It has been 5 years since my last World Championships for freestyle, which was in Argentina. I got 15th there and 6th in squirt in the Mixmaster (6th sounds better, but the 15th was a bigger accomplishment as squirt only has a few competitors and many don’t train hard for it.).
Since then, my life turned upside down, I walked away from my own company/brand, and had to forge a new path. I came back to my roots and begin designing whitewater kayaks again, assembled a team to help me, and am on a mission to create the next big whitewater kayak brand. I manage to get the Rebound, my freestyle kayak on the water before the World Championships. I get to compete in it here in England and it is making training much more fun and rewarding. It is the lightest weight boat in the competition, and the shortest medium size boat ever made. That creates significant advantages. The boat rotates faster, completing moves more easily and fully, staying more retentive. Also, the amount of boat that hits the green water is less, forcing you downstream less. Of course, it is super user-friendly, something I always focus on, as the boat shouldn’t challenge you unnecessarily.
I had one session at NOC hole with Clay and other than that, pretty much haven’t trained for freestyle in a hole since team trials 2019, and Worlds in 2017 before that. My lack of training is apparent here. However, I am training now and getting better pretty quickly, and at one time, could crush all of these moves. (Except the Lunar Loop, Tricky Loop, and I never learned the big air on the McNasty). So it is really just brushing off the cobwebs and getting back to where I was so I can go further.
So far physically I feel great and have no issues with the quantity of training, and nothing is getting hurt. We have just over one more week of training before the competition to keep going. I have a routine in the making finally. Most of the top British Paddlers have been training for their routine for a long time and are killing it. It is fun to watch. We’ll see how they deal with the pressure, of course, as it isn’t the same when the entire world shows up and start adding pressure. The thing about freestyle is that you don’t have your best ride, every ride. Everyone remembers their best ride and wants to duplicate it when it counts. The people who, in the end, win, can do that.
As of today, I am middle of the pack in terms of my average performance. I would expect to get about 40th out of the 80-something in the Men’s Kayak class. My first 15 seconds is around 20th, I would guess, which would make 1/4 finals.
I have 8 more days of training to get my last 30 seconds’ worth of moves dialled in, speed things up, clean things, up, and have a routine that can make the top 5 if delivered right. I see about 20 guys out there today who seem to have a good solid 45-second routine. Some have amazing routines with amazing delivery, and explosive moves that are huge and clean, and often linked. While it could be both intimidating and demoralizing for me, especially given that I have way more World Championships experience at the top of the game than somewhere in the middle, it is super motivating. The better I see people paddle, the more fun it is for me.
Emily and Nick arrived and I have done a couple of workouts with them now. They are both looking awesome upon arrival. They seem to really like the hole. It is fun having family here. Dane went to the North Fork Championships where he took second place to Hayden (also on the USA Freestyle Team) and will fly here in a day or two. It will be fun to have both of them here as well. Kaelin got third there and I wish he were coming to the freestyle worlds this year, he is also super fun to paddle with.
Next steps for me- We have a one-hour time slot each day, plus open training from 8 pm-Midnight. I have the moves for the last 30 seconds of my ride identified and can do them all, but am not consistent with them yet. Random flushes, or worse, try them and fail- (especially my left split wheel into a Phonix Monkey). Averaging about 1 move every 5 seconds in this hole is the goal. That is FAST for here. The set-up for each move can be brutal as the hole feeds you to river right as it is angled, and the river left set-up is a strong diagonal that doesn’t want to let you get to the top of the hole. You can find yourself bouncing against it, stuck, and wasting time if you are not aggressive and precise enough. Also, the trick for being fast here is to throw moves in the middle and close to the flush zone where most people are afraid to throw. My right/left split wheel, into my left McNasty, throws me way surfer’s left to the edge of the hole and I either have to commit anyhow, or waste a pass and re-set up. So far I have been able to stick it on the edge when I get it, but there isn’t any margin for error there.
I also am skipping the entry McNasty which is the most popular entry move. While it is a quick 110 points, I can get a huge loop from the river left eddy on entry and keep my head dry, giving me clean eyes going into my McNasty. It is the same number of points in the same amount of time and less risk of flushing. I may be the only person to start in that eddy in the competition, we will see.
I do have a weakness here, and that is right Lunar Orbits. I hurt my ribs many years ago hitting bottom on a back pan am on a super shallow wave and to this day Right Air screws, Right Lunar Orbits, and Right Pan Ams are off-limits. This hurt me at the 2009 Worlds when the Air Screw was the fastest/easiest high-scoring move you could do. Nick did two righty’s and lefty’s which scored a donkey flip and airscrew and I could only do 2 lefties. Here at Nottingham every one of the best paddlers is doing both a Right Lunar Orbit and a Right Lunar Loop. I have to find moves to replace them, which will be a Left Split Phonix, and a Left Woo Tricky. Left Moves are tougher here by far and move you to the wrong side of the hole. To go fast you have to throw in the danger zone. The good news is that my ride will look different and have different moves than those who live and train here, at least much of my ride.
This next part of the training is super fun for me. It is where I am pretty sure I know what I am doing and it is just trying to put together the right order of moves and learn to move fast and nail the moves at the same time. It is time for “Rodeo Rides”. Freestyle Kayaking was called Rodeo Kayaking until the early 2000s. I still prefer to call competition rides, Rodeo Rides, and I think my kids use that term as well. We will keep the term alive.
OK- one more cup of coffee, and then get ready for training. The few days of hot dry weather here in Nottingham are over, my gear is wet and cold from the rain outside, and today it will feel like the England we all know. Cloudy, cold, and wet gear. At least it was in the 80s and sunny on Speedo Thursday. 🙂
Ooh…. I do have to find my boat. Fabian, on the German Team, asked to try it out. He is camping and hopefully got to use it already. I will need to leave for the river early to make sure I can find him/it. I hope he is super fired up on the boat. It is one of those new designs where, if you try it and you’ll love it boats. It makes you feel good about your paddling right away. Oh yea, it is Father’s Day and I just got an awesome card from Emily, handmade, of course. Also, been having a great time with the grandkids. Finally, Kristine and KC got here last night, too. Family is being assembled and will be complete once Dane gets here! Rick and Paula (Nick’s parents are also coming!). Family reunion in England it feels like! Of course we have been together at every worlds (other than Spain, 2019).
🙂
EJ