9 Things to Know about NOC's Whitewater Raft Guide School

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NOC's version of spring break is Whitewater Raft Guide School, five days of learning the skills, techniques and know-how that form the basis for professional raft guiding everywhere. The week-long course is most popular with college students excited to be securing a fun summer job while also enjoying a "you'll never guess what I did" spring break experience.

Interested but not in college? No worries, about 25% to 35% of our guide school guests are regular working folks looking for a fun week outdoors with friends and instructors. We provide equipment, transportation, food, lodging and instruction at a 5:1 student/teacher ratio. At only $450 it's a darn good deal. Click here for Raft Guide School dates and more program details.

NOC Guide School Instructor Stephan Hart chatted guide school with me over lunch today and here are nine observations I gleamed about the program:

Sometimes guides schools get "lucky" and it rains all week. Photos in this post are from a 2011 class that "got" to run the Big Laurel Creek and French Broad combo on their travel date. They paid their dues though, running a high-water Nantahala Falls for the Fantasy Island drill. Good weather classes are more comfortable, but not quite as exciting.

1) "The Weird Middle Dimension." Our guide school guests see NOC from a very unique perspective because many of them are training for future employment. This means they have to carry their own gear and rafts and listen to directions and feedback from their instructors. This leads to an interesting dynamic: our guide school instructors make the students do all the work, so this time the onus is on the guest to impress the guide.

2) The food is delicious. The folks at River's End Restaurant always make good grub, but for guide school they break out a custom, family-style meal plan. It's delicious in its own right, but the daily eight hours of raft guide training and the sometimes chilly weather work up impressive appetites. And food never tastes better than on an empty stomach.

3) It's a cool crowd. Let's face it, guiding rafts isn't for everyone, so the people who show up for guide school are usually pretty fun-loving. Stephan says "the kind of person who is seizing this opportunity to come out and play is just energetic and exciting."

The Fantasy Island drill at Nantahala Falls where guides practice running the Class III rapid over and over. No problems on this run, but not everyone was so fortunate.

4) The "Spring Break Effect." So maybe the folks who come to guide school are adventurous go-getters by nature, but we think there's a spring break effect going on too. By this time of the year, people are so happy to be outside and on the water that they're pretty enthusiastic no matter what mother nature throws at them.

5) 70 Years Old. That's right, we've graduated septuagenarians from guide school. Everyone gets pushed a bit in raft guide school, but most folks can handle everything we throw at them. We'll toss in extra challenges to our more aggressive students to see if they're prospects for guiding some of our harder rivers, but usually everyone finds a comfortable challenge level in the course.

6) Travel Day. Usually on Thursday we roadtrip to another river so guide students can test their skills in a new environment. Usually we go to the French Broad, which can be really interesting if it's been raining. Last year the water was pretty high, and we got a highlight reel of epic "learning" moments.

7) It's not all about NOC. We're well aware that students may head out West for the summer (or something like that), so we give every guide school guide a certificate of completion. We try not to belabor NOC processes and logistics, sticking instead to universal whitewater guide skills. In fact, guide school graduates that we hire go through a "grad school" when they come to work at NOC. This is where they learn all the NOC-specific systems and protocols.

Guide School isn't exactly "full service." Up and coming guides still have to earn their stripes.

8) The dreaded swim drill. Many students are anxious about the aggressive swim drill. While this takes place on relatively calm water right here at NOC, students know it's going to be cold. The swim drill is often the elephant in the room until it's over, but it often serves as the test that binds the guide school classes together. You're never "green" again after the swim drill!

9) My favorite part of Guide School was the Fantasy Island drill, where raft crews navigate Nantahala Falls over and over again, rotating so each student gets to guide through the falls a few times. The easier you make it look, the bigger the challenge Stephan and the other instructors will throw at you next time.

Notice the difference? This group has been challenged to run the rapid with upside down paddles. Can you hear the "Getting Stronger" refrain from the Rocky theme?

Does raft guide school sound perfect for someone you know? Either get them professional counseling or send them the link to the guide school webpage at noc.com. Spring break will be here before you know it!

