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Those who like to be in permanent contact with the water and spray of the rapids will regard hydrospeed as their ideal sport. Riding a hydrospeed is much like riding a sleigh on the surface of the water, literally feeling all the intensity of a river's rapids. Your arms and upper body are supported by the hydrospeed, a small polythene plastic board specially designed for descending rapids which is mainly steered by your arms, although fins are needed to reach truly vertigo-inducing speeds. It goes without saying that the feeling of steering yourself among the rapids is both exciting and uniquely intense.

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Use a specialist company
The best advice available if you fancy trying this exciting sport is to use a specialist adventure sport company, which offers all the guarantees and can call upon professionals who know the river and its changing currents like the backs of their hands. They will also provide you with the correct equipment (hydrospeed, reinforced wetsuit, lifejacket, fins and helmet), and give you a quick course on how to handle the hydrospeed, as well as accompanying you on your descent. During the quick course, the monitors will show you the basic position to adopt with your body, how to steer it through different types of current and how to avoid colliding with rocks and other obstacles, how to reduce speed and what to do if the hydrospeed flips over.

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Having the correct equipment is vital. It has a double mission: to protect you from the cold of the water and, above all, from any scrape, impact or scratch caused by the stones, rocks and branches that will appear as you descend the river. For this reason wearing a full body wetsuit of at least 5mm in thickness is essential. Also advisable is special protection for your legs, which are fully submerged in the water and thus exposed to any obstacle in the way. Gloves, neoprene socks and boots with a special grip on the soles for the fins are also vital. Finally, the helmet should be padded to resist any impact.

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When and where to hydrospeed?
The best time to hydrospeed is undoubtedly March to April when the river is at its fastest due to ice melting at the source and when it reaches its highest level, making any impact against underwater rocks more unlikely. Some prefer to hydrospeed at the end of spring and in summer, when the water runs less fast, is not so cold and the rapids are less dangerous.

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The Spanish peninsula has many spots where you can hydrospeed and feel the force and intensity of fluvial currents. The pick of these are: Pallars Sobria (Lleida), G�llego y Cinca (Huesca), Mi�o (Galicia) and Sella (Asturias).