Hey Everyone!
We have passed the first week in Chile with everyday being better than the next. The group arrived safely and soundly in Pucon around a week ago. We spent the time by starting off with a safety clinic to bring everyone up to date on their rescue skills before we hit the river. After we had finished this we headed to the local runs such as the Upper and Lower Trancura and the Rio Palguin! All of these runs were perfect starters to reboot everyones paddling skills up to where they were when they left.
If you haven’t heard we have a secret weapon with us so far that has been Priceless. Billy Harris. Billy is a multiple time canadian team member for freestyle, two time runner up world champ and with out a doubt one of the best whitewater instructors on the planet. He has been with us since the beginning of the trip so each athlete has gotten the chance to work one on one with him. Through this I have seen the entire group take a huge jump in skill and confidence on and off the river.
We are now stationed in Choshuenco on the Rio Fuy which is my personal favorite river in the world. We have three sections of river to choose from. The upper is a class 4 waterfall section with very safe yet challenging rapids. The middle has tons of rapids that are perfect for the intermediates in our group to practice their eddy turns and other river running techniques. The lower is a slower moving section with some play waves on it. This section is perfect for everyone to practice their ferries, eddy turns, safety, and other river techniques that they have been learning.
We are having a great time. I hope everyone out there is well.
Best,
Coach Specht
