Go for it !
The world is overpopulated anyway.
old town Rush on class II-IV???
I had this same boat awhile back. I now have been paddling for a little over 2 years. I have had some whitewater experience and a lot of flatwater runs. When I owned the Rush I ran the class 2-3 section of the Green River in NC. I also ran the New river near Sparta NC which was class 2 with a few 3 runs in it. This boat is a barge, very stable and I suppose with float bags it would be possible but probably not very fun. The biggest problem I had was every time I would smash into a rock it really slammed me around alot in the kayak. Unless you planning on using some type of foam to make it a little more snug you will be in for a rough ride. If you went over in this I doubt it would be very easy to roll so I would plan on swimming if you flip. You will need a neoprene skirt. The nylon one it came with won’t do the job. Best of luck!
Depends
I understand what you are talking about but I paddle solo most of the time in moving water including Class IV. The rope is coiled up on the bow and held by the deck lines. I can grab in case I go in the water or have to exit my boat to help someone. The rope is ~25 feet long and can be released by a simple pull. The rope has been very helpful may times by keeping my kayak from getting away while I help someone or allows me to get to shore then pull they kayak in without fighting a swamped kayak in deep water. I may go without a PFD but never without this rope.
If you have to ask…
I’d say the answer is no for 3 and 4. Maybe you could run some 2’s. I’d be very conservative at first.
I bet an expect could do it in almost any water.
Lots of Tejano Carp in those videos
– Last Updated: Jan-15-10 8:41 PM EST –
Done some of that myself. For a few hundred bucks you could buy an older style high volume creeker like a Crossfire or similar and have a proper whitewater boat to learn the sport. They'll often throw a used but decent deck in with it. It won't fold like a pancake trapping your legs in the boat and drowning you when you are pinned on the rock like the rec boat will. You can log onto boatertalk.com and find the gear swap page for loads of options. This site is also very good for finding deals on equipment. Greyhound is the preferred method of shipping but the bigger boats will go some other way. Another option is to find a used inflatable and put your stuff in a drybag.
A tubby little rec boat that you can't find a decent neoprene deck on is going to fill with water the instant you hit your first stopper which you will find is a rather "fast tracked" priority in the sport. If you cannot catch the boat and it goes down stream you are going to find out what being an illegal alien is like crossing deserts without much stuff. If you hole the boat, same scenario, but at least you get to hike with your stuff.
In the videos the fellas weren't wearing helmets. In whitewater it's only a matter time before you jackhammer the river bed. Your skull and brain will let you know what a cheapskate you were at the store if you walked out with a Walmart Wonder. Next, thing don't be walking in the river, foot entrapment is a leading cause of "accidents" in the river, right up there with no life jacket.
If your plan is to swim a drop you couldn't handle you will find out how badly it sucks to swim class 3 playing "catch the yardsale" all on your own with stuff you absolutely need on a self support trip. Reboot my illegal alien analogy but take heart in the fact that they can live off far less in the desert than we do, so you just might be able to learn the ropes from one after you lost your boat and all your stuff.
Swimming class 4 is incredibly dangerous, then imagine you are on one side of a rock holding your rope and your boat is on another, or it hasn't wrapped around your neck. Also imagine what trying to "catch the yardsale" is going to be like in class 4 while you try to stay alive, that is a goal in class 4, trust me on that one. People have done it in a rec boat, ya sure, I watched a few minutes of Jackass once, too.
Imagine trying to make a move, you hit a wave and your deck pops at the head of a rapid and guess what? You get to SWIM the rapid. It has happened to me a few times and just about everyone else I know. It really sucks, too. My legs and butt know the color purple. So, get a boat that you can put some basic defensive features on, like foam pillars and a neo deck, so that one false move doesn't put you and your equipment at risk on a self support trip in the middle of nowhere, suddenly trying to recall all the Spanish lingo you picked up in cantinas you've frequented.
Also, log onto americanwhitewater.org for descriptions of what class 2, 3 and 4 actually is. Can you even make the eddy ahead of the 3 or 4 to scout, can it be scouted at all, can it even be portaged? These are questions you need to ask yourself. Imagine this while playing "catch the yardsale" after swimming the drop upstream of the next feature. Finally, get some lessons. Even in Dallas you can find an instructor who has some basic whitewater experience. Look on the Yahoo Groups site. Have fun and be careful. I'm posting this well aware of the greatest troll in Boatertalk history, "Adirondack Jake." Enter that name into the BT search engine and let the fun begin.
Dogmaticus
exellent post by dogmatycus
please read it twice
no three times
paul
Bottom line
You have been given lots of advice. As an adult with some paddling skills you are going to do what you want. Many of us posting here have done some stupid things (some really really stupid things) and we lived. We have learned the hard way yet we don’t want others following in our tracks.
Accept responsibility, assess the risk and be willing to deal with the consequences.