MD Chute Out

Maryland Chute Out Freestyle Series 2010

August 25, 2010

August MD Chute Out POSTPONED until Thursday, September 2

Unfortunately I have to move the Chute Out until next Thursday. It was scheduled to be tomorrow, August 26. Had a personal commitment come up for tomorrow that I cannot get out of.

Hopefully this will also give the mighty Potomac a chance to come up a bit and give us a better playboating level. Pray for rain!

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The MD Chute Out is a free, fun, community freestyle competition. The competition is low-key, and participants help to judge each other. There are classes for K1-A (good), K1-B (learning), K1-W, C-1, and Juniors. Please come out and have a good time paddling with your friends and making new ones! Prizes are given away in a raffle after the event, open to all participants.

This year the MD Chute Out is once again part of the World Kayak Hometown Throwdown series, a national series of low-key, fun grassroots freestyle events. Coverage at:

http://www.worldkayakblogs.com/throwdown

Hometown Throwdown sponsors for this year are: Jackson Kayak, Immersion Research, Shred Ready, Smith Optics, Mountain Khakis, Rapid Transit, Kayak Session, and Kokatat.

These great folks help us have fun!

- James

2010 Results: April Hometown Throwdown post, May results, June results
2009 Results: Final Series Results,  April/May Hometown Throwdown blog post
2008 Results: Final Series Results
2008 WorldKayak Event Reports: April, May, June, July
2007 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
2006 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
2005 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
2004 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, October
2003 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
2002 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
2001 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
2000 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, August, September
1999 Results: Final Series Results, April, May, June, July, September, October

The Maryland Chute-Out is a whitewater rodeo competition series for paddlers of all skill levels, held on the Potomac River below Great Falls. It will give local paddlers, many of whom learned to kayak on the Potomac, a chance to “strut their stuff” in a low-key, relaxed, and fun competition.The rodeo will be free to all competitors.

The Chute-Out series will be held the last Thursday evening of every month, starting in April, and will run through September. Registration will be from 4:30 - 5:30pm in the lower lot at Angler’s; competition begins at 6:00pm. Classes of competition will be: Mens’ K1-A, Mens’ K1-B, Women’s K1, Junior K1, and C1.

Prior to each event, information will be posted on:
Paddle Prattle: http://www.monocacycanoe.org/mccboard/mccboard.html
BoaterTalk: http://www.boatertalk.com/forum/BoaterTalk

Format

The competition will be held in either a hole riding format, or a “free riding” format, where boaters perform tricks as they move downstream through a rapid. Hole riding will take place in a round-robin, with each boater getting two or three rides, scored until they wash out of the hole, or up to 30 seconds. Free riding competitors will get one 90-second run through the rapid, from an eddy above across a set finish line. Any move performed within that time period in the current of the river will be scored. Moves performed in eddies will not be scored, although eddyline moves will be. A point penalty is assessed if the boater is late across the line. The decision of format for each event will be made that day, mostly based on water levels.

Prizes are awarded every month through a raffle–all participants and volunteers are eligible. Scores will accumulate to determine series winners after the final event in September. Series champs get cool medals and the all-powerful bragging rights.?

Judging

Judging will be performed by competitors or volunteers, and consists of two components: technical and variety. For the technical scoring, volunteer technical judges will score all direction changes. Possible technical scores are:

  • 1 point for each 180-degree flat directional change in the hole
  • 2 points for each elevated (45 degrees or more) end
  • 4 points for each vertical (70 degrees or more) end (including loop ends)
  • Double points for each clean end

If a qualified volunteer variety judge is available, that judge will score variety once
per trick according to a set score sheet. Sample variety scores are:

Hole or wave

  • 10 points for cartwheel or blunt (45 degrees and more)
  • 15 points for splitwheel or backstab (45 degrees and more) or mystery move
  • 20 points for tricky wu, loop, space godzilla, sidekick or air blunt
  • 30 points for pan am, flipturn, or donkey flip
  • 40 points for helix

Freeriding

  • 10 points for rock spin, eddyline wheel, splatwheel, or wavewheel
  • 20 points for kickflip or macho move

Variety notes:

  • Moves can be scored in both directions, such as both left and right cartwheels, or front and back loops
  • Moves completed that result in a flush will still be scored
  • Splitwheel, tricky wu — one end must be vertical
  • Loop — no distinction is made for air loops
  • Sidekick, air blunt, pan am, flipturn, donkey flip, helix — separation from the water must be clean and full
  • If a qualified volunteer variety judge is NOT available for a particular class, the variety will be judged by each technical judge on a 1-10 scale

Variety point values will only be scored once per move per ride, and added directly to the technical scores.

Special awards

There will be additional awards for the following:

  • “Broken Paddle” award for best rodeo carnage (awarded as called for)

If you’d like to enter any of these events, all you have to do is show up. The site of the rodeo will be determined on a month-by-month basis and announced online (see above). However, due to predictably low water levels during the summer months, most competitions will be held at Maryland Chute.?

Archived old MD Chute Out site.

Jim Hubshman hitting his loop

Jim Hubshman hitting his loop at the MD Chute Out during the "A" class competition as Milan Rusnak, Jim Buley, Mike Mathwin, and Danny Stock watch in awe, and await their turn.