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KAYAK INSTRUCTION:

Thanks for checking up.  They are pretty fired up – I think we are heading to a pool session this Friday night.  We went to the lake after we picked the boats up and let them paddle around and swim for a bit.  They got to show us their wet exits and hip snaps.   
You did a very nice job teaching them.  I was particularly impressed with how well they were able to paddle and control the boats – whitewater boats don’t like straight lines and they were both able to move those boats wherever they wanted them to go with ease.  Annaleise really wanted to show me how to carve turns.  I was surprised by how much my son enjoyed paddling around, too.  I didn’t really think it would be his thing.  You may get to meet him for a class next spring.
I know I have said this before but I cannot say enough how impressed I am with your Company and your staff.  From your taking the time to put all the pictures on a CD for us to Braden and Beth setting us up with the boats and Sam and Max taking the time to get the girls fitted in the boats, the service we have received has been fantastic.  You and Ken should be very proud of what you have built.
We may see you before the end of the season to do a Nanty duck run with the girls.  If that doesn’t materialize, have fun down south this winter and you will see Annaleise and Eli next spring.
-James B. Lukens, CPA

Well, on lesson #2 I rolled on the first try! While in lesson #1 I tried to roll, I never actually completed one without my instructor, Joe's, help. But then for the next week I watched videos and read about rolls and practiced in my head (and on my floor until my 3 labradors simulated rapids and rocks hitting me leaving me in giggles). And my determination paid off. I rolled on the first try of lesson day #2! Believe me my instructor, my husband, and I were all suprised and thrilled!
So after we wore ourselves out practicing rolls of which I completed around 10 (successful but not pretty) rolls and my husband about the same our instructor took us to the Tuckeseegee around Dillsboro, NC. We played and kayaked in the rapids and smiled a lot over the 5 miles.
Then back to the Endless River Adventures (Bryson City, NC) shop where... Ta Da! My husband and bought our new Wave Sport Diesels 70 & 80. And thanks to Joe we got the whole outfits - paddles, pfd, helmets, etc, etc. We filled up our Subaru Forester with all kinds of gear and accessories and headed home. Thanks Joe and Juliet!
So now we are home (we drove home last night in the dark) and the kayaks and gear are still on/in the Roo and we are feeling sore and poor all in one! But incredibly happy. YEA!  And so begins my whitewater story...
- Susan Murdock Lawton, 2011

Just a quick note to Joe to thank him again for a great weekend  We bought some pictures from the NOC website and got one of Joe to fill out the quota.  Thanks again.
- Mick and Patrick, 2011

Thanks Joe for the awesome kayak instruction. Your patience was great. My husband and I are already thinking about when to come for lesson #2! Rolls, snaps, ferries, peel outs! I am ready.
- Susan Murdock Lawton, 2011

Please find as attached a couple of photos I thought you may wish to receive. Ken was great with Hugó. Hugó and I are already both connected to your facebook sites. We discussed Hugó joining the next junior kayak camp and I wish for him to do so. Please provide me with all necessary details. Best wishes,
-Antony Poole, 2011

I just wanted to thank you so much for working with Eli.  I believe he had
the time of his life and has told everybody here about his experience.  He has
decided that he wants to save his money up and buy his own kayak to
practice in down here.  I was wondering if you could give me the information on what
kind of boats i should look at to get him (like what he was in the other day).  I am
also going to try and get me a boat as well and i wanted to know what kind of
boat Joe was using, because when he let me use his it seemed to make a HUGE
difference in me staying upright. Thanks for your time and i look forward to hearing from you.
-Mark [and Eli] Box, 2011

Just wanted to let you know that the day of instruction with Craig was perfect - exactly what I had been looking for.  I had just realized as I drove home today that it had been 10 years since I took any formal instruction.  I spent the next three days on the Ocoee playing in all the spots we stopped at Thursday and rolling on both sides every chance I got.  I even got a chance to share some of that knowledge over the next two days and taught a guy who was paddling with me to do 360's for the first time.  And though I still have a lot of work to do on the techniques, at least I now have the confidence and desire to practice them.  Now I just need a playboat to practice them in!  The Diesel was fine for the weekend but I was really missing the Fuse.  Some garage rearranging may be in order...
- JMcDonald, 2011

Sorry this is long!  Please forward to Juliet, Ken, and the staff!
I have been struggling with my local club to get them to open their spring clinics to kids.  Part of this has caused me to reflect on the kids' clinics ERA offers and what a great value those clinics are.  As part of the discussion that has been going on, Mary Mills mentioned the ERA kids' camp. When she did that it really dawned on me how much ERA's involvement with kids has meant to my daughter and I the past few years.

