lindsey Tucci
Running waterfalls
The concept of shifting weight to the extreme front and rear of the board opened the floodgates for new manoeuvres and methodology for running whitewater. As we began running more difficult, steeper rapids, we adapted the stance and weight-shifting motion as a viable means of landing steeper drops. Even slides and waterfalls, we found, could be paddled with the fins still in place on the board. On a trip to the Youghiogheny River this tactic came to fruition when Rob was able to boof over the shallow lip of Swallow Tail Falls, a formidable six-foot vertical drop, landing flat and paddling away from the boil at the base of the falls effectively. “For waterfalls, I get low. The lower the better,” Rob states as one of his keys to successfully running waterfalls and steep drops. Additionally, we learned to favour quad-fin setups that allowed the board to pass over rock reefs, shallow waterfalls and slides without throwing off balance or getting the board stuck in most cases. Additionally, Rob emphasizes the importance of good paddling technique to ensure you can guide the board in the right direction at critical moments. “It’s very important to have your J-stroke or cross bow dialled in and second nature when charging into a rapid. People often forget to J-stroke right at the entrance to a rapid and get turned sideways and off line right away,” he explains. Another vital practice that we learned is keeping the paddle blade in the water. Hesitance is the worst possible state of mind when you are immersed in a rapid. Keep paddling and use bracing or feathering strokes to help maintain balance and make minute adjustments to your angle and line. “If you find yourself in a tricky current that is difficult to balance on, get low and keep your paddle behind you in the water and flat to give a nice brace,” Rob suggests.
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