Monday, October 11, 2010

Hoedown wrap-up

The best thing about the Hoedown was coming home with this box full of $1,600 in your donations, which is now in Dave and Helaine’s very thankful hands.

The 2010 Hoedown is a wrap, but those of us who were out there are still talking about the awesome weather, sweet waves, amazing competition and the whole weekend full of friendship. All that plus an amount of generosity that really shows the heart and soul of the surf paddle community.

The Hoedown’s youngest-ever competitor, 12-year-old whitewater kayak surfer Jeffrey Steehler. You rock!

Here are some links to pictures and narratives of the 3 days we shared together.

***PLEASE REUSE OR SHARE PHOTOS ONLY WITH PERMISSION FROM THE PHOTOGRAPHER AND PROPER CREDIT GIVEN***

Rob Casey is an amazing photographer, good friend and terrific guy. He would have been competitive in pretty much every event out there but he hung on the beach shooting with the camera. He culled out this amazing album from his 2,000-plus images of the weekend. Rob’ new love is SUP, including instruction as owner of Salmon Bay Paddle, so make sure you get with Rob for a lesson.

Inge and Sean Watson got some great pics too. Inge’s Picasa Gallery shows Saturday free surfing, Saturday competition, and the Sunday competition. Sean posted his best pics from Sunday right here.

Sean and Inge shooting together.

Heather Nelson and her husband Brandon each posted awesome narratives on their blog at chargelife.com. Heather’s description of Saturday’s Scramble Race warrants another hearty shoutout to Heather and the other 12 racers (total 11 sea kayakers and 2 SUPers) who braved the surf for this inaugural event.

If you’re on Facebook, check the picture galleries from Heather Nelson and Deb Volturno.

Speaking of Deb, many many thanks to Deb, Hamp All, Rob Casey, Jameson Riser, all the judges and volunteers tallying points behind the scenes, but especially Deb who was so enthusiastic about this event, helping and encouraging this rookie organizer all along.

Thanks to Dennis Judson and the Santa Cruz crew who loaned us the jerseys for competition day.

And thanks as always to our sponsors. If you guys want another well-supported event with awesome prizes and a chance for everyone to win some really cool gear, GET OUT THERE and BUY STUFF from THESE PLACES…

Our presenting sponsor, Dave King at Olympic Raft and Kayak in Port Angeles

Major sponsors (those who made a financial commitment in time to get their logos on the event tee shirt):

Surfer Dave Agnew at, well, Surfer Dave, selling Mega Surf Kayaks

Wayne Horodowich at University of Sea Kayaking

Vicki Adams at Sound Bikes and Kayaks in Port Angeles

George and Barb Gronseth at Kayak Academy in Issaquah

Rob Avery at Activepaddles.com, representing Valley Surf Kayaks

And special additional thanks to our additional sponsors who stepped up at the last minute and offered their products and services:

Tammi Hinkle at Adventures Through Kayaking in Port Angeles

Rob Casey at Salmon Bay Paddle in Seattle and Port Angeles

Kids, dogs, surf… just add boats, paddles, and a few dozen salty paddlers.

Bye! See ya next year. (Heather Nelson dancing in the surf, caught in the act by Inge Watson)

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