River surfing

[lancegranite]

Have any of you cats ever done any river surfing?

 

Every summer this was pretty popular in my home town.

We would build our own boards out of plywood, so the design and paint job were unique to each rider.

 

The basic setup was 80 feet of rope and a couple deflated innertubes and your board.

Tie the inner tubes together in a chain, then tie your rope to the tubes.

Attach the tubes to a tree, and your board to the end of the rope.

We would scout the local rivers to find a deep, fast rapid (better yet, a deep channel that is on a bend in the river.

 

[lancegranite]

We rode this spot so much a new wave formed.

[ashw_justin]

This guy is pretty into it (among other things):

 

http://www.2imagine.net/news.html

 

Edited August 26, 2004 by ashw_justin

[lancegranite]

Our setup was completely different than that.. Those guys are real surfers and they are really surfing.

 

Our thing was more like a teardroped shaped board that was tied directly to a rope .

 

The rope was then connected to some form of bungy or innertube setup that streccches when you lean back, causing you to drift downstream.

The resulting tension gives the setup a slingshot effect, shooting the rider back up stream at a good clip.

We would ride in 8-12 feet of water usually in the fast moving flatwater after a big rapid.

 

Big slashing turns were always popular, as was spinning the board backwards, the rider ripping back and forth across the current like a pendulum.

 

By far the coolest trick was simply called "dipping"...The rider leans back, the water pressure pushes the board back downstream. Once the system is banjo tight, you drive your shoulder down into the water in a quick, snapping motion.The ensuing effect is wild! while still riding the board, you go straight to the bottom of the river!

the current is pushing you so hard to stay down, Your back digs into the bottom...keep it together! everything is a nightmare of noise and bubbles, the current's pressure is so powerful, now throw that shoulder skyward, twards the surface...You literally leap out of the water, the board catching air as you break the surface.

The well executed dip looks just like the Trident submarine breaching move.

[ashw_justin]

Oh ok, so that's more like wakeboarding then. Dang, that's a great idea. Man, if this gets out then all of them hillbillies who watch wakeboarding (but can't afford it) are gonna be mobbing the rivers...

 

Haha that "dipping" move is a classic in whitewater kayaking, they call it a "mystery move." It was really popular back when squirt boats were the rage.

[Trundle]

That's way better than the way that I did it. I basically just used a wakeboard with a regular rope and handle tied off to a big tree/rock/whatever.

 

The riding was great. But the real terror was when you quit or fell. Riding through a rapid with a board strapped to your feet and no lifejacket was an exercise in panic.

[ashw_justin]

so then wear a life jacket!

 

But then that's the least of your worries...

[Dru]

 

[lancegranite]

Da Vinci like diagram of surf hop:

[ryland_moore]

There is a line just down from knickerbocker bridge in Eugene just down stream from the kayaker's play hole as you head across to Autzen Stadium

[bunglehead]

There used to be one just below the first street rapids in Bend as well.

[lancegranite]

It's cool to hear about something that has occurred simultaneously all over the country, but never caught on.

Surf hop was dangerous, I nearly drowned when the handle got caught around my foot.

[lancegranite]

Aquatic interaction