25th Annual
Upper Clackamas Whitewater Festival
May 17 & 18th, 2008
The 25th Annual! Who would have ever thought!
The first Upper Clackamas Whitewater Festival was held in 1984 by an informal group of rafters calling themselves the "Oregon River Rats". Organized by Russ Snively and friends with the support of volunteers from the Northwest Rafters Association they decided to challenge each other to a contest of skill running a race through the Carter Falls section of the Upper Clackamas River east of Estacada, Oregon. These races were the first slalom raft race events in the country. After a few years the NWRA became the event sponsor and has been running it annually ever since. This annual event has grown over the years to include the entire whitewater community with rafting, kayaking and river boarding events. Pacific Northwest white water festivals.
Th
is year the whitewater community is coming together as never
before. The weekend is packed with nonstop whitewater competition and an amazing array of high caliber educational clinics presented by the best in their fields. And of course there is the traditional Saturday night tribal gathering in Lockaby replete with good food, fine folks, exciting movie premiers and excellent Bluegrass tunes.
Oregon River Games is bringing four new and exciting races to the river. These include the High School Cup and Raft Camps sponsored by Bungee.com. This race brings enthusiastic teams of high school kids up to the river where they compete in a timed slalom paddle raft under the guidance of a professional paddle captain. The two Raft Camps are classes where beginner boaters learn the basic skills of safely running whitewater from professional whitewater guides.
The Shilo Inn Armed Forces Cup is exclusively for the members of the US Armed Forces and is reportedly a fast and furious head to head race. If you want to see driftboats run the gates at Carter Falls then you'll want to watch the ORG Driftboat event. ORG also runs the Pro Guides paddle event where hot shot paddle captains R-3 their craft through the race course.
Sotar is sponsoring the West Coast Championship series of
races, a part of the Western Whitewater Championship Series (WWCS). This
race events to be held at the whitewater festival include a down river
race from Fish Creek to just below Toilet Bowl rapid. The outcome of the
down river race seeds the starting position for the head to head sprint
that runs through Carter Falls. The final race in the series is the
slalom race. The combined winner of the series gains points toward the
national rafting championship races to be held on the North Fork Payette
during the PBR
Whitewater Revival.
Next Adventure is once again building the Big Air jump ramp - but this year it will be HIGHER! Click on the link to last years video (just to the left) and check it out. Next Adventure is also once again hosting the Saturday afternoon barbeque in Lockaby campground.
We're doing something new this year by bring two exciting films to the festival. These are "The Year of the Cat" produced by our northern friends the Boatin Beckers (Dave and Shelly). This is a high quality video series of some amazing cataraft runs on wild class 4 and 5 rivers throughout the North West.
The other film is"North West Video Scrapbook VI" which will premier at the whitewater festival. This is a gnarly and beautifully done collection of awesome kayak adventures.
This event is for anyone interested in whitewater or preservation of the rivers and resources we use. If you would like to be involved please don't hesitate to get in touch. We can always use new blood. Contact Bob Mosier 503-235-9940.
Down Load Saturday Registration»
Down Load Sunday Registration»
Down Load ACA Adult Form»
Minor Liabilty Waiver»»
Our
thanks to all the folks who support this great event!
Upper Clackamas Whitewater Festival Operates Under Special Use Permit with the US Forest Service. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color national origin, sex, religion, age, disability, political beliefs, sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs Persons with disabilities who require.) alternative means for communication of program information - (Braille large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, Room 326 W. Whitten Building, 14th and Independence Avenue, SW, Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964(voice or TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
The North West Rafters Association is a public benefit, non-profit corporation registered with the State of Oregon. The NWRA possesses a non-profit 501(C)3 status granted by the United States Bureau of Internal Revenue. Based upon the association's corporate registration with both of these entities, the NWRA is required to abide by the rules and regulations established by both the State of Oregon and the United States Bureau of Internal Revenue. Copyright © North West Rafters Association, 2001-2007.
