Teva Lea Race is Australia's longest-running extreme race. [1]
Teva Lea Race is Australia's longest-running extreme race. [1]
The first Lea Extreme Race was held in 2003 on short section on the Lea River. [2] The inaugural race and subsequent 10 races were organized by the Derwent Canoe Club and Hobart paddling identity Leigh Weighton. The race has developed a strong local following as a grass roots [3] and with international competition, creating an elite field [4]
The Lea Race, as it is colloquially known, celebrated its 10th anniversary on 6 October 2012 [5]
The race course runs through many rapids, with the three largest drops being "First Drop", a clean 2 m waterfall, "Screaming Plastic Surgeons" having a total drop of 8 m, with the last drop being a 4 m waterfall and "Proctologist's Twist" being a slide followed by a 4 m drop into a slot [6]
The race is undertaken in teams of two, with competitors providing safety for their teammate, on several of the larger drops additional safety personnel are placed. [7] The pair must complete the course at the same time, and the race time is determined from when the second paddler crosses the finish line.
On the following day a ball race is normally conducted on the course, which involves the team of two successfully pushing or guiding an inflatable fit ball down the river.
The Derwent Canoe Clubs' Lea Extreme Race is Australia longest-running extreme race [8] The first race was run in 2003, and has been held each year since. The 2012 race was remarkable due to only having moderate water levels; however, in previous years the event has been run with higher water levels, with only the best paddlers being able complete the course successfully.
A canoe is a lightweight narrow water vessel, typically pointed at both ends and open on top, propelled by one or more seated or kneeling paddlers facing the direction of travel and using paddles. In British English, the term canoe can also refer to a kayak, while canoes are then called Canadian or open canoes to distinguish them from kayaks. However, for official competition purposes, the American distinction between a kayak and a canoe is almost always adopted.
Whitewater forms in the context of rapids, in particular, when a river's gradient changes enough to generate so much turbulence that air is trapped within the water. This forms an unstable current that froths, making the water appear opaque and white.
Whitewater kayaking is an adventure sport where a river is navigated in a decked kayak. Whitewater kayaking includes several styles. River running; where the paddler follows a river and paddles rapids as they travel. Creeking usually involving smaller, steeper, and more technical waterways. Creek boats tend to be short but high volume to allow for manoeuvrability while maintaining buoyancy. Slalom requires paddlers to navigate through "gates". Slalom is the only whitewater event to be in the Olympics. Play boating involves staying on one feature of the river and is more artistic than the others. Squirt boating uses low-volume boats to perform special moves in whitewater features.
Wildwater canoeing is a competitive discipline of canoeing in which kayaks or canoes are used to negotiate a stretch of river speedily. It is also called "Whitewater racing" or "Downriver racing" to distinguish it from whitewater slalom racing and whitewater rodeo or Freestyle competition.
Canoe slalom is a competitive sport with the aim to navigate a decked canoe or kayak through a course of hanging downstream or upstream gates on river rapids in the fastest time possible. It is one of the two kayak and canoeing disciplines at the Summer Olympics, and is referred to by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) as Canoe/Kayak Slalom. The other Olympic canoeing discipline is canoe sprint. Wildwater canoeing is a non-Olympic paddlesport.
Canoe freestyle is a discipline of whitewater kayaking or canoeing where people perform various technical moves in one place, as opposed to downriver whitewater canoeing or kayaking where the objective is to travel the length of a section of river. Specialised canoes or kayaks (boats) known as playboats are often used, but any boat can be used for playing. The moves and tricks are often similar to those performed by snowboarders, surfers or skaters, where the athlete completes spins, flips, turns, etc. With modern playboats it is possible to get the kayak and the paddler completely airborne while performing tricks. The competitive side of playboating is known as freestyle kayaking.
The Augsburg Eiskanal is an artificial whitewater river in Augsburg, Germany, constructed as the canoe slalom venue for the 1972 Summer Olympics in nearby Munich.