My daughter started kayaking about 3 years ago.  I was a novice myself but worked with her to help her figure out wet exits, and basic paddle strokes around the lake.  Her first trip on the river resulted in a cold swim on the Nanty - my fault for putting her in that situation.  I'm lucky that she kept with it and the second trip to the Tuck went much better and she had fun. Her third trip on the lower Green went okay at first but ended with a swim and a lost spray skirt.  A few months later we went out on another Class II trip and she had a bit of an experience with a strainer.  She was never in any real danger but it shook her up quite a bit.  It was at this point that my bumbling around with not knowing how to introduce her to kayaking was really making it likely that she would quit.  She still paddled at lake roll sessions but was reluctant to paddle any river anywhere.

I finally did something right at this point.  I asked everyone I knew who the best instructor for kids might be.  Everyone to a person recommended Juliet as the best instructor they new period and said she had a great rapport with kids.  I made the call and reserved a day of private instruction with Juliet a week or so before the start of school in August.

Both my daughter and I were nervous beforehand.  I was told that my presence during the instruction was not needed or really even desired, which made me even more nervous.  A few hours later I checked my voicemail to find a message from my daughter, with an almost uncontainable level of excitement in her voice.  That day of private instruction really did wonders for my daughter's level of confidence in herself on the water.

We went back home and had a great fall and winter practicing our rolls at the pool.  By the end of the winter Alyssa had a bomber roll and lots of confidence.  We got out on a lot of local class II with friends in the spring and she did great.  With every accomplishment my daughter made, she was eager to tell Juliet of her progress.  Little postcards and advertising phamplets started arriving in my mail from ERA with my daughter's name on them, which just added to her excitement about kayaking.

The next summer I enrolled Alyssa in the summer kids' camp with ERA.  I must say that it has easily been the best money I have ever spent on anything related to kayaking.  She has done kids' camp twice now and enjoys it more than anything else she does all year.  My daughter learned a lot, had fun, and now considers the ERA staff to be her extended family in the gorge.  She always wants to stop in and say hi on our many summer trips to the Nantahala, which has gone from being a scary place for her to being a source of great enjoyment.  I have really treasured the time and adventure I have been able to share with my daughter the past couple of years and look forward what is yet to come.  I've seen the confidence she has in herself on the water show itself in other aspects of her life where she now has a lot more confidence in herself.

In addition to the paid clinics ERA does, I've noticed that ERA sponsors instruction to youth in the area that might not otherwise be able to afford instruction.  ERA is an organization that seems to be heavily invested in bringing their passion for the sport to the next generation of paddlers.  As someone who has been involved with volunteer youth organizations, I applaud any business that invests in developing young people.  I particularly respect any organization that gets young people off of the couch and outside enjoying nature and the world around us.

After arguing with my club that has many members who just don't seem to "get it", it has made me appreciate all of the staff at ERA who "get it" and live it everyday. THANK YOU!
-Garrick Taylor, 2011

Thank you so much for a wonderful week of paddling. From my first conversation with Braden to the take out on Fri. it's was always a quality experience. Craig was great at playing "let's see if he can do this", was very skilled at teaching rolling, and preparing me for the river running later in the week with Joe. I never thought I would be directional rolling that easily. Joe has a real talent for putting one at ease and guiding them through challenging sections. I believed when I signed up for the classes that I was on the verge of a breakthrough in my paddling and you and your staff really brought that out. My whole experience was magical. I can't wait to go back. Thanks to all of you,
-Rich, Vermont, 2011

Thanks again for your wonderful teaching and hanging out with us ont he river! We had a fantastic honeymoon!  Thanks Endless River!!!
- Brian and Gretchen, 2010

I wanted to follow-up and thank you all for a great couple of days at kid's camp.  Brittany enjoyed working with Michael, Ryan and the rest of the staff.   After Michael worked with Brittany on her roll, she fired off 8 rolls right off and right in a row at the lake the next day!  Thanks Ken for working with her despite her stage fright at the clinic. It was great seeing playboater extraordinaire Max and thanks so much for your help fitting the hip pads.The camp did a lot to increase Brittany's confidence both on and off the ater.  Terrific couple of days!  Thank you all!
-Debbie Dargis, 2010

I want to thank you for all that Endless Rivers did for the Carolina Canoe Club during our recent Week of Rivers event. I heard a number of compliments from members who benefited from the help that the two of you personally provided.You and Endless Rivers are a class act and have done a great deal for the paddling community and our club. I always tell any prospective member that if they join and attend Week of Rivers, then they have the chance to receive instruction from two of the best.

