Homathko River, BC

It's been a minute since my last update... This summer has been full of action throughout Iceland, Norway, and the Americas. I'm stretching myself thin trying to kayak full time, make the movies, do my music, and of course maintain the business... It's not leaving a lot of time for web updates but here is a quick one...

The Homathko at it's source. Our starting point

Our mission was to travel to Northern British Columbia with 2 weeks time to run some rivers. Our first river was the famous "Homathko" which starts small at it's source and then winds it's way to the pacific. I would put this in the top 3 most beautiful rivers I have ever paddled. It is truly a gem...


dropping into one of the first challenging rapids. Katie Scott ran this one first (so what if it wasn't on purpose)

Katie Scott drying off after a long day
A nice cave we found to camp in after our longest day on the river

Katie Scott below a mandatory portage. Too bad this gorge ends with sieved out nastiness otherwise the lead up would be EPIC! Maybe there is a way to run the stuff above and get out before the death drop but I think it would require some serious rope work...

The start of day 3


We arrived at the first big rapid of day 3... This thing is runnable (and I think it's been run) but none of us wanted a piece of it... Maybe at a different water level you could make it through the top hole but it was a big risk with high consequences. I started to walk up to portage around the beast when all of a sudden I saw Katie's boat floating down the rapid! It appeared she had not pulled it high enough up on the bank and a surge took it away... We spent 15 minutes scrambling downstream to try and catch it but were too late... Her boat was gone...

Katie being pulled 190 feet out of the canyon

Remote Class V kayaking requires extreme caution as EVERYTHING you need to survive is in your boat... Sleeping bag, tent, food etc. At the point where Katie lost her boat we were a 10 days hike from the nearest settlement. After some debate, we decided to use Darin's SPOT device to call in the Search And Rescue to get Katie out of the canyon. (thanks Shannamar and sorry for the stress this caused you) We feared she would be stuck with a serious bill... However, Canada is much cooler then the states and they charged her a grand total of 0$ to be rescued. Not really sure if this was a special price for the young lady or if us boys would have received the same treatment...



After 4 days of wilderness boating we arrived at the ocean where a float plane landed to meet us. This river has great whitewater with a few commiting canyons. On 3 different occasions we were in walled out, vertical gorges with no way of portaging or scouting! However, beyond the whitewater my greatest enjoyment was the setting... We saw several Grizzlies and got within 30 feet of a few... The final gorge of this section is class 3... Willie Kern named this gorge "Inner Peace." I can't think of a more suitable name....

Our crew, from left to right Darin Mquoid, Rudy Rampage, Katie Scott, Jonas Grünewald, Charlie Center

Charlie and Jonas fight over the only remaining beer...

Quebec Stakeout

QUEBEC STAKEOUT

Every year our crew of whitewater addicts congregates to the lands of Northern Quebec... Generally our mission is to seek and destroy the biggest river waves we can find. See the Quebec section of Dream Result for a better idea (DreamResultMovie.com)

This year however has been very different. Eastern Canada is experiencing the lowest water levels in recorded history. (meanwhile California has the craziest snow pack ever). For example, most our favorite rivers were running at around 1/3 of their normal flow for this time of year. This forced us to adapt and turn the mission into a creeking expedition. The result was amazing and we came away with some epic footage and good times...

Logan Grayling dropping in on a first D (8 chutes river)

yours truly following

Some highlights included a swim tally of seven for the boys, (including me on the chutes Blanche) as well as Erik Boomer's heroic descent of Chutes Magnan, a few other first descents, and a spot that could potentially turn into the World's biggest river wave! Even with low water this feature was still huge, and we feel like with double or triple the flow we may have found a proper monster....

World's biggest river wave? Maybe with higher water...

First known descent of Chutes Blanche
My second run down I aimed for the center....
And swam....

Ben Marr on the Mastigouche....

An epic rooster tail first D I rallied on the last day. A fine line to land between two rock ledges falling about 20 feet.... It took me 3 tries to get it right...

There is a reason Quebec remains one of my favorite places to paddle. There is still a lot to explore and I am already looking forward to next years Stakeout...

Iceland and Norway are next... More updates soon!

