Countdown to Bailey Fest 12!!!

[deepsouthpaddler]

Let the countdown begin! T-minus 40 days and counting til Bailey Fest 12! Dates are August 10-12, 2012. Fest website is up at Bailey Fest | Whitewater Kayak Festival | NF South Platte River | Denver, Colorado with info, dates, maps etc.

After a brutal drought year, Bailey Fest has what you need... WATER in the river! Thanks to Denver Water moving water from lake Dillon to Denver, Bailey Fest will have cool, clear, refreshing water.

Bailey Fest is a planned event, so folks from far and wide can come and enjoy the fantastic whitewater on the North Fork of the South Platte. Last year folks came from all over Colorado, from UT, NM, and WY. We've got water in the river, a place to camp, and a hell of a good time, so plan on coming to the Fest.

Camp Bailey Fest got an upgrade since last year. The land owner installed a nice wooden footbridge connecting both sides of the river. Camp party with Oskar Blues Beer, movies, tunes, and the supermax showdown will be on river right (where the Fest was last year). Camping will be on river left, which is accessed by a better road just down the road from where we entered last year. We've got over double the space this year, and a great set up.

The Fest will be 3 days, Friday through Sunday. Friday kicks off with a CW cruise on Bailey (join CW to participate), fun paddling your favorite stretch on the North Fork, and a camp ground party Friday night showcasing videos on our outdoor movie screen.

Saturday is the main event with paddling, a safety class by downstream edge, a takeout party at Pine Valley Ranch Park (Bailey Takeout), an AW membership drive with a creekboat prize and more, the Supermax Showdown Foamie Cross Race at Camp Bailey Fest, followed by a good ole fashioned camp party.

Sunday, get your boof on again, leave no trace at your camp site, and head home with a smile on your face.

The Supermax Showdown Foamie Cross Race is hands down the sickest class V foamie race on the planet. I've got thousands of dollars of prizes to give out: creekboat, paddle, pfd, dry top, skirt, shoes, throw ropes, kayak stackers, helmet, fleece, t-shirts, dry bags, G-Flex boat repair, Kayak Session subscriptions, and more! Its $20 to enter the race. You get placed in a final 4 style bracket, and foamies run in heats of 4. Winners advance til they get to the finals. 1st place prize is a creekboat. 2nd-4th will win paddle, PFD, and dry top. If you make it to semi-finals (5th-16th) you can win a skirt, stackers, dry bags, ropes, shoes, helmet, kayak session subscriptions etc. At this point I have enough prizes that everyone that enters the first round will get magazines, hats, t-shirts etc. Gambling is where you put your money up, and have a high chance of losing it. The Supermax Showdown Race is an investment... sign up, help fund the fest, and you WILL walk away with a prize, maybe even a creekboat. The Supermax Showdown is the main fundraiser for Bailey Fest, so sign up at the fest and be part of the fun. Anyone can enter, no class V foamie experience required. Prepare to be blown away by the race course, a scale model of supermax featuring a recirculating pump system designed by TwelvePack Engineering.

Last year, Kevin Hiner came from relative obscurity to win the first Supermax Showdown foamie race. Kevin, a mathematical genius, correctly deduced that entering the foamie race was his best shot at getting a cheap creekboat. After winning the foamie race, not only did Kevin bring home a brand spanking new Jackson Villain, but he also was vaulted to international fame and glory, got on a Team Bailey Fest Cali trip, and has since seen his fortunes soar in the world of kayaking. It could be you this year!

Bailey Fest entrance fee is $20 per person. For that modest fee you get... water in the river, riverside camping on a private meadow, a takeout party with food and Oskar Blues Beer, more Oskar Blues Beer at the saturday night camp party, and a great time!

Bailey Fest is a non-profit event and fest proceeds (above costs) will be donated to American Whitewater. AW is actively working to help protect rivers all over the country, with many key projects in Colorado. Join AW at Bailey Fest, or renew your membership, and help support the organization the fights to keep water in our rivers.

Huge Thanks to Bailey Fest Sponsors: American Whitewater, Jackson Kayaks, Confluence Kayak Shop, Oskar Blues Brewing, Downstream Edge, Rivers Media, Four Corners River Sports, Immersion Research, Golden River Sports, Colorado Whitewater, Jack's Plastic Welding, Five Ten, Kokatat, NRS, Werner, Rack Attack, Mountainbuzz, Sweet, Kayak Session, Colorado Kayak Supply, and Ten Mile Creek Kayaks.

Plan on bringing your cameras and videocams. After Bailey Fest I'll have a photo / video contest online. You submit your best pic or video. Boaters vote for winners online. Winners will take home prizes supplied by World Kayak.

Big Foot Barbeque will be at Bailey Fest with a mobile BBQ rig. They will have food friday and saturday night, as well as breakfast (burritos etc) in the morning.

As the event gets closer, I will be looking for volunteers. I'll need help with the takeout party set up, help at the campground, help with the supermax showdown race, and help setting up for the fest before the event. If you want to help, contact me... Thanks!

Hope to see you at Bailey Fest!!!

[smauk2]

Wow, Ian, you keep outdoing yourself each year! As always thanks for organizing all of this, can't wait for BAILEY FEST!

[freexbiker]

Can't wait Ian! Gunna be a Blast!

[rg5hole]

this year there will also be a special prize for those of you portaging tampax, courtesy of the Narrow Escape Crew - Durango bitches!

[deepsouthpaddler]

There is also a special prize for those who swim out of the bottom hole of Supermax... you get a starring role in the carnage section of the Bailey Fest video! Looking forward to seeing the Durango crew this year.

I put the new foamies through some hole beatdowns on last year's foamie course today with the kids. We had four foamies getting worked in one hole simultaneously. The new foamies look like they learned to paddle from EJ... cartwheels, squirts, non stop rolls. Foamie race is gonna be awesome!

Spencer, thanks... trying to improve every year to get the Fest up to speed they way I envision it.

[JDHOG72]

Please be aware that Bailey Fest 2012 will be BYOS...Bring your own Sheep. I have discussed the situation with DeepSouth and he said maybe Sheep will be provided by Bailey Fest 2014.

[deepsouthpaddler]

WRSI is now a Bailey Fest sponsor! Big thanks to Morgan and Nick for supporting Bailey Fest. WRSI will bring their new "Moment" full face helmet to Bailey Fest.

[ednaout]

Whoop!!! I can't wait. This has been a summer highlight for the last 2 years! I can't believe all the support you rallied, Ian. Wow.

Spencer said he had sheep and would rent out his velcro gloves for a reasonable price. Eeewwww.

[Cphilli]

Just a suggestion Ian, you should have a cleanup prize for the person who picks up the most garbage along the river shore this year(conservation efforts), Turtle's gear doesn't count.


Problem is if you add it up you've probably maxed out a landfill with your cleanup skills.


Maybe garbage bags could be available and inspected for volume/weight at the camp.

[deepsouthpaddler]

Awesome idea Craig! We will do it. Person who packs out the most trash off the river wins a prize. We will do it Saturday at the Bailey takeout party. Pack out trash in your run Saturday and bring to the takeout party. We can get. Nathan from AW to be the judge for the best steward of the day.

FYI, if anyone else has good ideas or wants to bring something to help the Fest let me know. Last year Beth volunteered to bring the massage table to the Fest.