I’d heard many things about the Route 3 wave, site of the 5^th annual Blackwater Challenge that took place over the weekend. Most of what I had heard was negative, but when I got to the feature I was pleasantly surprised!

Progressing at Route 3 Wave

It’s true that it’s a small, shallow green wave but it’s also true that you can do most of the new aerial wave moves. It really is amazing how quickly our sport is progressing. Apparently in the past only one person had stuck a helix in competition here and no one had ever done a Clean Blunt. This year Pan Ams, Helixes, Clean Blunts, Flip Turns, and Pistol Flips were the norm.

Pan Am on a mini wave

The Blackwater Challenge also served as the first leg of the North American Cup, with the second and final event being held on the Ottawa River’s Garberator wave this coming weekend. The paddler that places highest at both of these events will be crowned the 2007 North American Champion.

The results so far look like this:

Men K-1                             Women K-1

1^st Bryan Kirk                     1^st Ruth Gordon
2^nd Stephen Wright             2^nd Emily Jackson
3^rd Nick Troutman              3^rd Elaine Campbell
4^th Kelsey Thompson
5^th Joel Kowalski

Kelsey Thompson (all photos by Bryan Kirk…except this sweet mug shot)