Ladies, Gentlemen - Here's to a fantastic winter!  While comparing skiing styles once upon a time, my homie Alex told me that he prefers to remain airborne as much as possible.  At the time, I was a scared little tadpole, but now I know exactly what he was talking about.  Here's to people who push you:

Alex givin'er out in the Rock Pile on a fabulous April afternoon.

My life has been blessed with a large set of great friends and some of them also fall into the mentor category.  It's great to have mentors because they've been through shit before, which gives me a feeling of relief that I'm not alone.  Here's to mentors:

Matt Booth and I out-of-bounds trying to find the mysterious Lost Lake and its epic pow shots.

My older friends have graduated college, some friends have graduated law school, my little brother has graduated college, I've graduated college twice, and this spring the last of my friends will be graduating from college (mostly for the second time).  Hence, this was the last spring break trip I might ever be able to make.  The plan was set - Jim, Gen, and Petey would rally the extra-curricular activities through enemy territory into the edge of the desert near Barstow.  Bat Country, you know.  Joel and I rented a very fast car and met them in Zion, where a party of epic proportions began.  Good God, man.  Some folks out there are just simply described best as pimps:

In 48 hours we ran that Las Vegas town ragged.  We brought a safety kit of monumental proportions and just barely made it out alive.

Here's some of the lovely ladies (and gents) that composed the rest of the team.

Other folks are simply described best as marauding cannibals:

Mmm....scary

One of my favorite things in the world is a good campfire.  They involve all the best things - woods, warmth, friends, beer, whiskey, spirited discussion and camping.  This one was in Zion by a creek on a beach.  Not a bad way to waste away a spring break.  

We didn't get to spend nearly enough time in Zion.  We did get to hike this super exposed ridge up to Angel's Landing.  Unfortunately, temperatures prevented out canyoneering exploration of Zion, but the place was impressive enough that I'll be back.  

This winter I got to go to a little place warm, where the beer flows like wine, and the beautiful women flock like the salmon of Capistrano.  A little place called Arizona, where the shit went off all winter.  They received low elevation snows and torrential rains mixed with sunny days, which unleashed winter-time desert creeking for those so inclined.  Maria, Christian, and I rocked 12 straight hours out of Denver to fire the goods.  Hells Gate gorges on Tonto Creek.  

This here is the second drop in the Hells Gate gorge proper.  It's must run, very difficult partial scout, IV/V.  Christian gettin busy.

Here's Maria below another class V.  It had a nasty pot hole/eddy mess followed by a ledge hole.  The kayaking and scenery was top notch, but I didn't get enough photos because my busted ass boat was continually leaking and sucking out all of my energy.

The team at the second campsite.  The rock really is that red and followed by huge saguaro cacti.  

Christian giving into the final big hole.

Cheers!  What a fantastic winter!  Keep your eyes peeled for creeking updates coming to a blog near you soon.

da Duckie

Bonus shot (one for the ladies).

Yo posse.  I was just thinking I wanted to make sure everyone out there was aware of the "greatest and most humble rap you'll ever hear."  Very immature, but hilarious.  3.14 Apple Pi.  Check back soon for pics from Hells Gate on the Tonto - sick trip.

GREEN NARROWS

What up Mank Crew! This is an update from the East side of town. Hope to have many more posts in the future, but for now i put together a slide show of a recent trip to the Green Narrows. It was an awesome weekend, three days of paddling two on the Green and one on the all new and improved Cheoah. For those not familiar with the river, the slide show pretty much is a top to bottom view of the rapids on the river. The show starts at Frankenstein and ends at No Name rapid, which is also known as Colonol Dicks. Have to thank my friend Charles and my wife Lindsay for taking all these photos.

As this is my first post to the site just want to say thanks to the mastermind behind the whole thing. He's a bad mamma-jamma who knows how to throw down at the show down. Taught me everything i know about creekin and to this day I can only hope to paddle in his wake. Much love to the rest of the Mank Crew, cant wait to see you all this summer. peace.

Frankenstein

Zwicks

Go Left

Go Left

Flying Squirrel above the Notch

The Monkey

Sunshine

Sunshine

Holla, holla homies.  So I'm sitting here enjoying my new computer.  Full on surfin Al Gore's world wide web (similar to the internet, I think).  You should definitely check homie Mark Cafiero's site at www.sixpeeps.com for surfin pleasure.  He's a wedding photag who just got engaged, so congratulations to him!  

