2012 Special Events: What’s New and What’s Back

First of all, allow me to introduce myself. My name is Zuzana Vanha, and I’m the new Events Manager here at the Nantahala Outdoor Center. I’m in an interesting position at the NOC. I’m new, but I’m also back: six years ago I worked as a waitress at River’s End Restaurant, and over 24 years ago, I first visited the NOC as a wide-eyed little girl, fresh off the boat from Czechoslovakia, coming with my family to live with our uncle Vladimir, who, unbeknownst to us, had become a living local legend in the Nantahala Gorge (thanks as much to his eccentricities as to his revolutionary kayak manufacturing company, Noah Kayaks). So I’ve seen the NOC through various metamorphoses, and I have to say I’m excited about the coming year, which is shaping up to be the biggest for events in recent history, and maybe ever.

First, let me take you through the highlights: In May, NOC is hosting the Adventure Travel Film Festival. The ATFF is definitely something new—3 days and 16 films, ranging thematically from the first descent of the Yenisey River through Mongolia, Siberia, and into the Arctic Ocean, to “The Himalayan Adventure,” the 1958 story of three English housewives who bought a Land Rover and drove it from London to Zanskar (then a part of Tibet). In short: inspiring, audacious, and beautifully filmed adventures that will leave you itching to get out and see the world. That’s why we’re also hosting speakers, photography clinics, and survival skills workshops throughout the weekend. The only danger is that when it’s time to leave on Sunday, you might just want to keep driving…

Exciting, gritty, real: The Adventure Travel Film Festival has something to whet every whistle.

But don’t go yet, there’s more to come throughout the summer. NOC is turning 40 this June, and we’re having a party for all of you who have been our family and friends over the years. In the afternoon, we’re hosting the first annual Nantahala River Raft Race, followed by,speakers, contests, and live music into the wee hours. Join us. We’d love to have the chance to thank you for a great 40 years.

Recognize me? NOC's Outfitter's Store, in its early days.

And then in September, there’s the World Cup. That’s right, the 2012 ICF Canoe Freestyle World Cup is coming to the Nantahala River. Top freestyle athletes from around the world will compete at the newly constructed 2013 Wave, built this winter with a generous grant from The Golden Leaf Foundation to accommodate next year’s Freestyle World Championships.

Top international freestyle athletes will compete on the Nantahala in 2012 & 2013.

Our high-profile events continue into October, when we’re hosting the 2012 ACA Open Canoe Nationals. The best open boaters from across the US and Canada will compete for three days in a variety of classes, and you can come out to give them a run for their money, because this event is open to everyone. (Juniors 16 and under will race for free in tandem disciplines when accompanied by a paying adult.)

So, as you can see, there are a lot of new things going on at the NOC this summer to get excited about, but that’s not to say that our returning events are old hat. Many of these events have been growing in popularity for the last several years, and will be bigger and better this coming season. In its second year, NOC’s Appalachian Trail celebration, the Founder’s Bridge Festival will feature local and national hiking/backpacking personalities, speaking on topics such as AT history and conducting free wilderness skills clinics. We’ll also be hosting a trail maintenance hike on a section of AT adjacent to the NOC campus.

We’re also happy to welcome back our annual high-level competitions, including the Bank of America Whitewater US Open. This March, Top level slalom athletes will race on the Nantahala before making their way to Charlotte for the 2012 Olympic Team Trials. Don’t miss this chance to cheer on our future Team USA before they head for London later this summer. The Freestyle Shootout is also coming back to the NOC this April—pro freestylers, enthusiasts, and juniors are invited to participate in the inaugural freestyle event at the 2013 Wave.

Some events that everyone can get involved in this year will be the Canoe Club Challenge and World Kayak Hometown Throwdown, two beginner-friendly competitions that encourage boaters to improve their skills in a friendly, unintimidating setting. Check out these events on the third weekend of June, July, and August.

Come one, come all! Everyone is welcome at this beginner friendly slalom event!

The Duck n’ Run, in its third year this May, is NOC’s seriously silly biathlon. Paddle the Nantahala in an inflatable ducky, then test your lungs (and quads) up Flint Ridge trail: what’s not to love? Boaters and non-boaters, runners and non-runners are welcome!

Devoted fans cheer along competitors at the 2011 Duck n' Run.

And towards the end of the season, come out again for the Great Pumpkin Pursuit, a free-for-all canoe/kayak scramble for hundreds of numbered pumpkins floating through the Nantahala Falls. A beloved component of our annual NOCtoberfest, the Pumpkin Pursuit will take place on the 27th of October. NOCtoberfest itself will be significantly bigger this year.

Autumnal Foliage at the 2011 Great Pumpkin Pursuit.

