I want to thank all of the boaters who didn't jump to conclusions about us. We are the "gnar tubers" that you have been talking about. To get the record stright, we ALWAYS use safety equipment and scout more often than not. (We did NOT run rigo without a life jacket, but you're right, we do wear goggles.) We are NOT your Joe-six-pack-sunday-afternoon-tubers. For all of you naysayers, whats your beef? Just because we don't spend big $$$$ on kayaks does not mean that we lack knowledge about whitewater. This is our third season of Whitewater Tubing and the first season doing class V water. So far this season we've hit some great runs and have as a group only suffered one minor injury. Sure we get thrown and have pop back on but this is to tubing as rolling is to kayaking. All we ask is that you keep an open mind and share the river. We appreciate everyone who has been supportive of our efforts...(even if you only support us to see us fail.) Thanks for uderstanding.
Tube II
1 - 20 of 40 Posts
Joined
·
194 Posts
I'm not a tube hater but I still am dumbfounded by 99.9% of the tubers out there with nothing on but a swimsuit.
I saw you on Boulder Creek and gave you props for wearing all the safety gear, but I still think you would have more fun in a kayak. You can actually control your movement, position, angle etc. Tubing is to kayaking as sleding is to snowboarding. I have a feeling that if you could experience carving into a tight eddie above a big drop, and then eddite pick you way down, then you may opt out of the tube and decide to spend the $$$ that you mention.
Still, you've got bucket balls. If you do decide to get into a boat, just remember, just because you can run Class V in a tube, doesn't mean you can in a boat. very different story.
I saw you on Boulder Creek and gave you props for wearing all the safety gear, but I still think you would have more fun in a kayak. You can actually control your movement, position, angle etc. Tubing is to kayaking as sleding is to snowboarding. I have a feeling that if you could experience carving into a tight eddie above a big drop, and then eddite pick you way down, then you may opt out of the tube and decide to spend the $$$ that you mention.
Still, you've got bucket balls. If you do decide to get into a boat, just remember, just because you can run Class V in a tube, doesn't mean you can in a boat. very different story.
Joined
·
103 Posts
hey - this guy that used to tube the Poudre used a kayak paddle, seemed to help give him momemtum and a bit more control. Just a thought. Be safe!!
sorry,dude, i'm not buying it. it is good that you take precautions but it's still a craft that you can't control on the river which i find reckless and stupid. That lack of control puts you in danger and then when the shit hits the fan it's up to the unlucky rafters and kayakers with the real river skills that happen to be nearby to save your ass. I'm not on the river to fish dumbasses out of places they shouldn't be. I'm there to enjoy myself, the river and friends.
The other issue i have with your lack of control is that you create a real moving hazard to other boaters. I've been sent into trees and rocks because dumbfuck tubers drifted into where my oar stroke is giving me the option to either deck the tuber with my oar(very tempting) or take my lumps on the rock,tree or bank.
you aren't convincing me of anything with your pfd and throwbags. bfd. get a craft that takes some skill and where you are making the decisions til then you are a hazard to everyone else on the river.
The other issue i have with your lack of control is that you create a real moving hazard to other boaters. I've been sent into trees and rocks because dumbfuck tubers drifted into where my oar stroke is giving me the option to either deck the tuber with my oar(very tempting) or take my lumps on the rock,tree or bank.
you aren't convincing me of anything with your pfd and throwbags. bfd. get a craft that takes some skill and where you are making the decisions til then you are a hazard to everyone else on the river.
Joined
·
44 Posts
Can you tell us when and where you'll be tubing next? I want to come watch.
Thanks for all of your support. As for bkp77's message, and the part about skill...I would love to see you try what we do, it is harder than it looks. I make no claim that most tubers are nothing more than driftwood, but I would encourage those of you who view tubing as a "non-skill" to try it. You may be surprised. I grew up on canoes and kayaks doing east coast runs like the New, Gauley. James and such. Its not that I don't like the traditional crafts, I just really like what the tube has to offer. It is a whole different skill set with a completely different feel to it. Some of you are rafters, some of you is canoes, we just perfer the tube. To answer some questions, we tried using paddles (both kayak and hand) but they hinder rotation and tube grab-ability. Tommorow (sat.) I'll be up on the Lower North Saint Vrain and then Boulder/Upper Boulder Sunday morning. We have plans for Bailey once the water comes up and whatever else catches our eye. We're always looking to make friends on the river and hit some white with whoever. I'll work on getting pictures to show. Mvhyde, Adrenalin Falls...it does look fun.
