It all started out as a reckless but innocent ritual of some Western United States raft guides. A band of out of control thrill seekers who love to embellish and elevate even mundane tales of cowardice to inspirational tales of valor and glory. After a day's paddle the ritual began along the shores of a raging western river. Tales so adventure-packed and hyperbolic that they could rarely be completely believed. So started the idea for this book of sometimes outrageous, sometimes irreverent, but always entertaining tales of outdoor gonzo. Contributors of this non-fiction (the publisher uses this term loosely because some stories border on fictional boundaries) work entered a writing contest, judged by prominent outdoor magazine editors for literary quality and entertainment value, to have their stories included in this year's edition.
