Salida, Co. - June 15 -- The spotlight of the paddling community was set in Salida, Colorado from June 12 to the 15,
where the 55th annual FIBArk Whitewater Festival took place. For one weekend of the year, the normally quiet town of Salida is transformed
into an epic whitewater festival where boaters from the east coast meet west coast boaters to compete and enjoy the festivities in downtown
Salida. The weather over the weekend was stormy, but the boating was incredible!
Spectators enjoyed heated performances from all levels. Once again the juniors displayed what the future has to bring to the pro classes.
When asked, Mike Harvey, organizer and announcer for the freestyle competition, expressed enthusiasm about the junior divisions. He
explained, "Juniors are competing at a higher level than ever before. Programs such as HUGE Experiences have really helped this
develop. It is no surprise that HUGE Experiences athletes dominated FIBArk as well as other competitions this year."
Junior Expert Men
Prelims for the Junior Expert Men went well with Pat Keller sweeping the competition. Michael Quinif came in second followed by Evan Trujillo of
Golden, Colorado. John Harbin and Adam Johnson came in fourth and fifth. Sixth and seventh places went out to the guys from McCall Idaho, Tristan
McClaran and Max Bechdel. When the day ended, everyone knew the finals would be intense. Four of the seven finalists were on the U.S. Team, and six
of the seven had trained with HUGE Experiences.
The finals ended up being nothing short of spectacular. Moves from blunts to split wheels to aerial loops left the spectators breathless. U.S. Team
Members Pat Keller, Michael Quinif, and Tristan McClaran dominated the podium. All three had vertical performances with a wide variety of the most
difficult tricks possible. Max Bechdel, also on the U.S. Team, came in behind Tristan for a fourth place finish. Fifth place went to Evan Trujillo
from Golden, Colorado. John Harbin took sixth place after showing an awesome display of some of the hugest aerial loops seen all weekend. Seventh
place went to Adam Johnson.
Junior Expert Women
Note: the junior women of Huge Experiences have created the "Girl Force." Read about the "Girl Force" at
www.hugeexperiences.com .
Excitement ran high during the Jr. Women's division, which had two local teens as well as several U.S. Team Members in it. To add a difficult
twist to the competition, the Jr. Women were combined with Expert Women due to a small turnout. This didn't seem to have much of an effect on
us, however, as juniors claimed four of the six finals positions. After preliminary rounds on Friday, Hanna Farrar was in the lead with a
performance of cartwheels, clean spins, and blunts. Both Ali Wade- third, and Brooke Bevan- fourth showed controlled rides with spins and
several vertical ends. The cut-off for finals, sixth place, went to Jesi Walton who showed that she could tear up her hometown hole. All
four of girls have trained extensively with HUGE Experiences.
On Sunday, finals led Hanna to second place and Ali to fourth. The hometown hole wasn't as much of an advantage as Walton and Bevan would
have liked. Bevan placed fifth and Walton placed sixth. Needless to say, junior women rock this year!
Junior Beginner/Sport
Crowd-shocking performances among the juniors didn't end with the junior women. The junior beginner sport class had a close competition and
many spectators. This competition took place in the lower, mellower hole. Unsurprisingly, it was dominated by the Jackson duo. Former World Champion Eric
Jackson's son, Dane,
won the competition with impressive edge control and a cartwheel that triggered cheers from the onlookers. EJ's daughter, Emily, took home a
bronze metal after tying with Glenn Dalgleish from McCall, Idaho. She definitely showed that she was podium material by carving back and forth
across the wave, spinning, back surfing, rolling up in the hole, twirling her paddle for the crowd, and ending her ride in a narrowly missed
loop attempt. Team HUGE is very excited to be picking up Emily Jackson for the fall semester in Chile, and someday, Dane Jackson.
Mens' Pro
The men's pro division included current World Champion Jay Kincaid and former World Champion Eric Jackson. So it was no surprise the performances were spectacular
with riders throwing a flurry of moves. In the end, the semi-final round of five included Bryan Kirk, Jed Selby, Eric Jackson,
Jimmy Blakeny, Jay Kincaid, and Andrew Spino-Smith. Kincaid failed to make the final three, which narrowed the field to Selby, Jackson, and Kirk. In the
end, Selby ruled the hole for the day, beating out Jackson by 80 points.
Women's Pro
Battling it out in the women's semifinal round were Eleanor Perry, Amy Jimmerson,
Tanya Shuman, Jamie Cooper, and Daren Eddy, with Perry winning. In the first medal round, Shuman
showed her world class skills and led the round, with Perry advancing and Jimmerson eliminated with a third place medal. In
the final two shootout, Shuman again dominated, while Perry suffered a poor ride.
FIBArk wound down leaving HUGE Experiences very proud of our athletes. The weekend was full of fun and incredible kayaking for everyone to watch
and take part. It was strange waking up on Monday morning to a quiet and little Salida after the busy weekend. All week, boaters slowly left Salida
to go and enjoy the rest of their summer elsewhere. Hope to see everyone this fall on the East Coast!
Editor's Note: Bevan is fifteen years old and writes articles on junior competitions she attends as part of her academic scholarship she receives
from the Academy of Huge Experiences.
