# Goin Big in Rubber



## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

Our favorite drops. Many were just plain stupid and did not take a lot of skill but all were fun for sure! Hope everyone had a great thanksgiving

Going big in rubber
https://vimeo.com/54120547[/url]


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## WillYates (Aug 3, 2007)

That was awesome!! I need to find some better paddlers to hangout with.


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## lhowemt (Apr 5, 2007)

Excellent! R1 now Dan??? That's serious, no skill? Bs


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

https://vimeo.com/54120547

Dont know why it put the [/url] at the end


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## salsasean (Apr 20, 2005)

Thanks, that was very fun to watch. Nice work.


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## ranchman44 (Apr 16, 2009)

AWESOME TOTALLY AWESOME !!!


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## Daggerdave (Sep 21, 2010)

incredible. super good. one question...... what is the band and song name after bruce? that was groovy shite.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Wow--insane drops!!


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

DaggerDave

The song is Skynryd Nation by Lynyrd Skynrd


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## bonzola (Apr 13, 2005)

Like


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## Roy (Oct 30, 2003)

Well I'll be damned--I guess they're good for something other than hauling beer. 

Nice work!


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## montuckyhuck (Mar 14, 2010)

Chuck Norris once asked Dan to take his daughter to prom, Dan said no and Chuck cried.


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## Redpaddle (Jan 10, 2007)

Geez, I used to think I'd run in a kayak anything that people would raft but not anymore.... That is strong work! How many rafts have you gone through and what was the rigid, padded modification "armhold" in the back of some of those boats?


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## Daggerdave (Sep 21, 2010)

wow on the skynard. cant believe i missed that. watched again. awesome man.


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

Redpaddle said:


> Geez, I used to think I'd run in a kayak anything that people would raft but not anymore.... That is strong work! How many rafts have you gone through and what was the rigid, padded modification "armhold" in the back of some of those boats?


Put a lot of tears in the SOTAR (over 30) in the first year or two. We have an AIRE now and have definitely been rougher on the AIRE but it is very resilient to tears (only 2) and their warranty kills it so they fixed them for free. The armhold was a cheap pool noodle from walmart to provide a little padding on the arm. Worked well though


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## yesimapirate (Oct 18, 2010)

Dan, you and your guys got BIG balls. And you just answered my question. I saw 3 boats, and was curious what your damage tally is on those boats with running/sliding/scraping over so many boulders and rocks.


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## MT4Runner (Apr 6, 2012)

Dan McCain said:


> The armhold was a cheap pool noodle from walmart to provide a little padding on the arm. Worked well though


Over a bar strapped to the boat? Looked rigid.


Very, very cool drops. Great mix of in-boat, pole-mounted, helmet-mounted, and shore footage. :smokin:

How many seasons' worth of footage in that video?


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

MT4Runner said:


> Over a bar strapped to the boat? Looked rigid.
> 
> 
> Very, very cool drops. Great mix of in-boat, pole-mounted, helmet-mounted, and shore footage. :smokin:
> ...


Around 4 seasons i think. No bar, we use to just use to a cam strap and if we took a hard hit it would leave a fairly large bruise on the arm so a good friend who kayaked with us suggested wrapping a pool noodle around the strap and duct taping it. Was a cheap solution and definitely added some padding. We went back to the strap for bigger drops now as was a hassle removing the noodle when we didn't need it.


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## billfish (Nov 22, 2009)

*more info*



Dan McCain said:


> Put a lot of tears in the SOTAR (over 30) in the first year or two. We have an AIRE now and have definitely been rougher on the AIRE but it is very resilient to tears (only 2) and their warranty kills it so they fixed them for free. The armhold was a cheap pool noodle from walmart to provide a little padding on the arm. Worked well though


 

That a pretty strong recommendation for Aire rafts durability. As long as your at it, which fabrics and floors are you using on which models and lengths? Any notes on paddling performance of different rafts also? 

Thanks! Great video!


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

billfish said:


> That a pretty strong recommendation for Aire rafts durability. As long as your at it, which fabrics and floors are you using on which models and lengths? Any notes on paddling performance of different rafts also?
> 
> Thanks! Great video!


Yeah we definitely love the AIRE boats. The warranty is unbeatable and their fabricate is super resilient. We find ourselves in some inescapable places from time to time and with the bladder inside you can usually do a quick fix to get yourself out where in other rafts a quick fix may not be an option. We use the standard 130D and it works for everything from big water like NF Payette and Tumwater to small creek type runs (little white salmon, CF Cowlitz, ect). We used the super duper puma for a little while and loved it but the 130 D suited us a bit more as the extra width provides us with a lot of extra stability. Our raft has the standard floor which takes in water and provides extra stability for bigger water. The retained water also makes the boat track well. I think in some cases the floors that do not hold water (AIRE makes these) have advantages especially in tight creeks where fast moves need to be made. For us though we wanted one boat that does it all and the one we have (130D) works unbelievably well. We also like the 130D for the splash factor and the fact that it dives into holes a little more which makes for a little greater splash factor which we enjoy. For R2in I would say there is no other boat that I would be more comfortable in (we have been in many). We have also been in the puma a couple times and this boat definitely makes some runs much more exciting (gives class 3 and 4 a much bigger feel). Hope this helps. If you have any other questions let me know.


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

Billfish,

A bit more info. There are two rafters in the northwest area named Hans Hoomans and Tom Marley that are very well known for rafting many of the hardest runs in the PNW area and I know Hans paddles the AIRE 130E and really likes it (I have not had the chance to paddle this one very much) and and I am pretty sure Tom paddles the same raft I do and loves it.


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## yakkeranna (Jul 8, 2009)

Dan, I would give you bigger props if you would have run BB with me.
-Anna


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## Dan McCain (Jul 4, 2012)

yakkeranna said:


> Dan, I would give you bigger props if you would have run BB with me.
> -Anna


Soon Anna, soon. You can't just hop in to huck Big Bro, you have to experience and appreciate rafting the entire run. Let me know a good day and we will make it happen!


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