Ottawa Valley ... Love

Finally back on the Ottawa River ! After spending the past year and a half traveling back and forth from New Zealand, Quebec and California, hitting up all the amazing steep creeking these places have to offer, I must admit I was stoked to get back to my home waters of the Ottawa. There is something to be said about floating down big, warm water not worring about the next eddy you need to catch, which is in stark contrast to most steep creeking. Plus it has been great re-learning how to make my kayak fly.

The Ottawa Valley ... it's just one of those places, a perfect mixture of endless, all-time kayaking and great friends. Enjoy a few pics from my first week back on Garb.

Marcos with a beaut of a back pan-am

  Yep re-learning to fly high

Tyler with the beginnings of a nice clean blunt

So fresh and so clean

 Flash back ... for sure, its been a couple years since I've been on this wave.

  Mmmmmm

 

Had my biggest (probably only) fan out to cheer me on

Tired of cheering, Lu decides to get on the wave and throw down

Getting the Flash backs to come around

Tino poping some nice air off the left shoulder

Just wanted to say a big thanks to:
Wave Sport for the shiney new Project X 56, nothing like a fresh hull on a fast wave ... POP.
Level Six for keeping me dry in my comfy Chocee shorty and Play skirt combo ... Pimp
H2O Paddles for the great stick, I love play boating with my H2O Team paddle ... Power

Anyways, hope you enjoyed the few photos. I am off to Big Joe right now at the Lachine Rapids in Montreal for some more epic wave riding, so stay tuned for some more photos.
Ohh yeah and I might even get all my spring time Cali photos back soon ... fingers crossed.

Cheers,

Tyler Fox

Cali to Canada ... the long way.

As the last remnants, of an all too quick season, trickle down the smooth granite of California’s high Sierras I am sitting in a Tim Hortons, 4000 km away, too broken from the savage drive across the continental North America to finish the last 300km to my home and the comforts of the Ottawa Valley. As I try to find any recollection of what it is like to be a human… I have somehow transformed into a kilometer crushing, driving machine, fueled by a bad mixture of shitty fast food and energy drinks, I take comfort in the memories of another Fantastic California season.

Thanks to a bad snow pack in Quebec and some great advice from Lu, I found myself flying into San Fran mid April to be greeted by Nick Wimsett and what was promising to be a very action packed month and a half of snow melt in California’s high sierras. My season snowballed from; hard to find paddling partners and easy-ish low elevation runs, to having a massive group on some of the hardest runs Cali has to offer. And I wouldn’t change a thing; it’s definitely the people and the places that make any kayaking trip unforgettable.

Fast-forward a week, and I am once again sitting in front of my computer, this time I am staring at nothing and by nothing I mean the blank space on my screen where I would normally find the icon for my external hard drive … it isn’t going to show up. I have committed the ultimate mistake and forgotten to back-up my hard drive. At some point during my drive across the country it (the hard drive) decided to give up the ghost and take with it my entire collection of photos and video from this past season in Cali.

So, as I would love to share with everyone the amazing places I have been fortunate to paddle recently, you will have to hang in there a little while longer (I am hoping my amazing friends will come to the rescue and send me their copies of said photos). In the meantime here are a couple shots I had on my desktop.

An easy formula to follow:  Good Friends + Beautiful Places = Great Kayaking

Amazing group of people, enjoying a sun-set at Morro Rock. Photo Josh Neilson

 

Amazing scenery, the perfect granite teacups of South Silver. Photo Lu Urwin

One of my all-time favorite boofs, Hospital Rock section of East Kaweah. Photo Josh Neilson 

More Updates and fantastic photos to come ... hopefully.

Cheers,

Tyler Fox

Team Wave Sport, Level Six, H20, Hydraulics

 

 

First Descent of Maretu Stream, NZ

It started 2 years ago, after just landing in NZ I was instantly beconed over to the East coast of the North Island, where Josh Neilson and Matt Danes had a "surprise" they wanted to share with me. What insued would become one of NZ's most epic First Descents ... Waihi Stream (but that's another story LINK ) This is a story about what happened after that amazing day.

The Waihi trip lit a fire / a need to find more of this amazing East Coast whitewater. With help from Matt Danes, who is a Google Earth Guru, we searched the counrty side looking for steep creeks big enough to hold some water. The Maretu Stream had been on the radar for quite awhile, but it was either a lack of rain/water in the area or a lack of people to convice to make a gamble on the trip, and in doing so miss out on a day of creeking in the Kaimai's, that kept this creek un-run ... untill this April.

