Dave Kurtz

Dave Kurtz has spent the better part of his life surrounded by water.

As a teenager he found canoeing through the Boy Scouts, and he furthered that pursuit when he came to Penn State for graduate school. There he met Tom Smyth and Bill Bickham, and together they completed the first descent of the Upper Yough. But more importantly, Bill and Dave became competitors on the slalom course. Dave’s Explorer Post brought the first fiberglass boats to the slalom courses; and even today he’s involved in slalom racing through his Mach 1 slalom team.

Dave Kurtz – Upper Yough warmup 1959 copy — Dave Kurtz on the first descent, 1959

Dave Kurtz – Lower Yough 1959 — Dave Kurtz on the Lower Yough, 1959

Dave Kurtz – Upper Yough rapid 1959 — Dave Kurtz entering the top of Bastard, 1959

Dave Kurtz – UY Scan-140127-0001 — Dave Kurtz paddling through the Mushroom in the lead-in to Charlie's Choice, 1959.

Dave Kurtz – Tommys Hole 1959 — Dave Kurtz in the midst of Tommy's Hole on the first descent, 1959

The Holcombe’s and Dave Kurtz — The Holcombe's and Dave Kurtz at the Savage Slalom Races

See More Upper Yough History

Wright’s Hole

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Up until Jack's mishap at Wright's hole, a swim on the Upper Yough was really bad news.

Heinzerling

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Bill Heinzerling had a really bad day on the river.

Cheesburger Falls

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Cheeseburger Falls is one of the weirder rapid names in existence.

The Upper Yough Race

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From the very first race, the challenge became, how in the hell do you go faster than Roger Zbel?

Shootout At Sang Run

What Almost Wasn’t