This is the event that many of the UK’s prominent river runners were looking forward to; a progression from the organisers of the Etive River Race onto a tougher section of white water with guaranteed levels from the dam. James Fleming, Giles Charter and their crew have to be congratulated for bringing this event to the scene so successfully, as it was not that long ago that quite a few of us were chatting hypothetically about a MRR as the perfect place for a top end UK extreme race.
Alex Lumsden on the sweet boof ledge in the middle of the run.
Before the safety briefing at 10.30 there was an hour of practice which claimed one dislocated shoulder and a couple of swims. The safety briefing itself was more of a ‘Chopper Read’ style pep talk in how to man/woman up in the event of any injuries, short of getting your head taken off. In the build up to the event it was clear that most question revolved around the mandatory first drop on the left side of the island… a chossy V shaped drop, which since a shift in the rock bed in 2007 has claimed it’s fair share of shoulders and offers a seemingly never ending variety of outcomes. The race got off to a roll at 11am with 2 minute intervals between paddlers, by racer number 25 there had been at least three swims and a couple of cracked/crumpled boats. Between Ian Letton, Dave Martin, Callum Strong, Johnny Hawkins and myself we must have changed our choice of line on the top drop about 20 times, as some very strong paddlers were getting caught in the small hole at the base of the drop next to the left wall, taking a good chunk off their time, while relative newcomers to the run were being subbed-out in the middle of the V and popping up with a boost in the right direction towards the next rapid, stirring a cheer from the crowd.
Mark Mulrain on the ramp at the top of the final Graveyard section
My first of three runs was not one of these smooth lines, opting for the riskier but potentially more rewarding right line off the first drop, I topped off an ungraceful dismount with a moment upside down and polished off my turd of a line by doing some time against the left wall. Fortunately I made up some time and it was the combined time of your first two runs which put the top twenty through.
Just above the last rapid looking to make up time.
Looking closely at the top twenty paddlers there was 30 seconds separating them… a fair gap on a course averaging a time of around 3 mins 40 sec. But then there was a host of easy mistakes which had been made by some very good paddlers. From the seal launch ramp (which due to a fence, meant you had to position sideways at the top and turn to slide down as the buzzer went) landing you with a foot and a half gap either side between rocks, and then just as your arms are tiring, plenty of fine lines and angles making the difference between hitting fast or slow water forced you to to keep a lot of power and concentration. For their final runs, the top twenty was very much a game of who had learnt from previous mistakes and who still had something left in the tank.
Thom Brown charging a sweet second run.
Being well out of practice in a boat this last year, I’d had two quite bad first runs, but between them both I figured I’d made just about every mistake possible – from screwing up the start ramp and the first drop, to hitting rocks and cutting across a flat eddy – so I knew where not to go in the final and had my eyes set on good lines while I felt like I still had quite a lot left in my arms, thanks to gym training over the last six months. My start and top drop weren’t as smooth as I’d have liked but still felt quite fast and the rest of my run felt strong down to the last stroke… and I was so focused on the finish line that I didn’t notice the swamped boat of Martyn Butler pinned on a rock just to my right in the last rapid, after a swim in his final run setting off just before me. I knew that Pete Scutt would still be charging in the final but former slalom racer Tom Wakeling was my bet for the win and behind them completing my top five would be Thom Brown and Rory Woods (who had smashed the finish line more impressively than anyone) with a secret hope that I might sneak in there.
On the middle boof ledge.
In the end it came down to less than 1.5 secs between first and third place. But vacating the gun club in less than an hour meant that prize giving would be held at the BA Club in Fort William at 9.30 so we were left in suspense for four hours while we all scrubbed up and ate.
Dave Martin cruising for the finish line on his second run.
The final placings for the top five were:
1st Pete Scutt
2nd Matty Nicolas
3rd yours truely
4th Tom Wakeling
5th Thom Brown
Fastest male time was Pete Scutt with 3.15.36, fastest female time was Sandra Hyslop with 3.25.39 and fastest junior time was Thomas Findlay with 3.39.29.