Each his own... even the military has a don't ask, don't tell policy now.Tube1 said:
you sound like a decent person but who just doesn't respect rivers quite enough yet. I hope you and your buddies learn this respect the easy way and not hard way at some point.
we aren't going to change each others views so... good luck,be safe and stay the fuck out of my way.
and ,unfortunatly,SYOTR.
Hey, guess what? It is a craft we can control. Maybe we don't use paddles, but the group that has been mentioned is made up of swimmers, and we've gotten really good at being able to control the tubes. Maybe it's not as efficient as a paddle, but guess what, it still takes skill. And the reason we use safety gear is so we don't have to be rescued by rafters and kayakers. If any of you fall out, you and we are wearing the exact same gear.bkp77 said:
And as to tubers drifting into your area, it's the same rule as on a ski slope. You're supposed to watch out for those in front of you, but if you're smart, you're also watching what's happening behind you. Sometimes people get out of control. I've seen it happen to rafts, to kayaks, to canoes, to tubers. It's something that just happens. Yes, some of the tubers are rude, but some of the kayaks I've encountered are rude as well. Just because we're not using the same equipment you are doesn't mean you have to put everyone down.
How are we not respecting the river quite enough? Most of us (us being the group who y'all have been talking about) don't ever go alone, and usually it's a group of at least four people. We don't do rivers and runs that are above our skill level, and we scout the harder stuff before we run it. It's basically what a rafter or kayaker would do; we just have a different method of getting down the river. And none of us do a run we don't feel comfortable doing. We have a pretty good sense of what we can and can't do, and we listen to our intuition if it's saying, "Maybe not this run." As a group, we've had more injuries playing frisbee, longboard, running, and mountain climbing than on the river.bkp77 said:Each his own... even the military has a don't ask, don't tell policy now.Tube1 said:
you sound like a decent person but who just doesn't respect rivers quite enough yet. I hope you and your buddies learn this respect the easy way and not hard way at some point.
we aren't going to change each others views so... good luck,be safe and stay the fuck out of my way.
and ,unfortunatly,SYOTR.
We tend to view holes as something to get into, have fun in, then get out. The nature of our sport is to stick the holes, not blast through. As far as abilities go, we have varying skill levels within our group. Not everyone does the serious water. The bigger part the group is working on the class IV drops with only a couple of us running the big stuff. And not everyone wants to run anything more serious than what they are doing currently. I say, do what your comfortable with.
I'm with, bkp77. I just don't think it is a smart idea. I've tubed before and for the most part, control is available but only in slower current. Creeks should not be run in tubes. it would be impossible to: avoid all the obsticles, stay on line, and stop yourself if anything went wrong or one simply needed to stop. Catching eddies is the most important thing when creeking, and big eddies aren't always an option. Most creeks offer small, sometimes turbulent eddies and there is no way a tuber can catch micro eddies.
I'm glad to hear that you all made it safe down black rocks, and i have no idea how the trip went. But ask yourself: how many times did you fall off the tube? even if you were able to get right back on, how many times did you end up swimming, even if it was just for a second? As we have seen, far too frequently this season, a second is all it takes, no matter who is on the shore running safety. As tubers, your odds for accidents increases dramatically and unfortunately, it is only a matter of time. Good luck.
I'm glad to hear that you all made it safe down black rocks, and i have no idea how the trip went. But ask yourself: how many times did you fall off the tube? even if you were able to get right back on, how many times did you end up swimming, even if it was just for a second? As we have seen, far too frequently this season, a second is all it takes, no matter who is on the shore running safety. As tubers, your odds for accidents increases dramatically and unfortunately, it is only a matter of time. Good luck.
1 - 20 of 40 Posts
Join the discussion
Join now to ask and comment!