While other children were learning to read or how to tie their shoes, four-year old Haley Popp was rafting down the Ocoee, “getting wet and having fun.” Today, 18-year-old recent high school graduate Popp is still heavily involved in kayaking aboard her one-of-a-kind polka-dotted kayak and has two national titles in the junior division of wildwater kayaking to her name.
Popp was born and raised in Chattanooga, with her family home located right on Chickamauga Creek. Popp went to Bright Elementary School and then attended Baylor for five years. She left Baylor after her sophomore year and switched to home schooling which would allow her the freedom to travel and delve even further into her kayaking passion.
Popp’s kayaking started with her father, Tom Popp, introducing the family to kayaking early on with the skills he had gained as an avid canoeist and his time on a few U.S. teams for wildwater and Olympic style kayaking. The family recreationally canoed and camped until Haley was 12 and started kayaking, going down the river by herself and learning the different kinds of white water skills.
When Popp was 16, at Baylor, she was introduced to wildwater kayaking by a few friends. Popp’s father bought a few plastic racing boats they practiced with before deciding to go in for real racing boats, traveling and having fun with the sport.
Popp says, “That’s why I compete now, because I had this great introduction to wildwater kayaking and had all those basic white water skills from years before, so I was really well prepared for it.”
She says that with white water kayaking, plastic boats are used to float down the river. But with wildwater kayaking, the boats are really long, really skinny and very tipsy. The objective is to go down the river reallyfast, which means reading the water really well and not go into anything that’s going to slow you down, Popp says.
At Baylor, Popp participated in cross-country and already enjoyed the mindset associated with racing. She says it’s a little different on wildwater because it’s like going through an obstacle course, with rocks, waves and dangerous things to avoid.
“You never know what is really going to happen out there because there are different elements coming into play during the race, like you are tired, you might be a little stressed out or nervous, but I guess I just like that element of mystery, and it’s very exciting for me to sit at the starting line going, ‘Okay, breathe Haley. You can make it. You’re going to do it.’”
Popp’s racing has also opened up many traveling opportunities. With her racing, she has been to almost every state in the Southeast and internationally to Costa Rica, Switzerland, Spain and is going to the Czech Republic this summer.
“It’s really allowed me to see a lot of different cultures and see how different people from different places kayak,” she says. “It’s really interesting to meet people who are totally different but at the same time, love the same thing you love.”
When Popp first started racing in 2009, she became the junior national champion and made the junior and senior U.S. wildwater teams. She’s been on these teams for the past three years and has been the junior national champion for the past two years. She will attend the nationals again in Colorado in June to defend her title.
Next year, Popp plans to travel to Bourges, France for the Senior World Championship. In the fall, she will attend UTC in their honors program. After speaking with many Olympic athletes about their experiences, Popp wants to become a sports psychologist. She hopes this will allow her the opportunity to continue to travel, open her own practice and help other athletes, including herself.
“I really feel like the younger people in the sport of kayaking really don’t have a whole lot of guidance right now on where you should go in this point in your career,” she says. “I think there’s a lot to build upon there and I want to learn how to make that happen.”
As a professional athlete, Popp is sponsored by Liquidlogic Kayaks and NRS Gear which provide her with boats and gear.
When Popp is not paddling, she likes to hang out with her family (called “Team Popp” on their Facebook fan page). Haley’s parents, Tom and Starr, older brother Colton, and two younger siblings, Bryson and Selena, all kayak as well.
Popp says when she meets someone who wants to get involved with kayaking, she recommends they get involved with a club or find an instructor. She suggests attending a paddling school like the one in Chattanooga with the Tennessee Valley Canoe Club.
Popp says, “I do try to guide people into kayaking. Some kayakers have it in their head that they are the best kayaker there is, and no one else should be allowed to be as cool as them, but wildwater is such a small sport, you should never discourage anyone.”
Popp’s advice is: “If you want to learn, go learn!”