By Sage Donnelly 

SAGE’S TOP GEAR PICKS

KEEN Women’s Rose Sandal, Cendre Blue/Blue Bell, 7.5 M USWRSI Current Unvented Helmet-Black-S/MSea to Summit Solution Gear Flexi Fit Spray Skirt (Medium)Kokatat Women’s Gore-Tex Rogue Drytop-ElectricBlue-MKOKATAT Ronin Pro PFD Yellow L/XLWerner Tybee 2-pc Carbon-Reinforced Kayak Paddle-SS-210-Blk

LIFE ON RIVER

Wow! It feels like this year is flying by! We’re already in October and I just finished up with one of my favorite year end festivals in California, Feather Fest. It’s held on the beautiful North Fork of the Feather River, and is such a special place for me to go because it’s where I learned to creek boat.

I’ve been going to Feather Fest and running the class 4 and 5 sections since I was 9, but I’ve only been doing the creek race for two years because my crazy schedule has made us miss it. Last year I placed 3rd in the creek race and this year I was really excited to actually learn the race lines so I could have an even faster time! A few weeks before the race, I went up to the scheduled American Whitewater release with Pete Delosa to learn the race lines and get everything dialed in (thanks Pete!).

Finally, a few weeks later, it was time for Feather Fest! My mom and I drove up Friday morning so I could get some low flow laps in and then help American Whitewater set

everything up! Saturday morning, I woke up, grabbed my gear, and got a practice race lap in with my adopted big bro Daniel, and then hitched a ride back up to the put in to wait for the racers meeting and get some filming in with Colby Elliot for ACA who most graciously covered the insurance for the creek race this year! After what seemed like forever (I was excited it really wasn’t that long), it was my start time.

My run went pretty well with mostly smooth lines through the rapids and a lot of charging in the flats! Once I was finished, I hooked in with some people to send some

more laps and then headed back to the afterparty to hear the results. I ended up 1st in short boat, 13 seconds ahead of 2nd and a time fast enough to be 16th in men’s! Huge thanks to American Whitewater, Chico Paddleheads and ACA for yet another amazing festival! Can’t wait for next year! 

EMB ES900BT Water Resistant Super Loud Portable Bluetooth Speaker – Black On Orange

RIVER RUNNING ESSENTIALS 

New 40L Yellow Heavy Duty Vinyl Waterproof Dry Bag for Boating Kayaking Fishing Rafting Swimming Floating and CampingWaterproof Case, 3 Pack UKCOCO Universal Dry Bag for Rafting, Kayaking, Swimming, Boating, Fishing, Skiing Work with iPhone 6 6S Plus SE, Galaxy S6 S7 EdgeJet Ski Surf Kitesurf Rafting Sunglasses and They Float