Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Arizona River Runners September Flickr Photo Contest Winner


DSC_7645 - Copy
Originally uploaded by bob conley
This does indeed look like "On a planet far away..." What an incredible photo! Thank you for sharing this winning shot! Hope you had a grand time rafting the Colorado River! Hope to see you soon!

Don't forget to check out Arizona River Runners 2011 specials! Call 1-800-477-7238 for your Grand Canyon rafting trip!

Arizona River Runners Photo Contest Winner "The Pirate"


The Pirate
Originally uploaded by lesvolt
Here is our August winner! Looking pretty relaxed and happy! Congrats on the photo - we loved it! How was your Grand Canyon rafting trip with us? Give us a holler and let us know!

Monday, October 25, 2010

"Right to Risk" in the Grand Canyon ~ Arizona river Runners

Here's a MUST SEE!

"RIGHT TO RISK" can be viewed as a DVD now. It chronicles the adventures of eight individuals, all of whom live with significant disabilities, on a 15 day, 225-mile whitewater rafting trip through the Grand Canyon. "RIGHT TO RISK" is an excellent testimony to the universal theme.....At the heart of one's ability to enjoy life is the right to make choices, to develop and pursue life goals, and to participate fully.

There's never a dry eye in the house when this film is presented. I have been fortunate to be involved as support for a few of these Grand Canyon rafting trips. I do know that the guides and crew battle to be included on these rafting trips. It is a life-changing experience for all. Everybody comes away humbled and empowered at the same time.

Check out the web site www.righttorisk.org. There's lots of great information on the site, but be sure to take a look at the trailer.

Nature is a fine maestro. The Colorado River as it flows through the Grand Canyon provides an ultimate life lesson. You should enroll. You need to enroll. You want to enroll. Arizona River Runners can help you. It's easy. It's exciting. It's available to you now.

Call Arizona River Runners for your ultimate life lesson. Take a Colorado River trip with us. There’s never a better time to book than right now. 1-800-477-7238

Thursday, October 21, 2010

A Day on the Job with an Arizona River Runner Guide

If you had chosen the career of a river guide, you just might think that you have the best job in the world. So, what makes the job of a Grand Canyon river guide so much better than your Average Joe’s everyday gig? You will probably need to spend a week in the Canyon with one of river guide to find out. After taking part in an Arizona River Runners’ rafting adventure on the Colorado River you’ll have no problem understanding why river guides love to go to work everyday. Compare a day in their “office” to a day in yours:

Guides in the Grand Canyon start their day with coffee and breakfast in the majestic setting of one of the most amazing natural wonders of the world. They’re not fighting traffic, and it’s easy to see how starting your day floating through the morning calm of this breathtaking river feeds your soul instead of draining it. You get a sense of your part in the natural world, and how inspiring that world really is.

No fluorescent lighting for river guides, and forget about staring at the glare of a computer screen or those tired old memos from the boss posted on your cubicle walls throughout the day. These guides enjoy the ever changing scenery, experienced from the Colorado River vantage point that many people will never see.

No ringing phones, overflowing inboxes, expense reports and sorting e-mail spam. There’s a rhythm to the days, but rafting trips are far from routine. Every bend in the river brings a fresh perspective and the chance to experience something new all over again – you might be facing the adrenaline pumping rush of whitewater rapids, or the chance to float lazily for a while and take in the scenery of afternoon clouds contrasting against the blue sky and Canyon walls.

Been doing the same ol’, same ol’ on the job for years? Colorado River trips are fantastic learning experiences. Arizona River Runners guides come from a wide variety of backgrounds, all with a passion for the river that has allowed them to soak up a wealth of knowledge and some pretty incredible stories that they will share throughout the trip. Ask them questions and take in as much as you can. From learning to read river conditions and practicing environmentally responsible camping techniques to Grand Canyon history and folklore, these river guides will keep you informed every step of the way.

