I am currently the President & CEO of the Nantahala Outdoor Center. As a volunteer for American Whitewater, I have led major stewardship efforts on the Tallulah, Green, and Ocoee rivers, chaired several board committees, served as director of AW's StreamKeeper program, and was the proud co-conspirator of the annual "Thing at the Tallulah" river and film festival.

My interest in whitewater boating started in the early 1970s when I was a teenager growing up in the Washington DC area. However, it was not until Nanci gave me a whitewater canoe for Christmas in 1991 (I figured this was a green light to spend more time on the river) that my whitewater addiction became serious.

Joe Griener convinced me to join American Whitewater in 1995 during a trip to West Virginia and I have been an active AW supporter and volunteer ever since. Like many, my volunteer efforts with AW began during the first Tallulah Gorge releases in 1997. It was during these early Tallulah releases that I became aware of the hard work AW and many others had invested in bringing this long dead river back to life. I learned that our ability to enjoy our river resources requires a great deal of work from many dedicated volunteers and the tireless efforts of the AW staff.

Since these early volunteer days at Tallulah Gorge, my commitment to AW's mission has grown steadily. Since 2000 much of my effort on behalf of AW has been invested in my role as regional coordinator focused on the Chattooga watershed. In addition to this role, I have served as an AW Director for the last three years, and also held the Vice President position this past year. AW's recent achievements all around the country are nothing short of spectacular.

In 1969 Chris participated in a YMCA rafting trip on Oregon's Rogue River and has been a paddler ever since. Though the early years were dominated by army surplus rafts and inner tubes, today he's more likely to be creeking or squirt boating in a kayak or canoeing with his two daughters. Chris's most signifi cant contribution to AW to date has been his work on the Cheoah dam relicensing project, where by happy not-quite-coincidence he's been fortunate to combine his love of paddling with his professional skills as an economist. Chris also served as a Gauley Festival volunteer and is currently AW's Southeastern Regional StreamKeeper. In October 2002 Rod Baird and Chris shared honors as AW Volunteers of the Month in recognition of their Cheoah work. Chris's non-AW volunteer activities include originating and coordinating the Western Carolina Rescue Rodeo (1992- 1997), serving on the Pigeon River Fund board (1997-2004), serving as President, Newsletter Editor and Webmaster of the Western Carolina Paddlers (1990-1998, 2004-), and creating and maintaining the boatingbeta.com regional website.

My love for water began as early as I can remember at the local lake club, spending all my summer days swimming, fishing and messing about in boats. I came to understand how murky the water in that little man-made lake was when I went to summer camp on pristine Sebago Lake in Maine. There I learned to canoe as a teenager and then returned as a college student to direct the canoeing program there for a couple of summers. I was introduced to whitewater in high school where we were lucky enough to have a slalom team and Tariffville Gorge on the Farmington River only 10 minutes away. We were involved in organizing the race there and one year the national team trials, so I was exposed to and inspired by the best slalom paddlers at the time. After a hiatus of some years on the west coast, I moved back to New England and, not too long after, discovered Zoar Outdoor and the Deerfield River in Massachusetts. I started out as a raft guide 10 years ago and slowly worked my way into less guiding and more kayaking, finally creating the job as Office Manager, which I held for several years. I now enjoy chasing my toddler aged twins around the Berkshires.

I discovered American Whitewater shortly after I started kayaking because of the Deerfield Riverfest, so I understand the value of the local festivals as outreach. I have been involved in running the Deerfield Festival since 1998, organizing the amateur rodeo for a few years and then this year running the Silent Auction. I have watched with interest AW's struggle over the last few years with more and less rodeo involvement and fluctuating membership numbers. I am excited at the prospect of being a part of the decision- making process about the future of AW and would be honored to sit on the Board.

