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Shaun
Baker is currently the world's leading extreme kayaker and holder of
four official Guinness World Records: "World Freefall
Kayak" record a pure vertical drop of 19.7 metres; two
"World Speed Altitude Descent" records over heights of
75ft and 50 metres; and his recently achieved "Kayak Land
Speed Record - Snow".
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[Click
on photo above to enlarge]
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He
has also clocked up in excess of twenty first descents of
major waterfalls and whitewater rivers worldwide. These
include some of the largest falls in Iceland and the Alps,
one of which has now been named "Shaun Baker
Falls". Amazingly he started tackling these falls
using, at the time, the world's smallest plastic whitewater
kayak: only 2.2m in length (7ft 2in).
Despite
his obvious passion for the extreme, he is also drawn to the
competitive art of Whitewater Freestyle Kayaking (he has won
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the
UK National Championships 9 times) and continues to organize one
of the world's largest annual whitewater events... on a River
Thames weir near London! "SAS
Thames Weir Rodeo/Hurley Rodeo"
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Shaun
began kayaking aged 10, when his parents bought him
his first kayak in an attempt to control his obvious
obsession with water (!!). Six years later, he led an
expedition, with school friend Nick Mallabar,
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from
Kingussie in Scotland to Hell's Mouth in North Wales. A major
undertaking for two sixteen-year-old school boys, they paddled 700
miles down gnarly whitewater rivers and around some of the UK's
roughest and most extreme coastline.
Ten
more years of ground-breaking exploits ensued, until one winter, Shaun and Nick completed another wild expedition around
the treacherous north coast of Scotland. This time they paddled a
new type of tiny plastic kayak designed for use in swimming pools - the paddling
world thought they were mad, but they proved it could be done.
In
1986, in one of his first major waterfalls challenges, Shaun, and
fellow kayaker Fred Wondre, plunged over the previously
unconquered Swalow Falls in North Wales. 1987 saw him establish a
new Guinness World Record for "Freefall Waterfall
Kayaking" at 15 m pure vertical drop - a height that in 1996,
in a dramatic first descent, he was to push to 19.7 m. The rest,
as they say, is history.
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It is
not solely the high-risk aspect of kayaking in which Shaun
has excelled. He holds advanced level British Canoe Union
Instructor and Examiner status in all disciplines of the
sport, including life saving. Shaun also has a keen
interest in the safety aspect of kayaking and is a leading
designer of kayaks and whitewater safety equipment. Shaun
has designed or modified most of the specialist clothing
he wears, as well as the kayak he uses. |
Shaun
spends an increasing amount of time gaining publicity for his
sport and is regularly featured in films and magazines
around the world.
Having
won whitewater competitions from Japan to London, the competitive
side of Shaun's kayaking proves beyond doubt that he is not just a
madman attempting the impossible, but is in fact probably the most
skilled and competent extreme kayaker in the world.
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[Click
on photo above to enlarge]
From
huge volcanic waterfalls to the World Kayak Land Speed Record on
snow...
From
monstrous Saharan dunes to the awesome power of the world's
first high speed jet kayak...
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