White Water Sports in Kayak and Canoes

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For fun and thrills in a kayak or canoe try white water kayaking for a true adrenaline fix. There’s little surprise that many sports that make use of water are becoming more and more popular. With the rise in popularity, people are seeking more and more excitement and adventure and this is why white water sports have a great appeal.
The term white water refers to the characteristics of the water when it flows down a slope or gradient in a river. This creates turbulence and disturbs the surface and currents of the water so that it becomes frothy and bubbly. To the observer, the water looks white, hence the term ‘white water’. The great fun is in using white water rivers or channels to create a course that challenges the person in the kayak. By using these fast flowing sections of water that are known as rapids, you can experience what makes this sport an excellent sporting amenity.
There are a number of well established sports that specialize on white water conditions, either natural or man-made. Artificial courses are typically made of concrete, are approximately 3 - 400 meters in length and have water pumped through the channels at a rate of 17 cubic meters per second. Objects are placed into the channels to create turbulence and obstructions as the water flows to create a competitive course. The conditions are graded from Class I (easiest and safest) to Class 6 (most difficult and dangerous), with classes 3-6 being considered as being white water conditions.

Types of White Water Sports

Rafting
Rafting can be both challenging and a physically demanding sport. It can involve between 4 and 12 people armed with paddles. Rafts can be rigid or inflatable and the river or water course can be paddled at speed or at a more leisurely pace for beginners. This can be a very dangerous sport according to velocity of the water and obstructions within it.
Canoeing
There are different types of white water canoeing:
Slalom This is a white water event that appears in the Olympic Games. Participants have to negotiate between 18 – 25 gates in order along a course with technically difficult white water conditions.
Play Boating: This could be described as a form of white water gymnastics where a participant uses the force and conditions of the water to perform spectacular stunts and maneuvers in a kayak or canoe.
River Running: The least demanding form of using a kayak. Commonly described as touring and it is limited to Class 3 conditions. Ideal if using a kayak for the first time.
Creeking: This involves kayaking on water between Class 4 - 6 conditions. Participants can expect to encounter very difficult obstacles such as rocks,rapids, underwater boulders and extremely fast flowing water, including waterfalls, ledges and steeper gradients.
Fun yakking – this is a leisure white water pursuit which uses a cross between a raft and a kayak. Two people can use it to travel down rapids on a stream or river.

White water sports involving a kayak can be very dangerous, so precautions should always be taken to guard against personal injury. Each individual discipline requires a specific type of kayak and equipment, e.g. white water kayaks are very different from leisure inflatable kayaks. A white water sporting kayak is designed to withstand a lot of stress and strain that paddling down white water will produce. A suitable safety helmet and life jacket must be worn at all times when kayaking on any stretch of water.