2009 Reno River Festival Bigger than Ever

New Events Added to Northern Nevada's Whitewater Celebration

Apr 4, 2009 Connie Emerson

May 8-10 are the dates for the sixth annual Reno River Festival. Kayak races, a Charity Raft Race and a muddy 2.5K run are all part of the three-day celebration

Reno’s 6th annual Truckee River Festival (May 8 to 10) heralds the beginning of the city’s special events for summer. The festival attracts kayakers from around the world and is now considered as one of the best events of its kind in the USA.

The River Festival’s Background

In 2003, the city’s promoters – searching for new ways to attract tourists -- embarked on a $1.5 million project to make the formerly gentle Truckee Rver into a kayaking and river rafting venue. The following year, The Reno-Sparks Convention & Visitors Authority (RSCVA) sponsored the first Reno River Festival to bring more tourists to the new attraction.

Billed as the “only such river attraction to be built in the heart of a 24-hour casino resort city,” the Truckee River Water Park at Wingfield is about a half-mile long (1,400 feet in the north channel and 1,200 feet in the south channel) and features 11 large-size drop pools as well as a kayak racing course. On the scale of one to six, the course is classified as a three. The project also involved installation of about 7,000 tons of flat-topped rocks and boulders along the riverbank, which provide seating for spectators.

The river is surrounded by Wingfield Park, which is two blocks from downtown Reno’s casino row. During the Festival, the park’s grassy areas are dotted with vendors booths -- many of them focusing on kayak equipment and gear – concerts by live bands in the park’s amphitheater and a beer garden. There are children’s activities, as well, such as a rock climbing wall and bungee trampolines.

Reno River Festival Competitions and Water Events

Invitation-only open competitions are divided into three categories: Juniors, Women and Men. Winners in the 2008 invitational were all members of the same Tennessee family. World champion paddler Eric Jackson won the men’s division. His 18-year-old daughter, Emily, won the women’s division and 14-year old son, Dane won the juniors. Other kayakers in this division came from as far away as Australia. Open Freestyle and Boatercross competitors are divided into the same categories. Kayak clinics for people with all ability levels will be held May 9 and 10. Kayaking demonstrations, corporate challenges and the annual Charity Raft Race are also scheduled.

Reno River Festival Special Events

Each year, new events are added. In 2008, it was the “Run Amuck.“ The inaugural competition featured a 2.5 mile course, which included a 60-foot mud pit. Festival organizers suggested that participants wear costumes. As a result, a number of the competing two-person relay teams came dressed as everything from geishas to gorillas. Many of the teams adopted names such as “Brianna and Ash on the Dash,” “Dancing Condors” and “No Muck Luck.”

A new event for 2009, the Kick-Off Party, will be held on the evening of May 8 at the West Street Market, just up the street from the park’s First Street entrance. Another competitive event – the tandem boatercross -- will also be inaugurated this year.

In 2007, ownership of the Reno River Festival was transferred from the RSCVA to Reno River Festival LLC, a collaboration between Fluid Concepts and Seismic Events, two Reno-based companies which had been involved with the festival from its inception.

The 2009 Reno River Festival Abbreviated Schedule

According to advance publicity, the 6th annual Reno River Festival will begin on the afternoon of Friday, May 8 with the Open Freestyle Competition and the 5th annual Grubb & Ellis Charity Raft Race featuring six-person teams of costumed competitors racing from Crissy Caughlin Park to the Truckee River Whitewater Park in downtown Reno.

Saturday’s schedule begins with Yoga in the Park and the beginning of the professional freestyle competition. The Run Amuck race that afternoon is expected to attract more than 500 costumed runners.

After a morning Yoga workout, Sunday events include the revamped boatercross competition. It will retain the traditional men’s, women’s and junior competitions but will be a tandem boatercross with two people per boat in a head-to-head race to the finish line.

The copyright of the article 2009 Reno River Festival Bigger than Ever in SW U.S./Hawaii Travel is owned by Connie Emerson. Permission to republish 2009 Reno River Festival Bigger than Ever in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.

Reno kayak course is rated 2 to 3.

Flat rocks line the banks along kayak course.