Last week I went on a trip to Saint Pierre De Bœuf. Here’s a summary of my experience and why you should consider a trip there too.
To most people in the UK, the idea of driving three quarters of the way across France just to go to a single artificial white water course for the week sounds a bit mad. But, Saint Pierre De Bœuf is an artificial course with a difference. It isn’t some concrete ditch, but a kayaking Mecca where some of the best in the world come to train and practice. Located around half an hour south of Lyon, it’s a beautiful tree lined environment with warm water and features that come across as naturalistic in their implementation.
This was my second time out there, having last visited in 2019. It was myself and Emily’s last abroad trip together, so admittedly it is a special place for me. The attraction of a visit includes the ability to camp directly next to the river, so you can get on and off as you please. There’s great toilet and shower facilities, and a great bar too. The town of St Pierre De Bœuf is a beautiful old medieval town, and the weather is generally exceptional. The week we went saw temperatures in the mid-30s centigrade.
Our group consisted of Iain, Ingela, Chris, Alistair, and Chris’ wife and Alastair’s mum, Alison. Oh, and me of course. I travelled with Iain and Ingela in their camper van and then camped in a tent for the duration of the trip. I’m not big on camping these days, but I purchased a new tent that goes up in seconds and can be packed away nearly as quickly, so it was made as painless as possible!
My aim for the week, aside from just having chilled down river sessions with everyone, was to focus on the main freestyle feature near the top of the course. The wave can be slightly intimidating due to a sticky hole, the rather ominously titled “Washing Machine” that lies directly below it. More on that in a bit! I wanted to see if I could regain some of my confidence, including going for loops again. In fact, the last time I did a white water loop was during my previous visit to Saint Pierre De Bœuf!
For others in the group, the site offered the opportunity to improve river running skills, as well as practicing slalom. The river can become quite busy with pole dancers and rafts at times! But, because you can get on an off as you please, it’s easy to pick a quieter period.
We spent the first couple of days easing in and getting to know the river and features. A couple of days in, I joined in with Dave on the main feature, who had unexpectedly driven across France to join us! My head games were back, with me timidly doing ferry glides across it. At one point I flushed off sideways into the Washing Machine. The result was a protracted fight to get out, stuck in a side surf while trying to get my boat angled forward to carve out! Washing Machine was having none of that, however! I think I did more rolls during that beating than I’ve done in the previous two years combined! The good news is that I stayed the fight and stayed calm. I was tempted at times to just pull the deck, but I made the choice to hold in there and eventually found a window to position my boat to carve out.
It was a thorough beatdown, but I surprised myself by staying calm and working my way out. Far from being a negative experience, it was one that I could be highly positive about. I can stick it out if I want to! Although I was rather less enthusiastic about trying anything in the main feature afterwards. I decided to call it a day and start afresh the following morning.
A lazy start was had the next day. While walking up to the feature to watch the more experienced and talented locals, I spotted someone in a boat I recognised, but couldn’t place it. He didn’t speak English, but luckily Dave was pretty fluent in French and asked him where the boat was from originally. The young chap told us it used to be Tom Dolle’s boat. For those not into the names in the sport, Tom Dolle is a three time world freestyle champion, and also very handy at running the gnar on rivers too. He’s a regular coach and leader with Quim Fontané’s European White Water School (EWWS). In other words, he’s one of the best kayakers in the world right now. There’s even a freestyle entry move named after him!
A bit later on in the day I spotted that Tom was actually on the water visiting the area. I pointed him out to Dave, and we watched as he threw down on the feature with his trademark style. A while later in the day and Dave was getting ready to go on the river. “Have you heard the news?” he asked me. “No?”, I replied. “We’re having coaching off Tom Dolle at 4pm this afternoon!” Dave had got into conversation with him and wasted no time arranging a session off the cuff!
Getting coached by Tom Dolle
Now, this created a mixture of feelings from “Oh wow!” to “Oh s**t!” given my current lack of confidence. To say I was nervous during the day would be an understatement, but then 4pm rolled around. I got kitted up and onto the water. Strangely, the nervousness began to evaporate. I was about to get coaching off one of the best freestylers in the world right now, and I decided that I wasn’t going to waste the opportunity getting tips on how to do basic ferry glides across a wave!
I began with spins, and got some great feedback on how to improve them. The spin is a basic movement, but doing them well is difficult and they can always be improved. Spins are also a foundation of freestyle, being a key method for getting the boat to the top of a feature before driving back down to throw more advanced moves like loops and blunts. In other words, spins aren’t just a basic freestyle move, they are a key positioning technique.
However, Dave decided to try a loop and began getting feedback on how to plug straight and throw the move. I can do (wonky) flat water loops, and although I’m no expert, I have done numerous white water loops in the past. But, the last time I threw one was on this very feature back in 2019, and I’d lost the confidence since then to try them again. However, after seeing Dave attempt one, I decided now was the time to go for it. If not now, when?
It took me a few goes to get a straight plug. But the numerous rolls in the feature, along with dealing with Washing Machine more times than I care to remember was boosting my confidence no end. I was beginning to feel like my younger kayaking self again, enjoying the experience of going upside down. I was rolling without thinking again, just on instinct and feel. After some great feedback from Tom, I adjusted the plugging position and I nailed a full loop (video below).
Okay, I flushed out, but the fact that I brought the boat fully round and generally straight was a big win. I went on to do another, which retained. The amazing coaching feedback from Tom gave me a lot to work on and think about going forward, and the extra confidence I now have means that I’m much more open to just trying stuff again.
The following day we went back on the feature, and I managed another retaining loop. The session was so good that we arranged to have another session with Tom a couple of days later.
Down river freestyle
The second session rolled around and we worked on down river freestyle, with Tom challenging us to all sorts of different things, including plug looping off a mid-river rock as well as macho moves (a double pump over a wave into a plug and loop on the next wave). None of which were successful, but we had a go, and that’s the point! We did a lot of tailie practice, as well as tailie eddy catching over multiple continuous eddies. I also got some more tips on improving my double pump in the medium Rock Star V. Though it does seem that while I do love the boat, it is a tad high volume for me now.
We followed the down river session with more attempts at loops and looking at some more advanced ways to plug the nose in. I made some rather pathetic attempts to initiate a bow end into a split wheel and kept skipping off the feature. The less said about those the better, but again I now have the knowledge to work on these back home.
The week wasn’t just about getting unexpected amazing freestyle coaching. It was mainly about paddling with good friends. Getting up early and doing pre-breakfast laps is not something I usually go for. I’m usually a pretty terrible morning person! I can be a proper grump if I’m made to go kayaking early, or I’m faced with someone super enthusiastic to do so! On this trip however, I really enjoyed it. I felt good in my river running. Unfortunately we only had room for us all to take one boat on this trip. But, ideally I would take the freestyle boat and the Skuxx.
Going back to the idea of travelling across a continent to get to an artificial white water course, Saint Pierre De Bœf is about much more than the water. The whole vibe of the place is unlike any similar facility in the UK. In fact, the only place in the UK that’s close is Tryweryn, and even then it just isn’t the same. Saint Pierre De Bœf would make for an excellent club trip. A safe environment for beginners to advance their skills, as well as giving plenty of opportunities for advanced paddlers to find enjoyment as well.
No, it’s not a substitute for a big trip out to the Alps or Slovenia, but as a late summer trip when the water is low in those places, where beginners and advanced paddlers alike can find something fun to do, it makes an excellent venue.
The Kayaking Journal 
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