Happy ending ! (Léa)

It's already the end of this amazing adventure on the Ottawa river. I'll miss this place and most of all every single person I met. It was super cool to share the love of Whitewater.

Last Wednesday was the best day ever, the trip to Lachine ! The waves there are awesome, and it's really spectacular to paddle in front of skyscrapers. Also we had a super good weather. All the conditions were gathered to make us spend an amazing time surfing Big Joe. I really enjoyed surfing with my sister, both of us shouting for joy. I'll come back there for sure !

Last but not least Big Water Beat Down Bacon Thursday. Actually it was the best one. I went to right side Phils for an awesome and also interminable hand surf. After spending a good minute in, my boat was full of water and then hand rolling was quite hard. It finally turned out well after many attempts. I had a huge headache all the day long due to the flow's violence but it definitely worth it.

For our last day on the water, my sister and I decided to do some topo duo -mainly because our boats had already been taken- It was a kind of surf and roll session. I had the most hilarious moment of my life underwater. We went for a surf on right side Horseshoe and then we flipped over, however we didn't have decided yet which side to roll. So we individually tried to roll on different sides for a long time until we finally synchronized our paddle stroke and were on the same side. It might have been really fun to see the boat moving any old how according to the laugh of the other paddlers.

-Léa

Swimming the Lorne

Addy's Very Last, Concluding, Final, End of the Session Keener Post!

Hi everyone! It's Addy and sadly this is my very last keener post. In my three weeks here I have had an amazing time and definitely pushed my limits. I came here with a sketchy roll and bad tecnique but after tons of help from the coaches, I have become a lot more confident on the river! Today I tried two new lines, the boof at the Lorne and the boof at Coliseum, it was tons of fun! I have been working really hard the past few days to surf corner wave on McCoys and today I had my best surf yet. It is so rewarding to finally surf the wave after many times down left side horseshoe upside down, sideways and backwards. One of my favourite memories from my time here was running McCoys top to bottom friday evening right at sunset. The water running into Sadlers was like glass and it was the first time I've seen the rapid with no other boats or rafts in sight. Many of the experiences that I have here are unique to the Ottawa River and the keener program. There aren't many places that you can try challenging lines without serious consequences. As a result of that we are able to have an entire day dedicated to getting beatdown in the rapids, Big Water Beatdown Bacon Thursday. This is definitely one of my favourite days of the week because we are encouraged to try new and scary lines. I'm partly convinced this is because the coaches enjoy the carnage but it's a great day non the less. Everyone helps eachother out in rescues and are super encouraging. It really helps build experince which allows a kayaker to think clearly while in a difficult situation. I'm looking forward to the rest of this week and our trip to La Chine rapids tomorrow! All in all I have had an unforgettable time here at keeners thanks to the coaches, keeners and everyone else that has helped me become a stronger paddler.

Surfing Corner Wave Today!

Jared's third post of awesomeness

Hey there, 2nd week of session 2 or my 3 week of keeners, were super fun. Again, I've learned so many things like how to do a helix to clean blunts.

But this time ill write more about whats going on around keenerville and coll stuff that happened on the river.

So first of all the level of the river have gone up about 3-4 feet in two days! That makes the level to be about +2. The water went up so fast that on Sunday Nicole, Sara, Marleigh and I went to garb in the morning and garb was so foamy and fun. But when we got back from lunch that took us about an hour and a half, neither of the Lorne waves were in. But with that level, corner wave, right side horse shoe, chopping block and right side black are good. Although, even with all of those cool waves and holes, i still miss garb a lot.

Secondly, I just tried a medium rock star and I have a lot of trouble throwing tricks and to toss it around. But it does improve my technique because I really have to do the right movements to actually do tricks. Also, i had a lot of trouble putting my skirt on, it got to the point that i have an open blister on my pom and i needed help to put it on. But that's caused by cockpit rim being slightly larger than a small rock star.

Anyways, I'm happy to be back in my small and I'll be throwing it around at are trip to Lachine rapids on Wednesday. I cant wait to be there!

Me doing a blunt on Corner wave

Nicole Week 8

         Hey everyone its Nicole here again, it has been a great first week here in session three all of the new arriving keeners are great paddlers and great friends already! It is hard to believe that two sessions have already passed by, it feels like just yesterday i was getting out of my car in the keenerville driveway and bringing my bags into Yakistan! Tonight was speech night and Anna our keener mom gave me the speech topic of what it was like being a keener all summer compared to just for one session, and this really got me thinking.
Many people ask me why i chose to spend my whole summer up here at the keener program and the truth is i could not think of a better way to spend my summer. As i was thinking up my speech i came with a two comparisons one was with the coaching staff, having the world class kayakers for our coaches such as Steven Wright, Tyler Curtis, Joel Kowalski and many more is like if you ever had the chance to have a one on one practice with Sidney Crosby a once in a life time opportunity! Our coaches care about us and want to see us improve, they cheer at our failures because we have learned and are even louder at our successes!