Also, I must express my love/hate relationship with roomie Pachanga's music.  I either love the shit he's listening to and put it on replay for a month or hate it enough that I can't stay in the house if it continues on our stereo.  So he mentioned this site to me - www.pandoras.com. Amazing.  'nuff said.

But the real point is that I have some sweet patrolling photos from last season and wanted to share.  The goods:

I can't seem to remember what we named this furry friend.  Unfortunately he didn't look too hot and the fact that he was wondering around at tree line on the Outback mid-winter didn't bode well for him...  Then again there was this one pocket gopher... 

One of my favorite pics.  Even at 7:30am ski patrolling is an amazing experience - best job in the world.

Like I said - pimps of the powder we are.

So the snow cats groom runs like Mozart and Alamo (pictured here) late in the afternoon. Sometimes it then dumps overnight so in the morning you can rip those slopes knowing you're skiing on groomer underneath the powder.  If you look closely you can see that Matt Macy is turning my top-to-bottom powder straight line into dollar signs with perfect turns.

This shot is at the bottom of JG - the place that shall not be named.  Oh hello Phil and Janzen.

Looseness on top of the frozen ocean.  Nice shades Mitchell.

"I am not a crook!"  Richard Nixon said that, but I'll do about anything for perfect pow.

Goddamn f-ing gapers gapin' out.

So the Mank Crew rocked the Beaver yesterday.  She's been getting hammered, but didn't have any new snow for two days or so.  We did some hiking and rope ducking and found many, many stashes that wouldn't have existed in Summit Co.  The rich folks round here either suck at riding, follow the rules or both.  Anyway, we took the opportunity to rip three day old powder.  Here's a shot of B hucking.  It's hard to tell because I'm shooting upward on a 50 degree slope, but he probably picked up 10 feet of air or so and landed out of sight behind the tree.  The powder was several feet deep and we created some monster bomb holes!  

After years of saying I would go to Shoshone and paddle on New Years Day, I woke up January 1, 2008 on the floor, completely hung in friend's parent's house, 200 miles from Glenwood Springs.  Yet this year I had a secret weapon.  This little lady was there and not willing to take "ughhh, blargh, ugh" for an answer (even though I offered it several times).  So for your chilled viewing pleasure - a shot of us at the putin with long shadows just before darkness at 30 degrees or so.

So during the weeks before, Matt Soloman, Hobie and company from Vail talked a bunch of shit about running Barrel Springs.  We all know what happened there - they got cold and didn't even take a look.  I know this because while scouting Maria mentioned that ours were the only foot prints in the 1' deep snow.  Plus there were ice undercuts everywhere, pretty much necessitating a scout.  I must say it was intense putting in knowing that the ice shelves on either bank were undercut and 2' tall.  There was definitely no escape from the river should anything happen in the below freezing temps.  The water was crazy too.  As soon as it would pool, it would freeze into slushy consistency, but then in the rapids the kinetic energy would re-melt it.  This pic of me is at the takeout and you can see that the sun has set and my pfd is a frozen sheet of ice.  We couldn't get them off and had to drive to a gas station in Glenwood in full gear to melt and change.  Thank God for the adjacent springs and Vicco's Charcoburger.  
Just for comparison sake, I figured I'd post a shot of us the next day powder skiing the Taint.

So, I made it to Ecuador, but you'd never know it by this shot.  Here's a self portrait of me at DIA right after the gate attendant told me I couldn't get on the plane because TSA f-ed up and hadn't double secret searched me.  I had also just witnessed my boat board that particular plane at the cost of $250.  So you can see - I almost went Gaylord Focker on them, "Bomb, bbbomb, ba bomb, ba bomb bomb bomb!"  I am a male nurse after all.

Ahhh, back to my happy place with a good huck.

Is that Dr. Brad, MD boofing in the jungle?  Why isn't he saving patients?

