CHECK MYSELF

Claims of “first descents” and “river exploration” are seldom fact-checked either before or after the act. Ben explains why he must take some of the blame.

Ben Stookesberry

FRIEND OF THE FEARLESS When the media talks to me, one question is almost guaranteed: how many first descents have you made? As my answer ballooned from 55 to 80 to 132, my “first descent” ego grew. Those numbers were accepted without a single follow-up question. A reader of a 2009 WSJ article put it best when he said, “I bet Ben never went over Big Wesser Falls on the Nantahala River towing a beer raft like my buddy and I.” Fair to say, most kayakers don't really care how many first descents ol’ man Spooky claims to have made. But it's a different story when it comes to the individual claims about the rivers and canyons that lure kayakers across the Earth. And for those claims, I have been…

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Kayak Session (Digital) - 1 Issue, Fall 2024

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