Pro Tips: Kayak Terms For Rafters
Summer is right around the corner—which hopefully means more river days for everyone! I am sure all of your rafters have a few kayakers in your crew and have noticed they might speak a slightly different language. Here are some common terms to help you communicate with your kayaker friends.
Kayaks on the Middle Fork of the Salmon
Boats
There are a few different types of kayaks out there. Knowing the difference will help you to answer questions about what boat your friend should bring.
- Creek boat: This is your pretty standard boat, especially for new paddlers. High volume, easy to roll, and very stable. Examples include Dagger Code and Pyranha Scorch
- Half slice: Similar to the creek boat but tend to be a little shorter, narrower, and have very little volume in the stern. Great for stern squirts, splats, (see "tricks" below) and general river play. Examples include Jackson Antix and Pyranha Firecracker
- Creek slice: A newer category really similar to the half slice but tend to be longer and a little more stable.Examples include Jackson Clutch and Waka Steeze
- Play boat: Short, stubby, and looks similar to a potato. These are the boats you see where you wonder how anyone could fit inside. Used for surfing, arial tricks, and making a stretch of river more challenging for experienced paddlers. Examples include Jackson Rockstar
- Full slice: Similar to a play boat in looks but has more length. Imagine two half slice sterns married. Examples include Dagger Nova and Pyranha Ozone
- Old school play boat: Pretty much the same thing as a full slice but its 20+ years old and seems impossible that any human with legs could sit in one of them and have fun. Examples include Wavesport XXX
- Quiver: Merriam-Webster defines it as a case for carrying or holding arrows. Many river users use it as a term for talking about what boats they own or have in their collection.
You will likely be asked how hard the run is going to be so they can make a decision on what style of boat they are going to bring along.
Gotta have a bunch of boats in your quiver
Interested into getting into kayaking yourself? Check out Emily Little's blog about Buying Your First Whitewater Kayak
Tricks
Your friend may come up to you and say "yo dude did you see that sick insert trick from list below?" Best to just reply with "Heck yeah! SO SICK!"
- Surf: Riding a wave like a ocean surfer.
- Stern squirt: When a kayaker puts the stern of their boat underwater and stands the kayak up vertically.
- Splat: A stern squirt using a rock or rock wall to balance the boat vertically.
- Loop: Imagine a flip or summersault in a kayak.
There are lots of other tricks out there. Probably best to just check out kayaks tricks on YouTube.
Nick throwing a loop in his playboat on the local playwave.
Playwave: A wave (sometimes artificially made) that is good for surfing and doing other tricks. Some cities have these set-up at a whitewater park in a river that runs through town.
Gear
These terms are not crucial but might help you understand what a kayaker is in need of or complaining about.
- Float bags: Long skinny bags you fill with air to take up empty space in the back of your boat. Helps water from filling the entire boat if there is a swim. Your cheap friends will always be collecting used bag wine bags as they are the best float bags out there.
- Stow float: A float bag but it opens and closes so you can put gear inside.
- River purse: Just another term for a day bag. Many paddlers carry their essentials in a Watershed Ocoee or Chatooga
- Straight shaft: Your typical looking kayak paddle.
- Bent Shaft: A paddle with a shaft that looks like it has a bunch of kinks in it. Suppose to help easy stress on wrists and elbows.
- Breakdown: A paddle that comes apart. Either in 2 or 4 pieces.
Pro Tip: Kayakers often keep an emergency kit in their river purse
Hearing other words that you don't understand? Check out our river slang blog to decode what your friends are saying.
