Jones Center Roll Sessions (Saturdays in Springdale)

[Regud]

Here is another noob question...

My boat is a Dagger Approach 10'. Is it even possible to learn to roll it?

[mb]

I'm wanting to roll my Mohawk 12--anyone willing to help me in that endeavor?

[Eric Esche]

If the blind leading the blind count, I'm willing to try to assist. I've been watching youtube videos on how it is done. Lots of them out there.

Eric

may be on meds again this week, but I plan on being there.

[Fish]

I don't think Ryan can be there, but he has some idea of how to roll an open boat. I can try to help, but mostly moral support I'm afraid. Will be great to have an open boater there!

- Fish

[ARzach]

I've rolled open-boats in the past...I don't know if I can help or not (definitely not this week as I'll be out of town) but possibly in the future....The good news is those open boats have enormous air-pockets in which to breath while trying to learn on flat-water though :)

Good luck!

--Zach

[Fish]

The good news is those open boats have enormous air-pockets in which to breath while trying to learn on flat-water though :)

The bad news is that they have enormous water-pockets in them after you roll them back up. :)

- Fish

[ARzach]

I actually had to explain to the fine EMS peeps what I was up to after a long attempt at teaching myself how to roll an open boat at Beaver lake one summer...Apparently the lady who had been watching me from the bank was super-concerned when I flipped over and stayed underwater (as far as she knew) for about 15 minutes....How was I to know she would call 911??? I suppose it did look kind of bad when I was flopping around trying to roll unsuccessfully, followed by extended "underwater breaks"....

[Eric Esche]

You can suck on an airbag or an airpocket for a long time can't you.

We used to drop into Woodall and do that to freak a certain ranger there when we wanted to play with him. Jim Shelander would do that, even letting go of his paddle and life jacket if he had friends down stream to retrieve them, and then hand roll up to wink at the crowd that had built up at the waters edge after a few minutes, while the ranger danced up and down doing nothing, before he endered out and hand paddled downstream to retrieve his gear. We always had someone there with a rope 20 feet away, just in case, but Jim was an olympic class swimmer and a fantastic paddler. Jim and some of his friends used to hand paddle all of section IV with no paddles when they got bored. And that was before the plastic hand paddles became popular or to my knowledge invented. In winter they sometimes used webbed gloves that they had glued webs to between the fingers. circa 1973ish.

Eric

[Fish]

Um, just thought I'd add, don't try what Jim and Eric done at home boys and girls. Chattooga IV ain't no amusement park ride... folks even manage to die there on a fairly regular basis, occasionally even those who run the river a bunch. My hat's off to those who have no apparent sense of fear. Not being one of them, I think I'll keep running those rapids with a paddle, a PFD, and a healthy dose of respect.

- Fish

[Eric Esche]

Yes, this was something you probably shouldn't try at home unless you have a few hundred runs to really have one spot wired and are totally bombproofed on both sides and have safety standing by. I wouldn't do it today. In this case I had also snorkeled in Woodall at 0.6 with weights to look at the structures involved and dived with a scuba tank (on two safety lines) there a few times. When we did it, we did it with more knowledge than most folks.

And to clarify, "I" was never one of those who hand paddled. I would religiously hang onto my then Norse, later New World paddle while sucking on an airbag hose to later roll up and ender out. I never approached Shelander status. And I never intentionally surfed Woodall above 1.7. I knew my limits fairly closely or so I thought back then. Even at 1.7, you get thrashed around fairly good, and you have to work to get out with an old school MKIV or Hollowform, but it was a great ride while you were in there, if you could ride it, as long as you could get out. You can sometimes get pretty familiar with some rapids when you run them 100 to 200+ times a year, but you should never take them for granted. Been in there in the center up to 2.5 and it was violent enough to break seams in my Lettman Mk IV and same for the hole on the left bank at 5.5. Both are Holes I will avoid in the future being now older and wiser and would recommend others to avoid them as well. Didn't mean to set a bad example with my memory trip. Be very conservative until you really get things totally wired.

If any of this doesn't make sense, I had to take a Percodan earlier for the disc. Please forgive. Hope to see y'all in the morning. All my stuff is packed. Hope some of y'all have been looking at the open boat rolling videos. He will likely need some assistance and spotting to tell him what is is not doing.

Eric

[Regud]

Thanks for the help today! I can't wait to try rolling an actual whitewater boat. Hope to see you next week.

Ryan

[Regud]

Anyone know if we are having a session Saturday or is it canceled due to power outages?

[Fish]

I honestly don't know. Been dealing with too much to worry about it. Class 2 rivers will be up too and it's a good weather forecast, so I'm not sure how many will come. Is anyone planning on going to the Jones Center pool Saturday?

- Fish

[dinan]

Bad News

No roll session this saturday

This saturday's January 31st roll sessoin will need to be rescheduled. The Jones Center still doesn't have power. Please let anyone you know that might be comming that its been canceled. It will get rescheduled later.


Good news:

Looks like several rivers will be up.

[dwilke02]

whens it going to start again?