SCORING FOR THE WHITEWATER READINESS QUIZ
Take the grand total of all the numbers you wrote down while taking the quiz and subtract 11. Done.
How this works in a little more detail:
For each 1 you get 0 points.
2 = 1 point.
3 = 2 points.
4 = 3 points.
Consider this:
Lowest possible score: 0.
Highest possible score: 33.
SCORE RANGES
- 0-7 Beginner, still. Stick to class I-II water and the pool, and take classes. Confront your fears and master the basic skills of the sport on easy water. Start playing in the river.
- 8-14 Early Intermediate. Start finding and doing hard moves on class II water and master the skills before stepping it up to class III. You may run class III rapids from top to bottom without flipping over but that does not make you a class III paddler. What makes you a class III paddler is the ability to work those same rapids, catching eddies and using waves and holes to make moves in the heavy water.
- 15-21 Strong Intermediate. Run all the class III (and a taste of IV) that is available in your region, at a variety of flows. Play in bigger features. Learn to surf holes and how to get out of them. Start doing challenging moves on class III water before going on class IV runs or class III at high water. Scout the class IV rapids that you run carefully and repeatedly, and over time, master every line in each rapid. Remember that you can still portage or run shuttle whenever a rapid or run feels wrong.
- 22-33 Advanced. Consider class IV whitewater unless you have a severe weakness in one or two areas, in which case, address those. Run a LOT of class III and IV at a variety of flows and develop a strong, safety-conscious crew before considering class V.
