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March 6,2009 -- Bryson City, NC
The Nantahala Racing Club's, US Open will double as the eastern Junior Wildwater Team Trials on March 28th / 29th, 2009
on the Nantahala River in Wesser, NC. On Saturday March 28th, the sprint race will take place at Pattons Run rapid at
the head of the river. The technically challenging rapid comes at you fast. It's also directly beneath the largest
tourist road pull-off in the Nantahala Gorge, so there should be plenty of spectators to cheer competitors on and it
also a great photo opportunity. Shuttle is easily walked or driven and winning times will be approximately 90 seconds.
On Sunday March 29th, the European style classic race will take the fastest competitors approximately 11 minutes and
features the most entertaining section of the river which includes Quarry, Root Canal and Whirlpool. The start is at
Ferebee Park and the finish just below the Ledges rapid. The entire run is road side and shuttle is extremely easy.
Practice water should be available the entire week before the race. To check the release schedule, visit
www.duke-energy.com/lakes/nantahala/nan-scheduled-flow-releases.asp. It takes approximately 2.5 hours for the water
to reach the Nantahala Outdoor Center once the release starts.
Courtesy of the Nantahala Outdoor Center, there will be a group dinner provided as part of your entry fee on
Saturday evening. The wildwater event is being held simultaneously with a large slalom race at Nantahala Falls,
but the timing of the events does allow competitors to race in both the slalom and wildwater events.
You can save $10 from your registration fee if you register before March 24th. Race day registrations will be accepted.
Information about the area including local attractions, lodging and restaurants can be found at
www.noc.com and www.greatsmokies.com.
The US Open is made possible by the generous support of Bank of America, Coke Cola and Duke Energy.
If you have questions about the event, or would like to volunteer to help, please contact race director,
Chris Hipgrave at hipgrave.chris@gmail.com.
Links:
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