On a Grand Canyon rafting trip, you’ll experience teamwork and bond with the others on your trip in a way you’ll probably never see in the office. The river serves up challenges and rewards throughout the days to enjoy with your new “co-workers”. No gossip in the breakroom, no competition for the big promotion. These trips develop teams led by some of the most knowledgeable guides in the business, successfully navigating the challenges of some of the biggest whitewater in the North America. You just might develop a new definition for the word “success” after sharing some time in their workplace.

It’s time for you to go whitewater rafting through the Grand Canyon! Call Arizona River Runners at 1-800-477-7238, 2011 trips are still available at 2010 prices – but not for long!

Monday, October 18, 2010

Arizona River Runners End of the Year Party

So, we had an end-o-the-season, Arizona River Runners company party last weekend. Kind of a low key affair. Dinner and drinks....some photos (some vintage and some current)......announcements and acknowledgements and, as always, some great music--- just us jammin' in the music room upstairs.

I love this party. For me, it's sort of like Parents' Night at the University. First of all, I am old enough to be most everybody's mom, and secondly I love and adore these people that work for us. They are incredible human beings. Great characters, each and every one of them. Strong, beautiful, funny, smart, adventurous, caring, and talented. Most of them have great plans for the off season. I can now live vicariously through them.

We, at Arizona River Runners are like family. We are a gaggle, a herd, a pride and a batch. We connect, and that makes us a great company. May I be so bold as to say that I believe we....our office people, our warehouse people, our drivers and our guides.... are tops, and that is good for us, and good for you too.

We'll be back on the water, starting in April next year with renewed enthusiasm (and new jokes). We hope to see you there too. We'd like to share the wonders, the beauty, and the adventure of rafting through the Grand Canyon with you. Call us for your Arizona rafting vacation, 1-800-477--47238



Thursday, October 14, 2010

Arizona River Runners ~ The Virtues of Rafting

I first met my husband on an Arizona River Runners Grand Canyon rafting trip. So, it goes without saying that he is an outdoorsy person. I must be too, because there I was, solo (and single) embarking on this major adventure.

Through years of marriage and raising kids, we have enjoyed lots of camping, hiking and rafting. Spending time out of doors, in our minds, is one of the greatest growth opportunities. For youngsters and older folks alike, time spent with Mother Nature is time well spent. Rafting the Colorado River falls into this category.

Any time we could take our family on a river trip, we went for it. We could see our two daughters grow right before our very eyes as we experienced nature. There were lots of laughs. We played games, told stories and listened to tales. There were practical jokes and ambush attacks. We gazed at the starry, night skies and tracked the moon's path across the heavens.

Their were hardships too. Bugs, bats, sunburn, cold, rainy days. Sand gets into your sleeping bag. Sand gets into your food---ew! Critters steal your snacks, and scorpions and snakes live there. You drop your toothbrush in the sand. It's raining on my sleeping bag. These are Mother Nature's lessons. We all worked our way through anything and everything, the best we could. But we were having fun - we were actually having a blast.

The kids thrived on this. Grand Canyon rafting trips are a great way to stretch and grow for all of us at any age. It's a great place to broaden your horizons and learn new skills without a written handbook.

When conditions are good, all is good. When conditions are bad, all is still good. Rafting a river is good stuff for the whole family.

We invite your family to join ours rafting through the Grand Canyon, and experience Mother Nature like never before! Call Arizona River Runners for your whitewater rafting adventure! 1-800-477-7238

Monday, October 11, 2010

Grand Canyon Rafting Next Summer with Arizona River Runners

This year's commercial season is winding down. The end of the 2010 season is at an end. It's time to be thinking about next year......for us and for you.

The first step to getting onto a Grand Canyon raft trip next summer, is to pick a date. It's just that simple. Check your schedule at work, at church, at boy scouts and girl scouts, and the kids' sports, and find times that work for you. Call our office and see what's available. The sooner you call, the more choices you will have. The longer you wait, the more the schedule fills in (with non-procrastinators) and your options become more limited. Your reservation requires a small deposit and then you are good to go.

