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Story: Extreme sports and adventure sports

River surfers

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River surfers

River surfers float down the Kawarau River in 2012. The surfers use specially designed sledges on which they rest their chest and tuck their arms for grip and control. An essential difference between river surfing and rafting is that surfers control their own steering.

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Serious Fun Riversurfing

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How to cite this page

Ben Schrader, Extreme sports and adventure sports – Adventure sports, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/photograph/40775/river-surfers (accessed 4 June 2026).

Story by Ben Schrader, published 29 April 2013.