Sportsdude Goes Rafting, Nearly Drowns

Last week, I traveled down to West Virginia for a rafting trip/bachelor party. Was it worth 12 hours of driving? Absolutely. The fact we had an RV and, more importantly, a driver to get us down there while we drank and played cards definitely helped. The rafting outfit was called Rivermen , and they ran a tight raft. For around $150 you can camp on their grounds and get a guided, day-long raft tour of the New River, which, according to our guide, is the 2nd oldest river in the world?! Check out these whitewater rafts if you ever feel like being your own tour guide.

Our 6+ hour trip consisted of two parts. 95% of the first part of the tour was pretty tame. There were a few class 2-3 rapids that tossed the raft around a bit, but nothing too crazy. Then came the class 3 rapid aptly called “surprise”. There we hit a wave so big that it nearly bailed the raft (see picture above, I’m seated 3rd from left). Derek, the bachelor, can’t even be seen in the photo, as he was well underwater at that point. Two others in the raft also got chucked out. After seeing the looks on their faces when they got back in the raft, I was pretty sure I didn’t want to get tossed too.

Part two of out trip was much more fun, as we crashed through ~20 rapids that were all class 3-5. Class 5 rapids are the most dangerous one can do without a license. After a while you get the hang of it, and (most of) the fear abates. I have to admit there were a few points on this trip where I was genuinely scared. There is so much buildup as you’re paddling towards the rapids against all of your rational instincts that when you hit the whitewater the adrenaline is coursing through your veins.

Overall it was an awesome time that was well worth the trip. Nothing like doing an inherently risky activity with your best friends on a Saturday afternoon.

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