Re: [Paddlewise] The grotto chamber

Ralph Diaz wrote:

>This is not solely the perogative of canoes.  It's pretty standard stuff
>with the Kleppers et al double folders.  One of the ways of righting one
>with minimum water staying in the cockpit is to dive under into that air
>pocket, get a breather and relax a bit (not too much a la the kittenish
>LeBlancs :-)), agree which direction you will flip the boat, and voila
>you have the folding double over with little water in it.

Anyone else remember the Capistrano Flip?  Written up in AWA Journal back
in the mid to late 60s, I think by a guy named Walt Drummond of Capistrano
Beach (Someone else also revived it in a Canoe Mag article in the early
80s?).  

Walt used to surf Grummans in the ocean off California and developed this
for when he flipped.  He'd get under the boat in the middle, break the
suction by lifting so one gunnel was out of the water, give a big scissors
kick (frog kick?) and flip the boat back upright with hardly any water in
it.  Climb back in and continue playing.  He got good enough at it that
he'd see a wave coming too big to surf and purposely flip the boat, ending
up under it so that the bottom of the boat would take the force of the
break.  He'd wait for the wave to pass, do his flip and catch the next wave.  

He used to do pool demos of his technique where he's sitting on the bottom
in the center of the canoe, someone would yell "go," and he'd dump, do his
Capistrano Flip, and be back in, sitting on the bottom of the boat in some
incredibly short time.  I don't remember exactly, but it was like 5 or 10
seconds, start to finish.  He was a really big guy (6'5"?) and obviously a
really strong swimmer.  

Sounds like something both kayaks and canoes could work on.  Dana and Bob,
you're it <grin>!

Hank Hays



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