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Whitewater kayaking is the sport of paddling a kayak on a moving body of water, typically a whitewater river. A kayak is a small human-powered Boat. It typically has a covered deck and a cockpit covered by a Spraydeck. Whitewater is formed in a Rapid, when a River 's gradient drops enough to disturb its Laminar flow and create Turbulence, i Whitewater kayaking can range from simple, carefree gently moving water, to demanding, dangerous whitewater. River rapids are graded like ski runs according to the difficulty, danger or severity of the rapid. RAPID is an acronym for Rural Address Property IDentification a scheme instituted in New Zealand to assist emergency services in identifying and locating rural properties A piste is the name given to a marked ski run or path down a mountain for snow Skiing, Snowboarding, or other mountain sports Whitewater grades (or classes) range from I or 1 (the easiest) to VI or 6 (the most difficult/dangerous). The International Scale of River Difficulty is a standardized scale used to rate the safety of a stretch of river or a single Rapid. Grade/Class I can be described as slightly moving water with ripples. Grade/Class VI can be described as severe or almost unrunnable whitewater, such as Niagara Falls. The Niagara Falls are massive Waterfalls on the Niagara River, straddling the international border separating the Canadian province of Ontario

A whitewater kayaker running a class IV rapid on the James River in Richmond, Virginia
A whitewater kayaker running a class IV rapid on the James River in Richmond, Virginia

Contents

Design

The kayak (or just 'boat') used in casual whitewater kayaking is different from those used in whitewater racing or sea kayaking. The James River in the US state of Virginia is a long River, including its Jackson River source This article is about the city of Richmond the capital of the Commonwealth of Virginia. Whitewater racing is a competitive discipline of Canoeing in which Kayaks or canadian canoes are used to negotiate a stretch of river speedily A Sea kayak or touring kayak is a Kayak developed for the sport of paddling on open waters of lakes bays and the ocean Traditionally, kayaks were made of animal skins stretched over wooden frames. Early whitewater boats were fiberglass or kevlar, and this is still preferred for racing due to the light weight, but most modern whitewater boats are typically rotomoulded from a tough plastic that is slightly flexible and very durable, if easily scratched. Fiberglass (also called fibreglass and glass fibre see Spelling differences) is material made from extremely fine Fibers of Glass. Kevlar is the registered Trademark for a light strong para-aramid Synthetic fiber, related to other Aramids such as Nomex and This article discusses flatwater racing (sprint and marathon racing, competitive forms of Canoeing and Kayaking on more or less flat water Rotational molding or moulding is a versatile process for creating many kinds of mostly hollow Plastic parts Plastic is the general common term for a wide range of synthetic or semisynthetic organic solid materials suitable for the manufacture of industrial products Boats can range in size from barely long enough to hold the paddler (around 6 ft (1. Canoeing is the activity of paddling a Canoe for the purpose of recreation (also called a float trip Sport, or transportation. 8 m) long), up to 12 ft (3. 7 m) or longer.

History

Paddling on rivers, lakes and oceans is as old as the Stone Age. The Stone Age is a broad prehistoric time period during which Humans widely used stone for toolmaking The raft, the catamaran, the canoe and the kayak evolved depending on the needs and environment of the indigenous peoples in different parts of the world. A raft is any flat floating structure for travel over water It is the most basic of Boat design characterized by the absence of a hull. A catamaran (From Tamil 'kattumaram' is a type of Multihulled Boat or Ship consisting of two hulls or vakas joined by some A canoe is a small narrow Boat, typically human-powered though it may also be powered by sails or small electric or gas motors The term Indigenous Peoples or autochthonous peoples can be used to describe any Ethnic group who inhabit a geographic region with which they have the earliest historical The modern day kayak most likely originated about 8,000 years ago along the Siberian coast line by the Yupik and then transformed from the open canoe, via the Aleut and Inuit, into an enclosed kayak. Siberia (Сиби́рь Sibir) is the name given to the vast region constituting almost all of Northern Asia and for the most part currently serving The Yupik or in the Central Alaskan Yup'ik language, Yup'ik, are a group of indigenous or aboriginal peoples of western southwestern and southcentral The Aleuts ( self-denomination from Aleut language allíthuh 'community' older or regional self-denomination Unangax̂, Unangan or Inuit (plural the singular Inuk, means "man" or "person" is a general term for a group of culturally similar Indigenous peoples inhabiting Simplified, all the ethnic groups of the entire polar region are called Eskimos and their various boat versions Eskimo kayaks/canoes. Earth's polar regions are the areas of the globe surrounding the poles also known as frigid zones. Eskimos or Esquimaux are Indigenous peoples who have traditionally inhabited the circumpolar region from eastern Siberia ( Russia) across

