RE: [Paddlewise] 5 rolls is not enough

Sid wrote: "The issue is not the number of rolls, but the ability to execute
a roll in
varying conditions."

I agree that the best practice for a roll is trying it in varying
conditions, which is exactly what I was doing when I tried a roll at sea, in
full outfit. However, in the pool there are only so many conditions you can
create: No waves, no wind, no salt. That's why I opted for a different
approach: to learn as many rolls as possible. In the end you find out that
each of those rolls is not a trick that you perform like a robot, but that
all the seperate moves from all the different rolls form a pool of moves
that you can choose from at will. It's kind of like sitting on a floor and
getting up: Each one of us has a hundred ways to do that. We all do it
different, we all do it different each time. We don't think about how to do
it, we just select a few moves from a library of thousands of moves,
according to the floor we are sitting on, avoiding any aching muscles,
headaches or obstacles and at the same time acting out our general feeling
of the moment. That's what I wanted to reach in my rolling techniques: A
complete freedom of movement under water. It worked for me: In my story, and
last summer in many other occasions, I DID roll. Next time in the pool I
should practice my wet exit, since I haven't made one in the last year. 

-----Original Message-----
From: SNStone [mailto:SNStone_at_email.msn.com]
Sent: Tuesday, March 13, 2001 12:21 AM
To: Blaauw, Niels; PaddleWise_at_paddlewise.net
Subject: RE: [Paddlewise] 5 rolls is not enough


The issue is not the number of rolls, but the ability to execute a roll in
varying conditions. You learned and practiced in one environment and then
put it to the test in another environment. Rather than learning another roll
I woudl focus on practicing in more difficult conditions wearing the
equipment you would use in a real paddling situation.  You must  also have
one roll that you are totally confident will work.  I initially learned to
roll using an extended paddle (pawlatta) roll. I periodically practice it as
I know I can get back up. It's my  insurance policy.

When it comes to rolling, quality over quantity.

sid

-----Original Message-----
From: owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net
[mailto:owner-paddlewise_at_paddlewise.net]On Behalf Of Blaauw, Niels
Sent: Monday, March 12, 2001 6:18 AM
To: PaddleWise_at_paddlewise.net
Subject: [Paddlewise] 5 rolls is not enough


First: Thanks for all the information on hull speed. Whenever I meet a
kayakker with sensors on his hull and paddle, a laptop on his sprayskirt
connected to various parts of his body and breathing through a machine on
his deck, I know I am not watching someone who escaped the hospital and took
his mechanic lungs with him. I just met someone trying out a new kayak. Just
remember that your normal roll might be a problem with all this equipment.
Seriously: I got data on my own boat and a lot of improvements on my test
ideas. Thanks.

Something else:

Last winter I managed to teach myself the sweep roll, C-to-C, screw-roll,
dry-sigarette-roll, broken-paddle-roll and handroll, all on both sides of
the boat, all with a dry and a swamped boat, all with and without a PFD.
Sounds solid, doesn't it? So on my first trip at sea, I decided to cool my
head with my most solid roll on my most solid side... I managed, but it was
a close call. What happened? I lined my paddle on the left side of my boat,
rolled, but didn't manage to make the first half, due to the combined
flotation of my drytop and PFD in the salt water. No problem, I thought, I
will roll on the other side. I brought the paddle to that side (right side),
but that gave enough force to push my body under water and to the left side
of the boat. Deadlock! In the end, by moving very slow and carefully, I
managed to get my body and paddle on the same side of the boat and perform
the roll. By then my companions had noticed I had some trouble and were
preparing an eskimo-rescue. I felt the bow of one of their boats go through
my hair when I finally rolled up.
Weeks later I concluded that the only way out of this problem is a sculling
roll, that you can start in any position, upside down or laying on any side.
By now I added this roll to my repertoire.

What surprises me is that very few people around me have mastered the
sculling roll and nobody regards it as an important technique. Do they have
non-floating PFD's, bricks in their head, just not a clue, or some other
solution?


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PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed
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