All in all it was a great event that lived up to expectations and hype so fingers crossed we’ll see it again next year for more speedy lines and carnage!
Many thanks to David Baldwin and Kacie Culshaw for these images!
A few times a year the UK boating community is blessed with a selection of truly world class waves in the Falls of Lora, one of the most unique rapids of it’s kind. Combining excitement with an initial intimidation factor, due to the power and whirlpools it creates, it only takes a couple of rides to crack the surface and get a feel for this gentle giant of a rapid. Nothing about it is a constant… with a multitude of personalities, it will show up on the biggest tides of the year, often presenting surging shoulders open to every wave move in the book and at other times presenting a taunting display of ripples that require the sleek lines of a sea kayak to attain. Suffice to say that in the words of Brian Fantana ‘Sixty percent of the time, it works every time’ and my birthday weekend was one of those days that leaves you feeling high as a kite.
Soul surfing in the Axiom provides an extra hours worth of play while the waves form as beautifully smooth ripples, well before and long after the exciting surging foam piles of playboat territory come into action. The ability to carve around these waves is an addiction that sees Dave Martin (my housemate) and I always loading a surf boat and the Axiom onto the car alongside our freestyle boats.
The main waves kicks off the action with a foam pile that forms between two large but quite different shoulders. The surfers right shoulder (in this pic) is actually the shallower and slower of the two, but it grants easy set up of most lefty moves and in a fast boat there’s no trouble bridging the surface to air gap.
The surfers left shoulder is a much steeper learning curve, which has a tendency to get you into more turbulent affairs with the eddy line behind it. The lure of the speed and bounce it offers though is always too much to resist, particularly as the waves continues to build and the shoulder is more open allowing much easier set up. The whirlpools that follow a flush rarely fail to provide entertainment, particularly for the those watching in the eddy, who tend to chant louder for down time and beat downs than they do for big air moves (this is Scotland).
Dave getting put on a cool cycle in the whirlies while making the most of his surf boat.
As the tide moves on, two other waves come into action. Second in line is the Ultimate Air wave which pretty much does what it says on the tin.
The last to come in is the Forever wave, which is such a glassy and forgiving ripple above the main wave, that it defines the term ‘soul surf’. As I mentioned at the start of this post; the Falls of Lora hold no consistency, even on such a great day with seemingly perfect conditions the Forever wave didn’t come in, but made up for it with the main wave holding out for an extra 40 mins than expected.
Many thanks to Peter Murray and Kacie Culshaw for being there taking photo’s!!!
I realised the other day that it’s just about to turn five years since I joined the Palm and Dagger Europe Team. With that in mind I wanted to say a massive thanks for all their support and express my appreciation at being involved with these companies which are run by a group of people who are good friends and absolutely irreplaceable within the paddling world.
It’s been a very productive time and there’s always more in the pipeline, from online Ford Ad’s and Blue Peter to creeping up on 100 articles for CKUK. To say cheers I’ve put together a mash up of footage shot across the five years alongside great friends in what are hot spots for the kayaking community. Hope you enjoy alongside a few snaps below! Here’s to what’s coming and good friends along the way…
… This video is best enjoyed small as it’s a compilation from the last five years so more good old three chip footage than full HD… never the less, Dave’s dancing is worth it.
Falls of Lora, always a beautiful day.
Andrew Holcombe, Yule Creek, CO. Thanks to Andrew for showing me around the US tour and what the South East and Colorado had to offer.
Afternoon run on the South St Vrain, CO.
Quiet moment on the New River Dries before the 2007 world champs.
On the clear water of Italy’s finest.
Heading for the final in the Sweet Rumble, Norway.
