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By Stephen Wright

It was bound to happen: a move-blending-frenzy of epic proportions! Last
year it was blunts-to-mcnastys, and back loops-to-mcnastys. This year there
have been even more discoveries for more hole-paddling fun! Some moves just
seem to finish in ways that could naturally lead into others. EJ and I
spent a lot of time in Salida trying to figure-out what could be blended
together. It turns out that just about any move hole move that starts
forward (like a loop, phonix monkey, tricky wu, air wheel, etc….), can be
linked following a move that finishes backwards. For example, throw a back
blunt, and land starting a phonix monkey or air loop. OR (as in the video),
throw a super-blunt (which is an old-school blunt to clean stern end) into a
phonix monkey. Try a back blunt into a tricky wu. They don’t have to
harder moves to be fun: try to do a cartwheel (or clean cartwheel, or
several cartwheels) and throw the 3rd end into a loop! We even hit
blunt-to-back loop combos in the FiBark competition. I actually saw EJ link
loop-to-orbit-to-back loop-to-mcnasty in practice–INSANE! Ultimately
blending moves adds can add more excitement to a spot that you may be
bored-with.

I only had the camera set-up for 1 days worth of paddling a few weeks
before the event, so all the moves aren’t textbook in the film, but we have
hit all of them clean at one point or another. I think that this is just
the beginning of what’s possible to be blended. We’ve only scratched the
surface. Go try some of them! Have a blast!

Oh, yeah…Enjoy the Jedi Flip finally caught on video (QuickTime 8.6 MB)

Live from Keener World Domination Headquarters on the Ottawa,

Stephen Wright