Current Event
SAT 5/21
Midwestern kayakers looking to paddle turbulent stretches are pretty much sunk when it comes to mellow Mo-Kan geography. The closest our landscape comes to white water may be those artificially agitated currents at Oceans of Fun. But the amusement park doesn’t allow boats. Nicoya Helms, a freestyle kayaking enthusiast and member of the seemingly oxymoronic Kansas Whitewater Association, says the best place to find amateur-level white water is at the Bowersock Dam on the Kansas River in Lawrence. Beneath the bridge connecting downtown and North Lawrence, the working hydroelectric dam kicks up just enough churn to make things interesting. But the Kansas shoreline can get a little dirty sometimes.
“It’s definitely a challenge to find good white water,” Helms says. “So when we do, we try to be good stewards.” Because the alternative is to pray for rain — and lots of it — or drive to Arkansas or Colorado, these kayakers intend to keep their spot clean.
This weekend the KWA sponsors its second annual river cleanup on the banks of the Kansas. Volunteers check in around 9 a.m. Saturday and start bagging fishing line, cans, bottles and other small trash.
Helms recommends that volunteers wear boots and long pants and that they also bring sunscreen and bug repellent. Parking is available at North Second and Locust streets; e-mail info@kansaswhitewater.org for information.
Runner’s World
Olathe gives marathoners a history lesson.
SAT 5/21
The new and improved route for the Olathe Marathon allows runners to follow the Santa Fe, California and Oregon trails as well as pass by Lone Elm Park, the only campsite where the three trails meet. Instead of the traditional gunshot to begin the race, participants will be treated to a cannon set off by costumed staff from the Mahaffie Stagecoach Stop and Farm. Lest runners forget for a moment that they are indeed in Kansas, the Mahaffie stagecoach will be on display at the finish line. If that’s not motivation to run 26.2 miles, we don’t know what is. The cannon fires at 7 a.m. Saturday at Gardner-Edgerton High School (425 North Waverly Road). See www.olathemarathon.com. — Rebecca Braverman
