Entering a Hole From Above for Beginning Kayaking Tricks

Video Transcript

"Okay, the next topic is dropping into the hole from above. There’s two ways to get into a hole, you can either begin above the hole and come down to it or you can ferry in. Ferrying in is the easiest when you get the chance but some holes you have to come in from above. When I come in from above I’m going to float with my bow upstream for a non-sticky hole, for a fleshier feature and I’m going to drift more sideways if it’s a fleshier, if it’s a stickier feature. When I hit the hole I’m going to do a little brace and be looking upstream, watching for my upstream edge so the water can keep coming underneath my boat. I’ll give you two examples. The first example is a nice good form of a low brace; the second example will be what happens if I do a high brace. If I do the high brace, my power side is down and it tends to pull my stern into a series of cartwheels, which can be fun but if you go into a really big hole you’re just going to want to be stable on the way into it. So you’re going to be pro-active, lean forward, hit the hole with a low brace, and start surfing in it and having a lot of fun. "