The Black

The Black
location: upper peninsula of michigan
5-3-09

John McConville Rainbow Falls

Looking back through the photos of this spring i came across the photos from the Black! We had a big crew (being it was the day after the Rada Race) and the river was running at a great level... about 550cfs. It had been 2 year since i'd last been on the Black and was looking for some revenge.

The Birth Canal may not be the bigest or hardest rapid ever but man will it dish out a beat down. With a little inspiration from Andy McMurray and Joerg Steinbach i found myself lining back up to this nasty little pour over for another fight. Driving right to left with a strong righty stroke i boofed the pour over, losing all of my speed i pulled through the strong back wash for a successful a run... A few big breaths before going over Gorge Falls and one great start to the morning.

John McConville Gorge Falls

From Gorge Falls down, the Black river is compiled of a bunch of really fun rapids and low angle slides with Sandstone Falls tossed into the mix. Ending it off with a bang, Rainbow Falls brings you back down to lake level from about 80 feet up. I was super happy with my line here this year, 2 years ago i didn't tuck at the bottom so tucking hard into the seam provided a much softer landing with out having to roll. :) Chris Baer also improved his line from a few years past, from being ejected out a few years before he stomped a perfect boof and landing this round.

Chris Bar Rainbow Falls

Finishing up the river marked a changing point in the trip, the water was starting to drop out on the South Shore and many of the North shore runs were also falling. Most of the people from the Rada race had left or was about to leave... But for some this was just another day and the journey was still to continue, Canada was soon to come...

John Kiffmeyer's big swim

Another day in Paradise,

John McConville