Riot Karaoke Tour '07 wrap up

Well, the fat lady didn't sing... oh well. Lots of other people did sing and many more were entertained. The final three Riot Karaoke stops occurred at the AW Gauley River Fest, Diamond Brand Outdoors and the NOC GAF. Enjoy a video from the Gauley that team member Andy Gates put together.

Many fabulous prizes including an Aquabound Carbon Shred paddle, Mion shoes, IR & Shred Ready gear, and H2o Audio housing, Astral Buoyancy t-shirts and more were given out.

Karaoke followed the world premiere of THE GREEN RACE MOVIE by Chris Gallaway at Diamond Brand in Asheville NC on October 5th. 150+ folks turned out for the viewing. You can watch the trailer and read a bit about the movie at http://TheGreenRaceMovie.com

Riot Team paddlers, Chris Gragtmans, Nathan Silsbee, Cooper Lambla and myself, among several of other talented athletes, were very pleased to be featured in the film. It is well worth viewing and an incredibly inspiring film for any kayaker trying to set goals for themselves, whether it's racing the green or learning to roll. One notable quality of the film is its ability to capture the undivided attention of non-paddlers and paddlers alike. Not many kayak films have that attribute. Everything about the film is done well from the editing, music, smooth and seamless narration and beautiful footage. Chris Gallaway hit a homer for his first kayak film ever.

Speaking of the Green Race, good luck to everyone who competes this coming weekend! If the hype is any indicator this year's race will be the largest to date. We finally have a little bit of extra water to pad things out a little. One thing to note: if you are hiking into the narrows as a spectator please remain on the trail and be mindful of the environment around you. I was speaking with a friend recently who was very concerned of the environmental impact of 500 people walking into that gorge on one day. It's something to think about for sure.

It was hard letting go of the tour this past weekend but our good friends at NOC helped make it a bit easier. MC, Jason McClure, was truly inspirational to any and all NOC and Riot Karaoke guests. Here you see him in the background with open mouth, backup singing for one of our most talented contestants, Bryce Bryce Baby.

You might notice that Bryce is already wearing a Riot Karaoke Tour t-shirt. That's because Bryce is what I refer to as a repeat offender. Not only did he butcher one song, which was so beautiful and mesmerizing that I can't even remember what song it was, but he came back to maim the absolute dickens out of Vanilla Ice's "ice ice baby". Wherever you are out there Bryce, we love you. Come home Bryce Bryce Baby.


Many other brave competitors belted out tunes ranging from "pretty woman" to "sexual healing". Astounding as I'm sure you can imagine.


In the end all were bested by that silly penguin. I kept saying it was too hot for a penguin to be just walking around but there he was, aaagain.


Make sure to visit Diamond Brand and NOC this winter when Riot's two new boats, the Big Magnum and Thunder are released. More on those later...

Thanks again to all the sponsors of the Riot Karaoke Tour. We probably won't hit as many events this coming year with karaoke but maybe a select few. At any rate, thanks also to everyone who participated.


Later,

Spencer Cooke, Team Riot