surfing race boats

[bearboater]

so when you surf in a race boat, and the bow plows under the oncoming water, and suddenly the bow is at a 30ish degree angle to the surface, is there anything you can do except to spin the boat out of the front surf into a surf killing move? or just get pushed back off of the wave? Today on a moderately small wave, my bow got about 2-2.5 feet under the surface, my stern was way up in the air, and all i could do to stay somewhat upright was to pry and do sort of a low brace to get out of it. is there another move that can be done to stay on the wave? if i was really good, would this be the beginning move for a loop (not in a race boat of course?) I found that with smaller waves that had a shallower angle, this was no problem, if the bow began to plow under pearling water from side to side, i was able to lean back enough to get it up, so that it would'nt get stuck there. but what is there to do on larger steeper waves?

thanks
-isaac

[sqbtr]

Its called boat time, The more you put in the more you get out. Keep turning back and forth across the wave, when you turn initiate the turn with a boat lean opposite your turn direction, feels awkward at first but soon becomes second nature

[Bob P]

Race boats are not the best surfers unless it's a very fast or very shallow wave. SQBTR has it right. You must constantly cut back and forth. If at all possible, keep on the least steep part.

When all else fails, back off a bit, get some speed and ender out! A little air time always gets cheers.

[John Coraor]

The previous two posts have covered the technique of staying on the wave. However, if you're considering exiting as Bob P suggests, you might want to send in a "probe" to check out the water depth before you ender out. We used to use plastic long boats as probes (e.g. a Dancer), but anything that long is mighty rare nowadays! If you have the depth, but the current isn't dynamic enough for an "ender," you might do just a "nose stand" (the old school terms for "loop" and "bow stall," respectively) or even a "pop-up" (is there a modern term for this old move?).

BTW - cracks and creases in your seams and deck about 2 feet from the bow are the typical mark of distinction from conducting the above moves in a race boat when the water is too shallow.

John

[TomAnon]

Agree with the above points. Remember as you work back and forth across the wave, use your hips and thighs to keep the upstream edge up in the current. The downstream pressure will force it out of the water.

When endering, for a change of pace, take advantage of your god given C-Boat leverage and place your low brace way out in front of you just as you starting to ender. This will hold you right in a very controllable bow squirt which can ridden far downstream. Throw in a pirrouette and stand ready for the instant offers of beer and women that will be proffered!

A note of caution, if you are in shallow water be real carefull with the enders as many race boats do not have walls that go all the way to the ends. Enders have broken many bows and sterns!

[Larry Horne]

i haven't surfed my race boat much cause;
1. i'm trying to learn how to run gates. i want to go fast and i want to get those big pivot turns!
2. i don't want to break it.
3. the couple of surfs i tried were just lame, there are much better boats for surfing.

but in general, many times you can put the boat on edge and lean back so the bow will unload and slice back up to the surface.

[bearboater]

Im aware that carving prevents the problem, and i know how to do this a little, im not the best, but it gets the job done most of the time. (it was my first time in it on the water, on a small wave with really little room for a long boat, but it was there) but my question was what is there to be done when in this move, and youre not ready to quit the surf, aside from throwing in an ender. which seems like fun, but im not sure how to do.

also those pivot turns, how do you get the stern to sink i have not tried
this yet.

thanks
-isaac

[icyone]

Carving is great when you are on a nice smooth, roomy wave.

When the action picks up & the wave is steep, you're going to have to be alert & quick at edging & spilling.

The moment the water starts to pile on the bow, get up on edge & spill. At the same time lean back to bring the boat back higher on the wave. If the wave is short, it is tricky to balance laying on the back deck far enough to keep the bow from pearling and still stay on. In that case, continual "spilling" from side to side may be needed to keep popping the bow out the moment the water washes over it. (Didn't want to lean "upstream"??--get over it!!) Once you get the bow dry, you can try to just start carving back & forth across, keeping the bow up enough to stay dry & spilling quickly the instant it picks up water. Once the bow is wet, the quicker you react to edge & spill, the easier it is to stop the pearl and pop back up the wave. Timing and serious hip action are crucial.

For real gas, try surfing a short wave in a 15-ft C-2, and see how long you can keep it going without an ender. (When the final "sneeze" moment is inevitable, both of you lean hard & go vertical!!)

[grinner]

If you have the depth, but the current isn't dynamic enough for an "ender," you might do just a "nose stand" (the old school terms for "loop" and "bow stall," respectively) or even a "pop-up" (is there a modern term for this old move?).

.

John

The pop-ups are now called pop-outs.

You could always try to lean back and put ur paddle as far back as you can and to move lean the boat. You will have to use the paddle when you go off the side but my local paddle spot has some hay stack waves that are easy to surf and thats what i see most people doing.

[ezwater]

I passed through Durango just before the Nationals, and watched a racer in an 11.5 foot slalom boat doing a really impressive job surfing the wave at Smelter Rapid. The Animas was at a pretty high level and the wave/hole was working.

I watched three apparently experienced kayakers in 7' squiggle boats trying with only modest success to get on, stay on, and work the wave/hole. The guy in the slalom kayak looked so graceful and in control, he got back up and on the wave so easily, and he was cartwheeling and tumbling in very interesting ways.

There was also a C-1 paddler in a "short" slalom boat who worked the hole a little, and he seemed as able to get back up on the wave as any of the tupperware playboaters.

I think slalom boats may be under appreciated for playboating, but a new short boat is a big help, and one needs super balance and skill. Also for long boat life, one should seek deep and clear wave/holes like the one at Smelter.

[John Coraor]

I would second the observation about slalom racers' skill in surfing. Anyone who spends as much time in the boat as does the average slalom racer eventually develops tremendous balance and boat control skills that are applicable to much more than racing.

Bearboater: You asked about pivots. Although you can pivot in many different situations, the classic slalom boat stern pivot comes either when you enter or leave an upstream gate (i.e. enter or leave an eddy). Running counter to all your previous whitewater experience, to initiate a pivot you lean back and slightly toward your outside edge after initiating a turn either as you enter the eddy or as you exit into current. If done correctly, the outside edge of your stern will slice underwater, lifting the bow and allowing it to swing dynamically on a pivot point slightly behind your seat. Typically, you are holding hard on a draw (or crossdraw) on the inside of the turn to help speed the pivot and to provide an anchor for the lean to the outside. A reverse sweep can be even more effective in initiating an onside pivot, but is usually less desireable in a race situation where you want to maintain forward momentum. Of course, leaning to the outside when turning into or out of an eddy is also an invitation to flip, which you will inevitably do many times as you learn to pivot. You will need to push the envelope to find the edge between sinking your outside edge under control for a dynamic pivot and falling off to the outside in a flip. You can also practice pivots on flatwater if you build up some speed before turning and leaning, but the current differential of a eddy will give you the most dynamic illustration of the technique.

John

[TomAnon]

Nice description of a Pivot Turn!

for more information on its application and a whole lot more check out the following link:

http://www.daveyhearn.com/Coaching/Tech ... dicott.htm

Do not be fooled by the publishing date. This book is a tremendous source for information and can only be found online at Davey's site.

[TomAnon]

also, I should add Jeff Snyders "SQUIRT BOOK" has some nice illustrations of a stern squirt, which is after all just a pivot turn