The Narrows of the Green is a 2.9-mile (4.7 km) section of the Green River in Henderson County and Polk County, between the Big Hungry Creek confluence and the Fishtop access area, in western North Carolina, United States. It is roughly 35 miles (56 km) south of downtown Asheville.
The Kettle is an 83.6-mile-long (134.5 km) tributary of the St. Croix River in eastern Minnesota in the United States. Via the St. Croix River, it is part of the watershed of the Mississippi River. The river's English name is due to the large number of large rounded holes (kettles) in the sandstone in and around the river, carved out by the swirling waters of the river. The river's Dakota name Céġa watpa entered into English via the Anishinaabe people's Akiko-ziibi, both meaning "Kettle River".
The U.S. National Whitewater Center (USNWC) is a not-for-profit outdoor recreation and athletic training facility for whitewater rafting, kayaking, canoeing, rock climbing, mountain biking, hiking and ice skating which opened to the public in 2006. The Center is located in Charlotte, North Carolina on approximately 1,300 acres (530 ha) of land adjacent to the Catawba River, with more than 50 miles (80 km) of developed trail.
Creeking is a branch of canoeing and kayaking that involves descending very steep low-volume whitewater. It is usually performed in specialized canoes and kayaks specifically designed to withstand the extreme whitewater environment in which the activity occurs. In addition, the canoes and kayaks give the paddler improved performance and maneuverability needed to avoid river obstacles.
The Wairoa River runs north into Tauranga Harbour at the western end of the Bay of Plenty in New Zealand's North Island.
The Dickerson Whitewater Course, on the Potomac River near Dickerson, Maryland, was built for use by canoe and kayak paddlers training for the 1992 Olympic Games in Spain. It was the first pump-powered artificial whitewater course built in North America, and is still the only one anywhere with heated water. It remains an active training center for whitewater slalom racing, swiftwater rescue training, and other whitewater activities.
Whitewater canoeing is the sport of paddling a canoe on a moving body of water, typically a whitewater river. Whitewater canoeing can range from simple, carefree gently moving water, to demanding, dangerous whitewater. River rapids are graded like ski runs according to the difficulty, danger or severity of the rapid. Whitewater grades range from I or 1 to VI or 6. Grade/Class I can be described as slightly moving water with ripples. Grade/Class VI can be described as severe or almost unrunnable whitewater, such as Niagara Falls.
Canoe marathon is a paddling sport in which athletes paddle a kayak or canoe over a long distance to the finish line. The International Canoe Federation states the standard distances are at least 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) without an upper limit, while short distance races are between 3.4 kilometres (2.1 mi), and 10 kilometres (6.2 mi). Many events are raced down sections of river, including currents or portages around obstacles. Some events attract thousands of competitors and are staged over several days.
The Boonton Gorge is a river gorge in Boonton, New Jersey where the Rockaway River drops over several waterfalls, and travels for slightly over a mile before emptying into the Jersey City Reservoir.
Adventure Sports Center International is an Olympic standard white water rafting and canoe/kayak slalom center located on the mountaintop above the Wisp Ski Resort at Deep Creek Lake, McHenry, Maryland, United States. In addition to serving as a venue for slalom races and training, the center offers a range of services to the general public including guided raft trips, inflatable kayak rentals, and riverboard rentals.
Canoeing – recreational boating activity or paddle sport in which you kneel or sit facing forward in an open or closed-decked canoe, and propel yourself with a single-bladed paddle, under your own power.
Pringle Falls is a series of rapids or drops on the upper Deschutes River in the U.S. state of Oregon. From just downstream of Wyeth Campground, the rapids begin with about 600 feet (180 m) of whitewater rated class II (novice) on the International Scale of River Difficulty. The next 300 feet (91 m) is class III (intermediate] ending in a class IV drop. Soggy Sneakers: A Paddler's Guide to Oregon's Rivers says, "Only expert kayakers should consider this drop, and only after scouting. It is definitely not a rapids for open canoes."
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