Do the Hustle, James River Style
The sixth-annual James River Hustle includes paddling, running, and a post-event party, and benefits a great cause as well.
By: Nan Turner
Cold weather is starting to descend on the River City, but Ben Moore and Hunter Davis want you to know that there is still time for paddling and nature enthusiasts to spend a day out on the James.
Moore and Davis met at Virginia Commonwealth University where they both paddled together and spent significant time with VCU’s Outdoor Adventure Program. The two kept in touch, returned to the Richmond area, and began thinking of a way to display and enjoy the vibrant ecosystem that surrounds the city.
They started a community paddle and video night. Paddlers would meet up and kayak down the James River together, cook out, and then meet later in the evening at The Camel restaurant and music venue to have a video night featuring participant paddling footage. The first annual event was called, ‘I Shot Myself,’ a play on the video submissions of individuals kayaking.
“Richmond has a vibrant community of paddlers and we thought it was something the whole community could enjoy,” Moore said. “Here it doesn’t get too cold, and it doesn’t freeze over like in other places. We wanted to do something to get everybody together and paddle. We got hamburgers and hot dogs for afterwards. We said everybody that has made a paddling video come to the Camel with us and we’ll watch them all.”
The event, now known as the James River Hustle and taking place this year on December 1, turned out to be a success, and it has continued to grow.
“The first year we had probably 30 people,” Moore said. “The last couple years we’ve had upwards of 70. It’s just about the paddling community getting together at a time of the year we don’t see each other and having a celebration of the environment here in Richmond.”
James River Hustle paddlers
Increased participant numbers aren’t the only sign of the event’s growth – a 5k run is being added to the schedule as well.
“This year we’re adding a couple different categories to the event,” Moore said. “Greg Hawkins spent 13 years working at the Outdoor Adventure Program at VCU. He found out he had lung cancer this fall, so we’re putting on a 5k in the morning to benefit him. Greg just moved out of town, but he knew a lot of people here, and we wanted to do something to include his friends that aren’t whitewater paddlers.”
The video session at The Camel will also feature a silent auction, and the group will be selling t-shirts and koozies in support of Hawkins. All the proceeds from these items will go towards helping him.
James River Hustle movie viewing party
Adding these elements has allowed Moore and Davis to reach out to more of their friends to help them make the event special. This year Max Posner, another one of their VCU paddling partners, is sharing some of the planning load. In addition, Patrick Griffin is running the 5k, and Justin Harris and Chris Craft are helping out as well.
The James River Hustle is now in its sixth year, but it hasn’t gotten any less meaningful or exciting for Moore.
“The part I like the most is when everyone as a large group pulls up beside Hollywood and you paddle down through the flat water,” Moore said. “I look forward, or back, and see a group of paddlers who are stoked to be paddling in December. Just the community and being able to be with everyone makes it worth it.”
Richmond is unique due to the fact that it’s one of the only metropolitan areas in the U.S. that has Class IV rapids within the city.
“There’s nothing else like it; that’s what I like,” said Moore.
James River Hustle paddlers
His personal favorite area to paddle is the last section of rapids down through Pipeline because water from the Piedmont and the Tidewater regions blends together to form a different ecosystem. However, that isn’t the only reason Moore is passionate about the James; he is also enamored with the rich history of the waterway.
“It kind of stems from the fact that the whole reason Richmond is here is because of the James and those rapids,” Moore said. “The English set up outpost here and those rapids created everything in this city. It’s cool to be a part of that history when you go out and paddle.”
This year more than ever, Moore and the other organizers would like to see a record number of participants, and wholeheartedly welcome those unfamiliar with the sport.
“We’d love anyone who Greg worked with to come out,” Moore said. “He did pretty much everything you could do. Come run the 5k, hang out with us and have burgers. Anybody that wants to watch kayak videos and listen to a band at The Camel, we’d love to have them.”
The Richmond community has gotten behind the Hustle, with a local jeweler making the 5k medals and Hardywood Park Craft Brewery donating prizes as well. The event has even attracted some national sponsors with Werner Paddles, based in Washington State, giving a paddle for auction.
“Everyone we’ve been in contact with in the outdoor community has been really excited about supporting,” Moore said. “I can’t say anything other than everybody has been awesome.”
Although the event looks much different than it did in its first year, with 30 people kayaking together, the mission is still the same.
“This is an event for paddlers, by paddlers who love the James and Richmond,” Moore said.
For more information on the James River Hustle visit their Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/events/123020414520491/.