right, buy it. If the Vertige feels great then get it, paddle it, love it. If you try the Raven later on, you’ll have something to compare it to and you’ll know if you prefer it to your Vertige. Then buy and sell.” A few weeks later, Les wrote back with an update: “I tested the Raven this weekend and had another go in the Vertige…after three hours of playing I was completely sold on the Raven. I sent my cheque off to the dealer this morn- ing.” —Eds.


Whitewater Pioneer Seeks


Paddling Partner I have been a whitewater kayaker since 1976 when I bought my first kayak from Tom Johnson in Kernville, California. He taught me how to kayak right there in the Kern River by Riverside Park. I spent the next six years kayaking in the High Sierras on the Kings, Merced, Stanislaus and Mokelumne. Then I moved to San Francisco to be closer to the big whitewater rivers and ran the Tuolumne (including Cherry Creek), all three forks of the American, both forks of the Feather and the upper Sacramento. I’m 65 this year and haven’t been my boat since


2004, but I want to get back into kayaking this year. [Can you suggest] any kayaking clubs in California so I can get in touch with someone to paddle with on weekends?


Peter M. McFarland SAN FRANCISCO, CA


Tom Johnson is now 92 and still living in Kernville. Johnson continued instructing and paddling into his late eighties and helps out every year with the


“[It’s interesting] to look at cultural imperial- ism in the context of a small ski town [like] Revelstoke…Resort town imperialists [colo- nize] new territory...by consuming both land and culture. This is done vis-à-vis the hyper- marketing of the ski town as the next “must- see” resort destination. Magazine articles and ski movies are soon filled with the che- rubic faces of the imperialist foot soldiers— the skiing youth—espousing the radness of this “new” ski resort Mecca. The saddest aspect of this endeavour is


the fact that these foot soldiers (AKA the toque-and-dog-crowd) are a ski culture cliché and they don’t even know it. This in- cludes all you hype machine hawkers, “first” descent bloggers and ski pornographers. It’s pathetic that you think people care about your 540 spin, the setting of your DIN, or the hair on your chin. Whether you wax po- etic about the peaks bagged, the chicks shagged, or lines tagged. You’re vocally lo- cal but not a local yokel. You’re a victim of the resort town imperialist system and you don’t even know it. Revelstoke had a rich and unique cul-


ture before you arrived…Is it not absurd to think that you have discovered the skiing in Revelstoke when the community is home to one of the oldest ski clubs in Canada? The bottom line is people have skied every line you have a long time before you. The least you can do is offer a little respect for the community from which you have taken so much. Slow down the development and enjoy the scenery.”


Toby Bellis REVELSTOKE


SPECIAL: CREEKIN’ STARTER KIT WWW.RAPIDMAG.COM


SOUTH FORK MIDDLE TULE, CA PADDLER: TAYLOR ROBERTSON PHOTO: DARIN MCQUOID


WRITE US: Rapid welcomes reader comments and letters to the editor. Send correspondence to: editor@ rapidmag.com. Letters chosen for publication are subject to editing for style and sarcastic replies.


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