David grew up on the rivers of the west. His passion for rivers has led him into a career of river-related work. David offers a unique perspective on rivers since he has worked with river issues from many different viewpoints. He has been rafting and kayaking rivers noncommercially since 1982, and has lived and boated in most areas of the country. While completing a master's degree in natural resource management, David worked as a professional researcher investigating river user behavior. His specialties are river carrying capacity, crowding and conflict issues. He has volunteered countless hours for many river conservation related causes. During his education, David worked with the National Park Service's River, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program in Washington D.C., where he participated in national river conservation policy formulation and the Wild & Scenic Rivers Program. David is presently the River Manager for the Bridger-Teton National Forest in Jackson Hole, Wyoming where he administers all river corridor use. Part of his job is coordinating the Snake River Fund, a donation program used on the Snake River in lieu of a mandatory fee program. This one-of-a-kind program is led by the river using community and works in partnership with the US Forest Service to protect and care for the Snake River Corridor.

I paddled my first river in 1980 when access issues were miniscule compared to what faces us today. I love whitewater paddling, slalom and Wildwater racing, open canoeing and recreational boating in any shape or form and thrive on self- support whitewater kayak trips. But I'm increasingly concerned with the difficulty we all face in pursuing our sport. That's why I've chosen to become an active member in AW for the past 5 years. I always knew something needed to be done, but AW opened my eyes to the size and the importance of the task. Since I've joined the board, I've been happy to see our accomplishments in the Grand Canyon, the Ocoee, with FERC relicensing legislation, with the NF Feather, and on the MF Snoqualmie and Nooksack Rivers in Washington. I'm ready to do even more in a second term of office.

Water is important to me. If I'm not paddling in one boat or another, I'm swimming in a lake or pool. I work in water quality. I have tropical fish as pets. And I sleep in a waterbed! I want my water clean, free-fl owing in large quantities, and accessible. It's only fitting that I chose AW as the non-profit organization, where I know my time and energy will make a difference and be well-spent.

As the owner of Rendezvous River Sports and Jackson Hole Kayak School, Aaron has introduced thousands of people to the sport of kayaking since he began instructing in '93. In '96 he began the non- profit Jackson Hole Kayak Club, which provides an inexpensive means for kids to get into paddling. The club introduces young people to the fun of running wild rivers and competitive paddling. As a board member of the Snake River Fund, Aaron has helped work with Bridger- Teton National Forest in a unique alliance to keep the Snake user fee area free. SRF is now in its fifth year of existence and is succeeding in bringing together a diverse group of river users including commercial outfitters, rafters, fisherman and paddlers. All these groups have generously contributed to help maintain the facilities on the Snake and preserve its outstanding recreational values. As a kayaker, Aaron's interest is primarily in expeditionary kayaking with numerous exploratory descents in Wyoming, Chile and most recently Russia. He also enjoys a diversity of competitive disciplines including slalom, Wildwater, and freestyle.

I am in my second term as an AW Director. I have had a great time and learned quite a bit. I am a DC local from a boating and professional standpoint. I pay my bills by being an attorney and policy dork just like many others in the Washington area. I am also a Potomac local, and this summer I helped form the Great Falls Kayak Coalition (GFKC) to help maintain the great relationship between the boating community and the web of land managers that have jurisdiction over our local huck-spot, Great Falls. In addition, I have done my best to help AW play a supporting role to the committed locals on other great runs in the Mid-Atlantic, such as the Upper Yough and the Upper Blackwater.

Kristine Jackson says she is interested in being a part of the AW Board of Directors because, "I love being involved and helping in areas where the need is great and the potential impact can be huge." Kristine, age 34, spends half the year traveling in an R.V to events all around the U.S. and Canada with her.

She acts as homeschool teacher for her two kids: Emily- 14 years old, and Dane- 11 years old; and she can be seen on the sidelines of kayaking competitions assisting her husband, Eric (or "E.J" as most people know him), with making sure he has all the gear he needs to rush from one event to another. Kristine is the Director of Sales for the family's business, Jackson Kayak. Even though the Jackson family has only been located in the Cumberland Plateau for about a year, Kristine and her family hope the company's presence will make a positive impact on the small community of Rock Island. Jackson is the President of the - United States Freestyle Kayak Association (USFKA) which was set up in 2001 to be a base support mechanism for the US Freestyle Kayak Team. Kristine also serves as Vice Chairman for the International Freestyle Committee, the governing body for World Freestyle Championships.

