Well I'm generally interested in anything the man has to day about whitewater boating. His accomplishments are enough that they have yet to slightly fade next to the current cutting edge's ("young" guns') accomp[lishments.
Brian- Ammons did dpeak out in favor of an open ended system (add numbers: class VI, VII, ect.) One of the only high profile people to do so that I'm aware of. I would ask him to ellaborate on that.
Franz and Gordon: I can't speak for Ammons himself but here's what I'd imagine he'd say to both of your comments:
-Probly N. Fork Payette: to get "comfy" on class V and gnarliest swim. Not sure though. Also not sure about his boat design preferences.
-He's said various things about big waterfalls, but he certainly acknowledges that it is one of the frontiers of the sport, as well as big water class V, where the Stikine still sits firmly planted as one of the pinnacles on the planet for such. Of course people will be asking about this and his responses will undoubtly be of great interest. Can't wait.
I'm going to ask about the rating system, because it goes hand in hand with the progression of the sport and I think to endlessly compress stuff into class V is silly. That people have changed the meaning of class VI to mean "unrunnable" when it explicitly stated in writing that it was "not meant to decribe drops that (were) unrunable".
If AW officially changed the definition of class VI when did occur?
Seems like they went in the wrong direction in coming up with a new definition. Today's Tylers. Rushes, Bens and Taos or whatever you want to call them tomorrow (Wells Brothers? Dane Jackson?) are running MORE class VI. Not less. I sure as hell ain't running any class VI! Never will.
But just because they are running class VI doesn't mean that all I and all the other "liesure class V boaters" run anymore is class IV because they don't want to call a class VI for what it really is. The river isn't any different. Gravity is the same and sh*t flows downhill same as ever. River classifications shouldn't downgrade because of equipment and skill advancements, or because someone came along and had the courage to huck their heuvos over that which was previously unhucked. Dig?
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