AY Honors/Kayaking/Answer Key
Kayaking
South Pacific Division
2001 Edition
Kayaking
Qualified Instructor Required
Prerequisite: Intermediate Swimming Honor
1. Satisfy the examiner that you have knowledge of different types of kayaks (Slalom, river, touring, sea); the uses for each and the equipment necessary for safe kayaking (helmet, life jacket, sprayskirt, bow and stern loops, floatation in kayak).
Kayak Types
Slalom Kayak: These are used in slalom racing. A slalom race takes place on a whitewater course, and the kayaker must maneuver the kayak between several pairs of poles called "gates". Some gates must be entered by paddling downstream, and others must be entered by paddling upstream. The minimum length of a slalom kayak is four meters, and the minimum width is 60 cm. Slalom kayaks are usually built out of fiberglass or composite materials. Light weight is a very desirable characteristic in these boats.
River Kayak: These are used for playing in whitewater, or in "rodeo" competitions where the kayaker is judged according to the types of maneuvers made. River kayaks are small kayaks, with lengths from 6 to 12 feet (2 to 3 meters). River kayaks have features to make them easily manueverable in whitewater, and to resist damage from running into rocks.
Touring Kayak:
Sea Kayak:
Equipment
Helmet: A helmet should be worn any time a kayak is taken into whitewater. Whitewater is "white" because of rocks, and have the potential to seriously injure a person. The greatest danger addressed by a helment is that of striking the head on an underwater obstacle when overturned in fast moving current.
Life jacket: Also called Personal Floatation Devices or PFD's, these are possibly the most essential of safety gear available to a kayaker.
Sprayskirt: The sprayskirt is a device that prevents water from entering the kayak. It is worn around the waist and the "hem" of the sprayskirt is stretched around the cockpit of the kayak, making it watertight. In the event that the kayak is overturned and the paddler cannot execute an eskimo roll, the sprayskirt must be "popped" from the cockpit. It usually has a strap in the front for this purpose. Once the sprayskirt has been popped, water will rush into the boat, and the paddler may swim out. This manuever is called a "wet exit." Without the sprayskirt, and eskimo roll is nearly impossible.
Bow and stern loops: These are loops of rope, or sometimes handles built-in to the ends of the boat. They allow a person to grab the boat - an option sometimes necessary to either grab a kayak (and thus, the paddler) to pull it from danger, or for a swimmer to hang on to (for those times when they kayaker becomes a swimmer) and towed to safety.
Floatation: Kayaks without floatation sink when filled with water. Floatation is added to prevent this from happening. A kayak that float even when filled with water can be retreived more easily, but more importantly, it can be used as something to hang onto if capsized. Floatation also displaces water, so that if the kayak capsizes, it will not complete fill with water - this would make it quite heavy. A swimmer in whitewater definitely wants to stay away from heavy items freight-training through a rapid, as these can pin a person against a rock or cliff wall, or even cause blunt force trauma. If the capsized kayak remains afloat and does not become so heavy as to become a dangerous projectile, a paddler may attmept to re-enter it.