Sleep like a baby, knowing that you have a reservation for an adventure of a lifetime. Your space is secure and you can revel in the anticipation of things to come. As your trip date approaches we will send you all kinds of information to prepare you for your trip, including a packing list! Don't forget Arizona River Runners provides all meals, camping gear and rafting equipment.

Pick your date. Make the call. Reserve your space and time in the Grand Canyon. Right now, 2011 whitewater rafting trips are holding at 2010 prices! Arizona River Runners 1-800-477-7238, for your Arizona rafting vacation!

Thursday, October 7, 2010

How Dangerous is Grand Canyon Rafting with Arizona River Runners?

This is an excellent question. How adventurous or hearty or skillful or CRAZY do I need to be to raft the Grand Canyon? Do I need special skills or equipment? All excellent questions, and very easily addressed.

As you can imagine, Arizona River Runners carries insurance. Quite appropriately, companies that offer this kind of insurance study our activities and rate our risk. You will find it very calming to know that rafting in the Grand Canyon has been rated more dangerous than playing pool and less dangerous than playing golf. As you raft along, your ARR guides will make sure that you feel this way too.

You do not need to be an extreme athlete or an adventurer of the utmost. You do need to want to bask in beauty and grandeur beyond all expectations. Perhaps have a yen for discovery and exploration. The Grand Canyon will work its way into your being in a way that is unique to you. Your experience will be your very own for all time to come.

Perhaps it will be the thrill of the rapids and the tumultuous whitewater that is most memorable to you. For some, the hiking and exploring side canyons will be the best. Many, quite unexpectedly, are astounded at the comradery amongst the group. They cherish friendships that are formed in the awesome setting of the Grand Canyon. Sleeping on the beach, under the starry, starry sky might be new and memorable to your life experiences. Outstanding memories await you.

You don't need any special skills. You're not wild and crazy to want to go whitewater rafting through the Grand Canyon. You don't need any special equipment to get on board a Colorado River trip. Regular people raft in the Grand Canyon all the time and you could and should be one of them.

Arizona River Runners provides most everything you need. You bring your personal things and we provide all the "stuff" and the expertise to make your rafting trip a safe and memorable occasion. Grand Canyon rafting is a vacation you can look forward to with excitement and enthusiasm, and look back upon with fondest memories.

Monday, October 4, 2010

Lunch in the Canyon on an Arizona River Runners Rafting Trip!

I'm pretty easy to please in the food/eating department. A real appealing part of this is that somebody else prepares my meal AND cleans up afterwards. That is certainly the case on an Arizona rafting vacation with Arizona River Runners. Don't get me wrong.....the food on ARR rafting trips gets high marks in the culinary realm on it's own. The fact that I enjoy great meals with very little effort on my part is a bonus.

I've tried to duplicate some of the wonderful cuisine that I enjoyed in camps along the way and the one that is clearly a standout is Mexican Train Wreck. It is a salad that is served at lunch in a pita pocket. I've served it many times without the beauty of the Grand Canyon as a backdrop and everybody still loves it.

Here's the recipe I go by:

MEXICAN TRAIN WRECK

Serves a big bunch

3-4 c. chicken, canned or grilled, cut into bite size

1 c. tomato, diced

1/2 c. onion, diced

1 14 oz. can black olives, chopped

1 14 oz. can beans (black, pinto or kidney), drained

1 c. shredded cheddar cheese

1 c. salsa

1/2 c. avocado chunks or guacamole

1/2 c. sour cream

1/2 head of lettuce, chopped or shredded

2 c. tortilla chips, crumbled slightly

Mix all together. Serve with salsa, guacamole, sour cream, shredded cheese and chips.

Spoon into pita pocket or serve over a bed of shredded lettuce.

This recipe is quite flexible and can be tweaked to your liking. I often leave out the crumbled chips and the shredded lettuce so that leftovers can be enjoyed the next day or frozen.

For your Grand Canyon rafting vacation and fabulous meals, call Arizona River Runners at 1-800-477-7238!