In addition to our tried-and-true autumn festivities, guests can enjoy a traditional Bavarian-style Beer Garden, set in along the riverbank under the tall maples near Slow Joe’s Café: beer, brats, schnitzels galore, as well as dumplings, sauerkraut, and cider for the kids. Hayrides and haunted houses are also in the works, as well as the Flint Ridge Fall Flight, a multi-option running race along NOC’s trail system.

To sum up, NOC’s mix of high-profile events, returning festivals, fun challenges and community races will make 2012 a year to remember. Come out and join in the fun, and stay afterwards to enjoy live music, refreshments, and good company at the Pourover Pub. We’re sure you’ll find something you like to do this year at the Nantahala, and we’d love to hear your thoughts on NOC events past, present, and future. Your input is what helps us make these events better every year. Please feel free to comment here, on NOC’s Facebook page, or by sending an email to info@noc.com.

I am looking forward to the coming year, and I hope you’ll be a part of it.

Zuzana Vanha

NOC Events

NOC Special Events 2011: What to Expect

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2011 NOC Special Events Calendar

While working on the new 2011 special events calendar I took the opportunity to reflect on how NOC special events have changed over the past couple of years. If you're really just interested in the events, follow the link above see the schedule on noc.com for yourself. It features a good mix of participatory and spectator events, old standbys and new trial offerings.

Be sure to note the 2011 USA Canoe/Kayak Slalom Nationals will be on the Nantahala the weekend after GAF, so we'll likely get to see the 2012 Olympic paddlers here in Wesser even though the team won't be set until next year. If you are interested in how the NOC special events schedule has evolved, keep reading. You may find the following observations interesting.

Over the past couple of years NOC has tried to bring most special events “home” to the main Nantahala property. This meant handing off longtime NOC events like the Knobscorcher and the Tsali Challenge Triathlon to race promoter Gone Riding, but the upside of this transition has been the creation of very successful new events, and a plan for future on-property bike and foot races as the Flint Ridge trail system develops into an accessible, event-worthy venue in the next few years.

The stars of the new event calendar have been the NOC Freestyle Shootout and last year’s Canoe Club Challenge. The NOC Freestyle Shootout is part of the burgeoning eleven-event USA Freestyle Kayak Points Series which will determine the 2011 freestyle team and national champions. Also, the event helped the Nantahala Gorge win the 2013 ICF World Freestyle Championships, which will be the biggest paddling event ever held on the Nantahala or in the area, bringing in paddlers and spectators from over 25 different nations. Last year’s NOC Freestyle Shootout featured eight classes from open beginner to professional, giving boaters of all skill levels the chance to compete together. Thanks to its centralized location among NOC’s facilities the freestyle event is uniquely spectator-friendly, and it gives paddlers a shot-in-the arm heading into the summer boating season.

Friday night at the NOC Freestyle Shootout offers an illuminated practice session
giving traveling paddlers pre-event time in the feature.

The Canoe Club Challenge is a short gate race spanning the bridges on the Nantahala behind the Outfitter’s Store. While prizes are awarded for individual classes, the real competition in the Canoe Club Challenge is not speed, but participation. Paddling clubs compete for total “starts” and encourage members to get out and paddle together. The result was the largest paddling event in the United States last year, with over four hundred recorded starts. The short course and convenient location afford paddlers a fun, social event where they can work on technique and speed, as well as goof off and meet new paddling buddies. Non-club boaters are welcome at the event, and are actually heavily recruited by clubs looking for representatives to log some additional starts. The Canoe Club Challenge will again consist of three rounds throughout the summer.

Canoe Club Challenge paddlers waiting for the queue to start their runs
through the race gates.

Also new in 2010 was the Duck N’ Run race, a light-hearted “adventure race for everyone” consisting of a five-mile whitewater duckie paddle on the Nantahala (including Nantahala Falls), and a five-mile run on NOC’s Flint-Ridge Trail. This race and the new-for-2011 Nantahala River Raft Race give everyone, not just competitive athletes, opportunities to participate and win cool events. (By the way, our 2010 Duck N’ Run training videos were a big hit on the NOC Facebook page, and are worth a peek.) The new downriver raft race will present teams of four a chance to claim the official “fastest crew on the Nanthala” title.

Duck N' Run participants await the start signal at Ledges Rapid on the Nantahala River.

Another new event that established itself in 2010 is the Great Pumpkin Pursuit at NOCtoberfest. Our costumed race hosts chunked over 50 numbered pumpkins from rafts in Nantahala Falls for boaters to collect and redeem for prizes, including a new kayak. In 2011 we expect to toss over 100 pumpkins in the river from multiple rafts and to see the costume component of the event grow.

The 2010 Great Pumpkin Pursuit unfolds as paddlers chase pumpkins through
Nantahala Falls.