I started paddling 28 years ago at Camp Mondamin in Tuxedo, North Carolina. Since those first strokes on Lake Summit, paddling has been a major part of my life. After graduating from camper to counselor I went on to teach canoeing for another four years. I've worked for an environmental consulting firm, an association offering environmental services to airports, and now the Environmental Protection Agency in San Francisco. As a federal employee, I have helped to coordinate EPA?s comments on the recreational aspects of environmental assessments and environmental impact statements to make sure our whitewater concerns are addressed. Specifically, I hope to help open more river reaches so that we can all play and enjoy these resources for years to come. I can bring a lot to the AW board including prior board and association experience, dedication to the environment, a love of the river, and a passion for river preservation. I think that AW has made a substantial contribution to the whitewater community, and I would love to be a part of its growth as AW moves beyond its 50th anniversary.

Eric Nies got the river bug early in the 1970's, kayaking on the Potomac River near Washington, DC, and raft-guiding on the Shenandoah River in West Virginia. After graduating in mechanical engineering from MIT in 1981, Eric started guiding and teaching whitewater full-time, first in the southeast with Nantahala Outdoor Center, then out west in the early '90's with Otter Bar Lodge and Tarkio Adventures. He has paddled, guided and video-boated in Chile, Costa Rica, Nepal, India, Siberia, New Zealand, and in the U.S. on the Gauley, Salmon, and Grand Canyon. He was also one of the pioneers on the Narrows of the Green, as testified by the formerly anonymous rapid that gave him a heinous beat-down in 1989, and now bears his name.

Eric has a long involvement with whitewater rescue and wilderness medicine. He helped develop NOC's river rescue program in the early 1980's, and certified multiple times as an EMT before finally going to medical school in 1995. These days Eric is an ER physician in upstate New York. He is the current Safety Chair for American Whitewater.

My relationship with American Whitewater started 13 years ago when I realized the importance of doing something I loved, and that would make a difference in areas I cared about. At that time, as today, rivers and water fill that special niche.

Former Conservation Director and Executive Director with American Whitewater (1991-2001), Rich is now a nonprofit and management consultant living in Bellingham, Washington. In addition to being an honorary board member with American Whitewater, Rich also serves on the board of the Whatcom Land Trust and is currently Managing Director with the Nooksack Salmon Enhancement Association.

Charlie Walbridge started canoeing at summer camp in the early 60's and started paddling whitewater seriously in college. He was an active C-1 slalom and wildwater racer and worked as part-time as a river guide in the 70's. He has paddled rivers throughout the US and Canada, including several first descents, but he now spends most of his time in West Virginia. He ran a mail order company, Wildwater Designs, for 22 years. There he developed the HiFloat life vest and adapted the throw-line rescue bag for whitewater use. He's been the Safety Chair for both the American Canoe Association (ACA) and American Whitewater (AW) and is well known for articles in American Whitewater that reporting on U.S. whitewater fatalities. He helped develop the ACA programs in both canoeing and swiftwater rescue, and continues to serve as an instructor-trainer. He's written many magazine articles and produced or contributed to numerous books, including The Boat Builder's Manual, Wildwater West Virginia, Appalachian Wildwater Volumes I and II, The Whitewater Rescue Manual, Knots for Paddlers, and several editions of the River Safety Report. He is on the board of Friends of the Cheat River, a watershed group, and Camp Mowglis, where he first learned to paddle. He currently works an independent sales rep and does consultations on canoeing safety for outfitters, organizations and attorneys. Charlie lives with his wife Sandy in Bruceton Mills, West Virginia and is active in Cheat and Upper Yough river issues. His web site is www.charliewalbridge.com.