# How Chicken Raper Rapid got it's name! The true story!



## Schutzie (Feb 5, 2013)

RIP Chris; always full of fire and life, it was a pleasure to know her and run rivers with her.


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## lhowemt (Apr 5, 2007)

That is a great story Jan, thanks for sharing. A bittersweet reminder of how fleeting life can be. You never really know what's around the next bend. She must have been one hell of a gal to be able to carry that nickname!


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## Wavester (Jul 2, 2010)

Thanks for sharing the story and providing a nice bit of history on the Dolores. The Dolores will always have a special place for me as it was the first river that I had an opportunity to do a multiday trip on. Still on of my favorites.




Stitches 'N Stuff said:


> 1975 was an historical time for the Dolores River in Southwestern Colorado. On January 3rd, 1975, President Gerald Ford signed public law 93-621 amending the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. This amendment authorized study of the Dolores River and 28 other study streams. Of the 29 selections, the Dolores was singled out to be an accelerated study and all findings were by law required to be submitted by January 3rd, 1976.
> 
> Shortly after the bill was signed, a study team in Colorado was formed and Don Bock was appointed to lead the team of Govenment Agencies. The study was to be conducted by foot, from horse back, by raft, by motor vehicle and from the air.
> 
> ...


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## lmyers (Jun 10, 2008)

Thank you for sharing that with all of us.

From now on I will call Stateline "Chicken Raper".... as funny a name as it is.


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## Andy H. (Oct 13, 2003)

Jan,

That was beautiful and, especially for a story about that particular name, quite touching.

Thanks for posting it!

-AH


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## raymo (Aug 10, 2008)

RIP Chris. One power house of a river guide. Thanks for posting that D9er and J9er.


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## Ikedub (May 30, 2008)

Thank you very much for sharing that story, great history! I'll be tuning in to hear you guys on the 11th.


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## BCJ (Mar 3, 2008)

Thanks for sharing that with us D9er! I'm compelled to add that Rocky Mt. River Expeditions was one of the finest river outfitters around back in those days and I have terrific memories of my 4 years with the company! Folks today could hardly believe how we ran with wooden dryboxes, knowledge of how to tie knots (no cam straps available), cooked everything we ate on campfires and kept ourselves warm with wool! What treasured memories and what skills we had! Schutzie - - thanks for hiring me! D9er - - thanks for firing me too! Learned some great lessons and still running safely and with humility all these years later!


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## Schutzie (Feb 5, 2013)

RMRE set a lot of standards in the day; first to run paddle boats commercially I think, certainly the first to hire women as guides, and first to run a J rig down the Dolores; more of a grading run than a float

But, "wooden dry boxes"? Wood yes, dry no!

And I remember a weekend on North Platte when the rangers rolled out the next morning wearing our T shirts over their uniforms...what was left of them...and grins on their faces. Doubt that could happen today. I didn't know it then, but I met my wife that weekend.


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## garyo (Apr 29, 2013)

Chris was one of the finest and miss her dearly. RMRE was very lucky to have had a few great years with her!!


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## sj (Aug 13, 2004)

Thanks for sharing now I can pass the story on.


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## randowhite (May 7, 2010)

Thanks Jan....brings back memories of Dolores river runs back when it ran on a regular basis....pre-McPhee.....

I can just picture the early morning campfire....and Chris's emergence from the tent with no idea that she was covered in feathers...just looking for some coffee to warm her up after that cold night's sleep....then...the moment of her new river handle to be emerges from Mike's mouth on a whim.....Chicken Raper!

I'm rolling on the floor now just picturing it....

Then to have followed that up with the amazing rescue at Stateline which i can only imagine.....moments of peril followed by sighs of relief that nobody died....epic to say the least....

so cool that her handle got transferred to the rapid.....and so fitting....

now if we could just convince the the McPhee dam controller to open the gate, I could go down for my dental check up at Snaggletooth.....I schedule the appointment every year, but the dentist never calls me back!

Thanks for sharing
Rando


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## poudreraft (Sep 21, 2004)

Awesome!


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## Schutzie (Feb 5, 2013)

I wasn't going to add this Post Script to the story, but what the hell............

Later that year, when we were running pump house every weekend (every damn weekend!) and the bar at State Bridge was doing landslide business on Sunday afternoons, we rolled in with our usual suspects.

After a round or two of Jelly beans (do not be fooled by the name, my spirit left my body the first time because of incautious contact with them) Chicken Raper was sitting at one of the tables in the bar, as usual, without trying, being the life of the party.

Now, this is in the bar. Not the "restaurant". The restaurant where they served everything but eggs and chicken. Honest. I don't recall ever seeing any poultry on the menu, around the place, and for damn sure, no eggs. None. Zip. Zero.

In any case, Chicken raper said something about the restroom and got up from her chair. And big Mike pointed to the floor under her chair. Where a broken raw egg was oozing into a rancid puddle.

Any doubts about her river name were instantly dissolved. And the mystery of how that egg came to be there, under that particular chair where Chicken raper chose to sit, remains unsolved.

She always accused Mike of leaving the egg, but the fact is, Mike had no more ability to carry an egg unbroken for two days than I could run Snaggle tooth without breaking something.


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## Phil U. (Feb 7, 2009)

Thanks for this.


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