This is a great challenge if you have the right location to set it up. A diamond course needs to be set with the middle two gates positioned on the same line in good eddies so that both can be paddled as either upstream or downstream gates.
The course is defined as Down, Up or Down, Up or Down, Down without specifying which of the middle two gates is gate 2 and which gate 3. One option might be Down, Up Left, Down Right, Down (ULDR) – see Diagram. In total there are 8 course options: ULUR, ULDR, DLUR, DLDR, URUL, URDL, DRUL, DRDL and all courses have a figure-of-eight element.
Paddlers can be challenged in a number of ways e.g.
1. Paddle the course that is easiest for you.
2. Paddle the course that will be quickest for you.
3. Paddle a course that will be hard.
4. Paddle a course where a spin is required.
Another challenge is to number the 8 courses and randomize the option to be paddled by the throw of a die (Eight-sided dice can be obtained on eBay or Amazon). Paddlers must paddle the given option. Be warned, dice do not float. If the die is put into a small glass jar and shaken with the jar upside down, the outcome can be easily seen. If the jar is dropped into the water it will float, if dropped onto rocks however …
Addition by Steve - can't wait to try this out, or a variation thereof. My mind is buzzing with ideas of how to pick sets of activities that can be randomised in this way! I found some plastic jars on Amazon - this may solve the dropping on rocks issue!
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