Re: [Paddlewise] Your rolling stories

There I was, staring at the great Lava Falls in the Grand Canyon, Gee ain't I been good to you, Lord (?), I thought with a glance skyward. A couple of the guys went down the rapid while we were on the river left scout. It looked gnarly. Start right, punch a V wave, move center, but DO NOT go near the ledge hole in the middle, punch another V wave, then another, move left and eddy out before the tail waves and that stiff looking hole at the bottom. No problem....ya right.

My wife was in good keeping Alistair had her follow him. As a former World's slalom champ he would make the line and she would follow. I decided to venture on my own, a decision that I was to regret. I made the entrance on?the right, punched the V wave (which was huge) but did not go left as much as I needed and got caught in a hole kinda thing on the right, went over and set up to roll. I came up and was buried by a really big wave very quickly. Went over again, came up but someone said I picked my head up too soon, damn these big waves. Set up as I coasted into the big pillow wave on the bottom right hand rock which I later decided was among the more violent experiences I ever had in a kayak. Set up to roll again and as I came up in the tailwaves a mate of mine knocked me back over, I learned later, as he was going for a rescue. I came back up, yet again but couldn't move the boat. My roll doesn't suck this much, I thought. But as my buddy slipped off my hull I finished th
 e roll, grabbed his bow and then eddied out. Having viewed Lava from underneath and above gave me a distinct viewpoint of the rapid. I'll try it all from above next time.

My wife followed Alistair's line from right to center, just missing the ledge hole and hard left. She never got her head wet. The Youtube clip attached here is her in back, the first to come through is Alistair.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8h3anceKm6g

She did a much better job than I did.

Cheers,

Rob G
and the G stands for, Gonna stray in this boat.





What a great thread!! Missed rolls, made rolls, perfected rolls, old lady
rescues, reasons NOT to put a helmet in your cockpit and, best of all, a
post from Doug Lloyd.




-----Original Message-----
From: Craig Jungers <crjungers_at_gmail.com>
To: PaddleWise <paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net>
Sent: Fri, 25 Jan 2008 8:21 am
Subject: Re: [Paddlewise] Your rolling stories



What a great thread!! Missed rolls, made rolls, perfected rolls, old lady
rescues, reasons NOT to put a helmet in your cockpit and, best of all, a
post from Doug Lloyd.

Mark... you did good. :)


Craig Jungers
Moses Lake, WA


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