Meet Your Kayak and Canoe Instructors

Paddling Experts and Fun People!

Collectively, they make up the best Paddling School in the nation. Individually, they are some of the best people you'll ever meet. Whether they are paddling for fun or with students, our instructors bring out the best in everyone.

	Wayne Dickert - Wayner has been a part of NOC since he started paddling competitively in 1981. A national champion open boater, he also paddled in the 1996 Atlanta Olympics in C2. He's a book author. A DVD creator. A boat design collaborator. A master's candidate in Theology. He's an all-around fired-up man and a great instructor.
	Anne Sontheimer - Serving as head instructor, equipment manager, wilderness medicine instructor and adventure travel leader, Anne is a keystone of our Paddling School success. In addition to carrying EMT licensure, Anne is our most requested instructors for almost five years in a row.
	Chris Port - Our talented Paddling School manager got his start at NOC as a Chattooga River Guide. In addition to guiding adventure travel trips to Costa Rica and the Dominican Republic, Chris is also a talented photographer and is fluent in several languages.
	Rob Barham - Our man in Panama and the King of Creeking, Rob loves to boat, talk about boating, photograph boating and we're sure dream about boating, too. He's also a wilderness EMT.
	Jason McClure - The intrepid Jason McClure is an adventurer, leading our trips in the Dominican Republic. He's conversational in Spanish and enjoys cooking ethnic food. Jason is also known for his NOC event emcee skills.
	Andrew Holcombe - This Team Dagger paddler's got boating in his blood-literally. His grandfather is NOC founder Payson Kennedy and both his parents, Jimmy Holcombe and Cathy Kennedy still work for NOC. Andrew teaches paddling all over the world with his wife, Anna Levesque.
	Anna Levesque - Another Team Dagger paddler, Anna is the founder of Girls at Play, a kayak instruction program for women. She's also an Ashtanga Yoga instructor and world traveler.
	Jimmy Holcombe - Let's just put it this way. If you think you're responsible for a first descent of anything east of Nashville, you should probably ask Jimmy Holcombe. All joking aside, Jimmy was NOC's first employee. He's a fantastic instructor with innate wisdom, on and off the river.
	Laura Farrell Laura spends her winters paddling in Panama, Costa Rica, Ecuador and Chile. When she's not paddling in the southern hemisphere she's paddling in the southern US, following the water on some of the steepest rivers in the country. In fact, Laura shared first place in the 08 Green River Race. Her patience, knowlege and fun-loving personality have made her a fan-favorite with NOC guests.