This here is a monkey - also known as Monos for those of you with Southern flavor on the tongue.  This here monkey didn't bite Dr. Brad, but a similar one did.  The Good Doctor spent a week on the couch near death visiting the emergency department every day after his return to the States.  I'm still not completely sure what was wrong with him, but he has returned to health and is back doing his doctor thing in Mancos.  Congratulations Brad and Megan on the upcoming little one!

Alright, some more long promised pics for your flavorholes.  Here is without a doubt my favorite picture I've ever seen of me.  Take that Gary Edgeworth.

And the Mank crew routes on through the end of the gorge.

Alright. I'm considering the purchase of a computer so that it will be easier to upload pics. After all, a pic is worth a thousand words, or in the case of the big one on OBJ at least a bajillion words as WSR puts it.

I'm at work and off to Ecuador in a couple hours. A bit nervous. Will Ecuador hold tropical sun or freezing run-off from 20,000ft volcanos? First-Ds in the creeker or big water play? Huge waterfalls or millions of Robe boofs? I'm bringing a bit of everything - except clothes of course. 2 T-shits, 2 shorts, 2 pants, 2 sweaters. Not much for two weeks. I do have lots of paddling gear and first d/"ok so now we're gonna bivy in the jungle" gear. Hope the whole "motherfucking boats on this motherfucking plane" deal works out, as Samuel L Jackson would say.

Pura Vida to my amigos headed to Costa Rica. See all ya'll round x-mas!
Joe

Alright, a couple more things...

First, Gauley a few weeks back was amazing. I had the opportunity to paddle with a couple boaters whose legacys I can only dream to imitate. Gnary Edgeworth has quite the reputation to uphold, but I'll let you all in on a little secret - he's one of the kindest people I've ever met. I bet you re-read that sentence twice! But more importantly, the pic of him on Zoot Chute in WSR (Whitewater of the Southern Rockies for you non-locals) is the definition of stomp in a thousand words or less.

Leland Davis has a well deserved reputation as one of the most respected people in whitewater. What more is there to say, except he stuffed the Initiation hole in a squirt boat?

That there was quite the party on an enchanting East Coast river. A huge thanks goes out to Booth and Marty for motivating the monster Colorado Contingent.

Second, Robe canyon motherbitches! Shortly following the Gauley chapter, I had an extended weekend so I flew up to Seattle to meet up with TG, Schertl and the PacNW crew. They introduced me to their fall classic. People compare Robe to Gore in CO. Not a terrible comparison, but Robe is more like Tunnel and Gore rapid repeated 10-20 times in a gorge that would be much more difficult to escape without the easy in-between class IV. It definitely gave me a couple slaps to the face. Thanks to Ryan for the lodging and my first ever Widespread Panic show. Twisted.

Finally, back at home Lower South Boulder came in, kinda. Melrose motivated me while I was on the graveyard via the Buzz to hit it sans sleep in the am. We had a great fall day and I got personal first Ds of Moist Slot and the Bridge rapid, which is a hoot. We managed to complete the hike out before noon to get Melrose on his way - that's my boy, way to motivate.

Just as importantly, Evan Stafford called to get an LSB trip report and mentioned a little Ecuador trip he was embarking on. He says that he's being accompanied by an all-star cast including Dr. Brad, Pete, and Randy (how's the moustache coming along) Ramirez. Asks if I would like to come along? So I sez to myself, "There's no way I want to go on the trip of a lifetime with a bunch of rockstars." And then I informed the hospital that I would be out of the country from the 6th-20th of December. I bought a ticket and now I'll figure out the details as they roll in. I hate shots, so I wasn't excited when Pete called today and casually mentioned that I'd need to get three ASAP (yellow fever, typhoid, hepatitis A) plus a personal stock of malaria pills. And I was thinking this would be similar to Costa Rica. Psyched - stay tuned for more.
Duck

It’s been way too long since I rapped at ya, but we have been busy, busy, busy in the Rocker. This season has been an excellent one for me personally as I have run all around the Rocky Mountains boating every creek I can find with water. At most every put-in this spring, there has been at least one other Rocker or Mega – she’s a huge hit out West.

The year started out with early season desert classics – the Embudo in Mew Mexico and Escalante Creek near the Utah border. I also managed many laps on my backyard Bear Creek while competing in the Eddyflower.com Total Vertical Feet competition. We placed 4th in the Open division as a team of three against teams of five.

