{"id":2452819,"date":"2020-01-02T12:56:00","date_gmt":"2020-01-02T19:56:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/floating-into-2020\/"},"modified":"2020-01-02T12:56:00","modified_gmt":"2020-01-02T19:56:00","slug":"floating-into-2020-annual-new-years-day-event-down-glenwood-canyon-draws-big-crowd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/floating-into-2020-annual-new-years-day-event-down-glenwood-canyon-draws-big-crowd\/","title":{"rendered":"Floating into 2020: Annual New Year\u2019s Day event down Glenwood Canyon draws big crowd"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"swift-gallery p402_hide\" readability=\"6.8076109936575\">\n<ul id=\"imageGallery-318612-487\" class=\"gallery list-unstyled\">\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-1024x563.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com | More than 100 kayakers, whitewater rafters and stand-up paddleboarders braved icy conditions in Glenwood Canyon Tuesday to participate in a New Year's Day tradition dating back to the 1970s.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-0.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"10\">\n<p><strong>More than 100 kayakers, whitewater rafters and stand-up paddleboarders braved icy conditions in Glenwood Canyon Tuesday to participate in a New Year&#8217;s Day tradition dating back to the 1970s.<\/strong><br \/>John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-1024x563.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"More than 100 kayakers, whitewater rafters and stand-up paddleboarders braved icy conditions in Glenwood Canyon Tuesday to participate in a New Year's Day tradition dating back to the 1970s.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-1-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-1-768x1024.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com | Bryce Smaic, 12, exited the water with ice in his eyelashes and a smile on his face on Wednesday. It was his first time participating in the annual New Year's Day event.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"0\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"11\">\n<p><strong>Bryce Smaic, 12, exited the water with ice in his eyelashes and a smile on his face on Wednesday. It was his first time participating in the annual New Year&#8217;s Day event.<\/strong><br \/>John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-1-768x1024.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"Bryce Smaic, 12, exited the water with ice in his eyelashes and a smile on his face on Wednesday. It was his first time participating in the annual New Year's Day event.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-2-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-2-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com | Kayaks are still the preferred method of navigating the icy water in Glenwood Canyon, but in recent years all manner of whitewater vessels have completed the annual New Year's Day run.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-0.5\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"10\">\n<p><strong>Kayaks are still the preferred method of navigating the icy water in Glenwood Canyon, but in recent years all manner of whitewater vessels have completed the annual New Year&#8217;s Day run.<\/strong><br \/>John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-2-1024x768.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"Kayaks are still the preferred method of navigating the icy water in Glenwood Canyon, but in recent years all manner of whitewater vessels have completed the annual New Year's Day run.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<li data-thumb=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-3-150x150.jpg\" data-src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-3-1024x768.jpg\" data-sub-html=\"John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com | A pair of Glenwood area rafters exit the water after a successful run through the Shoshone rapids on Tuesday. The locals said they look forward to seeing boaters from all over the state join them each year in Glenwood Canyon.\" class=\"h-100\" readability=\"-1\">\n<div class=\"caption\" readability=\"9\">\n<p><strong>A pair of Glenwood area rafters exit the water after a successful run through the Shoshone rapids on Tuesday. The locals said they look forward to seeing boaters from all over the state join them each year in Glenwood Canyon.<\/strong><br \/>John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"row no-gutters h-100\">\n<div class=\"col my-auto\"> <img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.aspentimes.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/5\/2020\/01\/NewYearsFloat-VDN-010220-3-1024x768.jpg\" data-no-lazy=\"1\" alt=\"A pair of Glenwood area rafters exit the water after a successful run through the Shoshone rapids on Tuesday. The locals said they look forward to seeing boaters from all over the state join them each year in Glenwood Canyon.\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"caption-toggle\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/floating-into-2020\/#\" class=\"show-captions\">Show Captions<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/floating-into-2020\/#\" class=\"hide-captions\">Hide Captions<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">GLENWOOD CANYON \u2014 Paddlers from all over the state gathered in Glenwood Canyon on Wednesday to ring in the new year on ice.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Using kayaks, catarafts, stand-up paddleboards and canoes, a group of more than 100 took to the Shoshone section of the Colorado River, where the current moves fast enough to prevent the water from freezing.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Peter Holcombe, the unofficial ring leader of the event, said that particular section of the Colorado River is the only place in the state that can host a reliable New Year\u2019s Day paddling event every year.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cIt\u2019s moving enough that it doesn\u2019t have those still pools that freeze over,\u201d Holcombe said. \u201cIf you go to the Arkansas River, the rapids will still be open, but as soon as that water hits a pool, it just freezes into an ice shelf. And that can be really dangerous.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Subhead\">Warmer in the water<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Nevertheless, boaters saw their fair share of danger Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Participating in the New Year\u2019s Day float for his first time, Colorado Springs kayaker Aaron States got caught in some trouble and had to swim out of his boat.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cThere was a hole I wasn\u2019t expecting out there,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was warmer in the water than out of the water.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">While the air temperature hovered around 20 degrees Fahrenheit, the water temperature was in the 30s.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cMy eyelashes were almost frozen shut,\u201d States added.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText Subhead\">FLOATING family<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">One of the youngest participants on the day also exited the water with frozen eyelashes. Twelve-year-old Bryce Smaic said that while he\u2019s done the Shoshone route a few times before, it was his first time doing the New Year\u2019s Day event. His father, Dejan Smaic, said he was proud of his son for participating.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe\u2019re always trying to outdo each other, but today I didn\u2019t want to compete with him,\u201d Dejan Smaic said. \u201cI didn\u2019t want to go upside down in the cold water.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Leonie Francis, of Avon, said she always wondered what it would be like to go upside down in the cold water. She found out Wednesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe were going through an S-move, we were backpaddling and then we went to go forward but didn\u2019t have enough momentum and high-sided on a rock,\u201d Francis\u2019 paddling partner, Kyle Buss, said of the incident. \u201cWe all climbed up on the top of the boat, and then the water caught the bottom tube and flipped us over.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Francis found herself under the raft momentarily, but another boat came along quickly and pulled her out after a few seconds.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cWe had a couple rafts help us get it over to the shore and get back upright,\u201d Buss said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Holcombe said with so many expert paddlers on the water, the risk of that activity has been mitigated considerably in recent years.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cEverybody out here is looking out for everybody else,\u201d Holcombe said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">Holcombe said when he first started participating in the event about 15 years ago, he knew there would be people there, as the event has been a tradition since the 1970s, but he couldn\u2019t talk any of his friends into coming with him.<\/p>\n<p class=\"STND-STND BodyText\">\u201cI drove down from Boulder, by myself, just knowing there\u2019d be other people here and hoping they would let me paddle with them,\u201d Holcombe said. \u201cAnd now, it\u2019s like a big family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/floating-into-2020\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">via:: The Aspen Times<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More than 100 kayakers, whitewater rafters and stand-up paddleboarders braved icy conditions in Glenwood Canyon Tuesday to participate in a New Year&#8217;s Day tradition dating back to the 1970s.John LaConte | jlaconte@vaildaily.com Bryce Smaic, 12, exited the water with ice in his eyelashes and a smile on his face on Wednesday. It was his first [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2452819","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-local-news"],"acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-08-18 23:04:24","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"KSPN The Valley&#039;s Quality Rock","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2452819","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2452819"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2452819\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2452819"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2452819"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2452819"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}