Need to get over a hill? Traverse a mountain? Fix some gear? We’ll tell you how. This week: Turn a kayak through a cartwheel.
Not too long ago, the cartwheel was considered the most difficult trick you could do in a kayak. While that may no longer be the case, this freestyle move isn’t easy. Former freestyle world champion Jay Kincaid just makes it look that way.
Set-up: Establish control of your kayak on the wave where the green water and whitewater meet. This is vital to success. The challenge is doing so with the kayak tilted on its edge in order to slice your bow into the river and stand it up sideways with minimal resistance. With his kayak at the proper angle and his eyes focused on the seam of the wave, Kincaid uses the back of his left paddle blade to push against the deeper green water as he shifts his weight forward.
Throwdown: Still looking at the seam of the wave, Kincaid pivots around his paddle blade while keeping his body weight over the kayak in order to sink the bow as the green water pushes it downstream in a counter- clockwise rotation. Pushing down on his feet, he leans back slightly and takes weight off his left paddle blade.
Rotation: As soon as his bow passes underneath him, Kincaid twists his body aggressively, leading with his head and grabbing a bit of whitewater with the front of his right paddle blade. Notice that his body returns to center.
Transition: The speed at which you clear your paddle and place the left blade back in the seam of the wave will determine whether you complete the cartwheel or are flushed off the feature after a simple pirouette. Once his right paddle blade is no longer useful, Kincaid quickly reaches for the green water with the back of his left blade, leading the kayak with his head and shoulders.
Linking ends: Using the momentum of his first cartwheel, Kincaid brings the bow of his boat back around with his stomach muscles and a firm paddle placement that allows him to repeat the sequence, now leaning slightly forward. Notice that his eyes only leave the seam of the wave when his back is completely turned, and even then, not for long.
