Maybe kids really can walk on water.

Angus, a 14-year-old from Alberta, Canada, steps backward down a white-water river inside a giant, inflatable wheel, and he smashes rump-first into a big black boulder.

But he doesn’t tumble into the water. “I hit the rock and then flipped around facing the right way again,” he laughs. “It was pretty funny.”

That’s how it goes when you ride a Hydro Bronc, which “looks like a giant hamster ball,” according to Paige, 12, also from Alberta. True—if the hamster ball were air-filled so it floated and had handles, a safety harness, and a circular running track inside. “You climb in, clip on, and walk,” says Bryan, 15, of British Columbia, Canada.

As the rider steps onto the up-curving surface of the mesh track, the Bronc rolls forward. To reverse, walk backward. Simple? Not quite. “It’s really hard to keep yourself stable because you keep tipping to the sides,” says Angus’ 12-year-old brother, Cyrus. And, says Catherine, 15, of Alberta, Canada, “the next day you’re very sore.”

Hydro Broncs roll on lakes. They surf ocean waves. But to see a Bronc really run, check one out on white water. “It goes pretty fast, and when you hit the rapids you’re going even faster,” Angus says. “It’s a rush!”

Text by Mark Henricks
Photograph by Tim Rue