Indholdsfortegnelse for KS#53 (spring 2015) i Kayak Session Magazine

When Josef Haas released Whitewater Paradise Corsica, his first guidebook to Corsican rivers, little did he know the effect his work would have on future generations of paddlers. In a time before Internet and Google Earth, the book brought to life a previously unknown whitewater paradise. Drawn in by the stunning full color photos, paddlers began to flock to Corsica to explore the whitewater treasures contained in its pages. Steep, rocky and thrilling, Corsica offered a new style of paddling that would be a precursor to modern day creeking. Far beyond a simple list of rivers to run, Haas’ guidebook changed how paddlers viewed what was possible and set new standards for how to paddle steep runs. The elixir of Corsican whitewater soon had paddlers returning to the island year…

In 1982, Josef Haas wrote Whitewater Paradise Corsica, sparking the fervor for Corsican whitewater that continues to this day. Responsible for six guidebooks in total, Haas was more than just an author of kayaking literature. He dedicated his life to tireless advocacy of German-French friendship and passionate promotion of whitewater culture. A paddling patriarch, he was an explorer, a motivational figure, and a skilled athlete. As one of the true godfathers of whitewater kayaking, Haas’ legacy lives on in the places and rivers he loved and the paddlers he inspired. Whitewater Paradise Corsica by Josef Haas represents a milestone in European paddling literature. Almost no other book has had more ongoing influence in the sport of whitewater or affected the scene more deeply. No other book invited more to dream…

LIQUID LOGIC FLYING SQUIRREL 85 This is the kayak that you, the paddlers, asked for through our “Automatic For The People” drive. We asked what boat design you wanted to see and the answer was loud and clear: “Start with the race winning speed of the Remix, then add more rocker and lots of deck volume.” We did it, and the result is a creek boat that’s as comfortable running big volume as it is in the steeps. Whether you are pushing the top end of the sport or hoping to make that one line a little smoother we think the Flying Squirrel will be the boat for you. LENGTH: 8’ 9” / 266CM - WIDTH: 25.5” / 65CM - VOLUME: 85 GAL. / 322L - WEIGHT: 49 LBS. /…

NEWS AND HAPPENINGS 2015 EASTER CORSICA KAYAK SESSIONS The Easter Corsica Kayak Sessions is back for another year! Paddlers from all over the world will come together April 6-10th to celebrate the start of the European paddling season with sunny days, legendary runs, and good times around the campfire. If you are a veteran of this event, we look forward to seeing you back; if you have never been, you are missing out, so come enjoy this awesome week. New in 2015 we will have creek boat test camp, whitewater SUP demo, open air movie nights, and, best of all, the Josef Haas memorial, a friendly event held on the Tavignano River on Thursday April 9th, followed by the traditional festival party! Aside from a few organized events, the motto…

Headless chickens and dead car batteries: chasing the monsoon in eastern India In August of 2014, as part of the five-month All India Kayaking Expedition, five Brits and one Indian traveled and paddled through three central-eastern Indian states that had never seen any whitewater exploration. With a winning combination of heavy monsoon rains and huge mountain ranges, this new region holds incredible paddling potential and enough whitewater to fuel years of exploration. As I shone the light on the chickens Arjun and Ayodhya had bought from the local village, one of them flinched -- a strange reaction from a chicken you thought you had just killed. Just to be sure, Callum grabbed the chicken and pulled its head clean off, covering the granite slabs along the banks of the Sankh…

Finding himself unable to make his annual pilgrimage to Norway, Severin Häberling managed to find an adventure of an entirely different kind. In three days of paddling the full length of the Reuss River in Switzerland, he realized that expeditions are more about a goal and a mindset than about traveling away from home. Every year, when springtime arrives and nature begins to stir, a longing for the river awakens inside me. My craving to be in fast moving water becomes insatiable and I dream of new boating adventures. My intended destination this summer was once again Norway, that magical place way up north where an endless amount of whitewater is on hand, with 24 hours of sunshine to enjoy it. Yet as last summer drew near, the bitter reality…

Watching fear in the eyes of 25 of the world’s best big waterfall kayakers as they stared at the three drops on which they would soon compete, we wondered if this far-fetched idea would work. Feeling the fascination of seeing the best on edge, we knew this could be the next big step in the evolution of our sport or a complete disaster. Deep in the wildest corner of Mexico last November, we all waited impatiently for the broken radio signal: “Competitor #1, dropping in.” It was a rainy Thursday evening in September of 2014 when my phone started ringing. It was Ernesto. He was about to step into a very important meeting with the Mexican Tourism Board. In his standard rapid fire manner of delivery, he said,“Rafa, it might…

Kayak Session is proud to collaborate with American Whitewater, a non-profit river conservation organization. Our mission is to show kayaking at its best with amazing pictures of paddling on beautiful rivers. Without the hard work and dedication of AW, we would have a difficult time portraying these incredible rivers, and it would probably become even more difficult in the years to come. We would like to acknowledge this work and AW has agreed to keep us updated on some of the projects they are involved in. For more information on these and other issues that American Whitewater is working on, go to www.americanwhitewater.org Protecting Wild Rivers of the Kalmiopsis Thomas O’Keefe, American Whitewater The Kalmiopsis is a small genus of flowering plant in the heath family that is…