Aug 07 2009
NOC/ Dagger Shootout
The weekend of the Noc/Dagger Shootout was scheduled to begin with some much needed practice for me at the Ocoee early Friday Morning. After a DAM good breakfast, my wife, Shannon and I were off to the river. Unfortunately we noticed much heavier traffic than usual and as we approached the private takeout of Lake Ocoee, we were brought to a complete stop suddenly staring at a line of vehicles for miles. Unaware of the situation, we sat there for about 45 minutes hoping the traffic would clear. Finally, out of concern, I got out of the car and walked up to see what was going on. According to a ranger, a minivan lost control and flipped into the ditch leaving the driver badly injured. We were encouraged to turn around and head home for the afternoon as it would be hours before the wreckage would be cleared. We turned to car around realizing that at 2:30, the delay would be long enough to lose out on water for the day. As we headed back, we were stopped yet again to clear the bridge for the medivac helicopter to land and retrieve the victim. Needless to say the water ran out while I was stuck between a wreck and a helicoptor, something you don’t see everyday. But this random event seemed to kick off a theme for our weekend. Saturday morning started early with a 6:30 am departure for our ride to North Carolina’s Nantahala River where I was to compete in the NOC/Dagger Shootout. On the way, as we traveled through Ducktown, TN we noticed some very strange weather. Suddenly lightening began to strike all over, but in an upward motion accompanied by deep rattling thunder that even seemed to shake the car as we drove. As we continued on, however, the sporadic storm drifted away and we arrived at the river to beautiful clear skies. I was excited to find that the NOC staff had not only put alot of work into building a good hole, but had also improved the atmosphere throughout. For those o you who have not been there in a while, NOC now offers alcohol on the concessions porch and have created a permanent, sweet play feature right beside the beer stand. While a bit flushy and dynamic, the hole will give up almost any freestyle move. Noon kicked off the competition which consisted of 3 rides, 1 minute and 30 seconds each. Even for Pro Men’s, this is a long time spent in a flushy hole. I would be lying if I said I didn’t spend quite a bit of time winded in between runs. Though my rides were not to my satisfaction, it turned out to be a great event. The experience was alot of fun and gave me the opportunity to see the community push for change. The 2010 All Star was a dream to paddle on the wave being that it was very fast, loose and has alot of pop. Excitement rings through me thinking of next year and pushes me to put in more practice for the event. Though I was pleased to learn I had made finals, I was unable to compete in them due to a prior engagement. Next year, I plan to secure the full weekend for the competition and hopefully will go all the way through. Special thanks for all the people that helped put it together, the hospitality was fantastic and your work toward change at NOC is much appreciated. On Monday, I stayed and played at the Ocoee. It was so fun to have a day to just throw it down in the new boat and to look up and see my wife on the bank cheering me on.
Jeremy Adkins
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