Our Zipline Guides
AVA Rafting & Zipline has the most talented, passionate and experienced employees that are taking our company to the next level. AVA staff members not only provide extraordinary guest service but they create an unforgettable experience for our guests. They are here because they love what they do and they are darn good at it! Let’s give our AVA Staff a shout out to how awesome they all are! Keep up the good work!
River Guide
Gerrit McGowan
Gerrit has been a river guide on and off for a whopping 22 years of his life, and his favorite part about it is he gets paid to do what he loves every day. He sold his software company five years ago and is living the dream, and he hopes that five years from now his life will be filled with no work and all play.
River Guide
Avery Potter
River Guide
Lauren “Lala” Silvers
Lauren's family has owned a rafting outfitter since 2011, and her older sister (now a 10 year river guide) was who really got her into the sport. Her step dad is an "OG guide on the Ocoee", as she explained, and after 4 years of navigating the rapids herself she still loves it.
Zipline Guide
Emily Worby
Emily spends a large amount of her free time rock climbing or chillin' with her dog Chewy, and her favorite thing about working for AVA is being outside and helping others push their limits.
Vehicle Maintenance Manager/River Guide
Ryan “Fish” Cole
Ryan "Fish" Cole has been guiding professionally since 2003 after accepting a mountain bike guiding position with AVA. Throughout the years, he's played on great whitewater in Colorado, West Virginia, Africa, Costa Rica, and the Grand Canyon. Off the river, you can find Fish playing in the woods on a mountain unicycle, or potentially playing with fire. And to answer the question many of us have been asking for years: no, his nickname does not come from the river but instead something that happened to him in elementary school that has stuck around. We'll leave it at that.
Driver
Leonard Griego
**Our dear friend Leonard Griego passed away in the fall of 2013. He was an integral part of the AVA family and a true rennaissance man and we will miss him very much.**
"I think I was the first employee hired by Duke, fifteen years ago. It has always been fun to work for AVA. This year, I will be the oldest, most highly educated driver/gardener in the valley, and I am looking forward to another great year. Pick a picture - they are all good looking."
End of content
No more pages to load
What an AVA Adventure looks like
Not sure where to start?
Let’s choose the best adventure for you.
Let Us Guide Your Path To Adventure
AVA offers you the best Colorado whitewater rafting trips, zipline tours and more in some of the Rocky Mountain’s most beautiful locations. Find a trip near you with rafting on 9 rivers, zipline tours in 2 locations, fly fishing, rock climbing, horseback riding, and more.