The Gisborne area had been getting smashed by a big cyclone system over a few days, filling all the creeks to the brim ... water - Check. A phone call to the ever-keen Brendan Bayly and a few others from the Okere Falls Massive and I had a solid crew lined up ... team - Check. However there was just one small obstacle left to overcome. The intense rain fall had caused several, rather large landslides to wash the one and only road from Hawkes Bay to Gisborne out. So there I am sitting at home with all the stars alined and I can't get there ... arrrrgh!

Eventually, tired of sitting around waiting we packed the car and took our chances with being able to get through the slides. And as if it was meant to be we timed our arrival perfect just getting through the washout before they closed the road for the night.

Setting the epic 3 hr shuttle in the morning we were finally on the water, after 2 years of planning and waiting.

The river started with consistant low angle slides over smooth papa, and knowing there was much more gradient to come ... we got excited.

Brendan Bayly running one of the many papa slides early on

However, after a kilometer or so the river changed character and became much more boulder choked. And before long became fairly sieved out. We started walking one rapid then paddling the next, and this repeated itself until we got to the entrance to a beautiful looking gorge. Unfortunately, half way through was an impassable rapid, which forced us to hike high up above the gorge. Ryan Lucas managed to drop his boat into this gorge after almost falling in himself, but luckily his boat pinned at the one point in the entire gorge we could get rope to. So with the help of the entire crew we were able to pull his, only slightly dented, boat from the river. Only a couple km's into the run we had already spent a couple hrs on the water ... we got a bit apprehensive.

 

Ryan Lucas trying to recover his boat from a bad place.

  

The Mohaka Boys, Kendal and Drew thinking ... what have we got into.

To everyone's relief, below the gorge the river took back its smooth papa character and plunged its way down countless steep slides, a handful of stunning vertical drops, some large size hydraulics and off one monster of a 30m drop. It was nothing but good clean fun for the remaining 10 or so km's to the take out.

  Tyler Fox enjoying a fun 4m boof

 

Going back for seconds Ryan decided to play around and practice his freewheel

Tyler and Ryan rope down around the 30m drop after lengthy consideration

 

Tyler Fox sends the ultra clean 10m drop on Maretu Stream.

All in all, I would say this has been a highly successful first descent, definitely a classic in the making and I am already looking forward to getting back in there. And in the words of Brendan Bayly "Another foot would be nice". 

Check out a sweet video put together by Brendan from a bit of GoPro footage from the day:
http://vimeo.com/42092545

Cheers to a wicked crew for making it happen: Tyler Fox, Brendan Bayly, Willz Martin, Kendal Warmington, Drew Sullen, Ryan Lucas and Louise Jull.

Keep Exploring

Tyler Fox

NZ Surf Sessions

Well, as if my list of things I  NEED to do hasn't been long enough ... I've found a new addiction. Last summer I started surfing while in NZ. I had forgotten how much fun it is to learn a new sport, and how quick that learning curve is at the begining. Each new ride or different wave was a new personal best, maybe the fastest you've gone, the longest ride or the biggest wave, then before long you are actually in control and starting to turn the board and carve it, which quickly leads into mini sprays and top turns ... everythings new and exciting!

Last Sept/Oct I took my first ever non-kayaking trip to Nicaragua for 6 weeks of surfing (but that is another story, I'll post some pics later).

This NZ summer was fairly average for kayaking, we got a lot of days of rain, but very few rain events that amounted to enough water to hit the creeks. Our saving grace was the fact that the swell was quite good, meaning there was lots of surfing to be done.

Here are a few shots I managed to get from a small surf trip I took during my last couple weeks in NZ. Of course none of the shots are of me ... or for that matter people I was surfing with. It was very interesting coming from kayaking where it is easy to document your adventures, into surfing where because of the consistently changing conditions there is no way you are going to sit on the beach and watch / photo your friends surfing these amazing waves ... you are in the water from the moment you get there till the moment the swell dies down, the tide changes, the wind changes or your ride is pulling out of the parking lot. It is that fear that the waves could die down at any moment or you might miss out on the set of the day ... Classic FOMO!

This sight will get any surfers blood going. Beautiful lines wrapping into Raglans, Manu Bay.

 

Scenic landscape on the shores of Whale Bay.

Bit of a sketchy place to hop in on a big day, this dude not phased at all.