I want to especially thank Ken for helping me fix my roll, which had become less reliable than I like over the past few months.  I attended the afternoon roll tune-up session on Tuesday, and it helped a great deal. I was in the Recoil, and after you watched my roll, you said my main problem was that I was rushing the roll. However the last few times I had practiced, I had more problems than that. In fact, during a recent lake practice session, I was failing to roll the Recoil at all.  During your talk about technique, I thought about what I had been doing and was able to diagnose and correct several problems before we actually got on the water. My biggest problem was that I was leaning forward too much and engaging my abdominal muscles, thus taking the power out of my hip snap.  Once on the lake, I practiced sitting up with my back arched, and facing the sky as I ended the roll (instead of looking at the back of the boat). Just by feeling that a few times before actually rolling, I improved the roll tremendously.

I mention this just to let you know that before your talk, my roll was much worse that it was when you saw it on the lake. For me at least, your talk helped more that most people realized. Also, it was great watching how you diagnosed other people's problems and then helped them fix them. I picked up several valuable pointers on how to help people with roll problems.
Whenever people ask me about boating (whether for trips or lessons), I encourage them to check out your web site and what you have to offer. Thank you again for all you have done for our club. Sincerely,
-Raymond Williams, 2010

Just want to let you know how much we appriciate all your effort and enthusiasm...I can't tell you how much fun the girls have had...can't wait till next summer.  Even Billy had fun paddling the Nanny on Sunday. thanks again, Julie, 2010

 Hey Guys, Had a ball last trip up with Joe. There`s a lot more to Kayak 101 than I thought. We`ll be back soon to do another trip. Thanks again, Seeya, Mickey, 2010

Thanks again, for a wonderful day of instruction on the river.  It was super motivating and recharging.  What else can I say except you're simply the best! Gabrielle is really looking forward to seeing you in August....Take care,
        -Chris L., GA2010

You guys are the best. One days instruction with Juliet and my daughter is a paddling fanatic. She just had to get on a river today and can not wait to paddle Sunday on the Nanty. See you guys Sunday!
-Tom Beisel, GA 2010

Thanks for an awesome week of paddling. Too many breakthroughs...1st 360 flat spin, 1st Cartwheel, 1st boof off Tablesaw, catch 1st right side eddy in Broken Nose, 1st side surf in Hell Holen; 1st directional rolls ....and 1st time I feel confortable paddling the Ocoee. Thanks so much and ...will definitely work on directional rolls when I get home. See you next time.
-Mazy Leung, Houston, TX 2010

I wanted to thank y'all for taking good care of Lynn Goode.  She really enjoyed her day of paddling-this after complaining for days beforehand
that she was gonna HATE IT! Craig struck the perfect balance with her of instruction and fun, and she'll be back for more. There is a reason y'all are the best.
-Harrison Williams, 2009

 

 Thanks for the info and the great instruction. Going home Friday evening I rolled down the window, turned off the radio and thought about what I had learned. About then I had an epiphany. In the three years since I got back into paddling and switched boat types, I never knew WHY my roll worked when it did or WHY it didn't  when it didn't. In my work career I've always lived by the credo, " You can't fix it if you don't know how it works", but never applied that to my paddling. Until Friday anyway, now it makes sense. Thanks Again, SYOTR,
-Mike, 2010

For the past three years my roll has had a mind of its own, coming and going at will. It had gotten to the point that I had some bad mojo going on in my head. So, on the advice of posters to this forum, I spent a day with her yesterday. It took her about five minutes to see what I was doing wrong. We spent the rest of the day correcting those things and working on more of my bad habits. Really great day. No more mojo problems. 
-Mike Hancock, 2010

I did it- I kayaked the Grand Canyon! I can't belive it - we had such a great time! My little DIesel 60 did great! To be honest there wer several flips and rolls in there, including 2 to get through Lava Falls. But I consider no "out of boat experiences" a success. Couldn't have done it without your help. Thanks!
- Amy, 2009

Just got in from a looong day on the river and wanted to shoot you a note! I paddled Richland Creek today, which remains the hardest thing I’ve paddled. I had done it once 3 years ago (hard to believe), and white-knuckled it down. I decided I was going to take my new found confidence from our time on the Ocoee and stop making excuses for not going back (it’s too cold, I don’t know the group that’s going, I don’t have the right boat, blah, blah, blah). It was an AWESOME day, and I will NOT let 3 years pass again before enjoying this run –it really is Arkansas’ “classic creek” run. Oh, and I even ran the one rapid I walked last time which is a class IV. (Actually, I flipped running it, but my roll was so fast I still caught the eddy in the middle of the rapid!). I had said on my goal sheet that what I most wanted was greater confidence in my own skills, and I definitely feel I came home with that. My season is off to a great start having notched my second Richland run – I am stoked!!!
Thank you again – I would NOT have FINALLY gotten my butt on Richland again without that confidence boost I got from paddling the Ocoee.
THANKS!!!!
-Heather Huckaba, AR, 2009