As the season began in earnest, I was jonesin hard for some straight vert. So, on to the North Fork of the Crystal we rolled. This run combines a great afternoon of 4x4 driving up the most scenic drainage in the State with steep slides and crystal clear waterfalls. We camped out, ate steaks cooked over the campfire and hucked repeatedly. The picture of the hot pink Rocker is drop #4. Speaking of the pink Rocker, Scott Young (long time Riot sick bird) confided to EJ and I at the Lyons Outdoor Games that he too wished he had a pink boat, but wasn’t sure that he was worthy. Maybe one day Scott!

The Lyons Outdoor Games provided an Oskar Blues party, top-notch playboaters, and a hotly contested creek race down local favorite, South Saint Vrain. Dane, Emily, Nick, Ben, Clay and EJ all made the festivities along with local Jackson paddlers Lawrence Simpson, Marty Cronin and myself. The following day Lawrence, Clay and I managed to sneak away and hit up a quick Bailey run. Also, huge thanks to Rocker paddler and new dad, Matt Booth, for organizing the event.

Following the LOG, a run that I had missed in previous seasons became my primary goal – Vallecito. The drive south is a haul from about anywhere in CO, but well worth the time for even one lap. The entrance to the inescapable gorge is an 18’ falls into a sticky hole that feeds into a cave. The Rocker did me well as we stomped that boof each lap. The run provides a tight gorge and unreal boofing pleasure down to the takeout/campsite. I’ll add my unneeded agreement that Valle is one of the best runs in the States.

From there, boating every day became a blur until the access gate opened and Big South-aplooza was upon us. Every season right after the gate opens, creekers from far and wide convene for the festivities. This year, I was feeling the flow and rocked some of the heaviest drops with solid water. Not many feelings compare to styling a big rapid exactly how you envisioned it – whether it be your first IV or another V+. The Rocker sure can boof – I have included pictures of Fantasy Flight, Cool World and Double Trouble as proof.

Just recently, as the water has started to drain out from the hills, the Crystal Gorge became low enough to run. We were to first group in after high water this year, which is always nerve wracking because the walls are containing and the gorge had 1500cfs flushing through it earlier. Hence, the wood placement can make things interesting. Luckily, not much changed this year, but we were able to move a log out of Pine Tree Falls and start running this signature drop again.

A highlight of the year for me was dropping into the Inner Crystal Gorge. A five-foot falls commits you 40’ Zoot Chute, which leads directly into the rest of the gorge. On my first run, I boofed Zoot flat because there were rumors of pitons to be had. I tucked up real tight and relied on the soft displacement hull of the Rocker to get me through. I landed in control and moved directly into the gorge. On the second lap I took a different line and 45ed it. Thankfully the boat resurfaces very predictably and I managed to stay upright and in control as I routed into the next drop. The 2007 Rocker is a dream to paddle and we’ve had quite the season together.

I know this post is lame because it's got no pics, but I'll throw them up shortly.
Da Duckie

It broke my heart to hear about Adam Barron passing away on Vallecito Creek this summer. I met him once, when he absolutely styled Whiteline and I snapped this picture. Thanks Adam for the magical day. We'll meet again soon enough...
















And you drink one for your fallen homies...




















Ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Bakken Kickstarting da Source!



And here's Big Country goin' the other way.

Brian over-boofs the icy Clear Creek of the Ark.













Author/run guru/sicko Cutch runs it out through the Wall rapid - SSV.

Road trip!

It started off with some of the best video footage I've ever seen. Eight lemmings Blue Angel off Big Wood behind a guide with only one previous run. Paul booty shoots it up after the drop.















Fortunately, I had a better day keeping my cool and my head on a personal first D of Rip Your Head Off











Can it be possible to puff more than the Dupe Crew?

Bring it back to the front range. A psychedellic shot of Rigomortis.

And Pachanga takes 5 after multiple beat downs in Grandpa's Gorge.

This brings us up to date on a few of the Mank Crew exploits through Mid-Summer. Next installment coming soon, but first I would like to refer you to runtheshit.blogspot.com for some sic helmet cam footie of Pat Keller busting out the Green, race-style. Out.

From the left - Paul, Ben, Tracy, Hunter and KC get into and out of the Rockwood box.