Oregon Daily Emerald
Wednesday, April 6, 2005
“I will be back!”
Injured giants slugger Barry Bonds during
Opening Day in San Francisco on Tuesday
■ Club Sports
PaMing
Paradise
The University's Kayaking Club
offers students an inexpensive
way to enjoy Oregon's waters
BY ASHLEY GRIFFIN
OUTDOOR RECREATION REPORTER
Local kayakers have as many reasons to
enjoy their sport as they do trip destina
tions. They turn to kayaking for outdoor
exploration in natural and undeveloped envi
ronments, to learn technical skills and to chal
lenge their individual strength. It can be a
serene experience on Oregon’s lakes or an un
believable thrill ride down the white-water
rapids of the state’s many rivers.
“Kayaking is an incredible sport. It takes
you so many places, and you get to experi
ence so many things that most people never
even dream about,” said senior Karl Moser,
who started the University’s Club Sports
Kayaking Club four years ago with his friend
Trip Jennings. “Kayaking allows each
individual to push their limits, and it offers
endless adventure.”
Though water often has a mind of its own,
and kayakers need to acquire many skills, the
sport isn’t as difficult to learn as it seems. Any
student can pursue it with the right amount of
training and enthusiasm.
“Kayaking is a sport that everybody can en
joy. Oregon has thousands of rivers, all of
varying difficulty, and paddlers can always
find rivers that match their skills,” Moser
said. “That being said, kayaking can be a dan
gerous sport. The risks that paddlers take are
100 percent up to the individual. The sport
can be very safe and enjoyable as long as you
paddle with friends, carry the necessary
safety gear and learn the requisite skills
before you take on too much of a challenge.”
Karyn McMullin-Roy | Courtesy
Senior Karl Moser does what he calls a “backwards inverted" trick on his kayak. Moser started the University’s Club Sports Kayaking Club four years ago with his friend Trip
Jennings. The Kayaking Club offers University students an inexpensive opportunity to enjoy the sport.
Instructor and six-year kayaking veteran
Annie Dochnahl said students need to learn
how to read the water, navigate rapids, roll a
kayak and take care of their fellow kayakers
before they challenge open water.
Luckily, University students have plenty of
opportunities to acquire these skills.
The Kayaking Club welcomes individuals of
all skill levels, provides free access to boats
^nd gear, and connects students with fellow
kayakers. Their training schedule follows Ore
gon’s rain patterns.
In the fall, they meet at Gerlinger Pool to
learn basic skills and prep for Eugene’s rainy
season. Winter term finds team members in
cold winter waters for advanced freestyle and
creeking trips. In the spring, they take several
trips to the Willamette and McKenzie rivers.
They also enter an annual kayaking competi
tion on the Clackamas River near Portland at
a spot called Bob’s Hole.
The Outdoor Program also provides stu
dents with the opportunity to discover kayak
ing. In the program’s series of kayaking pool
sessions, students can learn and practice the
sport’s basics. While a staff member is pres
ent to offer informal tips, there isn’t a formal
instructor for the class. Outdoor Program
Director Dan Geiger suggests bringing along
an experienced friend to help teach
kayaking skills.
“New kayakers must learn how to Eskimo
roll, or at the very least, how to safely wet
exit, before attempting to paddle on the riv
er,” Geiger said. “This takes practice and
hands-on assistance, as the roll is not very in
tuitive and difficult for some to master. Most
new kayakers learn in the pool, as it is
warmer and easier to practice than on a quiet
stretch of river or lake.”
With the right knowledge filling their
heads, and a hard helmet protecting them,
KAYAK, page 10
>#?*.- GOT*
Danielle Hickey | Photo editor
Oregon first baseman Beth Boskovich, assistant coach J. Gaudreau and the rest of
the Ducks travel to Corvallis today to take on the Beavers at 4 p.m.
■ Duck softball
Streaks collide in Civil War
Oregon has won 13 of its last 15 games and hopes to end
No. 16 OS Us 18-game winning streak today in Corvallis
BY CLAYrON JONES
SPORTS EDITOR
The Oregon softball is team riding a
hot streak. The Ducks have won 13 of
their last 15 games, including a sweep
of defending national champion UCLA
on Saturday.
But Oregon State is riding a streak of
its own — an 18-game winning streak
— and the Ducks will need to keep their
momentum going if they plan on beat
ing the No. 16 Beavers in Corvallis today
at 4 p.m.
The Beavers (24-6 overall, 3-0 Pacific
10 Conference) are fresh off a weekend
in which they beat No. 7 UCLA once
and No. 17 Washington twice, earning
Oregon State both the Pac-lO’s Player of
the Week and Pitcher of the Week.
Oregon State pitcher Brianne
McGowan was perfect last week with a
5-0 record and has won 17 consecutive
outings for the Beavers on her way to
earning the award. During her five wins
last week, the Reno, Nev., native
had a minuscule 0.88 ERA with
39 strikeouts. Four of her five wins were
complete games, and in her win against
Washington , she became the fourth
player in Oregon State history — and the
fastest — to get to 20 wins.
McGowan also did it with the bat, hit
ting a pair of home runs and tying a ca
reer-high with four RBIs against
the Huskies.
The Beavers’ main threat at the plate
last week, though, was junior first base
man Vanessa Iapala. The San Diego,
Calif., native hit .538 this week, smack
ing three doubles and knocking in four
RBIs while scoring six runs. She is now
second on the team in hitting with a
.369 batting average.
But the Ducks (22-10, 2-1) aren’t too
worried about their rival to the north.
“We’ve seen what Oregon State has,”
Oregon pitcher Amy Harris said.
“They’re coming at you with a sopho
more pitcher that didn’t get a lot of
innings last year, but we are just going
to stick to the game plan and see what
they can hit and adjust to that.”
And not many have been hitting Har
ris of late. The junior from Eugene has
allowed a mere three runs in her last
57 innings, leading to her team-best
1.04 ERA, eighth in the conference. She
also leads the team in wins (11), innings
pitched (107.2) and strikeouts (105).
Oregon's offense it has been spear
headed by the production of leadoff hit
ter Lovena Chaput. The freshman, a
week after being named Pac-10 Player of
the Week, went 4 for 9 combined against
the Bruins and Huskies with a home
run, a triple, four runs and two RBIs.
The weekend lifted her batting average
to .340 on the season, fourth on
the team.
Another hitter commanding the con
ference’s respect has been first baseman
Beth Boskovich. The junior is hitting
.294 this season, but hasn’t had a lot of
chances to hit as she has been walked
19 times, tied for third in the conference.
Those walks — plus the four times she
has been hit by a pitch this season —
have translated to the conference’s
lOth-best on-base percentage at .457.
Oregon head coach Kathy Arendsen
has gone 4-4 against Oregon State since
arriving in Eugene in 2003; previous to
her arrival, the Ducks had lost nine
consecutive games to the Beavers. But
Oregon still commands a 75-67-1 advan
tage in the matchup’s history.
claytonjones@dailyemerald.com