Erik Boomer runs Chutes De Magnan

Erik Boomer runs 100+ ft Chutes De Magnan

Photos by: Ben Marr, Patrick Camblin, Casper Van Kalmthout, Rush Sturges


We arrived at Chutes De Magnan on April 29th and took a few hours to scout. Upon first inspection I was unsure if there was a reasonable line. The drop cascades an estimated 100+ feet down a chasm of mankiness... The unpredictability of the rock, speed and difficulty of the entry, and the overall stoutness made the rest of us weary. However, there's a reason Erik Boomer is the "Honey Badger" of kayaking.


We took the night to think about it and fell asleep to freezing cold temperatures and howling wolves... I rallied the troops at 7:30 to catch the morning light.



Boomer mentioned that he had been a little cold the night before sleeping out under the stars... I told him next time he could share the tent with me as I had extra space. He responded:

"Yah know what Rush. Sometimes it's good to just get a little cold."

I think this quote summarizes Boomer's easy going attitude and overall positive outlook... A rare breed...

After about 1 hour of scouting Boomer made the call that he was going to run the monster. I have to admit, I thought the line went, but it was a hard line to hit. The next level of stoutness... I was nervous for the Boom Dawg...


We had 12 people which made it easy for safety and 6 camera angles. Big thanks to Foxy, Dave, Brenna, Blake, Sam, Max, Dylan, Patrick, Joel, Logan, Benny & Casper for all helping out with the huck.

What happened next was one of the craziest things I have ever seen go down. I can't believe Boomer survived and came away unscathed. Basically, everything we talked about going wrong went wrong without the repercussions....

Magnan demonstrated the forgiveness water can have... The rooster near the top of the drop threw Boomer sideways. He then proceeded to rag doll down the remaining 90 or so feet of jagged rock. (he completed 2 air screws)

I was pretty certain he would be unconscious or at least concussed. Amazingly, he had only cut his thumb a little bit. We breathed a sigh of relief as we saw him pop up throwing air fists...


As far as sheer "buck up and huck" factor, I rate this drop as one of the gnarliest things ever run in a kayak. Palouse, Sunset, and many others are different and all crazy in their own right, but Magnan is truly something beastly. Mad props to Boom Dawg for stepping up to the plate on this one...

The footage will be featured in my next film, Frontier. We now continue on to more drops in Quebec...

Northwest Huckfest-Tyler Bradt runs Sunset Falls

Tyler Bradt runs Sunset Falls, Washington

Photos by Erik Boomer EboomerPhoto@gmail.com

We are back in the game! It's been 4 months since my back break and although I still feel it, I am running big drops again, paddling everyday, and filming the fire!

We just started shooting our new project "Frontier" which is the follow up to Dream Result. It feels great to have a clean canvas to work with, and i'm trying to figure out how to step up the bar from a film-making, kayaking, and music perspective...


We kicked the film off at the infamous Beaver Lodge by running the Little White at around 4 feet for a few days... We also did a mission to Summit Creek which resulted in Boomer running a huge 70 ft drop, and also a few of the boys firing off the burly Skateboard Ramp drop. We got AMAZING carnage shots and LJ cracked a few ribs. A quick trip to the ER and a few benders later found us at the lip of 80 ft Metlako Falls. I was nervous to fire off this 80 ftr after not running anything big since I broke myself. I had a super fun line and the hit was soft at the bottom. We tried to get some POV mount shots off the back of my boat, but unfortunately lost 2 go pro cameras and our custom mount in the process. Bummer.

The next day we cruised over to Wahclella Falls, an un run 70-80 ftr. Erik Boomer stepped up to the plate and pulled off one of the craziest stunts I have ever seen.


The Falls is located in a locked in gorge with vertical walls towering hundreds of feet above. The only way into the falls is to hike 2 hours above the canyon rim, be belayed in your kayak to the lip right above the falls, and then cut the rope yourself. To my knowledge, this has never been done before. Boomer lowered in 175 feet as we watched from the canyon far below. I really wasn't certain how good of an idea it was. We had already spent about 5 hours in the canyon scouting, and the light was starting to fade. The rain poured down as Boomer moved cautiously down the cliff face. When he reached the water, it was clear things were pretty hectic in the canyon. He was hovering just inches above a socked in hole. He had to reach behind himself, cut the rope, and then punch a mackin hole above the lip of the 70-80 ftr (which had a marginal lip). Boomer being the mad dawg he is, somehow pulled the stunt off. He NAILED the rope cut, and then stomped the big drop. He rolled up with a big gash on his lip and a huge smile... Erik Boomer is the "Honey Badger" of kayaking. See Boomers animal counterpart here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c81bcjyfn6U

After a quick trip to the ER and some stiches for the "Boom Dawg" (our second one in the past week) we moved up to Seattle/Tacoma for more film premiers and stouts.