It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted on here, largely due to finals at uni followed by the move back to Scotland and setting up work. However now that the storm has settled, and I’ve bought a Go Pro, I’m jumping back into the online kayaking media with my first clips of head-cam footage from a few “local runs”. Alongside paddling I’m also training hard for an adventure challenge on the west coast of Scotland, called the 70 Wild Miles, which pretty much speaks for itself in terms of the distanced covered via a combination of bike, kayak and run. With that in mind I’m doing a fair bit of solo boating with running gear packed in a dry bag in the back of my Nomad so that running shuttles is a good bit of training… when the event comes around (on the 9th of June) I’ll be jumping out of my sea boat straight into a half marathon, so it makes sense to dabble in the cross over now whilst keeping the added excitement of white water. I’ve found that the River Orchy is a great training ground thanks to some nice rapids interspersed with flat pools over a 10km section which helps me work on technique and, once I’ve hidden my boat and gear in the woods, provides a long enough run back to the car to be of benefit. I’m doing the 70 Wild Miles on behalf of Clic Sargent to raise funds which will support kids with cancer so for anyone happy to give a little my just giving page is here – http://www.justgiving.com/Ed-Smith03
. Enjoy the first instalment – it’s short enough to watch without getting busted at the office – more soon!
On the 15th and 16th of January I’m going to be talking at the London Boat Show, focusing my presentation on looking at feasible ways in which paddlers of all levels can improve their white water paddling. It’s a common misconception that leading paddlers always have access to the best white water… not necessarily the case. So I hope that this talk will leave viewers with a clear vision of how they can move forward towards their goals, whether they have access to white water everyday of the week or are struggling to fit practice around a day job. I’ll be using my own experiences alongside that of other white water paddlers to make this a talk that applies to all, from top end freestylers to beginners.
From the 12th of January through to the 16th there will also be daily freestyle kayaking shows by current members of the GBR Freestyle Team, who are internationally ranked amongst the top competitors in the world. It’s going to be a great showcase of the sport, which has been put together by a great team of organisers and is not to be missed. I’ll be at the pool talking newcomers to the sport through the moves these guys are pulling. If you book before the 24th December you can save £7 on your tickets, making them £11.00, call 0871 230 7140 and quote L89, or use on the promo page ticket site.
Scotland’s finest tidal race has not been the most consistent of play spots over the last few years but a couple of weeks ago she was on the finest form that’s been seen in a long while, giving out a solid three and a half hours of wave time and whirlpool fun.
The main wave stayed solid until late in the tide, although the shot above was taken earlier when it’s at it’s best. Falling off the surfers left shoulder after a wipeout is often a challenging route back to the eddy through the whirlpools which give this spot a line of separation between the men and the boys.
The Axiom was the ruler of the forever wave, an experience which sets the Falls of Lora apart from the rest, giving long cruises out on to the glassy ripple in the middle of the channel watching the jelly fish go by!
Just over a week ago I posted up some tips to take you through the motions of the bow stall, as the first stage in nailing the flat water loop, so having had a bit of time to practice its time to start bobbing up and down and going for the full loop! If you are still having trouble with the bow stall or are new to the blog then you can always look up the blog archive for previous tips and techniques.
Obviously going from a static bow stall straight into a loop doesn’t work that well so the first thing you’ll have seen people doing is bobbing up and down before going for the loop. Above I’m pulling back on my paddles (which were under the water) through my body at the same time as pushing down on my feet to force as much of the boat into the water as possible, in the hope it will pop out as high as possible. Keeping my head up and paddles maintaining a triangle of stability with the boat is key (much like a head stand in that your hands and head make a triangle).
Notice how far I’m popping out of the water – a full arms reach away – as a reaction of the volume needing to get back above the surface. To help the pop out I’m shoving my backside in the air as I lean forward and push my paddles into the water, as we know from the bow stall technique this helps in the bow being rejected out of the water. At this stage if you don’t feel ready to go for it then practice ‘bobbing’ for a while o get the hang of it!
