Dave Manby

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David Manby (born 23 July 1954 in Johannesburg) is a British kayaker and engineer. He was a national champion in slalom canoeing (C-1) and is considered a pioneer in the sport. He helped lead the British expedition that completed the first descent of the Dudh Kosi river near Mount Everest.

Early life
Dave was born to Michael and Eve Manby. When he was eight, the family moved to Shrewsbury, England, where his father became headteacher of Prestfelde School. Dave learned to canoe at Ellesmere College and later studied at the University of Nottingham.

Dudh Kosi expedition
In 1976, at age 21, Dave joined a team of kayakers led by Mike Jones for the first descent of the Dudh Kosi. They drove from the UK to Kathmandu, then hiked about 180 miles to Everest Base Camp with ten kayaks. The river is extremely challenging and is usually not used for water sports. Dave capsized and couldn’t roll, but teammates rescued him. The expedition was filmed by Leo Dickinson and shown on Boxing Day 1976. The film won more than 50 international awards and was later remastered for DVD; it was shown again on BBC4 in January 2014.

Other expeditions
Manby also took part in other first descents, including the 1978 Braldu River trip in Pakistan, where Mike Jones died saving a teammate. He explored the Coruh River in eastern Turkey and the Sezar, Dez, and Bakhtiaria rivers in Iran’s Zagros mountains.

Books
He is the author of Many Rivers to Run.