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Plenty of folks turned up, Phoenix Kayak Club Members, CIT Kayak Club members, people from previous MDAC kayak courses, and a mob of UCC Canoe Club members.
All arrived ready and willing to soak up information like sponges and also to help each other with this freestyle trickery that is oh so popular in the kayaking world.
After some brief introductions and a quick jump into the gear, the course was ready to go.
There was a bit of a plan for the day, but the main aim was an introduction to freestyle for people, even the best freestylers can do with a reminder of the basics, what Freestyle is, and why their gear works. This was the approach to the course, and it suited all from beginner to freestyle warrior.
First the gear and boats were discussed, what gear is best for freestyle, how freestyle boats work, and what are the different features of a freestyle boat that make it do its magic.
Next up, we all jumped on the water, and learned how to move our Freestyle machines. How to sit in our boats, where to look, body movements and some basic excercises that everyone from newbie to expert should always practice. This was very beneficial to everyone, and an eye opener to some. It also gave people a chance to help everyone with their own skills by passing on what knowledge they had.
Finally, we all moved down to the weir, where some clever folks built a wedge that created a diversion in the flow, this creates a nice spot of recirculating water which is ideal for learning and practicing freestyle moves.
First up was a brief demonstration of 5 basic moves that everyone can hope to learn and achieve, these were, Ender, Spin, Clean Spin, Cartwheel and Splitwheel.
After some demonstrations, everyone was then given the opportunity to give them a go or just surf the wave.
Lots of learning, lots of fun, some newcomers to freestyle really surprised with how quick they got the basics.
Here's looking forward to the next day.
