How to Paddle a 'Into the Eddy' boof in whitewater kayaking

Shane goes into detail on a specific type of boof in which the paddler comes across the drop with angle and boofs into an eddy.

This post continues where Shane left off, going into more detail on the boof. Today we will cover boofing into an eddy. It's a pretty basic skill, but is slightly modified from the regular straight boof. The approach and stroke are the main differences. Watch and learn…

The Approach - The main difference when boofing straight off a drop and boofing into an eddy is the angle of approach. The eddy boof has a more angled approach across the lip of the drop so that your momentum is carried in the direction of the eddy.

The Stroke - The eddy boof requires a longer boof stroke, often finished with a slight stern draw, that creates the momentum necessary to carve into the eddy. In the above photo of Frankenstein, the paddler is taking a long boof stroke which helps turn the boat into the targeted eddy.

The Body - The final difference is edge transition. A regular boof requires a fairly flat hull and no edge transition, whereas an eddy boof requires an edge transition in order to catch the eddy. Keeping your body weight centered over the boat and landing on a stroke to pull you into the eddy will keep you upright and happy. The above picture of Sunshine shows the padder weighting the left edge, while the one below shows the same paddler having transitioned more to weighting the right edge so that he can catch the eddy.