Just reading through the post about [url=http://missouriwhitewater.org/uieforum?c=showthread&ThreadID=563]young Alex (darn teen!)[/url] and Rich's excellent post about really working the Saint. This reminded me of something I snagged a few years ago when there was a thread about how to turn the Saint (and any other river) into class IV moves and really use it to hone your skills.
For anyone who thinks class II/III can't teach you anything, there was someone not too long ago who made a comment that they were 'bored' in a sense of a certain river. :shock: Upon hearing this a number of people cringed, knowing that the river gods will not take such comments lightly. At the end of that weekend, this person had retracted their statement... after being handed a plate of in-your-face by a river. :ouch:
A personal thanks... Foster, Chuck, Bilbo, Eric & Tracy Roush, and Dan Frisch among many others, really pushed (and still do) me, Natalie and Gary to really WORK rivers, not just run them. If you want to improve your skill and confidence, this suggestion cannot be understated. (Classic moment: upon Foster working Natalie to death, in a moment of exasperation she finally yells at him, "What do you want from me!!??")
Anyhow, here are the few snippets I could find. I'm thinking they were from Robert Trask, Chuck, and Chris Kelly respectively, but I could be wrong...
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Put in just above the last drop at the D bridge parking lot. You can work your way up to the dam (except for Junior Drop) at most any level. Working your way upstream is a wonderful way to learn fine boat control. We used to do it all the time when I was a turkey and the river was too low to want to run the upper river. (There was no access at Millstream in those days.) You learn a lot about getting the river to do as much of the work as possible.
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1. Larry mentioned the river right 360 hole at Uper entrance. After you have mastered that, do the sister hole just to river left. It is deeper, grabbier and much more bouncey. 360's are very possible (so are window shades and chunders). You can also surf a bit more towards the middle- it is very buzzy and requires precision.
2a. Linda T mentioned going upriver from D. Hard in a rodeo boat, but the longer boats can go all the way to the dam once the river is 10" as you can attain little drop at that level. At about 30" it gets too difficult. This is a nice loop and to do it requires precise river reading skills and boating skills.
2b "The Loop" as I call it, is going down to the surf wave just above big drop, and then attaining back to big eddy at the top. It is very doable.
3. Pick a rock that you don't want to get blown downriver from at Big Drop run out.(I like a line from the little bay/inlet river left.) Do 5 consecutive ferries back and forth without ending below this line. Sound easy?
4. Do the Loop at Rickety Rack. Going upriver From first eddy to the second eddy up on river right, attain up to and across to a micro eddy river left just above the ledge, peel out of this eddy and aim for a little diagonal crease that goes left to right, and deposits you back in your original eddy.
5. At Cat's Paw at lower levels catch the tiny micro eddy just above the maw river right, then catch the teensy micro-eddy river left just above the wave, surf the wave, explore the upper room of doom #1. At 0-5" catch Room of Doom #2 near the (true) shark's fin, ferry out in front of shark'sfin to eddy on river right, ferry across to eddy bhind shark's fin, slide down Z route backwards and in control and enter room of doom #3 backwards, peel out backwards, and finish backwards. At 12" to 20 there's an excellent boof move just right of the shark's fin.
6. At very high water catch the huge green surf wave that forms river right above the afore-mentioned 360 hole at entrance on the upper. You will see god and all his angels, and surfing anywhere else will never be the same.
7. Survive the hero routes down big drop, dble drop and Cat's Paw at 10 feet over or more. You are then ready for anything the Grand Canyon might throw at you.
8. I can think of quite a few more, but they have elements of greater risk in them and the above will keep you busy for awhile maybe.
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Here are a few of the harder moves I have done on the Saint.
Run entrance upside down.
Run big drop upside down.
Run Cats Paw upside down.
Run 1/2 of double drop upside down.
Run rickety rack upside down.
Do the hole/washout at the dam breach upside down.
Attempt to smash your head on at least 7 rocks within twenty seconds (must be submerged).
Have fun....I DID!
