The Crested Butte News Serving the Gunnison Valley since 1999
“I think the flows will be pretty prime for race day”
By Than Acuff
Last year, with flows cranking and anticipation ramping up, a couple incidents just days before the race forced Oh Be Joyful kayak race organizer Paul Raymond to cancel the event.
“It wasn’t right,” says Raymond. “We had a couple of people getting hurt and the flows were really high. Walking around the campground the consensus was everyone was grateful. Everyone understood and everyone was okay.”
This year things are looking great for the return of the classic creek race on Saturday, June 7. Raymond took over the race eight years ago to keep it going and has been paddling the creek the past two weekends and while flows were low the previous weekend, things appear to now be shaping up with wood cleared and levels on the rise.
“Flows are looking great, and the weather is looking great,” says Raymond.
The Oh Be Joyful kayak race is pretty simple. Kayakers get two laps to set the fastest time on a class V stretch of Oh Be Joyful creek that is just under one mile long and rife with waterfalls and slide rapids.
The race is open to 50 kayakers total, both men and women, and as of press time, and around 20 have registered for this year’s event but Raymond expects more as race day approaches.
“We should get another 15 or 20 signing up a day or two before the race,” says Raymond. “It depends on the weather and flows.”
With that said, Raymond expects conditions to be spot on for the event Saturday.
“I think the flows will be pretty prime for race day,” says Raymond. “I’m really excited to have it this year.”
There will be a racer meeting at 11 a.m. on Saturday in the Oh Be Joyful campground with the first lap slated to start at high noon. Following a break from the action, the second round is expected to start around 2 p.m.
As always, volunteers are needed and volunteer sign up can be found on the Oh Be Joyful kayak race Facebook page. You can also find a link to register for the race there or on the Eventbrite website.
The race is one of the best spectator events in Crested Butte and while viewing is encouraged, Raymond implores fans to be mindful of the area, safety and impacts. Spectating will be on the climber’s right side of the creek, same side as the road.
“Watch the rope areas, respect the rope boundaries and try not to drive out there as parking is limited,” says Raymond. “One of our biggest concerns with the race is spectator impact so respect the wilderness.”