Tyler stepped up to the plate and ran one of the burliest things I have ever filmed. Although this was not a first descent, it was the first complete descent in a kayak. Mad props to Rob McKibbin, a local who ran this drop last year. Rob had a good line despite cracking a few ribs and swimming at the bottom. As well, this drop was run in 1926 by Al Fausset in a 30 ft canoe with a steel enclosing. Pretty hardcore. Learn more about this crazy man and many of his other stunts here: http://www.historylink.org/index.cfm?DisplayPage=output.cfm&file_id=8348


Upon arrival at the falls on river right the day before, Tyler stated "It's not as burly as I thought it would be. I want to run it right now."



After some negotiation I convinced Tyler to have a scout from river left, and to sleep on it. After getting to river level on the left side of the drop, the dangers were more obvious. The lateral is much bigger then it looks from above, and the line is way harder then we initially thought. The crux is breaking a lateral on the left side of the river and trying to get center. If you go too far right, you will die in a sieve. If you end up on the left side, you will hit a rooster tail that sprays about 30 feet in the air. There is absolutely NO margin for error on this move. As well, you have a few swirly factors at the top that come into play.


Sunset Falls drops 105 feet over 275 feet. It took Tyler 19 seconds from top to bottom.

After a full morning of figuring out camera angles, scouting, and dealing with pissed off locals, (someone egged my car) Tyler was ready to go. Once again I stood with Tyler at the top of another savage rapid and told him my usual advice... "Either way man. I don't blame you for pulling the plug on this one."

He assured me he was confident with it and ready to go. Boomer and I both walked down to our cameras and agreed it was a little loose, but we were confident he could stick it...

As he always does, Tyler pulled through. He NAILED the top lateral in the exact spot and came screaming down the slide at maybe 60 MPH? The fastest I have ever seen anyone go in a kayak down a slide.


To really appreciate this drop you should go look at it in person. It has been scouted by many good paddlers and always walked away from for good reasons. There are so many variables to deal with. Tough moves, sieves, pot holes, ledges, etc. It's tough to tell what's going on and what exactly is going to happen to you.

Tyler lost control about 2/3 of the way down and ran the bottom portion on his head. He snapped his paddle (actually my paddle) in two but managed to roll up with both blades in hand.

I was really excited to see him safe and sound at the bottom. Our first week of filming has been pretty awesome. We're now in Missoula getting ready for another Dream Result premier, and then off to Quebec for big wave surfing! Another year and another journey begins... Checkout Sunset Falls in our new film "FRONTIER."

-Rush

BREAKING MY BACK ON BONITO FALLS, ARGENTINA

ALL PHOTOS COURTESY ANTON IMMLER

We arrived at Bonito Falls for our second time to slay the monster. Previously, Ian Garcia and Tyler Bradt had paddled to the lip with the intention of firing it off. Upon arrival at the lip, they determined the water was too low and they did not feel confident falling off it...

3 weeks later we returned to identical water levels. With only 5 more days in the country, I felt pretty anxious to get this drop in the bag. Our crew was Evan Garcia, Steve Fisher, Ian Garcia, myself, and Anton Immler. We all made the decision to run it.

From a distance, this drop looks good to go, but when you get to the lip you realize how f****d up the entrance is. A diagonal lateral feeding to the right, then current moving back to the left, before finally falling around 60 feet to the pool at the bottom. You don't want to be on the river left side of the drop as it's a big flake that could send you flat.

We decided Ian and I would go first while the rest of the crew filmed/photographed from the bluffs. We were both super nervous but also excited to get it over with. Honestly, one of the sketchiest parts of this drop is scouting it. To get to the lip we tied a rope off to a rock and then waded through the fast moving current to get to the lip. One slip into the rushing river could send you over the falls. I hate this kind of thing and took my time getting to the scouting zone. After some thought and speculation Ian stated his standard "F**** this i'm going" and began hiking up to the lip. I told him I would gladly rock paper scissors him but his decision could not be altered.

