L.A. SPEAK : River Guide Gab

air brace: n. a passenger who is hesitant to dip his paddle into the water.

carnage: n. boating mishaps, including flipped boats, passengers overboard and lost gear. “If we go over Lewis’s Leap sideways, we’re gonna have some serious carnage. “

hole: n. a depression in the river, caused by a reversal in current as water flows over a rock ledge or submerged boulder. “Don’t get sucked into that hole at the bottom of Tunnel Chute.”

hydraulics: n. waves and holes, typical of big water. “During spring runoff, we see some big hydraulics on this river.”

lilydipper: n. a passenger who uses wimpy little paddle strokes. “I was stuck for two days with a boatload of lilydippers. “

Maytagged: v. to be held underwater and thrashed around by a strong current. “I got Maytagged bad on the Upper Kern.”

surf: v. to paddle into a hole so that the reversal cancels out the downstream current, holding the raft in place for a short, bumpy ride. “We surfed nearly half a minute before the hole spit us out.”

swimmer: n. a passenger who falls out of the boat.

teacup: v. to send a raft spinning downriver with all the passengers jammed into the stern so that the bow end lifts out of the water, simulating the Disneyland teacup ride. “We teacupped Hell’s Kitchen on our last run.”

toaster: v. to accidentally wedge a paddle into a narrow space between rocks, like slipping a slice of bread into a toaster.

wrap: v. to become stuck against a boulder in midcurrent, often requiring a long, tedious rescue. “If we start to wrap, everyone throw your weight to the high side.”