The Greek, Herodotus, 484-425 BC, wrote in his travel diaries about boats with which merchandise was brought from Armenia to Babylon. The Greeks ( Greek: Έλληνες) are a Nation and Ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighbouring regions Herodotus of Halicarnassus ( Greek: Hēródotos Halikarnāsseús) was a Greek Historian who lived in the 5th century BC ( 484 BC&ndash Armenia (Հայաստան transliterated: Hayastan,) officially the Republic of Armenia (Հայաստանի Հանրապետություն Hayastani Babylon was a City-state of ancient Mesopotamia, the remains of which can be found in present-day Al Hillah, Babil Province, Iraq The boats were made of a wooden framework that was covered with animal skins. Mules hauled the precious skins back to Armenia.

The German, Grigori Ivanovitch Langsdorff, reported from his trip around the world (1803-07) on the ease and elegance of paddling Eskimo kayaks/canoes. The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as Georg Heinrich von Langsdorff, Baron de Langsdorff (b Wöllstein, Germany, April 8, 1774; d The Scot, John MacGregor, came back from his North American trip full of excitement about the kayak/canoe and in 1860 started building six boats that closely resembled Eskimo canoes/kayaks, weighing app. The Scots people ( Scots Gaelic: Albannaich) are a Nation and an Ethnic group indigenous to Scotland. John MacGregor (1825 &ndash 1892 nicknamed Rob Roy after a renowned relative, was a Scottish Explorer, 80 lb (36 kg). In 1866 he published the book A Thousand Miles in the Roy Rob Canoe. The timing was right and the book became a resounding success. With the Industrial Revolution leading to more leisure time in the middle of the 19th century, people in Europe started to enjoy floating down rivers in all kinds of contraptions taking in nature previously only available to a selected few. The Industrial Revolution was a period in the late 18th and early 19th centuries when major changes in agriculture manufacturing and transportation had a profound effect on the Leisure or free time, is a period of Time spent out of work and essential domestic Activity.

Off to an adventure with boat, gear, clothes and food to last for weeks.
Off to an adventure with boat, gear, clothes and food to last for weeks.
On the way to the put-in with 2 Folboats by train, bus and finally a Rent-a-Mule.
On the way to the put-in with 2 Folboats by train, bus and finally a Rent-a-Mule.

1946/48, Depending on the region, the Allies gradually lifted the ban on river travel in Germany. The Allies of World War II were the countries officially opposed to the Axis powers during the Second World War. Paddle clubs were again allowed to form.

The time before safety gear came around
The time before safety gear came around

Types

There are five 'sub-categories' in whitewater kayaking:

Creeking at "The Sinks" on the Little River in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at approximately 1000 ft³/s (30 m³/s)
Creeking at "The Sinks" on the Little River in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park at approximately 1000 ft³/s (30 m³/s)

River running

River running can be thought of as a tour down a river, to enjoy the scenery as well as experiencing challenging whitewater. Great Smoky Mountains National Park is a United States National Park that straddles the ridgeline of the Great Smoky Mountains, part of the Blue Ridge Mountains River running includes short day trips as well as longer multi-day trips. Multi-day kayak trips often entail the use of gear-toting rafts to allow a more comfortable experience without a heavily-laden kayak. Whitewater racing is the competitive aspect of this sub-category, racing canoes or kayaks down a river as fast as possible.