Thanks for a great day today.   That is the most fun I have ever had on the Ocoee.  I am normally slightly stressed and worry about everything, I just had fun today.   I feel better about my roll which helps a great deal. I will work on the rolls in the pool which is a great stress reliever for me.  I will keep working on that Spanish.  6.5  hours driving tomorrow is a lot of Spanish to listen to. I can't wait till December. 74 days till check in.
Thanks again for taking us.  I really liked Andrea and Keith and am glad I got to meet them.
-Mary, 2009

Thank you for such a terrific day on Saturday!!! The Ocoee was amazing and now it is just the place we want to be. I was nervous all the way until the end of the run (fear of the unknown), but now I am so looking forward to going back there with you again to look with perspective now. Learning to read the river, find safe(ish) routes is the key thing for me... and you are superb at dissecting it all and helping to make it manageable! I am easily overwhelmed and not so brave! So, do let us know the Ocoee season and best days for next season. We will be there.  The Nantahala was great, but it is time to step into slightly bigger shoes :-) BTW -- Ben has no idea what 'jig a frog means'. He thinks I am nuts!!!!
Thanks again,
--Olly & Dave, 2009

Here are the photos that were taken while out paddling on Calderwood.  Had a great time doing both flat and whitewater kayaking. teve...I'm going to work on the roll,etc in a pool locally. I will get hat "skill" someday !!   Thanks for being patient with me. I learned a lot and will add kayaking to my list of top 5 activities and ill incorporate into my life's favorite activities.
Be Safe in your travels and embrace life!
-Steve Ranz, 2009

I just wanted to say thanks for a FANTASTIC day on Saturday, you were awesome.  You clearly met my expectations and really did a great job with Ronnie.  We hooked up with Robert and Gretchen on Sunday, put in at Fereby and had another great run.  Gretchen did great in keeping Ronnie informed about everything and had her working on catching the Eddies, ferry moves, and peelouts, we had a lot of laughs and she stayed upright all day.  had another great run down the falls, once again I visited Truckstop and had a nice look.  I ran a little too far left again but managed to paddle right through again. Hope to see you this weekend! Best regards,
-Steve (and Ronnie!), GA 2009

Gail wanted me to tell you how much she loved the FUSE.   I took her to the lake and she rolled it up on the first try. Still pulling her head up sometimes but if I get my hand on her shoulder as she comes up she grabs it with her head and comes up then. I had her practice strokes and carving turns before we got off the lake.  I had the most fun watching her today on the Tuck.  It was low, only 200 cfs. and I honestly couldn't remember much about lines so I convinced her to go first the whole way to practice river reading.  She was so excited when she picked a great line. She kept running all her choices by me at first, then by the middle she just went.   Whenever she went through something that splashed her she kept laughing.    I have to say if I practice a roll and don't come up in the right finish position she sure does catch it.  I hear" that's not how Juliet said to finish"  At least she is keeping me on my toes.   I even got her to surf a little bit which she never does. She was a little nervous for about the first 15 minutes, but then she calmed down and laughed and smiled the whole way down. She kept saying this boat is frisky, but I really like it. I have never seen her surf and practice ferrying as much as she did today.
-Mary, GA 2009

Thanks for all your coaching Monday and Tuesday.  Everything came together as always when I got home.  I did get to paddle the Upper Meadow, as I mentioned is basically one five mile long class III-IV rapid.  Your pointers regarding the stern draw with turbulent eddies and harry ferries and looking several moves ahead all paid off. 
Please tell Sara that Elisha really enjoyed her instruction and it is all she
has spoke about since returning home.  Thanks again for everything...
-Brent, WV 2009

 

We had the opportuntity to get with Joe on May 5th of this year and had a really good time.  As couples doing this together Joe was so informative and made you want to continue to learn how to kayak whitewater, we wanted to get our friends a gift certificate to do another whole day with Joe....
- John & Sherree DeLeo, MN

Thanks for the “fine tuning” and “getting my head straight” this past weekend.  It was great to get back on bigger pushier water after 10 months and learn to trust my “new” shoulder.  We will be back in July,
-Thanks again...Brent 2009

 Thanks again for another great kayak experience for our students. They allad great things to say about the weekend.
-Ed Daugherty, Director, Davidson Outdoors, Davidson College Union

 

The fun, generous, talented and very knowledgeable people at Endless River Adventures are coming down next Wednesday. This is the same group that took us down the Nantahala last year. They w ill be coming down to check out our program and offer their expertise to us.  So for all of you that would like to learn new instruction skills or brush up on old ones you will not want to miss next Wednesday. I am telling you, ERA is one of the top instruction kayaking school around. They are just ridiculously good.

