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WILL JACKSON’S NEW RICOCHET BE SHORT ENOUGH FOR SLALOM TO BOUNCE BACK?
PLAYBOATER ERIC JACKSON is hoping that his new Ricochet sla- lom kayak will get more paddlers off waves, out of holes, and into the gates. Although he’s best known for
being the reigning world freestyle champion, Jackson’s roots are in slalom. He paddled gates during a nine-year stint on the U.S. na- tional team before giving up sla- lom in 1998. “Slalom was stagnant,” says Jackson. “It was about big, fragile giants. It wasn’t fun anymore.” Jackson developed the Rico-
chet after the International Canoe Federation shaved half a metre off boat-length requirements and made 3.5 metres the new mini- mum length for K1s. The Jackson Kayak Ricochet—
the only slalom boat manufac- tured in the U.S.—is shorter than
D V D R E V I E W Dynasty YOUNG GUNS PRODUCTIONS
With any film from Young Guns Productions, you know what you’re go- ing to get: big tricks and sick lines on rivers around the world all set to a pounding soundtrack. Pure Paddling Porn. YGP is Rush Sturges, Brooks Baldwin and Marlow Long—three young
freestyle wizards that have been making and starring in movies such as New Reign since 2001. The money shot of Dynasty is the first docu- mented Hail Mary—a flatwater loop done off the lip of a waterfall. Not coincidentally, that paddling first is coupled with a first in whitewater filmmaking—a soundtrack rap song, “Adrenaline Rush,” written and per- formed by the movie’s stars. On the mic or the river, these guys go bigger than anyone out there. If that’s what you want, that’s what you’ve got.
DYNASTY BY THE NUMBERS: > Length of film: 30 minutes
> Minutes devoted to opening or closing credits and sponsor spots: 7.5
> Minutes devoted to dialogue: 1
> Number of times someone flashed a gangsta sign in the opening credits: 10
> Number of personal watercraft jumping shots: 6
> Number of rap songs by YGP’s own Rush Sturges on the soundtrack: 1
> Number of “bitches” Rush Sturges has, according to the lyrics of “Adrenaline Rush”: More than a Mormon fundamentalist.
20
> Number of women paddlers named onscreen in the movie: 3
> Number of male paddlers named onscreen in the movie: 26
> Rating out of 10 for huge tricks: 8 > Rating out of 10 for sick lines: 8 > Rating out of 10 for plot or storyline: N/A
$30 US.
www.helipress.com Reviewed by Bryan McKenzie
European-made boats, many of which haven’t dropped to the new minimum length. And rather than being just a scaled-down version of a four-metre boat, Jackson says the Ricochet incorporates playboat design features such as a planing hull and a slicier stern. But Jackson may have his
work cut out for him infiltrating the closed ranks of the slalom scene. Doug Corkery, a slalom event
organizer from Ottawa thinks that Jackson is off his line in his mission to bring slalom to the masses. “Slalom boats are still at least
3.5 meters long. I don’t know how many rodeo paddlers will cross over just because of the rule change,” he says, before emphasizing the different types of paddlers attracted to the two sports. Slalom is thought to at-
tract more serious athletes while rodeos are populated by more free-spirited thrillseekers. Jackson remains convinced
that the Ricochet will help sla- lom bounce back to a level of popularity it hasn’t seen since the 1970s. He claims it is just as fast yet more manoeuvrable than European boats and points out it will be available in three sizes. What’s more, it will be no more expensive than high-end Euro- pean boats, but without the $175 shipping charges. “The Ricochet is going to make slalom fun again,” says Jackson. Maybe so, but when the last
paddler crosses the finish line it will be race results more than low prices and length specs that will add up to success for competitive slalom racers. —Conor Mihell
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