Group Seven Week Photo. Hard to believe how fast
the summer goes! 

         The second comparison that i came up with was for the friendships and relationships we grow here, Keeners is a family away from home, i have seen countless graduates of the keener program out on the river as excited to see the keeners they came to know in these short three weeks as i would be to see my own family. Here we truly feels like a home away from home. We as keeners are the luckiest people in the world, we have the immense privilege of wearing our black keener sweater or t shirt and saying that we were a part of the keener program. I am sure that all of us take pride in the fact that we are in this world class program and in conclusion i would like to thank my parents for allowing me to come to this program and I would also like to thank Anna and all of the other keeners for making keenerville seem like home.

Kady's Big Water Beat Down Experience!

Today was Big Water Beat Down Thursday! Every Thursday we push our limits by going into the biggest holes on the river. For my first beat down I surfed left side Phils and didn't get a very big beat down. So for the first time ever I went into right side Phils. The first I thought when I was in right side was to surf out on the tounge but when I tried it spun me around. I was then on my left edge. It flipped me and  I swam to get out of the hole. Next Thursday I will try not swim out of right side Phils. Also today we had rope and nots. We had a chance to propel down the bunge tower. I was scared to do it at first but when I got to the top of the tower the view distracted me. It was so pretty with a sunset over the lake. The rappel was supper fun. I had a slow speed at first but I picked it up a little faster towards the end.  Kady

The Hardest Part of the Day

By Jesse Metzger

Have you ever slipped and fallen while getting out of a kayak? Ever had difficulty hucking your dry exit at a stout take-out? Here's a comprehensive guide to styling what one clumsy paddling buddy of mine always said was the hardest part of his day: getting out of your boat. As with any technical skill in the world of whitewater kayaking, there are a number different methods that can be applied to mastering this move.

One of the most popular is the Scootch-n'-Step, a classic, versatile technique developed by some of kayaking's pioneering paddlers. To initiate it, grab the sides of the cockpit and scootch your butt backwards. With some boats you may be able to continue the move with your butt still in the cockpit, but many paddlers still swear by scootching all the way up to the top of the cockpit's back rim so that your rear rests partially on your stern. In either position, your next step is to slide one leg out and step onto the ground aside your kayak, still gripping the cockpit rim. It is recommended that you move your other foot up close to the seat of your boat for added stability while making the initial step. Finally, slide the foot that remains in the kayak onto the seat, stand up while continuing to use the cockpit rim for support, and step out of the kayak. The Scootch-n'-Step is by far the most stable way to exit your boat in a conventional situation.

The Backdeck Exit provides a tried and true way to get out of your boat on one side. While difficult to master, it can be used with amazing results when practiced correctly. Initiate the exit just as in the Scootch-n'-Step, but quickly scrunch both legs up so that your knees tuck into your chest. From there, turn your body towards your take-out. Proper edge control is crucial at this point in your movement. Place the forearm of your aft arm across the stern of your boat, lean towards shore, and plant the hand from your other arm firmly on the ground beside your kayak as close to your stern as possible. Finally, roll your hips over the edge off the cockpit rim closest to shore and plant first one then both feet on the ground. This can be linked with emptying the water out of your boat for a Backdeck Exit-Dripdry combo.

Another solid method is the Crab Leg, which has become especially popular in recent years. After scootching as in the first step of the Scootch-n'-Step, slide both legs out and plant them on the ground on either side of your kayak with your hands grasping each side of the cockpit rim. Shift your weight forward and move one hand so that it grasps the very front of the cockpit rim and place your other hand on the back end of the rim. For the final step, gradually stand up. This method is only useful at a relatively flat take out. It makes the kayaker vulnerable to tipping in its earliest stages, but once the legs are planted the technique offers unparalleled stability.

The final technique covered in this guide is the Extra-Terrestrial Phoenix Orangutan, a ground-breaking and controversial tactic that should be used only at the most demanding and dangerous of flatwater roadside take-outs. To complete it, simply lean back over your stern with your hands grasping the cockpit rim on either side, slide your butt out of the seat and onto the back of the cockpit rim, and place your legs on the top of your bow before rolling off one side of the kayak. Do this exit without gripping the cockpit rim for a clean ET Phoenix Orangutan.

So there you have it - a diverse list of exit techniques that, when all mastered together, can provide a solid skill set for taking on any Class 1+ takeout. Be sure to look out for next week's installment in which we will discuss what to do when you've got that really bad itch on your leg but you don't want to pop your skirt to itch it cause you might start to float out of a really tight eddy but it still itches so bad.

Justin's walk through on the melt-down line!

Hey guys im Justin and for this blog im going to be walking you through the melt-down line, and what to do! So first off you want to line yourself up so that you will be dropping your bow directly off of the front half of pour-over. Next when you slide off of it you will feel your boat getting pushed under the water, which is when i personally like to drop my right edge and high brace on the left all the way until your boat resurfaces  and you can paddle away having successfully ran the melt-down line on Coliseum!