OLD FORT — A world-renowned Asheville whitewater paddler died Wednesday, a day after being hit by a train near Old Fort.

Daniel DeLaVergne, 29, was believed to be camping in the High Ridge Tunnel near Ridgecrest when he was struck at 11:44 a.m. Tuesday by a 1,151-ton train heading west toward Asheville, Norfolk Southern spokesman Robin Chapman said.

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The paddler lost his arm in the accident and was airlifted to Mission Hospitals, where he was pronounced dead Wednesday morning, just three days after his 29th birthday. The news reached the kayaking community worldwide within hours, leaving them to remember his contribution to the sport.

DeLaVergne was named a 2005 Adventurer of the Year by National Geographic Adventure magazine for paddling the 50-mile run of the Stikine River in British Columbia known as the “pinnacle of North American whitewater.” Fewer than 40 people have paddled the Stikine, which normally takes three days. DeLaVergne and his friends paddled it in less than 10 hours.

“Daniel has done first descents in Chile, Argentina, the U.S., Newfoundland, British Columbia — the list goes on,” said close friend and fellow kayaker John Grace, who was one of the three others who paddled the Stikine with DeLaVergne.

“He was an incredible friend, had an incredible work ethic and was an incredible person all around,” said Grace, who traveled the world with DeLaVergne on kayaking trips. “This is just unbelievable.”

DeLaVergne was about 200 feet inside the 450-foot tunnel when he was struck by the train, which was going 19 mph, McDowell County Sheriff’s Capt. Vick Hollifield said.

The tunnel, which had about nine feet of shoulder room, was also where investigators found DeLaVergne’s sleeping bag and camping gear, Hollifield said. His vehicle was also found nearby.

“We’re not sure if he was asleep or what,” Hollifield said. “The engineer told us that he had just enough time to catch a glimpse of him before he fell in front of the train. He applied the emergency brake. … But it took a pretty good while to stop. I think it was a couple hundred yards that he was pushed down the track.”

The paddler ran Penstock Productions, a company that produced a quarterly video magazine on DVD, covering whitewater-kayaking events and also partnered with Hendersonville kayak manufacturer Liquid Logic and Washington State’s Werner Paddles.

DeLaVergne’s friends believe he had gone out to scout an area for a commercial he was shooting and think Monday night’s rain drove him into the tunnel.

“He was a very good person and a good friend,” said fellow kayaker and friend Andrew Holcombe. “You just don’t run into too many people with as much enthusiasm and talent and ability to do good things.”

DeLaVergne did not have family in the Asheville area, Holcombe said.

Shane Benedict, an owner and designer at Liquid Logic who worked with the paddler, described DeLaVergne as a creative, intense and fun person — one that always planned their kayaking trips.

“We called him the ‘trip leader,’” Benedict said. “That was what drove him — adventure.”

Contact Nash at 232-5922 or lnash@CITIZEN-TIMES.com.

Submitted on 03/09/2006

Submitted by: Anonymous
Reference: Asheville Citizen-Times 3/9/6

Copyright © 2006 DarwinAwards.com

James said:
Definitely Keep: For Darwin's Eyes
More detail in this article about a story I moderated (and happen to like!)...have a look-se there, Darwin! :-)

Sheryl said:
Neutral: For Darwin's Eyes
I'm still neutral on this. I agree, let Darwin take a look.

Jorge said:
Definitely Toss: Other

Charles said:
Definitely Keep: For Darwin's Eyes
I still feel that trains are too common, but we can leave this for Darwin's eyes.

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