by Amy Borer
Editorial Director
Due to the recent hospitalization of Roland Ortmayer, former ULV football coach, and his wife Cornelia, the couple will not be taking part in their annual float trip to the Kern River, scheduled for May 12-14.
“My wife and I just got out of the hospital and our doctor said we should not go,” said Ortmayer.
Approximately three weeks ago, Ortmayer was hospitalized for five days because of abdominal pain and will be going in for surgery on May 19. His wife was complaining of heart and lung trouble and was released from the hospital one week ago.
Despite the fact that Ortmayer and his wife, who originally started the trip, will not be going along, there is no plan to cancel the trip. Currently, Ortmayer is looking into having a small group of regular participants lead the expedition.
The trip will begin on Friday afternoon, when everyone will meet at the Kern River County Park, about eight miles up the river from Bakersfield. The entire trip will consist of four river runs on Friday afternoon, Saturday morning and afternoon and Sunday morning.
According to Ortmayer, the evenings will be a time to build on friendships, as the campers “sit around the campfires and swap yarns.”
“The main principle of the trip is a lot of fellowship between people,” he added.
The Ortmayers started the annual trip over 30 years ago, and it has been a tradition ever since.
“It all started out as a result of Cornelia and I conducting Easter trips for 30 years,” said Ortmayer. “We moved the trip to Memorial Day, but there were too many crowds, so we moved it again to a couple of weeks earlier.”
The trip is open to all those who wish to attend and no prior reservation is necessary.
“People just find out and come,” said Ortmayer.
Floaters must provide their own meals, lodging and equipment, and Ortmayer strongly urges all participants to purchase a good life jacket.
The Ortmayers also take an annual floating trip each July to Montana and Idaho, which they are still looking forward to for this year. If all goes well, both will be back on their feet by then and healthy enough to attend.