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

UK's Adventure Travel Film Festival Coming to NOC in May

And now for something completely different: NOC's Nantahala River campus is the new East Coast home for the UK's Adventure Travel Film Festival. The festival will feature sixteen films from Friday May 5 to mid-afternoon on Sunday May 6, including the cult-favorite Mondo Enduro by festival host and promoter Austin Vince. This film details the Mondo Enduro motorcycle expedition that aspired to take the longest route around the world in the shortest amount of time possible.

A complete list of films can be found here at NOC's official event page . Vince's wife, fellow motorcycle adventurer and author Lois Pryce will be cohosting. Don't worry--there's plenty of human powered adventures too. Watch the trailer:

The official 2012 NOC Adventure Travel Film Festival trailer. Take a look!

Besides being bona fide adventure travel stars in their own right, Austin and Lois provide the festival with its trademark quirkiness, independence and authenticity. These two have their own ideas of what's interesting and adventurous, and this is often much less glamorous and perhaps more real than mainstream AdTrav media.

So, mark your calendars for May 4-6. Weekend passes are only$50 and there's plenty of lodging/camping in the area (NOC's Basecamp would be the ideal place to crash that weekend). NOC will provide live music and entertainment to boot.

NOC Wins Prestigious OIA Outdoor Inspiration Award

The folks at NOC are pleased to announce that we have been awarded the 2012 Outdoor Industry Association (OIA) Outdoor Inspiration Award! The award is the industry’s top honor for businesses contributing to the future of outdoor recreation, voted on by an expert panel of peers from the outdoor industry. The award will be presented in a ceremony by the OIA and Adidas Outdoor on January 20th in Salt Lake City, UT.

Other recipients of the 2012 Inspiration Award include The North Face, National Outdoor Leadership School (NOLS) and Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind mountaineer to climb Mount Everest and the tallest mountains on every continent.

The ceremony caps the OIA’s Winter Outdoor Retailer event—the premier tradeshow venue for the outdoor specialty industry. Representatives from many of the organization’s 4,000 manufacturers, distributors, suppliers and retailers will be attending the event hosted by Reinhold Messner—renowned for the first solo ascent of Mount Everest without oxygen—and Sasha DiGiulian, the world’s top-ranked female outdoor sport climber.

The Outdoor Inspiration Awards are given to companies and individuals that “are breaking new ground and getting people outdoors.” NOC’s nomination highlighted the following efforts by the company:

• Starting the Canoe Club Challenge, an annual series of paddling races based on participation instead of competition. This paddling event had over 1500 starts making it the largest whitewater slalom event in the country in 2011. It was free to participants.
  
  
• Supporting the Nantahala Kids Club, a local area outreach program offering free paddling lessons and outings to over 40 local schoolchildren from 6 to 16 along with use of gear and equipment.
  
  
• Launching and growing the NOC Youth Paddling Team, an effort to sponsor youth paddlers who promise to focus on school, promote whitewater paddling as a recreational activity and to live a drug and alcohol-free lifestyle while improving as whitewater athletes.
  
  
• Sponsoring and hosting the Camp Cup Challenge, an event giving over 150 youth paddlers at North Carolina's large summer camp community the chance to paddle in a large, end-of-season inter-camp competition.
  
  
• Opening an experiential retail environment at the Gatlinburg entrance to Great Smoky Mountains National Park that educates visitors on easy guided and do-it-yourself recreational opportunities in the National Park, hosting over 300,000 visitors in 2011.
  
  
• Winning a bid to host the 2013 ICF Canoe Freestyle World Championships on the Nantahala River in North Carolina to promote regional paddlesports opportunities to a worldwide audience.
  
  
• Contributing to the successful effort to build a permanent world-class kayaking wave on the Nantahala River for free public use and provide for a long-term legacy for the event.
  
  
• Hosting twelve additional outdoor events including a large AT thru-hiker festival, the USA Canoe and Kayak Team Slalom National Championships, the national Wildwater Team's training camp and an Olympic Day festival where kids were invited to paddle with NOC’s very own Olympic athletes.
  
  
• The company’s commitment to sustainable building practices, demonstrated by three US Green Building Council LEED certification projects in the last year.

NOC President and CEO Sutton Bacon remarked “We’re humbled to receive this award from our peers in the outdoor industry. There is no better validation for our mission to get people outside and offer the very best programs in outdoor recreation and education. This is a wonderful and unexpected honor.”

