The Boats of Bob Brueckner

 

The Boats of Bob Brueckner

 a Carolina Paddler Article

By Alton Chewning

∞ Bob Brueckner was a cornerstone of the Carolina Canoe Club. His considerate but determined manner brought many dividends in the civic and legislative arenas of conservation. He helped us get accesses and he helped curb pollution and discharges. Bob set the tone for conservation for many years, earning a national recognition in 2011 for his efforts on our behalf. The ACA presented Bob Brueckner with the national 2020 Green Paddle for Waterway Conservation.

Bob did more than conservation. He was our publicist, our educator, our delightful fellow paddler.  Bob was also a storyteller. Maybe he would appreciate this story of what new homes his boats found after he passed away in March.

Brian Palmer was one of Brueckner’s oldest paddling buddies. Palmer, Brueckner and Rich Ruhlen were frequent voyageurs to Canada, hauling their canoes by truck, van, plane and railroad to access some of the most beautiful and remote spots on the continent. Brian lives in Pennsylvania. He made the trek south to see Bob in his last days and he was here for the Celebration of Bob’s life.

Suzanne Corr, Bob’s wife, wanted friends of Bob to have his boats. She offered Brian and Rich their choice. Rich said he had all the boats he needed.  Brian knew he wanted one of Bob’s boats, as a keepsake, but wanted one that would be a challenge paddling.

At some point Bob shifted part of his paddling time from kayaks to C-1s.  He could paddle familiar rivers but add to the difficulty by using the more demanding watercraft, with its challenging crossover moves and braces and higher center of gravity.  Bob owned two vintage Dagger Atoms, boats with lots of history. First made in 1998, Atoms were an early favorite of C-1 boaters.

The photo above is of three intrepid voyageurs, Rich Ruhlen, Brian Palmer and Bob Brueckner. Like their sign says, “Labrador or Bust.”  Directly over Rich’s head it an Atom, ready to try Canadian waters.

Brian had the first choice and the Atom beckoned, partly from all the nostalgia for the Canada trips they took together. Brian packed the newer Atom to take with him to Pennsylvania.  He looks forward to working on his C-1 roll and paddling it on whitewater this summer.

Suzanne called me asking if I wanted one of Bob’s boats. We set a time to look over the boats. Bob had another seven boats, some in their garage, others tucked under the house. Suzanne was dealing with the loss of Bob, after thirty years of marriage and eighteen months of treatment and care, and she faced the many inevitable post-death tasks.  She wanted friends to take the boats but if there were few takers the remainder would be hauled away by a junk removal company.  I asked her to wait a bit, thinking people would want the boats.  Suzanne agreed to wait and see. To expedite matters, we loaded several of the boats into my van.

Recently, Bob was mostly seen in his yellow Wavesport, a boat that suited his style and matched his helmet. This was the one I was considering. Bob was a big fan of the Kibler Race, the annual race for fun held in Kibler Valley. Kibler is close to Mt. Airy, NC, and Stuart, Virginia.  For one day every July, additional water is released from the small hydro plant at the top of the valley. The infant Dan River, still just a brook, becomes a rowdy adolescent – twisting and jumping through the canopied bends. Bob loved the river, the race and most of all the chance to catch up with so many friends, old and young.  It’s fitting the brochure from the 2023 race featured Bob.

I loaded the Wavesport up and headed to the Optimist Pool in Raleigh for roll practice. The Wavesport was to show to a young paddler, Caroline Weiser. Caroline works for Raleigh Parks and Rec and has a Level One kayaking instructor certification. She’s just starting in whitewater. The yellow Wavesport wasn’t for her. I planned to keep the Wavesport but I wanted her to see a couple of different boats and compare them. The Optimist rents boats and they have a Dagger RPM, an early half-slice that people say is easy to roll.  Bob had a blue RPM and I planned to give it to her.

The night took a different turn.  The Optimist pool was shutting the season down early to start repairs.  The rental boats had been moved. The RPM wasn’t there.  Caroline looked the Wavesport over, sat in it, ran her hand over the deck and said, “Yellow is my favorite color.”

So, Caroline Weiser has a yellow Wavesport now and Bob’s helmet, skirt, dry wear and a few other items.  The RPM is still with me.

Steve Johnson is a playboater, among other things. He’s also open-minded. A shoulder impingement started him thinking. Maybe I should explore other types of boats, other ways of paddling.  This led to Steve purchasing a NorthStar carbon fiber open canoe which he used at the CCC Mighty Mayo River Trip in 2025.

