Yaking on the Hooch II

Chuck Armentrout came to Columbus again to host another kayak competition and to talk to a local engineer about ideas that could help the sport grow in Columbus. (More of that story to come here and via a column by our own Tim Chitwood.) Here are some of my best shots from the session. My apologies to anyone who didn't make the cut, but if you keep trying I'll keep trying too. Don't forget to click on the images to enlarge them. This is my favorite of the day. I got luck and caught Frank Norton just as he came to the surface and a sheet of water ran away from his face.
Kirk Robertson catching a gulp of air before he goes back under again.
Here's Charlie Simmons immersed as he pulls a trick to bring his boat upward towards the sky.
And here's Kirk again taking his turn on the wave.
I caught Chuck here in the middle of a 360.
Alex Rath as he rolls his boat upright again.
Zach Sanders caught through the spray.
Charlie Simmons catching a ride on the eternal wave.

It's too darn hot

Stanley Misinco fishes with his shirt off as the sun begins to rise over the Riverwalk steps leading to the Chattahoochee River in downtown Columbus Tuesday morning. I can't blame Stanley at all. It was only shortly after nine in the morning when I took this and the temperature was already well into the 80's. I don't know how you people do it. I can tell who is from the south and who isn't because the locals (and by local I mean born and raised) here don't seem to sweat. It's quite impressive actually. I need to start finding photographs before the sun rises. Good luck to all you fellow Northerners in the coming months. I hope we make it to October.

Kayaking Columbus

I was lucky enough to catch Tayler Musselman Sunday afternoon as she was paddling her kayak down the Chattahoochee River just south of the Dillingham Bridge. I had my first real chance this past weekend to try kayaking, on flat water of course, and it's quite adventurous with the added bonus of a great upper body workout. I was only out for two hours, but saw a school of healthy-sized fish swim right past my bow, watched a blue heron fly back and forth in front of me, saw some type of water fowl I've never seen before and even watched a beaver swim, dive and chew on branches from a fallen pine.(You could even hear him chewing.) After all this, I was compelled to snag floating trash on my paddle back to shore. I so wish Columbus offered kayak rentals or tours because I'm sure it make us all better stewards of such a rich ecosystem that we could truly explore and commune with. Any readers out there have a kayak or two they want to get rid of??

School's out pool's in

Pools are now offically open for the 2008 season and best of all there is one located right by the riverwalk. So, if you're in the neighborhood taking a run or bike on the riverwalk, you can always cool down at Rigdon Park Leisure Pool on 1835 Riverland Drive. Their number is 706-687-5813. For more information on Columbus pools visit www.columbusga.org/parks/Pools/pools.htm. Hannah O'Brien, 6, takes advantage of Ridgon Park Leisure Pool's opening day Wednesday to cool off on their waterslide.
Ashley Cullen runs Leianne Cowart, 2, through the raining mushroom at Rigdon Park.
James Harned, 10, left, and Ladarius Humphries, 11, take turns flipping each other in the shallows at Rigdon Park.
Emily Wood, 6, works on her snorkeling technique as she works her way around the pool at Rigdon Park.

Kayakers come to Columbus

Andy Hobson is surrounded by whitewater as he competes in a kayak surf competition below the Eagle & Phenix Mill Falls Wednesday afternoon. The competition was organized by Chuck Armentrout of Atlanta and is one of three events scheduled as part of the "Hometown Throwdown" series with World Kayak. I've included several other images of the action and just want to thank all who came for being so cool. Thank you, Frank, for taking me over to the island with your boat. Thank you, Joey, for keeping my camera dry on the way back. Chuck, what can I say, but I appreciate you bringing this event here and can't wait for the next one. And for any of you guys I didn't get photographs of, I be sure to look out for during the next event.

A net increases the bet

Felipe Santiago, left, and Cesar Alvarez standby to help haul in the catch as Alejandro Ochoa casts a net into the white water just below the Eagle & Phenix Mill Falls. These guys were a blast to watch. They were like a group of giddy school boys every time they pulled the net in to reveal fish. I wish I could have hung out with them longer, but duty called.
These guys were bursting at the seams when they pulled in this several pound carp.
A reflection of some of the fellas in a pool of water as they leave with their catch.
And I had to grab a quick shot of this dried out and decaying prehistoric looking creature. It might be common for you, but I'm from Ohio and I don't see these all the time up there, dead OR ALIVE!

Kids invent the darndest things

This is where it all starts. A fun little competition of moon boot racing with your buddy and as you scroll down you'll see it get more and more interesting. Here Margot McCrillis, left, and her friend, Madison Lewis, share these boots with elastic material inside to... I guess make you feel like you're walking on the moon just before gravity wakes you up on earth and breaks your ankle, but they looked like they were having fun.

Here I think Madison was working on inventing a biathlon of kite flying and moon walking. I'm sure we'll see Madison in London in 2012.
This image is a perfect example of pinch of skill and a pound of perseverance. The sun was setting on 10th street and I really liked having that as a background, as if they were driving their own play vehicle through the city landscape. Anyway, I thought it was cool, to be really honest. The posse included Margot McCrillis, 10, far left in moon boots, uses a cart to push her friends, Amber Wooden, 9, top left, Madison Lewis, 10, Amberlynn Lewis, 8, bottom far left, Bertram Emmanuel, 3, and Quinton Lewis, 6, around during an informal picnic of several staff, students and family members of Columbus State University's Corn Center for the Visual Arts Wednesday afternoon in downtown Columbus.
Poor Margot was not only worn out from pushing all her friends around, but from all the effort so were her socks.
And I couldn't resist getting one of 23-month-old Oskar Israel-Wertz as he starts test trials on his new invention, a croquet club that mows the grass while you play.