GoPro asked me to put together a 100% Hero Reel from Slippery When Wet to promote the original GoPro Hero. This segment boast footage from all over the world including California, Pacific Northwest, Mexico, and relief work in Japan. If you enjoy what you see PLEASE order the film (you can order HERE) and support the project. Be sure to check out the NEW GoPro HERO 2 with not only 1080 HD filming capabilities, but 11 megapixel photos as well. BIG shout out to all the boyz involved with this project especially those featured: Ben Stookesberry, Chris Korbulic, Evan Garcia, Cody Howard, Ryan Knight, Devin Knight, and Drew Duval, there wouldn’t have been a film without yall, thanks for your contribution! More content to look forward to with a part 2 photo update from Japan dropping early Jan. 2012.

Slippery When Wet: GoPro Reel from Shon Bollock on Vimeo.

Rapid Transit Video announces the premiere of Coming Home, a DVD featuring four short films from kayaking around the world. Coming Home is the collaborative effort of producers Chris Gallaway and Spencer Cooke. Filmed over the course of four years, these stories take us to the bottom of the Grand Canyon, the North Woods of Minnesota, the beaches of Europe and South America, and finally back home to the mountains of North Carolina. Through these adventures Coming Home explores how waterways connect us to the earth and to other people. These are stories about getting lost, finding friends on the water, making good and bad decisions, and finally coming back home to understand why paddling whitewater can be so meaningful and life-sustaining.

Coming Home is co-produced by Astral Buoyancy and Shred Ready.

“Coming Home” Teaser from Horizonline Pictures on Vimeo.

A number of people have inquired about the rapid on the cover of the 2012 Astral catalogue. Here’s a short account from that day…

One event that I was honoured to be a part of this year was the Whitewater Grand Prix.  You’ve probably seen alot of the competition media from this event, but the paddling that we did in between the competitions was every bit as incredible.  One of the highlights for me was certainly running the giant rapid on the Mistassini River in Dolbeau-Mistassini, Quebec.

I dropped into this thing with young Aniol Serrasolses, and was stoked to pioneer the middle line of the rapid.  Check out this edit of Tyler Curtis, who took the first D of the group, along with the Bomb Flow team running the rapid.

When it was our turn to go, I was excited to try boosting off of the giant exploding tongue in the middle of the rapid.  I studied my line-up for a long time because it was a 60,000+ cfs river, and then when the helicopter was in place, Aniol and I went for it.  He went right, I went middle, and we both came out about as fired up as you could possibly imagine!

Here is the result.  Photo by Bryan Kirk.

And here is a preview of Astral’s 2012 catalogue cover… submitting to the chaos.  This one is shot by Patrick Camblin.

And here is the headcam of the run.

Thanks for making the best PFDs in the industry Astral!

Good Lines,

Chris Gragtmans

Check out this video from Astral team paddlers Aniol Serrasolses and Lachie Carracher as they hit Veracruz State, Mexico.

Mexico from Lachie Carracher on Vimeo.

After this years Moose Fest, which had plenty of water demshitz headed further east into Vermont. We where able to get on four new rivers on this trip! It’s always good to get some new runs! Moose Fest, demshitz cookout, Boquet creek, Middlebury Gorge, and the Green river in Vermont.