Rodeo kayaking's effort to transform itself into a mainstream sport

Wiley/Wales

Shuman side-surfing in Bob's Hole on Oregon's Clackamas River

For those not fully drenched in whitewater argot, rodeo or freestyle kayaking involves paddlers dropping into a river hydraulic or hole, then pirouetting and cartwheeling for 30 seconds while music—usually upbeat, elevator-style pop tunes—blares from loudspeakers. When the sport first began about ten years ago, it emphasized power over grace, rewarding boaters who could, say, cartwheel 18 times before getting flushed out of the hole. Today, the emphasis is increasingly on style, nuance, and, yes, glitz. All of which play to Shuman's strengths. One of the top five women rodeo boaters in the nation, she embodies both the virtues and the controversies of her sport's evolution. A sometime fashion model, she is well-groomed, wide-eyed, and friendly (her nickname is "Smiley"). And she thinks rodeo should be the same. "We should have more river festivals," she says. "It would be like ice skating, only wet."

Not all of her compatriots share her Kayak Capades vision, however. "I don't want to see this sport turned into a Vegas floor show," says E.J. Jackson, America's top male freestyler. Nevertheless, when the Freestyle Kayaking World Championships convene this month in Taupo, New Zealand, Shuman and others will press the heads of the national teams to implement scoring that rates entertainment value over power. If they succeed, they'll set the agenda for next year's first-ever World Cup rodeo kayaking tour. "It's an exciting moment," Shuman says. "Next year, you'll see rodeo explode." And if not, well, Vegas can always use a good water routine. —GRETCHEN REYNOLDS

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Hunting days are over for Ray Hillsman, the notorious bear poacher who is believed by Oregon state officials to have killed dozens of bears a year for five to ten years, and whose capture was recently chronicled in these pages ("The Hunting of the Poacher King," October). On September 28, Hillsman was sentenced to 18 months in jail after being convicted of 50 separate wildlife offenses and one violation of the state's RICO law. The judge also imposed a $7,900 fine, a lifetime hunting ban, and five years' probation, during which Hillsman will be forbidden to own a dog or to enter public forestlands. "I want to get this behind me," Hillsman said at his sentencing. "That's all I want to do." —BRUCE BARCOTT