At 23:03 02/21/2000 EST, JCMARTIN43_at_aol.com wrote: > >A hypothesis: I can remember the first time I paddled next to Maligiaq at the '98 DelMarVa retreat and >wondered how this young Greenlander could have his own cultural tradition of paddling so screwed up! >It was all wrong --- a more vertical stroke, a far longer stroke, exit for the paddle was much too far >aft. Where was the true "Greenland tradition"? > >What I think now, with some time for reflection, is that Maligiaq paddles just exactly like Maligiaq, >and not "the Greenlander", 'cause it's just possible that we're looking at idealized and not actual >styles when we talk about Greenland paddling, and maybe that idealized style not only doesn't exist but, >in fact, shouldn't exist. There are acceptable variations in most styles, and some work better for >different people. I think he's learned that, and is paddling optimally for himself, not for a "certified" >Greenland style. Maybe. But he sure is fun to watch! > >Jack Martin i managed to "watch" him as we paddled 17+ miles down an easy river... and he made it look easy. since i've had a bit of experience as an instructor, i watched him, and compared that to what i was seeing, and decided his style fit him... i was able to learn a lot in the time we paddled together... but to put it into another perspective, we paddled a piece of river that is normally run as 2 short day trips, or one really long one. the 10 mile course gets paddled 10 - 15 times a year, as a club trip, more as pick ups. it drops a total of 10 feet in the 10 miles. 2 feet at the put in, 2 feet at a diversion dam, and 6 feet over the rest of the 9.5 miles ... flat!! and generally shallow. the "standard trip" is meet at 9, shuttle by 9:30, on the watre by 10, off the river between 12:30 & 2, depending on flow & amount of playing. the other section drops more, but is flatter on the flats!! and has a dam to portage. you do this part first then the next 10 mile stretch. this piece usually take 1 1/2 to 2 hours.... my tired body followed maligiaq 17.5 miles down the river, including portage from hell**, in 2 1/2 hours. ** it was a 30 minute portage... he wanted to run it, and when i turned ghost white, he reconsidered ;-) ... the water this day was running high, nowhere near flood stage, but i've never seen the dam at this flow. average is 7-800cfs, it was 3200 cfs!! i learned about the sliding stroke, how to use a paddle as a tool to propel your body & boat in various directions, with different forces... then later in the summer i saw other folks trying to mimic what he was doing, and it didn't work for them... isn't that what you're saying ralph?!! mark [ -- #------canoeist[at]netbox[dot]com-------------------------------------- mark zen o, o__ o_/| o_. po box 474 </ [\/ [\_| [\_\ ft. lupton, co 80621-0474 (`-/-------/----') (`----|-------\-') #~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~~~~_at_~~~~~ http://www.jacknjillz.com/paddler [index of Paddling websites I manage] Rocky Mtn Sea Kayak Club, Colorado River Flows, Poudre Paddlers The Colorado Paddlers' Resource, Rocky Mtn Canoe Club Trip Page -- Computers are useless. They can only give you answers. --Pablo Picasso *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - All postings copyright the author and not to be reproduced outside PaddleWise without author's permission Submissions: paddlewise_at_lists.intelenet.net Subscriptions: paddlewise-request_at_lists.intelenet.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************Received on Mon Feb 21 2000 - 20:38:57 PST
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