Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view

Day: 14 April 2012

Wave wheel

To do a wave wheel you will need a boat that has slicy ends and ideally very little volume. When doing a wave wheel you don’t need any particular wave, but it is easiest if it is a green wave with no pile on top as the pile can slow you down. Wave wheels can be done in longer boats but, a longer boat needs a larger wave. Wave wheels in larger boats also look more impressive!

Whilst paddling down stream select the wave you are going to wheel. Paddle up to the wave with as much speed as possible. The faster you’re going, the more the wave will throw you and more impressive the wheel will be.

As you’re coming up the face of the wave, take one last stroke near the top of the wave. As you’re taking this last stroke, lean your boat up on the sidewall that you are most comfortable double pumping with. This is your first pump in a double pump. The more perpendicular your boat is to the wave the better. This last stroke should bring you to the top of the wave. Your speed should allow the bow of your boat to be slightly out of the water. Quickly turn that forward stroke into the second pump in a double pump. Then use the backside of your paddle to slam the bow of your boat into the backside of the wave. The wave is used to help you with your first pump to raise the bow high in the air so that it is easier to slam the bow with the second pump. Extend that last stroke down into the water until you have stood your boat up vertically in the first point.

Wave wheels can be thrown in the surf as well, same procedure just usually bigger waves.

The Ollie

Essentially the Ollie is a transfer of weight combined with careful timing with the wave. All in all this makes the Ollie one of the easiest moves to do. The concept should be familiar to you mad skateboarders out there!

The easiest place to do this move is on a fast surging wave, it is possible on non-surging waves but not as easy. Until you start working on the move just sit in a front surf to get a good feel for the wave and how it surges. In most cases there is almost a pattern to the size and frequency of the surge.

You need to wait until you are at the top of the wave speeding down the face at this point make sure that your weight is forward. Wait until your boat is bouncing slightly (the faster the wave the more obvious the bounces will be). As the next surge passes under your boat make a relatively radical weight change and move your weight back to front in a kind of see-saw motion. Next throw all of your weight back, this will put air under the bow of the boat. As soon as you the bow reaches what you think will be its greatest hieght throw all of you weight forward to hop you boat into the air. The landings on the whole are fairly easy but you need to be ready, if your timing is not quite right the following surge may cause your bow to pearl.

Ollies will also work equally well out in the surf where the waves can be big and fast.

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