Saalachtaler Canoe Days

CANOE SLALOM

18 – 25 gates are set out above a wild river such as the Saalach. The athlete has to ride through them as fast as possible, sometimes with and sometimes against the current. Those who touch or miss a gate receive a time penalty. The courses are mainly ca. 300 – 350 metres long meaning spectators can follow the slalom race up close.  Basically there is a difference in canoe slalom between the kayak (K1) and the Canadian. The kayak (K1) is ridden in a sitting position with a double paddle. The Canadian is driven kneeling, with a single paddle. There are two types of Canadian – single Canadian (C1) and double Canadian (C2). The boats are ridden without a steering device. Changes of direction are made exclusively using the paddle. The boats are sealed with a spray deck to prevent water entering.

The canoe slalom is about riding a course as quickly and cleanly as possible. The green marked gates are to be ridden downstream and the red gates upstream. The gates must not be touched (otherwise there is a time penalty of 2 seconds). If a gate is missed or entered the wrong way round, there are 50 penalty seconds. In one race everyone rides the course twice with the better run counting for the standings. In addition to the two age categories, rating takes place in 6 boat classes. As well as individual competitions there are also team races. A team consists of three boats of the same boat class, which ride the course at the same time. The time penalties for each boat are added to the overall time.

By the way: the canoe slalom is an established event in the programme for the Summer Olympics.

WHITE WATER RACING

White water racing involves riding a white water course in the shortest possible time. For a white water race, the water course must have a difficulty of at least III. The boats are very wobbly but also very fast. There are two classes of boats in canoe white water racing: the kayak is driven in a sitting position with a double paddle but without a steering device. Athletes kneel in the Canadian and steer the boat using a single paddle. Alongside the individual races there are also team competitions in which three boats must master the course at the same time. There are sprint and middle distance competitions. Since races were carried out over long distances at first, the longer middle distance is referred to as the classic course. The course length for a classic white water race is between 4 and 8 km. The white water sprint was introduced in the early 1990s. The sprint takes place over two runs on a 200 – 600 m long white water course, the best run time counts.