2008 Whitewater Paddling Clinic
Turner's Campground, The Mulberry River, Cass, AR
March 29 through 30, 2008

Please watch this page for more information.

OMP’s whitewater clinic includes a classroom/pool session prior to the clinic, two days of on river instruction by ACA (American Canoe Association) certified instructors, camping Friday and Saturday night at Turner’s Bend, and a riverside gourmet dinner on Saturday night. We will also have souvenir clinic t-shirts for clinic participants. You must provide your own equipment, preferably a whitewater kayak or canoe and accessories.

Download Clinic Application
Acrobat Reader Format

No Applications Will Be Accepted at the Clinic

2008 Whitewater Clinic Fees:

Individual enrollment

• $85
• OMP members may deduct $15
• ACA members may deduct $10
• Add $15 if you are registering after March 17, 2008.

Guest Instructor

This year we will be honored to have professional paddler Clay Wright join us as a guest instructor from Jackson Kayak. Clay comes with a long resume of paddling accomplishments - from numerous World Cup, Freestyle and Squirtboating championships to multiple first descents and extreme race wins. Clay is also an accomplished writer for some of the best publications in the sport and has appeared in numerous videos. Feel free to check out his biography at Jackson Kayak. The site also lists his clothing and shoe sizes for those who wish to support our paddling pros with donations.

Dynamic Earth Boat Demos Available

Contact James Mattox at Dynamic Earth for more informaiton on using a demo boat at this year's clinic.
417-877-8855

Attention All 2008 Whitewater Clinic Participants

OMP’s Spring Whitewater Clinic is PAC & ACA Sanctioned and as such will adhere to and recommend certain common sense and safety precautions, guidelines, procedures, and protocols.  These can be found at the following links.  It is strongly recommended that ALL Clinic Participants, regardless of capacity read, review, and be familiar with these.    

• ACA main safety page
  http://www.acanet.org/safety/safety.lasso
  
• Requirements and Guidelines for ACA Sanctioned Events
  http://www.acanet.org/PDF/safety-guidelines.pdf
  
• Safety Code of American Whitewater
  http://www.americanwhitewater.org/content/Wiki/safety:start

Safety

Read the Safety & Education Update.

Whitewater Classes Available:

Beginner Kayak or Canoe

No whitewater experience necessary. Some paddling experience is recommended along with being comfortable in water. We start with the basics of river paddling, work on stroke technique, and learn river maneuvers such as eddy turns, ferries, and peelouts.

Intermediate Kayak or Canoe

This class is for those who have more river experience or have already taken our clinic or a comparable clinic. You will refine stroke technique and learn more advance strokes. You will practice river maneuvers and learn to do them with grace and ease.

Intro to Playboating Kayak

This class is for a boater who is comfortable on class II – III whitewater and has at least a semi-reliable roll. You will learn the strokes, boat control techniques, and attitude necessary for playboating. You will be more successful in this class with a planing hull whitewater kayak.

Playboating Kayak

This class is for the advanced boater with a reliable roll who is ready to learn basic playboating moves. You will work on learning surfing, 360’s, stern and bow stalls, and flatwater cartwheels. A planing hull playboat will be necessary for maximum learning potential.

Experience:

Experience: The information that you provide below is to be based on the type of boat you will be paddling. Please be as honest as you can when rating yourself. This will help the instructors place you in the proper class.

Skills:

• Novice
  Little or no experience
• Beginner
  Person who knows some basic strokes and has been on a river but has not learned river maneuvers.
• Advanced Beginner
  Person who knows all the basic strokes and braces and has spent time on whitewater but does not feel comfortable paddling beyond class II water.
• Intermediate
  Person who has attended at least one clinic, is comfortable on class II-III water (Nantahala, St. Francis), paddles frequently but would like to learn additional skills and improve techniques.