GeigBC wrote:

Hi, all - here's an informal survey for Canoe & Kayak magazine. thanks! - Beth

Whitewater parks are springing up all over, like the new one in Reno, Nevada.
They bring whitewater into the public eye, help promote the sport, and give
paddlers excellent and accessible practice spots. But they can also be costly
to build, and are they as good as paddling a natural river? What's your
opinion of whitewater parks? Will you be using one or more?

Regularly.

I've used a bunch of different artificial courses over the past decade.
With the lack of whitewater in some areas or at some times of year, they
are the only thing that has flowing water. If I don't have another place
to paddle, I'll gladly use them *if* they don't cost too much.

I've used artificial whitewater channels in different countries, and
they vary wildly in their difficulty (from class I to class IV/V (the
artficial slalom course near Bratislava had to be rebuilt just after
opening the course because it was too difficult and too dangerous)),
their possibilities and challenge to slalom boaters and playboaters and
their price.

I regularly use the Troja slalom course on the Vltava in Prague, which
is a good example of a course that has something to offer for both
slalom boaters and playboaters. In the evenings after a certain time
it's free to use, during the days and in the weekends it's charging a
small fee.

Wilko

--
Wilko van den Bergh Wilkoa t)dse(d o tnl
Eindhoven The Netherlands Europe
Look at the possibilities, don't worry about the limitations.
http://wilko.webzone.ru/