Darren Vancil
Darren is the mastermind behind Creature Craft’s radical design. When he suffered an injury after a Class 5 swim Darren was determined to design a boat that would keep the chances of a swim minimal to none. While in recovery he spend thousands of hours in research, he designed and tested multiple raft concepts. During Darren's travels with his Creature Craft he has met a variety of experienced boaters over the years that has become an adventurous group of individuals, testing the capabilities of the Creature Craft. Darren is always wanting to put new people in his boats, he quotes "I just like to see them smile". If you are interested in a demo please contact him at darren@creaturecraft.com.
Kristi vancil
Kristi is a Colorado native. The love for the outdoors, travel, photography and videography has been a great fit for her with Creature Craft. Having never been in whitewater prior to meeting Darren she usually rides backseat in the crafts but in 2019 she ran dual oars with Darren in Death Rapids of the Glenwood Canyon and Cross Mountain on the Yampa River. Her biggest run to date is The Upper Gauley on September 28 2018, the level was 25,000 cfs. Kristi assists Darren on their travels, building boats and office work. You will often find her behind a camera or working booths at different festivals and events. If you have questions or want to book a demo please contact her at kristi@creaturecraft.com
Anthony Marini
Ambassador for Creature Craft; Tony is an adventurous bible believing Christian from Pennsylvania. In 2009 he started getting into whitewater kayaking. Through a mutual friend he met Darren in 2011 and was invited on a Payette trip. He was very impressed with the rolling abilities of the Creature Craft and the added safety in big whitewater. He has ran the Creature Craft over multiple waterfalls as high as 65' and is excited to explore future possibilities of the craft. Tony is a lead trainer in Low Head Dams and Ocean Surf Rescue.
George Nuckols
George is located in the northern part of California and has worked guiding, SAR/dive rescue teams and is an instructor for Creature Craft. He enjoys Creature Crafts group trips that are open to the public, with rescue professionals and private Creature Craft owners. He is always willing to do a demonstration days event, George says "It's a great way to show people how the boats work, so just request one". "Recreation or rescue, know the risk, know your equipment well, stay safe and have fun." goanywhere@creaturecraft.com.
Danny Allen
aka Shaggy
River Guru, Testing & Training in the Southeast. Shaggy has been a Class 5+ and OC1 boater since 1984. He has been trained in tactical swift water rescue and is a true bear wrangler. Shaggy has a great knowledge of Creature Crafts, as he has been running them since 2000. He loves anything that goes big or fast. "Basically I am just a World Class Nobody." If you’ve been boating in the Southeast long, you'll likely know Shaggy.
Brandon Steele
Brandon has been a guide on many rivers throughout the US including the Skykomish, Wenatchee, Methow, Green (WA), Colorado, American, New, Gauley and many more beautiful rivers. Brandon is a talented trainer and a great asset to the Creature Craft team. He is SRTA & ACA Certified Commercial Guide; Sales & Training WA. Brandon quotes "A ride in Creature Craft - “It’s sort of like being in a car accident only you get to do it again right away.”
Dallas Abadie
Originally from England, Dallas moved to the states as an infant. He originates where the water and work leads him, but mostly Nashville, TN. Dallas enjoys running the big water and testing the Creature Crafts durability while taking it to extreme levels in a safe manner. He successfully ran Elk River Falls, a 60 foot waterfall in North Carolina on December 29, 2018. Dallas also participates as a trainer in Low Head Dams and Ocean Surf.
RIP You will always and Forever be in our hearts. August 14. 1987 - August 25, 2022.
Jon George
A native West Virginian, a husband and father, and a welder by trade. Always a private boater, Jon came up in the private sector. He enjoyed Whitewater so much he started buying boats and trying anything he could paddle or swim. He is proud to have the treasures of the New, Gauley, Cheat, and Tygart rivers in his backyard. Jon found that in his Creature Craft the imagination is the limit. The bigger the level the better! “I'm just going to hit this and see what happens.” Jon is a Creature Craft trainer and Coalition WV Guide.
Daniel Coe
'Whitewater Guide, Dan serves as a Trip Leader for the Creature Craft Coalition of WV, for HIGH water trips on the New, Gauley, Cheat, and Tygart rivers. Dan also does a lot of video and film editing and shares the Coalitions outings on social media. When not running High water trips Dan spends quality time with his family and runs his own business, Coe Electric.
Jon Bernhard
Jon joins Creature Craft from a long history of technical climbing & mountaineering. Jon brings skills of high angle rigging for Creature Craft waterfall safety and filming.
For over 30+ years, Jon has traveled across the globe seeking adventure, from major expeditions in Alaska, ascents up El Capitan in Yosemite, to charitable work in the Amazon he enjoys friendships wherever is goes. Of interest, Jon only has half his breathing capacity. Yet on most days he can hang with some top level athletes.
ANDY JOHNSON
Andy is a life-long adventurer from Salt Lake City. You can find him running the Class V-V+ runs in Western Colorado or Idaho. He attends most of the CREATURE CRAFT group trips in the Western US and the occasional Eastern US trip. He is always excited to get people into a boat and, if possible, will go out of his way to accommodate people. He has run several of the classic CC runs in the west, and can be often be found boating with his 13 year old daughter. He has received EMT Training in Utah, and works with CREATURE CRAFT in sales, marketing, and PR.
Eric Thompson
Eric is an avid adventurer. He is an experienced adventure sports instructor & facilitator whose resume includes senior full-time commercial guide & trainer. Sustaining a spinal cord injury, Eric has worked tirelessly to improve Community Accessibility & promote Accessible Adventure throughout the West Virginia region with his www.WVOnTheGo.com project and to progress the future of Adaptive Whitewater with the Creature Craft adaptive ‘Handi-Craft’ platform.
Isaac Guest
Isaac Guest (Aka Sharkboy) is originally from Painesville Ohio, but currently he resides in Texas. Isaac met Darren while doing work on a boat prop and a friendship was made. Isaac immerses himself in every possible aspect of Creature Craft he can. He has a talent for kayaking, construction, and demonstrations. He was the first to descend Pierce Ferry rapids in November 2018 in a Creature Craft.
Clay Carroll
Clay is an old school safety boater in West Virginia. He is a core member of Creature Craft's Waterwog Rescue series demonstration team that travels across the US. Clay was a fun loving individual that would go out of his way to help you any way he could, especially getting you into a Creature Craft. With that being said, Clay has played an instrumental part in the West Virginia Creature Craft Coalition and the development of the Creature Craft adaptive ‘Handi-Craft’ platform. July 21, 1977 - September 22, 2018 RIP https://www.chapmanfuneralhomes.com/obituaries/Clay-Carroll/#!/Obituary. He will be greatly missed but always in our hearts.
