When you first meet Shimizu he is the quiet and calm guy in the corner. But don’t get fooled the kid is a freaking ninja. When he goes all out he is unstoppable and his kayaking is nothing but calm and quiet. It combines engagement, style  and his progression is exponential, because James only picked up kayaking in recent years ! We told you he was a freaking ninja!

Benny Marr is a lover not a fighter when it comes to kayaking. After a few years in a Canadian canoe with his old man, Benny started kayaking at the age of nine and never looked back. The mostly self-taught paddler has used his style and skills gained from days of freestyle on the Ottawa to become one of the best whitewater paddlers anywhere in the world. Though he jumps around from boat to boat, we’re stoked to know that when the shit gets rowdy, Benny rocks a Waka, claiming the OG is perfect for his size and how he likes to paddle.  Though he has been a long-time fan of the Tuna,  “I think the OG will give me powers to run what I didn’t think was possible,” says Benny. When not on the water, Benny will be sure to make you a cup of tea and have a chat. 

I was born in Sort (a little town in the Catalan Pyrenees) in 1993. At the age of 4 my parents introduced me to this wonderful sport, KAYAKING, and I’ve never stop practicing, it comes to be my lifestyle. I have competed in Slalom, Freestyle and Creek but now I’m traveling around the world discovering new rivers, new waterfalls and SHARING the sport I love with the rest of the people and show what we are able to do with kayaks.

Meeting Bernie amongst the crowd lingering on the shore of the infamous former sickline course or catching him on one of the earliest spring days on his beloved Corsica, you will quickly get a sense that he’s earned his status as Tyrolian white-water guru. Always wearing a big smile when on the water, his love for kayaking is mixed with a great ability to analyse movements, so he’ll be able to give you just the right advice to style that line or do the trick you’ve dreamed of. In fact, he turned his love for teaching into a very successful kayaking business, which offers camps from Norway to Corsica, all along the Alps and even overseas!  As a bonus, he can also supply you with all the good stuff to keep you afloat selling kayaks and paddling equipment. But he doesn’t stop there. Always keen to push his limits, he transformed his trusted OG into a C1, running it down the Wellerbrücke after just a few months of practicing as a one armed bandit. Now the shape-shifting capability of the Steeze has him dreaming of a C1/K1 version with a transforming paddle… so that allen key will come in handy for sure!

If you don’t know the name, you must not be a kayaker. Rush has paddled more whitewater around the world and produced more whitewater content in the past 20 years than anyone else in the game. We’ve all watched Rush transition from a wild young freestyle world champion making Young Gun Productions films, to a full blown legend of our sport making the highest quality whitewater documentaries. Living in White Salmon Washington Rush is part of the Gorge crew paddling almost 200 days in a calendar year. Inspiration and true love for the sport can be felt in watching Rush’s films and while spending time on the river with him. We are proud that Rush has decided to join Team Waka while continuing to push his whitewater career to new places!

Laura grew up in a kayak family and spent most of  her childhood vacations at the Soca valley. The family moved to Augsburg when she was a child, and she later decided to study there to further enjoy the benefits of the Eiskanal. Kayaking was always the one sport that gave her the most joy. When in a kayak, it’s hard for her to not be happy. 2021 Laura decided to participate at the World Championship in Ötz because it’s one of the rivers she calls home. So all the greater was the joy when she managed to win the race. Laura discovered, that she really likes racing and is trying to compete in all races that cross her kayaking journey. She likes to travel and to explore new rivers all over the globe. That is why she started working for Worldclass Kayak Academy last autumn. Here she can combine her love for kayaking and traveling with passing on her passion for the sport to the next generation.