Facebook pxl

Showing posts with label River bugging. Show all posts
Showing posts with label River bugging. Show all posts

What The Hell Is River Bugging ?

No comments:
Here, I present you another relatively new, crazy, adrenaline-filled water sport -river bugging.
"What is river bugging?" - you ask. In a nutshell, it's river tubing with a twist.



Instead of a tube, you sit in an ... inflatable armchair, pitting your wits (and other parts of your anatomy) against fast-moving rapids, bouncing off rocks and rafting down eddies into icy pools of water below. Your hands are covered in webbed gloves and you also wear short flippers, to help you manoeuvre around the river currents. You also wear the standard "whitewater outfit"- (full body) wetsuit, PFD and a helmet.

What Is Bungee Surfing ?

No comments:

I was absolutely stoked to find out about river surfing a couple years ago. Whitewater stand up paddleboarding is getting more and more popular. Riverboarding and river bugging is huge in New Zealand.

But not many people heard about bungee surfing yet. And till recently, I had no idea it originated in ...Idaho !

Though thousand miles away from the nearest ocean, Idaho has an abundance of rivers with Snake and Salmon Rivers are among the most famous and popular among whitewater community.

But unlike whitewater rafting or kayaking, bungee surfing takes place on a different kind of water - “Fast Glass”, water that is moving fast, but has a smooth surface.

Comparing to river surfing ( where you "drop into" a standing wave ), I like the concept behind bungee surfing a bit more. It's not easy to explain, so to better understand what bungee surfing is al about, check out the video below:



I learned about bungee surfing from the Man behind this sport, Robert Geier, inventor and CEO of EVEN Surf Company

After watching the video, and reading a few posts on the companies' blog, I got a general idea how bungee surfing works.

But a few things still remain a mystery to me.

While you can find a bungee cord online or at your local skateboard shop, I still have hard time figuring out how the patented release system works.

Also, if you've ever been in fast moving water, you know that it has its dangers :
strainers, sieves, rocks, derbies, bridge pillars, unacceptable river banks, dams...
Not wearing PFD ( life vest ) will increase your chances of drowning. Not wearing a helmet ( and sometimes pads ) might result in sever injuries.

And finally, according to the information provided, bungee surfing is more difficult than ocean surfing.

How hard could it be ? It it just for "young and restless", or for all ages ? Is it going to be a new popular mainstream water sport, or just for a few chosen ones and most dedicated ?

Personally, I can't wait to try it, and may be later, to introduce bungee surfing in Washington...