NOC Marketing Director Charles Conner added, “It’s important to note that we wouldn’t be receiving this recognition without our regional partners who collaborated with us on many of the projects considered by the OIA. Also, we’re blessed to have guests who are committed to their outdoor lifestyles, and who are always game to pilot NOC’s new offerings and programs.”

The award comes as our company celebrates its 40th anniversary. Since opening in 1972 NOC has been one of the nation’s premier outfitters, outdoor retailers and roadside attractions.

NOC River Leaders of the Month: 2011 Youth Paddling Team

For October we selected not one, but eight River Leaders of the Month. The 2011 NOC Youth Paddling Team members are recognized for their individual and team achievements, participation and development in paddlesports. So please help me give a big shout out and congrats to Zac Agnew, Wylder Cooper, Carter Davis, Bernie Engleman, Shelby Johnson, Julia Kendrick, David Perrin and, last but not least, Anne Marie Pilcher for becoming the first team recognized as NOC River Leaders.

The 2011 Youth Paddling Team

A Team in the Making

The NOC Youth Paddling Team, or "YPT" as the team members like to call it, was merely an idea back in 2009. NOC’s Paddling School Director Jon Clark had a goal: Start a program that will increase youth involvement in paddlesports while developing them to become the leaders, role models and ambassadors of the sport for generations to come. In October 2010, he achieved this goal and officially assembled the 2011 YPT. Jon spent many nights reviewing a stack of applications to select eight team members out of the dozens he received. Jon made his selection and the team was born.

A Year of Growth

The 2011 YPT consists of young, talented and motivated individuals. They arrived at the YPT season kickoff from all corners of the Southeast, ranging in age from 12-17 and all with differing skill levels on the water. Meeting at NOC, their first big adventure was to the Ocoee River in Tennessee. “The van ride there was very awkward,” says Jon. “But by the time they got to the third rapid on the Ocoee, they had quickly become best friends!”

Scouting a Rapid

The team continued the 2011 season with multiple river trips including a lot of firsts for some of the members on the Cheoah, Gauley and even a few made it to the Green Narrows. In addition to these fun weekend paddles, the team competed in multiple freestyle and citizen race events. Prior to these competitions the team joined together on multiple occasions for afternoon freestyle training sessions with Jon and NOC Instructor Andrew Koch. Their first competition as a team was in April at the NOC Shootout. It was high water on the Nanty that day, the hole was washed out and the air was frigid. Jon recalls team members “standing on the bridge shakin’ in their boots” that day. They continued to compete throughout the season at Hometown Throwdown’s on both the Nantahala and Nolichucky rivers.

Pre-Competition Coaching

Developing More than Paddlers

Jon’s vision was to develop the YPT to be more than excellent paddlers. He expected more out of them and provided opportunities to the team to become well-rounded and highly skilled leaders and role models for paddlesports. The team spent two weekends completing Swiftwater Rescue training and Wilderness First Aid certification. The intent of these programs was to further their skills and abilities developing a responsible and educated paddler. They also joined together for a weekend in Atlanta at the Outdoor Nation Summit as ambassadors of the sport. At Outdoor Nation they were awarded a $2500 grant to further a project they developed, participated in round-table decision-making and even led kayak demonstrations introducing the local community at Sweetwater Creek Park to the sport.

2011 YPT - Who We Are

Courtesy Wylder Cooper

The team has also done a great job representing themselves and the sport by creating team videos of their excursions (as seen above), documenting their experiences in blogs and being active members in their communities. So be on the lookout for these eight paddlers. They are a team of skill and determination. And don’t hesitate to say hello when you see them out paddling next season. They love what they are doing and want to get more youth involved in a sport that is changing their lives.

Do You Want to be a Part of the 2012 YPT?

The 2012 YPT team is now in the making. Due to the success of this year’s team, it is going to be even bigger in 2012. There will be two different tracks to accommodate more youth participants ranging from age 6-18 and all skill levels. The online application and details can be found here. Don’t miss out on this amazing opportunity. Apply now!

GAF 2011 Recap

GAF 2011 was a hit, featuring cool activities, tons of sale items and fun for the kids. But what really stole the spotlight this year was the weather. As you can see in the photo above, GAF Saturday was one of the five best weather days we've had so far in 2011. This was a welcomed change from the waterlogged events of the past three years.

