US Open & Eastern Junior Wildwater Team Trials Bad Weather, No Water & Long Drives March 25, 2013 |
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by Chris Hipgrave | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2013 US Open Wildwater Race and East Coast Junior Team Trials took place this past weekend on the Nantahala River. This generally easy to organize event turned into one of the most challenging US Opens we've had to run. A significant snow storm blanketed much of the east coast in the days leading up to the event which limited travel options and led to many cancelations. Another winter storm was then forecast to roll thru the east coast starting Sunday further limiting travel. Then to top everything off, the Nantahala Power House broke on Sunday leaving us with no water for the Classic. But those that did make it to the race where a resilient bunch and we figured things out. First off, a hugh thank you to Mark Wendolowski and Elaine Campbell for making the huge drive from New England and competing. That was a huge commitment given the obstacles in their way. We compressed two days of racing into one so they could hit the road early. The plus side of that was that they got to do their Classic on the Nantahala. Saturdays Sprint was at Pattons Run. This 75-90 second course builds as you race further down stream. The highlight for me was watching Selena Popp in C1W-Jr making an impressive second run and besting her initial run by an impressive 14 seconds as she powered thru the technical end to Pattons Run. On Sunday morning we arrived at the NOC to find the water off with little chance of it coming on in the next day or two due to a mechanical failure in the powerhouse. Mark and Elaine had already completed their Classic's the day earlier so the rest of us headed 15 minutes away to the Little Tennessee River where I have a race course of similar length but lacking in much whitewater. The shallow easy water slog taxed everyone of us, but we got it done. I t was fantastic to see some new faces, especially Alessia Faveril from warren Wilson who completed both days of racing despite some significant challenges. This was her first real wildwater race and she styled both days with a great smile on her face all the time. Congratulations to everyone that made it thru the weekend. Special thanks go to Mary Garland and Ellen Osment for handing the timing. And a huge congratulations go to Selena Popp and Bryson Popp for earning a berth on the 2013 Junior Wildwater Team. They will be representing the USA in Europe this Summer. Sprint Results
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