I find it’s always best to commit to going for the loop on the second bounce. Look how far ahead of the boat I am above – my head is up with the paddle raised as a pivot point to try and jump over while the boat is just starting to rise. This is so that as the boats volume pushes it out of the water my jump for the loop gives an extra boost of pop. As opposed to thinking of jumping up, think of jumping out, away from your boat to start the motion and maximise pop.
Again I’m ahead of the boat, it’s just starting to come over but I’m tucked forward towards my knees. Imagine you can see my legs in the boat, I’m tucked through my waist and torso so that at the optimum moment I can straighten out in a quick snap which will throw my legs (and the boat) over my head.
Mid snap, also using the paddle to give extra resistance in the water, giving more leverage for a faster loop and also helps to push through the resistance when the stern hits the water. From here on out you’ve nailed it!
You can see here that in snapping the loop over my head by unwinding from the tuck, my body position has ended up quite far back but as its always the case, keeping ahead of the boat is essential so I’m moving back into a stable body position before the boat is fully flat again.
Hope this helps those trying to get this move nailed!
Catch you on the water… Falls of Lora pics coming in the next couple of days!
I’ve recently had quite a few friends asking me for tips to nail the flat-water loop, and it seems like a skill that a lot of people are keen to get under their belt. In the build up to doing a ‘floop’ it’s essential to have a sturdy bow stall dialled before hand, so first things first, a look at the basic principles of keeping your end up.
When lifting the bow for a double pump to get the nose down, it’s important to remember that you don’t need too much edge. Keeping your head over the boat whist edging at about 45 degrees provides the perfect combination of edge and stability.
Here, I’ve unwound my body and transferred the force down into my legs and feet to push the bow down. Notice the slight difference from a conventional flat water cartwheel in that instead of being back with my head looking around for the next end, my body is leant forward and my left blade is slamming into the water to stop the boat rotating any further.
The stable mid point, my body is in a neutral position and my paddle is parallel to my shoulders directly below my head. I’m concentrating on keeping the weight on my feet, like a balancing bean, but through the two paddle blades and my weight through the boat I have a triangle of stability that I can use to keep balance… like a head stand!
When bow stalling it’s important to keep your paddles in the water as a lever. A reverse rule comes into play due to your body’s buoyancy so if I want to go more vertical I lean back, pulling on the paddle blades as I do so. I would use this if I felt the boat flattening out.
And likewise if you feel you’re going over vertical you can push the paddle and your body towards your feet, making the boat flatten out due your buoyancy in the water. With these principles in mind it’s a case of practice makes perfect, focusing on making your movements subtle so not to end up flapping back and forth just to end it all with an undignified splash!
These are basic principles that make it seem very easy, but with plenty of practice to refine your balance it can become second nature. Practicing stern stalls along side this, with the same theory flipped over, is a good way of hammering the core muscles in to shape to give you some good backup when things don’t go to plan, whether on waves or the steep stuff.
When you think you’ve nailed it, let your dog take your paddle away and then try to keep balance!
Falls of Lora pics coming soon and following technique article will be nailing the flat water loop.
Some shots from a surf trip to Machrihanish on the west coast of Scotland. We had a pretty good five foot swell, but a little dumpy so there was a lot of hard edging and down the line speed to try and out run the break before ending up embedded in the beach!
Up to speed on a sweet wave
Dodging speed bumps
Getting the edge dug in to avoid another tumble
All in all a great few days with a different challenge being wrapped in carbon. Thought I’d post up the pics before Nick’s Megatron comes along as it deserves the top spot on the blog! Nice one boys! Next weeks post will be a freestyle technique article looking into the bow stall which will lead on to nailing the flat water loop the following week.
It should go without saying that having solid gear and safety ready, along with the knowledge to use it is a must and if you don’t, getting hands on instruction from full time instructors such as Simon and the crew at Gene17 is a good idea before proceeding. Apart from that, running drops can often be more of a mental control so being conscious of when you’re good to go and when you should take a walk is worth thinking about.