What did this mean for festival goers? Life was just really pleasant, and many guests spent a good portion of their non-shopping time enjoying the activities occurring up and down the Nantahala. From River's End Restaurant to the driving bridge there were paddlers enjoying SUP demos, the beginner-friendly Surf School Wave, the citizen's slalom course and the Hometown Throwdown going on at the big wave.

The scene by the river was lively, but it began to resemble a three-ring circus when the folks from Durham, NC's King BMX Show started performing aerial BMX tricks on the bridge above the wave. The folks from RideGarden also supplied a pump track for the river-left bank, adding to the activity there.

Young festival goers were in hog-heaven too, with the BMX show, live snake and raptor shows, character-based storytelling, free rock climbing and the ever-popular bouncy castle. Next year we're going to do a raffle for the amount of folks that climb the rock wall; it must have offered up 1,000+ climbs in just one and a half days.

The live music line up was excellent, and all the performers had great shows. Blue Eyed Girl, the Freighthoppers and Chalwa gave especially energetic performances this year, and the tent/stage location was probably the best we've had yet.

The overall verdict from the organizer's point of view? It was the most solid, well-oiled GAF we've had in a few years; we didn't seem to have any major hiccups at all. Perhaps that's a signal that it's time to shake things up for next year...

My favorite part of GAF? The return of the popular GAF T-shirt. You can count on that re-establishing itself as a permanent fixture of the event for years to come.

What would you like to see at GAF next year? We've already got some fresh new ideas up our GAF t-shirt sleeves.

Parking and Camping at GAF

GAF 2011 is here, and it looks like it's going to be another awesome event! We just found out that our featured attraction, the King BMX Stunt Show, is actually the halftime show for Sunday night's Steelers/Colts NFL game. The weather looks like it's going to cooperate, and the music lineup features five excellent bands. So it's a bummer to focus this blog on the mundane logistics of parking and shuttles, but since we're in a remote river gorge, it's just necessary.

We anticipate Saturday morning and mid afternoon will be the only times when remote parking will be necessary. Friday, Saturday night and Sunday should be like busy summer days; parking may still be challenging, but it shouldn't require a shuttle. (We'll start running shuttles if necessary though.)

So, what should you expect if you show up at 10am Saturday? The driving bridge will likely be crowded, and you'll probably have event staff directing you to a suitable spot. It could take a bit longer than normal though due to the volume of cars and our desire to use every possible inch of parking-friendly terrain. Please be patient with our staff.

If NOC gets filled up with cars, or if you just want to go ahead and park, then you can drive the 2.2 miles up Silvermine Road to our main satellite parking area. This is a pretty drive, and you'll get to see some beautiful and hidden countryside on the way. Here it is on a map:

View Larger Map

We like this spot because it's flat, it's easy to service with quick shuttles and it's gravel, so it's weather-proof. We should have an attendant there to help maximize the parking potential of the lot. Please note that the lot closes at 8pm, so it'd be good to move your car back to NOC after mid-day when some of the GAF gridlock clears out.

Our staff will be positioned at the entrance to Silvermine Rd., and we will have signage along the way to help direct you to the lot. A handy rule of thumb is to just stay on the paved road though.

If things get really busy you may see us open an additional lot at Raging Rivers Rafting Company. These guys have kindly extended their parking lot to us as a neighborly gesture, but we're only planning to use it if necessary. (Having one lot make shuttles easier for guests and staff alike.)

Perhaps you'll recognize their outpost:

View Larger Map

So that's the deal with parking. We're not using some of the grass lots we have used in the past, because we don't want guests to get stuck if it storms, and we don't want to tear up our neighbors' yards.

As for camping, there's just not any room for camping on NOC property during the event. We need the parking areas to remain parking areas and not campgrounds. There is abundant camping in the Nantahala National Forest and at area campgrounds for a modest fee.

NOC simply can't service the event, normal rafting operations and camping simultaneously. We recognize this is frustrating for guests who have camped here in the past or taken advantage of our usually lax policies on camping during the rest of the year. We apologize.

We really encourage guests to pursue an off-campus sleeping plan. We don't like ruining anyone's plans, but we will have security patrolling the property and ensuring that event policies are respected.

Please note that some registered vendors and event staff are allowed to stay with their property during the festivities, and this means they will be allowed to sleep on NOC's campus. That's just part of the deal, and part of how we're able to host this fun and free event.