Not as many CCC members paddle open canoes, particularly whitewater open canoes. While Steve’s new carbon fiber Northstar is certainly river ready, it doesn’t want to make much contact with rocks.  Whitewater means rocks.  Maybe Steve would want to try another boat.

Bob had a Mohawk XL11 whitewater open canoe. Suzanne pointed out the boat was hers.  She felt more at home in a canoe, and this allowed her to paddle whitewater with Bob. After a few trips, Suzanne decided, “Paddling would be Bob’s thing.” She would do other activities.

Bob paddled the canoe for a time, but other boats received more attention.  Soon the Mohawk was relegated to useful but humble service as a trash barge for Haw River clean-ups.

I offered the Mohawk to Steve. He was interested but said he didn’t have storage for another boat.  A day later, I received a text, “I’ve been thinking, I can pull a Dagger out of the shed and make room for the Mohawk. I’ll find a person/place for the Dagger.”

We met a few days later and Steve became the proud new owner.  Steve joked, “This is the only way I’ll ever have a Mohawk.”

Steve went to work building a shelf for the boat and finding the foot braces and air bags he needed to outfit the boat. Bob was somewhere smiling.

All along the outfitting process, Steve sent photos. New webbing, airbags and straps were added. Finally, the new foot braces came in.  Steve said, “No reason not to paddle it.”

Suzanne’s boat had now become Steve’s boat. He gave it an inaugural spin, where else, on the Haw.  The boat is looking good and ready for adventuresome trips.

Next up, the Atom No. 2.  Brian had taken the newer Atom but the other Atom looked very serviceable too.  Maybe Bob got a buy-one-get-one-free deal.

The Atom is a closed cockpit C-1 with a high deck requiring a special spray skirt. Brian had the only spray skirt for the Atom so any new owner would have to find a suitable skirt.

C-1 Boaters are as rare as pink kayaks. A few people specialize in C-1 but most of these also paddle kayaks or whitewater open canoes.  Some people paddle C-1 for the challenge of the more difficult style.  Several calls led to Matt Cox. I’d known Matt since he first started.  I was there when he first dropped Nantahala Falls, raising his paddle overhead in celebration and then immediately flipping. Matt has come a long way since then, all the way to Oceana and beyond. Somewhere along the line he decided to try C-1.  He had a short C-1 and was doing okay with it.  Would he be interested in an Atom?

Matt was indeed interested. In fact, excited. He’d recently paddled a friend’s Atom at a pool session.  Bob’s Atom had a home. Matt is a very social guy and quick to speak to new people. He’s a fixture at the White Water Center where veterans like Wade Harrison, Joe Berry, Eric Condrey and others started giving him tips, helping him with problem areas. Once Matt started C-1, Joe was especially encouraging and helpful.

The list of kayaks was coming down to a Crossfire kayak and a shorter C-1, a Dagger GTX.  I enlisted Joe Berry’s help at this point. “Any idea who would want a Crossfire?”  Joe thought someone would, particularly if the outfitting was right. Some people don’t like the foot pegs that Crossfires have, for fear of a foot slipping and getting wedged.

I headed to Suzanne’s to pick up the last batch of boats. Among them was the homeliest boat, an unbranded kayak with stubby lines.

The bow and stern had been sawed off and replaced with thick foam. At some point a small section of deck was removed.  It also has an unappealing gray-black finish. This indeed, was a candidate for the junk pile. Or perhaps a novelty planter?

So, the Crossfire, GTX and project boat packed up, Suzanne’s house was now de-boated. She has her garage and crawl space back and ready for other uses. I think Bob would be pleased she’s happy and the boats have new homes.  Mostly. Two more to give away.  This match making was getting to be fun.

After hitting many people up, the GTX was drawing no takers. I had contacted Juliette Jacobsen-Kastorff at Endless River Adventures. They will accept boats, try to sell them and then give the proceeds to Need More Outdoors, a non-profit that benefits kids in Swain County and surrounding counties. Need More encourages outdoor activities to enrich young people’s lives.  A couple of weeks passed, and I hadn’t heard back from her.  Perhaps what I had wasn’t that marketable.  Juliette would later write but by then most of the more desirable boats had homes.

The boats in our yard had to go and once again I hooked up with Matt Cox. “Matt, meet me and I’ll show you another boat.”  We met and I unveiled the GTX. Matt’s eyes lit up as we pulled it out of the van, and he gave the outfitting a good look.  “Man, it’s ready to go.”  Matt climbed in and it fit.  “I can paddle this right away.”  I guess regular spray skirts work with the GTX. Matt liked the Atom but he loved the idea of jumping right in the GTX.