Lead in
With many drops it’s often the lead in that posses the biggest problems. There’s a couple of basic things that will help you be where you want to be as you go off the lip of a fall. The first thing is keeping good posture in your boat with your head up looking where you want to be. Looking at where you don’t want to be is the surest way to end up in trouble. The second thing seems ridiculously simple, but actively paddling with positive strokes can be something that people forget in focusing all their attention on the freefall. It might be an idea to time your strokes on the lead in so you know what your paddling is doing when you launch…
Positive posture and strokes.
Launch
Launching off a waterfall is the bit where a lot people freeze. This is due to the very brief heart stopping moment, which causes people to stop paddling and look down in horror. A bad take off generally means a bad landing!
At the lip of a fall, once again look where you want to be going. Obviously down, but few waterfalls are perfect, so most of the time we want to be landing in a particular place or at a particular angle. As you look where you want to land, plant a stroke which will help you maintain control as you follow it through and use it as a leaver for you to change both body and boat angle if needed in the freefall.
Looking for the landing with a guide stroke planted.
Freefall
During freefall I don’t take my eyes off where I’m wanting to land, but one of the most important things to me in freefall, is to keep your body in an upright or slightly forward position, ready for action. Leaning back is a sure way to come out of the bottom a bit sore, by keeping upright or forward you keep control. If you are in a position where you need to pull the bow up because you have too much angle, you can move your body slightly back and use the active body momentum to pull your legs and boat up. On the other hand if you are falling with a flat angle then a good shunt forward should help your bow drop and arch into freefall.
As my body moves in a freefall my paddle follows for leverage – if I need to drop the bow my arms and paddle are over the bow. If I need to pull the bow up, I pull my arms and paddle back.
Keeping active to control angle through the freefall.
Landing
The main objective in landing is to minimize the impact and maximize your get away chances. On smaller bigger volume drops with a constricted landing this may mean an almost boof technique to avoid getting stuffed into any nooks and crannies but stomping the bow down at the last minute by quickly shoving the body forward and legs down to avoid shock through the spine.
But more often the case with drops where we want to enter the water at an angle between 45 degrees and vertical, it’s a split second tuck, folding away the head, shoulders and paddle. Shoulders should be turned at an angle so they aren’t face on to the water – around 45 degrees – your paddle should be kept parallel with your shoulders and elbows bent to avoid any wrenching. Having shoulders and paddles parallel keeps you stable and solid.
I like to keep my eyes on my landing pad as long as I can, so I generally keep my head up on falls around the 25 foot mark, as there doesn’t tend to be too much impact if things go to plan. On larger falls, or if things don’t go to plan, tilting your head down and to the side means that the top of your helmet will take most of the impact and there is less chance of your nose making impact with your cockpit rim.
If things go horribly wrong and you’re heading for a flat landing, the forward shove mentioned earlier will aid to prevent the shock from traveling up your spine. However this may provide you with the harsh alternative of your face making contact with your cockpit or deck but given the options, my face is no where near pretty enough to take the risk.
Different fall but Dave Martin in landing gear.
Recovery
If everything goes well, all you may need for a recovery is to shake the water out of your eyes before heading on downstream. If you’ve gone deep, then trying to get your body forward as you’re under water will help you resurface in a stable position. If you end up upside down then a quick roll will help you be in position for the next rapid or prevent you from heading into that corner where you don’t want to be.
Posture and paddle placement helping me prevent a back-loop and getting stuffed.
Overview
Have the right equipment and knowledge.
Don’t get pushed off line before you’re at the edge.
Spot your landing and paddle for it as you launch. Don’t freeze.
Keep your body active in freefall to maintain a good angle.
Tuck up to reduce surface impact on landing.
Be on the ball for the next rapid or any hazards.
Next update will be from last weekends surf trip to Machrihanish!
Just above the last rapid looking to make up time.
Thom Brown charging a sweet second run.
On the middle boof ledge.
Dave Martin cruising for the finish line on his second run.
– more soon!
