The history of the Etive River Race goes back to Sunday 10th February 2008, Ian Letton and James Fleming kayaked from Triple Falls to the last rapid on the Etive, Twist and Shout.  Chris Tickner timed it.  Their time, a leisurely 24 minutes was, tounge in-cheek, placed on some forum boards as a “world record” and challenged others to beat it.  There were a few murmers after the initial 24-minute stroll down the river, could it be beaten and if so by how much.  The seed were sown and a plan to hold a race to beat this time began to grow.

In the months that followed frequent communications between the Scottish Canoe Association and Scottish National Heritage too place.  These bodies would be fundamental in ensuring the race would get off the ground.  Richard Bannister and James Fleming were the force behind the plan and eventually they were given the green light.  Rich and James met up with the park ranger in Glen Etive to discuss the proposal.  After a couple of meetings they were successful and plans were drawn up to stage the event.

After establishing the ground rules more frantic weeks of organising a safety crew, safety training, briefings, arranging transport, medical assistance and a hundred other essential logistical requirements took place.

In bringing the Etive River Race to fruition there are a myriad of sponsors and supporters making this happen.  This has ranged from Dave Rossetter, of Nevis Canoes, to facilitate the safety training, to a host of kayak / canoe manufacturers and other outlets, all keen to support the event.