Creeking

Creeking is perhaps best thought of as a subcategory of river running, involving very technical and difficult rapids, typically in the Grade/Class IV to VI range. Creeking (or Steep Creeking refers to a branch of Kayaking that involves descending very steep low-volume Whitewater. While people will differ on the definition, creeking generally involves higher gradient (approaching or in excess of 100 ft per mi (19 m per km), and is likely to include running ledges, slides, and waterfalls on relatively small and tight rivers, though some will allow for very large and big volume rivers in their definition. Kayaks used for creeking usually have higher volume (more gallons or liters of displacement) and more rounded bow and stern, as these features provide an extra margin of safety' against the likelihood of pinning, and will resurface more quickly and controllably when coming off larger drops. The bow (pronounced &mdashrhymes with how) is a nautical term that refers to the forward part of the hull of a Ship or Boat, The stern is the rear or aft part of a Ship or Boat, technically defined as the area built up over the Sternpost, extending upwards from the Counter Creek boats usually have increased "rocker," or rise, on the bow to go up and over obstacles and obstructions within the river. Extreme racing is a competitive form of this aspect of whitewater kayaking, in which kayakers race down steep sections and or generally dangerous sections of whitewater. Extreme racing involves paddling a Kayak down a section of hard Whitewater requiring excellent boat handling skills

Slalom

Main article: Whitewater slalom

Slalom is a technical competitive form of kayaking, and the only whitewater event to appear in the Olympic Games. Whitewater Slalom is a competitive sport where the aim is to navigate a decked Canoe or Kayak through a course of hanging gates on river rapids The Olympic Games is an international Multi-sport event established for both summer and winter games Racers attempt to make their way from the top to the bottom of a designated section of river as fast as possible, while correctly negotiating gates (a series of double-poles suspended vertically over the river). There are usually 18-25 gates in a race which must be navigated in sequential order. Green gates must be negotiated in a downstream direction, red gates in an upstream direction. The events are typically conducted on Grade/Class II to Grade/Class IV water, but the placement of the gates, and precision necessary to paddle them fast and "clean" (without touching a pole and adding 2 seconds to the total time), makes the moves much harder than the water's difficulty suggests. (Slalom has been described as performing class V moves with class III consequences. ) Pro level slalom competitions have specific length (350 cm (140 in) for kayaks - new rules), width, and weight requirements for the boats, which will be made out of kevlar/fiberglass/carbon fiber composites to be light weight and have faster hull speed. Composite materials (or composites for short are engineered Materials made from two or more constituent materials with significantly different physical or chemical Plastic whitewater kayaks can be used in citizen-level races.

Playboating in the Eiskanal
Playboating in the Eiskanal

Playboating

Main article: Playboating

Playboating, also known as Freestyle or Rodeo, is a more gymnastic and artistic kind of kayaking. Playboating is a discipline of whitewater Kayaking or Canoeing where the paddler performs various technical moves in one place (a playspot as opposed to downriver The Eiskanal is an artificial canal feature in the city of Augsburg that was constructed as the Whitewater canoeing and Whitewater kayaking venue Playboating is a discipline of whitewater Kayaking or Canoeing where the paddler performs various technical moves in one place (a playspot as opposed to downriver While the other varieties of kayaking generally involve going from Point A to Point B, playboaters often stay in one spot in the river (usually in a hole, pourover or on a wave) where they work with and against the dynamic forces of the river to perform a variety of maneuvers. These can include surfing, spinning, and various vertical moves (cartwheels, loops, blunts, pistol and donkey flips, and many others), spinning the boat on all possible axis of rotation. More recently, aerial moves have become accessible, where paddlers perform tricks having gained air from using the speed and bounce of the wave. Kayaks used for playboating generally have relatively low volume in the bow and stern, allowing the paddler to submerge the ends of the kayak with relative ease. Competitions for playboating or freestyle are sometimes called whitewater rodeo in the US, but more frequently just referred to as freestyle events in UK and Europe. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located

