Seventeen-year-old Nesquehoning resident and Marian High School student Stephen Bretzik III is counting down the days until he gets to experience the biggest moment of his young life.

That will happen during the first week of July in the Czech Republic when Bretzik compete for Team USA in the Junior Wildwater Kayak World Championships.

“I’ve never been a sports guy,” Bretzik said, “but three years ago, I tried white water kayaking and I realized this was really awesome, and it’s become my favorite thing to do.”

Since then, Bretzik’s idle time isn’t spent like most teenagers. When he’s not at school or studying, he can often be found on the Lehigh River with his kayak trying to navigate the twists and turns of the rolling water.

After initially starting kayaking for recreation and fun, Bretzik eventually started to participate in K1 wildwater kayak racing - a little known sport in the United States. He has progressed rapidly since taking it up.

Part of that progress has stemmed from coaching - like using paddling techniques he’s learned from lessons.

“When you get in a kayak for recreational fun, you pull the paddle, but for racing, I have to use my back more than my arms to provide more force in my strokes,” explained Bretzik.

He owns a racing kayak which is much lighter, narrower, and six feet longer than the typical nine- foot version. He practices roll overs on a pond at the Whitewater Adventures Center in Nesquehoning, owned and operated by his father.

“Rolling over is a necessary technique to learn,” he said. “Racing kayaks have seat belts so you don’t get flipped out into the water.”

Bretzik recalled a “crash,’ he had in an inflatable kayak. “There was no panic. I surfaced and floated on my back until I could get to something solid to grab on to. Some people become afraid just by looking at the rapids, especially after a lot of rain, but not me. I like the challenge. It’s a huge adrenalin rush.”

Bretzik competed in the Lehigh River Classic race last August. In his junior age category, only one other kayaker - an experienced racer from Colorado - was his opponent.

“He wanted to qualify for Team USA. He came with his customized kayak loaded with all these fancy stickers.” He took a pretty big lead on me for nearly six miles of the course, but I knew of a shortcut to the finish line.”

Bretzik worried he might be disqualified by going off the prescribed course, but took the chance anyhow and found himself 100 yards ahead. “He made up most of the distance, but I won and taking the short cut ended up being a good strategy.”

Wildwater races can be like marathon running races. Depending upon the number of kayaks in the water, the start can cause contact between the boats as the racers jostle for position. On the Red Moshannon tributary of the Susquehanna River, Bretzik was one of 158 racers. He was placed into the adult category, where he finished eighth overall, and was the first one under the age of 18 to cross the finish line.

The rules for kayak whitewater racing are not exactly followed at some events. He’s raced against a girl when there weren’t enough of her gender for the female division. “Sometimes, it doesn’t seem fair how they match up the racers, but the sport is just beginning to gain some popularity so it is what it is at this point.”

An important pre-race step of preparation is to “read the water,” especially on unfamiliar rivers. Bretzik has taken his game to other Pennsylvania waters, namely, the Tohickon Creek in Bucks County and the Lizard Creek, a tributary of the Lehigh. He’s also run the Youghiogheny River in southern Pennsylvania.

Bretzik’s defining race that qualified him for Team USA was a three-mile Seneca Showdown Downriver Race on the Potomac River in Maryland. He took first place in the junior division, winning the Eastern Wildwater Team Trials in 26 minutes and a trip to the Ebe River in Roudnice-Nad-Labem, Czech Republic.

He’s amazed himself about how his adventures on the Lehigh will now take him across the ocean.

“I’ll be happy to just compete. The Europeans are historically better than Americans in kayak racing. While we play baseball and football, they do mountain biking and river racing.”

Despite his parents’ nervousness whenever he paddles the rivers, they tell him to “go do your thing” and are just as in awe of his accomplishments as he is. “Oh my God, this really happened,” he said. “I said I was going to do it and I did it. This is something really cool,” he remarked about earning his place on Team USA.

Bretzik doesn’t have to wait too much longer for the moment to do something special with his life. That moment begins on July 3 in the Czech Republic.

Bretzik’s s expenses for his trip are only partially paid by different organizations, so he has set up a GoFundMe campaign. The link can be found on Backstagepass Mobilemassage. Scroll down to the photograph of him in his kayak on the river to get to his page.