Some quality waves rolling into Raglans, Whale Bay The dude on the waves 'right' didn't make the section but the guy on the left got a sweet 100m ride

Fantastic sunset surf.

Probably one of NZ's best surf spot Raglans Indicators Waves everywhere, a non stop onslaught of perfect waves at Inside Indies

Yep tough to beat

Just a couple people out, there were at least 30-40 people out by 7am

  

B-dog enjoying his downy after a 5:30am surf session at Whale Bay Walking out for a sunrise surf at Kiritehere

Tyler Fox taking a time out at Kiritehere

A nice fun wave for the only guy left in the water at Kiritehere

Some choppy waves out front at Kiritehere

Not a good place to eat shit, Kiritehere

  

We met some friends along the way and saw some stuff.

Some fun small waves at Te Awanga

Maxi stoked on some fun small waves at Newdicks Beach in Makatu

Josh Neilson getting laid back on a SUP, Newdicks Beach

On my way to Cali for some Kayaking ... but looking forward to my next surf session!

Tyler Fox

NZ Extreme Race Series - Kaituna & Wairoa Races

Its been a pretty full on couple weeks of competition/action down here in Okere Falls, NZ. We've recently wrapped up the 'unofficial' Andy Duff race (a mass start race down the Kaituna River at open gates-High water), the Championship Race (a bike, swim, paddle, run, beer chug around Okere Falls), and most recently, this past weekend, we held the back-to-back events of the Kaituna Time Trial (2 combined time trials down the Kaituna River) and the Wairoa Xtreme Race (time trial seeds a Head-to-Head bracket).  

Thankfully there are a lot of fairly to extremely competitive people living in the area, so it has been easy to organize a good turnout.  Even though the river was at open gates there were at least 20+ that showed up for the 'Unofficial' Andy Duff Face. Unfortunately my gopro was knocked off the nose of my boat early on in the race and I had to pull over to remove it, missing all the mayhem. No surprise here local racing guru Kenny Mutton battled off all the young pups and took the win.

The Championship Race is the brain child of imaginary Jamie Sutton. Members of the Okere Falls Massive are known for there multiple activities in one day, whether it be paddling, surfing, mountain biking etc... so Jamie decided to smash as many diciplines into one race as he could fit, born was the championship race. A short sprint to your bike followed by an immediate uphill road bike which eventually turns into a sweet downhill trip. you ditch your bike and run and dive into Lake Rotoiti and swim down the outlet towards the start of the Kaituna River. Getting out to avoid the control gates it is another short swim down a couple smaller rapids. Hoping in the kayaks it is a full river race to the bottom of the river, where you have to carry your boat up to the car park. From here it is a short 1.5km run to the Okere Falls Store where a nice cold German beer is waiting for you .... to skull as fast as you can !! Your time ends when you are finished the entire beer. Needless to say it was an amazing event, won by the event organizer Jamie Sutton. Myself and Josh took out the first place for tandom, we rode a sweet tandom bike and paddled a topo-duo.

Myself and Josh team up for a tandom go at the Championship Race

The Kaituna Time Trial went off with out a hitch, the weather was perfect and lots of good people showed up to have a fun day on the water. The results are at the bottom of this post if you want to check them out. Unfortunately, with helping organize and racing we were unable to get any photos.

 

The 2012 Kaituna River Time Trial Winners, Louise Jull & Kenny Mutton

 The Wairoa Xtreme Race was the sunday event. The river has been constantly changing since the giant floods, that moved lots of rocks around and ripped out all the vegetation on the sides, last summer, so it was pretty much a new race for all competitors. The first part of the day was a time trial from the seal launch at the put-in to the eddy above the waterfall. Everyones times from the time trial then seeded them into a bracketing system, which played out with head-to-head races down the waterfall rapid and rollarcoaster. The rollarcoaster rapid has changed the most and made for a rowdy end to a short, fast, action packed race course. Through the day there were lots of epic battles and huge upsets making for one of the best events of the year. Results at the bottom.

We were lucky enough to have Shilo Gibson there to snap some shots for us, as once again I was helping run and racing in the event. Also big thanks to Lousie Urwin, Brendan Bayly and Neil & Patti Sutton for organizing the race. Check out some of the better shots from the day. 