The Crossfire was the only paddle-worthy boat left. Joe Berry called, asking for additional photos of the foot space on the boat, pegs or whatever.  I took a few and sent them to Joe. He called back and said the pegs weren’t ideal but the boat, while very dirty, was in great shape. Eric Condrey would take it.

Eric Condrey is a attention grabbing name in Carolina paddling circles. Eric has benefitted from training by some of the CCC’s finest. Dennis Huntley, for instance, who gave Eric a tough-love education on many a river.  They are still fast-friends today.

Eric teaches at the White Water Center and has tutored his own cohorts of new paddlers, many who are among the best in Carolina waters.

Eric had other Crossfires in the past. This would be his third. As he says, they don’t fit quite as good as they did when he was in his twenties. They are not comfortable boats, particularly in the foot space. Eric said, “What they did well was teach people good skills. Without good skills the Crossfire won’t save you like modern boats will.

I had a trip to Nantahala planned over Easter. Eric and I arranged to meet at the campground.  When the timing didn’t work out, I left the Crossfire for him to pick up. A couple of hours later I got a text from Eric.

Eric had given the Crossfire a good bath, put on his matching Van Halen shirt and had their picture taken.  A proud owner.

Later, Eric shared, “So I crafted some foam that the foot pegs would lay in when pushed forward in front of them. The idea is to not let your feet go over the top of the foot pegs upon impact. Just makes it safer. Ideally the bulkhead would be better, but you would have to drill holes to secure the bulkhead. I didn’t wanna do that so I just crafted 3 inch foam blocks that set right on top of the foot pegs and push them all the way forward. It’s as good as having a bulkhead.

The next day Laura Cox and I were crossing the foot bridge at the NOC. I looked down towards the slalom course and said, “That looks like the Crossfire.”  I called and Eric paddled over. I told him who I was and he grew excited. “I’m very happy to have this boat. Thank you and Joe and Bob Brueckner. It means a lot to me.”

As we walked away, Laura said, “Did you see the tear in his eye?”

I didn’t but my vision isn’t that great. Maybe the sun was hitting him hard in the eyes. Eric did seem happy in his new Crossfire.

Joe Berry called that night.  He said Eric was very pleased with the Crossfire and the good shape it was in.  It was also one of the prettiest he had seen. I told Joe about giving the Dagger GTX C-1 to Matt Cox.  Joe said, “Funny thing about that. I was at the WWC yesterday and Matt wanted to show me his new boat.”

They walked over to this black GTX C-1 and Joe stared at it.  “That was my boat. I bought it new.  I forgot who I sold it to, but it must have been Brueckner.

I bought the GTX around 2003 or 2004 from NOC. Black was not a usual color but my guy there said he could get it done special if I bought him a bottle of mescal. When it came in, I skipped work to drive up and pick it up. Couldn’t remember who I sold it to later. Had a big laugh when I saw Matt paddling it.”

Our boat story is coming full circle. The next day three of us had a post-paddle sandwich at the NOC.  Steve Johnson had driven up that morning for the day. He didn’t have the outfitting ready for the Mohawk yet, so he used a playboat. We had a long day paddling and were ready to hit the road.

 We had a five-hour drive home ahead of us.  While heading for the car, I looked across the bridge and saw a fellow with his back to us.  From the look of his shoulders and his hair, I thought it was Matt Cox.  We had to go but I mentioned it to Laura and Steve.  Steve said he’d go over and say hi, take his camera.

Matt wrote the next day and gave me grief for not coming over.  I begged forgiveness because of the long drive. Matt shared some photos taken by a friend with a Georgia paddling club, Matt coming over the Falls and staying upright.

Steve also took photos with Matt on the NOC slalom course.  Here is Matt sitting in his new boat, the Joe/Bob/Matt GTX. The unique black GTX with the mescal surcharge.

Bob’s boats are settled in new homes.  The RPM is with me for now.  Perhaps I have too many boats if that’s possible.  After a few paddles, the RPM could go see Juliette sometime this summer.

 

Thank you, Suzanne, for sharing Bob with us these many years. We will miss his nimble wit and graceful skills. We’ll miss the days on the water with him paddling the boat of the day, be it Atom or Crossfire or Wavesport. We hope some of Bob’s skill and goodness accompany us in the cockpit and he looks on us with his wry smile.