IAN IN THE ENTRANCE


IAN APPROACHING THE LIP


PERFECTLY VERTICAL, MAYBE A TINY BIT OVER THE BARS

I watched from the top of the drop as he vanished into the snake like entrance over the lip of the drop. Fisher came through on the radio and stated his skirt had imploded but he was fine. I was stoked to get my huck on.

I climbed into my kayak, hit record on my Go Pro HD head cam, and paddled towards the falls. The entrance was smooth as butter. A sweet boof from the left side, up against the right wall, back to the left, and then momentum back right. This is where I made my mistake. In an attempt to be further right I angled my boat just slightly further right then it needed to be. My last thoughts as I went off the lip were "I am going to stomp the hell out of this thing!" Then right as I hit the lip the flake grabbed my right edge and immediately tossed me flat, and sideways. In one last desperate attempt I hucked my weight back and forward to try and get the bow down to no avail. I landed sideways, flat, and sitting upright. Basically the worst position to be in...
ME IN THE ENTRANCE

APPROACHING THE LIP

EVERY KAYAKER'S NIGHTMARE! FLAT LANDING OFF A BIG DROP!!! :(

For any future or current waterfall hucker reading this, remember: It is always better to land flat tucking forward then sitting upright. Had I landed flat and tucked forward I may not have broken my back. That being said, there was hardly any aeration and I had a LOT of momentum. Even Ian who ran the drop almost perfect took a wicked hit and had 2 blackish eyes. I also smashed my face and have a bit of a cut on my left eye. The water was too low and even with a perfect line this bad boy will bitch slap you...

The next part of the incident was not very much fun. I couldn't breath for about 30 seconds and all I could do is gargle muffled wheezing. It sounds like i'm dying on the video. After some time Ian got me out of my boat and laid me in the water. I was in a bit of shock but after a while was able to stand. My muscles were all twitching and it was pretty clear something was not right. I had full mobility and the pain wasn't actually that bad. The next step was getting me the f**** out of the canyon. There are vertical walls on both sides and really the only way out besides paddling would be via helicopter. Not having that kind of $ or wanting to deal with that kind of a scene I opted to paddle out the remaining 300 meters of class 3 +. Luckily Fisher got me on a tibloc so I was able to easier pull myself the 300 feet of bushed out steepness up to the road. We then got to the truck and drove about 1.5 hours to a hospital in Bariloche.

Thank god for Ian's fluent espanol at the hospital. After my x rays it was clear I had compressed and broken a piece off of my L2 Vertabre. I'm still waiting to get a second opinion on this so i'll post the pics here on my news site and if you have any expertise in this area let me know what you think.
NOTICE THE CHIP OFF THE L2

CAN'T TELL MUCH FROM THIS ANGLE

Anyway, it doesn't seem to be that BAD of a fracture. It sucks, but I think I can make a full recovery with good rehab....

After some negotiations we convinced the hospital to let me go and stay at a friends house in Bariloche. The boys took a door off its hinges and were able to take me out on that, (although I was actually good walk). Special thanks to Fredrico Medina and all his friends for letting us stay in their home...

The next day we began the drive back to Pucon while I slept in the back of the pickup truck. Unfortunately, our truck broke down and now we are still stranded in Asorno awaiting repairs....

I hope to make it back to Cali by the end of the week although i'm not sure what it will be like to fly. Thanks to all the boys for helping out the cripple (again).

In reality, if I had to hurt myself, now is not a bad time. I'm under the deadline to finish this new movie "Dream Result" as well as a lot of my music. I've already mentally prepared myself for an injury at some stage in my kayaking career, and now was the time. If you continue to step it up in any sport it's unlikely that you will go unscathed (although there are exceptions.) I'm just really thankful it isn't worse...

Luckily for us kayakers, we don't have to deal with these things as much as our pro snowboarder or biker friends. Kayaking is a fairly forgiving sport. Look at guys like Travis Pastrana who have broken almost every single bone in their body and are still getting after it. Look at other kayakers even, Jason Hale, Ben Brown, James Bebbington (2X broken back) and they are all as fit and savage as ever.

I will be back in time for Spring season Stakeout ready for more rivers, more tricks, more drops, and more fun.

Overall the Chile segment came together great and i'm super pleased with the footage! Dream Result will be finished Feb 27th! Help me pay for these Argentinian hospital bills...