As for more serious events, NOC is working with the Smoky Mountain Relay to put on a 200+ mile relay running race extending from the Asheville area to Wesser. Teams of six and twelve runners will complete the course in just two days.

There’s also the Blue Ridge Breakaway bike race sponsored and supported by NOC (but organized by our friends at the Haywood Chamber of Commerce), that offers riders 24, 40, 66 and 105 mile ride options. Last year over 300 riders rode in the inaugural Blue Ridge Breakaway, and with the ride’s stellar organization, location and routes there’s every reason to expect this one to grow. We do have plans to introduce a new NOC-run cycling event in 2011, but we haven't received required permits yet. More details to come as our planning pans out.

New in April 2011 is an Appalachian Trail celebration we’re calling the Founder’s Bridge Festival, recognizing the bridge where the AT bisects NOC and crosses the Nantahala River. Expect vendors from leading gear producers, representative from area hiking clubs, free workshops, survival skills courses, speakers, book signings and live music—all focused on celebrating the nation’s most beloved footpath.


NOC’s popular retail events—spring’s Demo Days and summer’s Sizzling Sales Days—will return offering the best deals on new gear and the best savings of the year—short of GAF, of course. GAF 2010 was widely hailed as the “best GAF ever” (click here to see why), but we’ll do our best to make GAF 2011 even better.

Throngs of outdoor enthusiasts swarm the Used Gear Marketplace at GAF 2010.

All of these events will be supported with nighttime entertainment at The Pourover beside the banks of the Nanthala—one of the coolest places to see live music and enjoy being away from workaday responsibilities. We'll be returning our “Rock and Raft” music series and rafting promotion, which offers discounted 4pm trips that end in time for dinner and featured bands from Asheville, NC—a hotbed of cool, funky music.

As we look beyond 2011 we plan to develop Flint Ridge into a trails system that will accommodate competitive events for athletes of all skill levels. To this end, we also will be holding a Spring and a Fall Trail Days (to be announced), where we'll invite guests to help us do some work on this trail system. Once finished, Flint Ridge will be accessible (and free!) to riders and runners year round, with all the conveniences of being located at NOC. (No permitting issues or closures either.)

So, that’s the deal with NOC special events moving forward. I hope you plan on joining us at some of these in 2011. We’re open to feedback and suggestions about the kinds of events our guests want to see, so feel free to comment here, on NOC's Facebook page or send an email to info@noc.com. It’s never too late to add another event to the calendar—just keep in mind that there’s only so much we can do, especially in the summer!

Thanks for supporting NOC and best of luck in the new year.

Charles Conner
NOC Marketing

Freestyle Shootout = Free Fun

It's hump day, which means it's the perfect time to plan this weekend's trip to the Nantahala Gorge, recently-named home of the 2013 WORLD Freestyle Championships and site of this weekend's NOC Freestyle Shootout, Friday through Sunday.
Paddlers have been arriving throughout the week, practicing on the wave for what looks to be the most intense competition on the Nantahala in years. With $10,000 up for grabs, live music and big names like four-time world freestyle champion Eric Jackson competing, it's no wonder everyone wants to be part of the action.

Festivities begin for paddlers and spectators on Friday night, when NOC hosts an Open Surf Under the Lights. That's right. Practice after dark courtesy of Duke Power (supplying the water flows) and NOC (providing the lights). For non-paddlers, take in the scene at The Pourover, where you'll be able to dance if you want to, have a beer and still check out the wave action from the open-air deck.

A C1 Paddler Practices Wednesday Afternoon

Saturday, the competition kicks off. If you are planning to paddle, arrive early to register. Please note, it is likely that we will hit our 100 competitor limit this year! Don't get left out by arriving late. Classes are K1 Pro Men, K1 Pro Women, K1 Expert Men, K1 Expert Women, K1 Cadets, K1 Open Novice and C1 Open Canoe. Registration is $40/entry and is open from 4–9pm Friday and 9–10am Saturday. The top five in each class will advance to Sunday's finals.

Non paddlers can enjoy the festival atmosphere, as the NOC Outfitter's Store hosts Demo Days, with free boat demos, $200 OFF the purchase of in-stock new boats and a sidewalk sale. There will also be a Dagger Dash Attainment Race at 2:30pm on Sunday, and the winner will walk home with a Green Boat. The entire weekend is free to the public. Raft trips on the Nantahala are open, as are NOC's lodging and dining facilities. With a clear forecast in store, it might be the best weekend this year!


And, in case you haven't heard the big news direct from the International Canoe Federation in Budapest, the Nantahala Gorge was announced Saturday as the host of the 2013 World Freestyle Championships! Tentatively scheduled for mid-September 2013, the event is expected to draw more than 500 paddlers from 30–40 countries to the Nantahala area. More news of Worlds to come soon.

We hope to see you on the river this weekend!