Pushing the Limits of a (Realistic) Kayak Launch: This ‘Race’ Is Unhinged – GWC Mag

GoPro has done it again. Well, GoPro, but even moreso its expert, daredevil, adrenaline-chasing, highly skilled athletes. This video shares the ingenious (and terrifying?) experience that is the “Epic Drainage Ditch” run on a small tributary in Lions Bay, which heads from the bay in coastal British Columbia out to the Pacific.

Brought to us by fearless whitewater kayakers Stu Telfer, Harrison Stacey, Jarrah Anderson, and Chloe Pocock, this is possibly the first “unhinged” kayak race we’ve seen — in which all participants are launching down this same run at once.

Apparently, this was a “cure for rainy day boredom — all you need is a kayak, a manmade waterslide, and a ‘send it’ mentality.” Who needs perfect, fast-moving rivers when you’ve got a drainage ditch and some rain?

“Hopefully it’s high tide at the bottom,” one racer jokes before they launch.

By the end, and factoring in speed, it’s hard to believe what you’re watching. This is quite the departure from, say, the Colorado or the Snake. This rain ditch isn’t even a creek; it’s barely a puddle. But hey, there’s water. And where there’s water, there’s a way.

If you’re a stuntman like these paddlers, just remember to always scout your route and check the flow (or in this case, the weather forecast).

Runtime: 2.5 minutes