Louise hard at work

 

sometimes drastic matters are needed to get peoples attention

 

The boys discussing pre-game strategy

 

Josh Neilson ... I can do this with my eyes closed, Dan Riley ... outta my f***ing way 

Making the crucial boof stoke to keep yourself on top of the water 

Not making it leads to syncronized submarine racing

After spending that much time underwater you just can't get enough air! 

Baby Bird spending some time surfing the hole

Ryan about to be passed after getting surfed

Ryan not going to take it, with a sweet spin out and win of the race

 

Jamie showing Josh why he's king of the Wairoa

 

Toni George looking for the victory over competitor Kim Dodd

 

Lu Jull trying to go up and over Nikki Whitehead 

 

Amazing ender!

 

Just Amazing! 

 

Tyler Fox staying one step ahead of Carl Whitehead for a quarter final win

 

Sweet helmet and Willz Martin both looking super stylish

 

 Kenny getting some pop out of the cauldron

 

Looking rather happy about his semi final win

 

Looking for an opening at the finish line

 

Toni George heading for her second Wairoa Race title over Nikki

 

Mens final looking a bit sloppy through the cauldron

 

Jamie back out in front for second time in the race

 

Jamie getting a bit tail stood, while Kenny Mutton stays in the fast water

 

Kenny about to take the lead for second time in the race

 

It doesn't get any closer than this for a Final Race, mere meters from the finish banner

 

I think Kenny wants to strangle Jamie after a super close finish

The 2012 Winners of the Wairoa Extreme Race, Toni George & Jamie Sutton 

Huge Congrats to Jamie Sutton who has just won himself the first announced position in the 2nd Annual White Water Grand Prix, to be held in Chile this coming Dec

Here are the Results 

 Wairoa Extreme Race Results 2012

Mens

1. Jamie Sutton
2. Kenny Mutton
3. Tyler Fox
4. Willz Martin
Quarter Finalist placed according to Time Trial Results
5. Ryan Lucas
6. Carl Whitehead
7. Tim Trew
8. Julian Stocker
Preliminary Finalist placed according to Time Trial Results
9. Ben Robson
10. Sam Ricketts
11. Josh Neilson
12. Greg Clark
13. Cameron Shailer
14. Laurence Brown
15. Peter Vander Meij
16. Scott McGrath
17. Dan Riley
18. Joerg Waidelich
19. Matt Hern
20. Ima Badiola
21. Mark Thomas
22. Shannon Hayes

Womens

1. Toni George
2. Nikki Whitehead
3. Louise Jull
4. Laura Cashmore
5. Kim Dodd
6. Courtney Kerin

Juniors

1. Patrick McKee
2. Sean Curtis
3. Ryan McDonald

Wairoa Extreme Race Time Trial Results

1. Kenny Mutton        5:35.03
2. Willz Martin        5:38.06
3. Ryan Lucas            5:42.53
4. Carl Whitehead        5:44.74
5. Tyler Fox            5:45.06
6. Jamie Sutton        5:45.18
7. Tim Trew            5:53.59
8. Ben Robson            5:55.24
9.Julian Stocker        5:58.37
10.Louise Jull            5:58.40
11. Sam Ricketts        5:58.81
12. Josh Neilson        6:00.15
13. Dan Riley            6:04.74
14. Greg Clark            6:05.24
15. Toni George        6:05.47
16. Joerg Waidelich        6:06.03
17. Matt Hern             6:09.87
18. Cameron Shailer        6:10.84
19. Laurence Brown        6:10.93
20. Nikki Whitehead        6:11.59
21. Ima Badiola        6:15.59
22. Sean Curtis        6:21.03
23. Peter Vander Meij        6:24.27
24. Laura Cashmore        6:25.03
25. Mark Thomas        6:27.24
26. Patrick McKee        6:27.93
27. Shannon Hayes        6:29.47
28. Scott McGrath        6:41.77
29. Kim Dodd            6:49.15
30. Ryan McDonald        6:52.81
31. Courtney Kerin        DNS

The NZ Extreme Race Series is shaping up for an exciting finish at the up coming Citroen Extreme Race down in Queenstown, March 10.  There are half a dozen men all within reach of the title so it could be anyone's, especially with the tough and tricky Citroen Race still left. It has been known to deal some huge upsets. After 2 races Jamie Sutton & Kenny Mutton are tied for 1st with 195points each, Willz Martin is in a close 3rd with 170 points, and tied for forth is myself (Tyler Fox) & Ryan Lucas with 160. 

Photos: Shilo Gibson

 

Tyler Fox