T h e R a n g e L i f e: Updater Jan. '09

We're already a couple weeks into the new year, but tonight it really feels like we're on the eve of a new era. And that feels good.

Know what else feels good? Squeezing every last bit of fun out of a weekend. This past weekend's a great example. All last week, a beautiful head-high swell taunted any worker bee who dared peek at the charts or webcams. At the same time, Seattle's best local class V run had leveled off & stalled at perfect flows, after a very major flood event. By Thursday night, the weekend forecasts for both options looked to be holding somewhere in the realm of "super awesome". Plans were made. And then executed. Those who participated were rewarded with juicy overhead swell at Westport on Saturday .. & juicy extra-medium flow on The Robe on Sunday.

Lots of "stars" on the swell forecast!

Holdin' steady in the High 5's!

That was, as Schertzl says, a "proper weekend".

Okay, since we don't really blog all that much any more, there's a backlog of stuff to post .. so here's an Updater .. let's roll.

I. Robe Race 2009

II. Photo Dump
a. Ashlu kayaking
b. random stuff

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I. Robe Race 2009

Wayrad MacGnarly at Lil' Miss Sunshine 2009 v.1
Photo: Leif Embertson

The Robe Race Committee gathered yesterday to inspect the changes to the course, as put forth by Ma Nature in early January '09, and after not much deliberation, voted unanimously in favor of going forward with the planning of Robe Race 2009.

Notable changes to the race course include the following:

1. The house-sized rock just upstream of the lead-in to Little Miss Sunshine (the one in the center of the river in the flatwater adjacent to the river-left staging eddy; the one we would eddy out behind before running the "center boof" line) has been pushed or rolled about 15 feet downstream, right to the lip of the ledge. The river-left slide-to-kicker thing is still good to go & may have even cleaned up a bit. The center boof is still there, but there's currently wood in the channel making it not that appealing. There may be a far-right line available if you like dealing with junk in your face.

2. Over the last 4 years, Garbage had gone from bad to awesome to okay to bad to worse .. & now back to AWESOME. There is now a ridiculously lofty, clean ledge boof on the right. 8 feet if it's an inch. Best boof on the run? Perhaps ..

3. The river-left eddy water between the 2 ledges of 20-foot Waterfall now bleeds quickly downstream into the ugly pile of rocks on the left. Best to nail the top boof & then move quickly to the center line on the 2nd ledge.

4. Off Broadway has had a similar recent history as Garbage, & same as that rapid, it is now much better than recent manky versions. The first ledge has lost a lot of its gradient during '08 high water events, but it's now pretty much wide open from far left (great 4-foot slot boof) to far right (water boof or tongue option). The unstable second part of the rapid has changed again, and for the better -- there is now a superhighway-to-kicker-boof that, if you nail it right off the peak, sends you flying at high speed beyond the hole at the bottom. So good..

Other than that, most all major rapids are more or less the same. Lots of subtle & not-so-subtle changes to the 'tweener rapids .. holes or rocks that used to exist have disappeared, old fast lines are now squirly eddy water .. The deck has been reshuffled & everyone will have to relearn the canyon to be competitive this year.

Also, one last point .. we will pick a tentative date for the race based on snowpack & flow forecasts in the coming months .. hopefully in April again. And if on that date it turns out that we have 6 ft. on the gauge, the race is ON. So get comfy in the canyon & get out there when it's extra-medium, cuz it's extra-fun.

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