Cobra Oar Locks & Undercut Rocks | Gear Garage Live Show

Cobra Oar Locks & Undercut Rocks | Gear Garage Live Show

From Gear Garage Live Show by Whitewater Guidebook

May 27, 2026 · 51 min

About this episode

Zach discusses the dangers of undercut rocks and answers viewer questions about rafting gear and safety.

Cobra Oar Locks & Undercut Rocks | Gear Garage Live Show This podcast is the audio version of the Gear Garage live show, where Zach covers whitewater rafting, river safety, gear, and answers viewer questions. In this episode, Zach discusses the dangers of undercut rocks and addresses a question about a 14-foot Star raft and calculating oar length. Episode Summary Zach begins the show by highlighting that this episode will focus on answering user questions and revisiting a video from Bedrock on the Grand Canyon. The main technical segment covers a question regarding undercut rocks and what happens when a swimmer encounters them. He notes that hazards like nasty ledge holes, weirs, trees, and sieves are also major concerns. To look at specific statistics, Zach pulls up the American Whitewater accident database to review trends regarding fatalities, highlighting that "flush drowning" represents about 19% of recorded fatalities. The second user question comes from a viewer who purchased a 14-foot PVC Star raft from NRS for $600 and wants to know if they wasted their money, alongside asking for the best oar length for a 66-inch wide boat. Zach reassures the viewer that $600 is an…

People in this episode

Host: Zach

Topics covered

Keywords

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: American Whitewater

Products: 14-foot PVC Star raft, Cobra Oar Locks

Places: Grand Canyon

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