Paul Palmer has found a balance paddling through a professional kayaking career and his studies as a junior at Fort Lewis College.
Palmer, who is from Colorado Springs, is a member of the U.S. Freestyle kayak team. Two weeks before final exams at FLC, Palmer claimed the USA National Championship in freestyle kayaking in Columbus, Georgia.
Palmer was in last place going into his final run. In freestyle kayak, competitors receive 1 minute to ride a stationary river wave in a small kayak called a playboat. Kayakers perform tricks and rotations and receive points from judges based on difficulty, air and cleanliness of trick.
In his final run of the weekend, Palmer went from last to first to claim first place and the $500 cash prize.
“I can say I was surprised and stoked,” Palmer said of his victory. “I was competing against some world champions and past national champions that had been training for this event for a long time. You never know how the judges will score your run, and when I went from last place to first, it came with a surprise. I have made podiums around the world, but the U.S. national title is not bad to have under my belt.”
Palmer is at a disadvantage compared to many professional kayakers. Instead of chasing big waves internationally full time, he chose to go to college in Durango and work toward a degree.
“Although it is very difficult to compete at his level while living in Colorado, Paul loves Durango and chose to stay there for college,” Palmer’s mother, Pamela Palmer, said.
“He has been active in the Durango kayaking community and instrumental in bringing more top level kayakers to Animas River Days festival.”
Palmer began kayaking when he was 10. He said his family has always into the water, but when his brother, Michael Palmer Jr., started kayaking with his father, Michael Palmer, kayaking quickly became the family’s main focus.
Palmer has kayaked across the globe. He has chased some of the world’s largest waves and rivers and was one of the dozen kayakers on the last descent down the famous stretch of China’s Yangtze River before it was flooded by the Three Gorges Dam, the world’s largest power station.
After finishing his last final, Palmer hit the road to Canada in a quest to get back to the world’s largest standing river wave in Dolbeau, Quebec. The wave is affectionately called Ginormica.
“It is about 20-plus-feet tall and scary as hell to surf,” Palmer said. “Although you don’t do too many tricks on waves that size, it is still a joy ride.”
Palmer first learned to kayak in Glenwood Springs and said it is still his favorite place to put-in the water. He enjoys the opportunity to get back to his roots.
When his senior year of college begins at Fort Lewis College, he will again return to his studies. Though kayaking may provide the adrenaline rush of a lifetime, he knows $500 checks for winning a national championship aren’t enough.
“I travel a lot during breaks and time I have off school, so I talk to my teachers about my plans,” he said. “Typically, they are very good about working with me to take tests early and get the correct help I need to make my travels happen. There is not a lot of money in this niche sport, so hopefully a degree from the Fort will makeup for that small but big check I received at nationals.”
jlivingston@durangoherald.com