-Eric, Active Duy Rehab, Team River Runner Volunteer, August GA

 

We just got back to Ohio and I wanted to thank you for a great lesson. I learned a lot of valuable information and have ea lot to practice this Spring. I will probably be headed down to NC again in the summer and would love to set up another lesson.  It is nice to meet people that share the enthusiasm for the outdoors.  Also, if you know anyone in cinncinnati who kayaks, I would love to have some new paddling buddies. Thanks again for all your help.

-Kara, OH 2009

 

Thanks again for the demo time in the diesel 80. I am looking forward to getting back and spending more time in it. My lesson with Craig was outstanding as always and I am looking forward to hitting the "tingledOctingledoee: in a few weeks.

- Dennis Lyons, NC 2009

 Lauren told me she is way more confident with her roll and was pretty jazzed about it. We had a great weekend. We agreed we'll both work towards a class III trip to Costa Rica (Lauren paddling skills, me saving the cash!)
-Penny, Louisville, KY

Hi...........I'm Tom Cofer .......and I visited with you this past week-end with Team River Runner's........I am a volunteer with the chapter at the VA Hospital in Augusta.........and I want to express my personal appreciation for you wonderful help with Team River Runner's experience with you.  Juliette, Sara, and Sam were so patient and helpful.......to all of us.......and we are truely thankful for your help.......all of us who work with the 'guy's'........were very impressed by your instruction as to how we can help them and work with them in a safe and positive way........We can away feeling that we are much better prepared to continue to work in this area........ I can't help but be impressed that you were so helpful in dealing with so many people on so many levels .......all at the same time............and we sincerely thank you......

-Doc, Augusta GA

I wanted to say thanks so much to Steve for 2 great days of instruction.  He was very patient and explained things well.  I feel much more confident getting in and out in of eddies and moving about in stronger current (no more sneaking out the back of eddies).  I never thought I would see the day when I wasn't panic stricken going down the falls or would actually be enjoying myself going in and out of eddies across strong current and ferrying back and forth. 

 

Ever since Dr. Mike McGhee told me aboutCosta Rica I have wanted to go.  I am going to put that as my goal for Thanksgiving 2009  if there is a class II/III trip since I don't think I will be quite ready yet this year unless I really get the hang of combat rolls quickly.  That will be something to look forward to and I can't wait.

- Thanks again,Mary Mills, GA

 i just wanted to say thanks for a wonderful pi.  i learned tons and 
had fun in the process.  the best part of it though, was getting to 
spend time with you.  you're not only  a great instructor but really 
fun to talk to and hang out with.
thanks again!
-michele aka the consistently inconsistent excited to see the bottom of 
the river at double trouble paddler :-)

 

thanks for a great day on the Ocoee.
it was a bit of a stretch for you having both mercer and i there (with somewhat different needs for the day) but you made the best of it and both got alot out of it.i am still brooding over getting chundered at double trouble. next time i will leave mercer at home (har har!)thanks again
- jeff, 2008

 

Please, pass along to Steve that everyone in our family had a great time on 18 Aug on our Endless River Adventures, guided duckie trip on the Ocoee. Steve proved to be a great guide, with a good mix of cooperation, river skills, patience and friendship. On top of that, we lucked out with a great weather day, when there were few folks on the river. I sincerely mean it when I say it simply could not have been better. My kids walked off the river standing taller, for having done it on their own. I also benefited, since my open boat memories from former runs, was somewhat foggy IRT where to be on that river. Steve was a good all around coach for all of us. We even lucked out and got a couple of good photos from the Ocoee Photo folks that were working Double Trouble. I expect to do business with your company again and look forward to seeing you guys on the rivers.

-CAPT Steve Elrod, USN, 2008

I wanted to thank you again for working with my daughters Nicole and Natasha. They were so excited afterwards and that was what I really wanted for them. We will be back for more instruction. In the meantime, we will keep practicing the skills you taught them. I also wanted you to know I referred a colleague of mine to you for a day of touring kayaking. They a