Squirt Boating

Main article: Squirt Boating

Squirt boating incorporates the use of low-volume boats to perform special moves in whitewater features. Squirt boating is a form of whitewater Kayaking or Canoeing where the Boat is designed to be as low in volume as possible while still allowing Squirt boating predates, and was critical to the foundation of, playboating. Squirt boats are often fairly long and flat, with low volume throughout the design. Because squirt boats are custom built to the paddlers weight, inseam, and personal preference, they are constructed with composite materials instead of plastic. Many squirt moves are intended to submerge all or part of the craft and paddler, such as the "mystery move," in which both the boat and the paddler submerge completely into the river's flow for several seconds and up to half a minute.

Techniques

Boofing

Boofing, in whitewater kayaking, refers to the raising of the kayak's bow during freefall, while descending a ledge, ducking behind a boulder, or running a waterfall. A waterfall is usually a geological formation resulting from water often in the form of a Stream, flowing over an Erosion -resistant rock This technique is used to avoid submerging the bow of the kayak by ensuring it lands flat when it hits the base of the waterfall. The term is an onomatopoeia which mimics the sound that is usually created when the hull of the kayak makes contact with water at the base of the waterfall. Onomatopoeia (also spelled onomatopœia, from Greek: ονοματοποιΐα is a Word or a grouping of words that imitates the sound it is describing A hull is the body of a Ship or Boat. It is a central concept in floating vessels as it provides the Buoyancy that keeps the vessel from sinking

The first known use of boofing as a whitewater verb came about in the State of Wisconsin in the USA at the University of Wisconsin-Madison Hoofers Outing Club [2] in 1980. It was the nickname of one of the boaters in the club, Michael Poimboeuf. Since there were so many Michaels in Hoofers, including Michael Sklavos, Michael Baker, Michael Winfrey, Michael Poimboeuf, and many others known as "honorary Michaels" it became custom that all Michaels (including honorary Michaels) were given boating nicknames, Sklavos was known as "Commander" Baker as Shake (and Bake), Winfrey as. . . Winfrey, and Poimboeuf as "Boeuf" - which was shortened to the phonetic "Boof. " Boof was known as a "crash & burn" boater who would go flying off of wet boulders in club fiberglass boats. The first use of the term "boof", had a somewhat humorous negative connotation since it ment that Boof, or whoever it was applied to had missed their routes down the rapids and just bounced down and over rocks, generally causing damage to their fiberglass boats. Boof was appointed to be the Boat Repair Supervisor for Hoofers after boofing and breaking five boats in three days on one club trip.

In about 1981 Hoofers was running the Wataga river [3]. On a falls known at the time as "the eight foot falls after Wataga falls that you should land flat on. " Boof carefully ran the falls contrary to his normal technique, i. e. he went straight over with no stroke to keep the boat flat. He buried his bow, pitoned into rocks at the bottom and smashed his ankles. Commander paddled over to Boof and told him that he should have boofed it, and from then on the falls has been known of as Boof falls.

Another type of boof is the "rock boof" which is a move that uses a glancing impact with a boulder at the top of a ledge to bounce the boater over a downstream feature, often finished with a mid-air eddy turn. Rock boofs result in sounds both at the top of the drop (boat impacting rock) and the bottom (boat bellyflopping into the water).

Timing is critical to properly execute a boof. The final stroke coming off the upstream water feature should be close to the lip and relatively powerful, in order to force the bow of the boat up.

A boof may or may not be an appropriate maneuver, depending on the anatomy of your selected waterfall. Generally, if it's shallow at the base, you should boof to avoid pinning. Waterfalls higher than about 20 ft (6. 1 m) should not be boofed, because doing so may cause spinal injury.

See also

References

  1. ^ Whitewater Kayak History
  2. ^ http://www.hooferouting.org/
  3. ^ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Watauga_River

External links

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