The Cheat River Festival weekend kicks off with the largest, mass start downriver races in the country known as the Cheat River “Massacre-ence”. The registration and start is about one mile downriver of the town of Albright, West Virginia, at the Cheat Fest South entrance (Public parking area), above the bridge pilings. The race course travels about 10.6 miles through the Cheat Canyon, with an average gradient of 25 fpm. All the famous (and infamous) rapids are paddled, including Decision, Big Nasty, High Falls and Coliseum. Depending on water levels, the front of the pack usually reaches the finish line at Jenkinsburg Bridge in about 1 hour while the back of the pack, the slower boats, usually finish up around 1 hour 45 mins.
This section of the Cheat River is Class III – IV, and as a free-flowing river the character of the river, difficulty and risk vary depending on the water level, which can change quickly. Only boaters who are extremely comfortable with this type of paddling should register for the race!
Register NowContact Information Lisa Maraffa
lisa@cheat.org
304 329 3621