River Surfing’s Premiere at the 2014 Payette River Games
Munich, Germany gave birth to river surfing over 35 years ago and has remained the epicenter of the sport ever since. The Payette River Games (PRG) will pay homage to the sports founders and leaders by bringing a select group of the most influential river surfers from Munich to the PRG’s to compete in the Elite Surfing competition.
The Payette River Games is excited to announce the inclusion of RIVER SURFING to our many white water events to be held in Cascade, Idaho from June 20-22, 2014. We will have both an Elite event as well as an Open event competing at the legendary wave at Kelly’s Whitewater Park.
In addition, we are pleased to announce that Derek Rabelo will be one of our invited athletes at the PRG’s. Derek was born blind but that did not stop him from pursuing his dream of surfing. Derek has surfed all over the world and most notably at The Pipeline on Oahu’s North Shore. A film about Derek’s life (Beyond Sight) will have an exclusive screening during the weekend. It is our belief that the static waves at Kelly’s will allow Derek to surf without any assistance. We believe river surfing can give anyone who is blind the medium to “surf’. Building more river waves around the world similar to Kelly’s will open the door for many individuals with special needs to truly go surfing.
This will be a monumental event for river surfers around the world — a meeting of the minds, an explosion of river surfing culture
World renowned film maker and long time Munich river surfer Bjoern Richie Lob will be at the PRG’s. Bjoern’s critically acclaimed documentary film “Keep Surfing” will have a one time exclusive showing at the Roxy theater the weekend of the PRG’s. Bjoern will also be filming content for the sequel to “Keep Surfing” the entire weekend of the PRG’s. “Keep Surfing II” will focus on the emerging river surfing communities in the USA, the PRG event and the legendary river surfing pioneer Elijah Mack.
Because building waves like we find at Kelly’s is the key for river surfing to spread around the world, we are proud to announce that The Surf Anywhere project will be present at the PRG’s. The Surf Anywhere Project’s purpose is to help communities build river waves around the world. Jacob Kelly, a co-founder of The Surf Anywhere recently said:
“The Payette River Games in Cascade, Idaho this June will be a monumental event for river surfers around the world. It will be a meeting of the minds, an explosion of river surfing culture, and just a cool happy place to hang out all weekend long. It’s not often someone gets to experience something like this in their lives. To be a part of something that will change the world forever. To be able to meet the Michael Jordans of a sport before the NBA is even created. To build something like the Zepher crew in Dogtown. I am so blessed to have passion and purpose in my life greater than myself.”
Spectators can watch the surf action for free. In addition, we have elite athletes competing in Kayak and Stand Up Paddle all weekend so please make sure to bring the whole family.
We look forward to seeing you at this year’s PRG’s.
For more details about the Payette River Games visit: payetterivergames.com
Photo by Mike Leeds — be sure to check out his amazing work at mikeleedsphotography.com
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Elijah As one of the founding fathers of the sport, Eli has long been a huge inspiration for many river surfers around the world. His travels brought him to the remotest corners of the Earth. He is the founder of the WRSA (World River Surfing Association).
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