CWCB Concerning the Application for Water Rights of Upper Gunnsion River Water Conservancy District Transcript

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flow; if there's adequate materials to build it; stream width and bank height are criticai factors in determining the design for the project. I'm personally a whitewater paddler, been paddling since I was four years old and contmue to. My dad was a paddler in the `40s and `SOs and got my brothers and I going and we continue to enjoy it, as do my kids. The type of boating experiences tbat I enjoy and tha# other people enjoy in #his type of project include what's called slalom paddliug through the ga#es simllar to wbat you see in the . Olyjnpic competitions such as Sydney wherE you go through the gates in a pre-determ,ined fashion and it's a timed and penalty event. Or there's downri.ver races where you start at A and end at B and it's just strictly timed dawn a river. Or there's what's called free style or pla.y lioating, which is very pogulaz, which is getting in a wave and doing Yhe cartwheels and tricks in a particular water feature. I'm a1so current president of NORS, Natianal Qrganization of River Sports; past president of the Colorado Whitewater Association and board member for the Boulder Whitewater Club. I've testified as an expert witness in the City of Golden case for the Clear Creek Whitewater Park, for the Vail. case on the Gore Creek project and csn the Breckenridge case and also im, froilt of the CWCB in the Pueblo in stre.am water right case. As faz as thv Gunnisoa Whitewater Patk, my initial invoivement was in 1997-98 when same friends of mine living here called me ond just warrted tQ lnow about the feasibility of a whitewater park in tlus area. I ca.me up here and attended a nwmber of public meetings that Iohn referred to, birt primarily m 1998 in front of the Cownty Coman.issioners. - M-y tecollection is they were very well attended. in fact, you couldn't 'get Yn.to the room. I have my own notes of thE testimony that oceurred ax that time. And I was imfpressed with, not . . oniy the numher of people, but the'variety of age and skil11eve3s. My recollection af primary people in the crowd were families and tlte over-50 crowcL ationg with the western states group. And so it was a full spectnzm and ever3rone was very supportrve of this pzoject I was professiomlly hired by Gwznison County m 1999 and worked on preliminary design Qf the pmjeet, ineluding the permitting, which was issued I believe in December of 1999, a Corps of Engineers permit for in streatn. habita.t inprovements and wlaitewater improvements. Aud about the fish habitat, we d.id meet on site with the DivisiQn of Wildli.fe representatives and discussed in detail the impravememt mainly by the creation of these pools for holding water for ia-stream habitat iniprovement. , Calorado Water Conservation'Baard September 10, 2002 Hearing Transcript Page 27