Re: [Paddlewise] Forward paddling, paddle length and cocked wrists

In a message dated 5/9/01 5:31:06 AM Pacific Daylight Time, 
rebyl_kayak_at_iprimus.com.au writes:
(PeterO):

>  the topic
>  was forward paddling with Lynda Lehman, an Olympic kayaker and instructor 
of
>  many years experience. 

The operative words here might be "Olympic Kayaker".  One of the problems 
which repeatedly comes up is that people tend to think and teach that 
"technique is technique", without allowing appropriate changes in technique, 
style and equipment for different types of paddling.  The "best" technique 
for touring is not, IMNSHO, the same as racing or whitewater technique.  And 
yet, there are many instructors who come from a racing or whitewater 
background and therefore seem to the novice to possess the correct 
credentials, who teach racing or whitewater technique for use in touring 
(whether casual or extended self-supported distance touring), storm paddling, 
etc.  I'm not saying that Lynda was necessarily doing this, just voicing a 
caution that you analyze what someone shows you and see if they are teaching 
what you really need.

>  In particular was Lynda's explanation as to why it was never
>  necessary in forward paddling to "cock" the wrist, whether or not the 
paddle
>  was feathered.

This is true.  However, it doesn't necessarily mean that either feathered or 
traditional (straight) is *the* way to go.  Again, it depends on what your 
situation is.  For whitewater and racing, the feathered paddle makes total 
sense.  For touring, where we tend to use a lower stroke which is more 
restful and lower in the wind gradient, traditional makes more sense, unless 
we are beating into a very heavy wind for a short time, in which case 
switching to feathered might save a lot of energy.


>  her observation that just about all of us had paddles
>  which were either too long or far too long, together with a clear
>  description of how to set the paddle shaft length. Now this was all in the 
context of
>  forward strokes so there might be an argument for having a longer paddle to
>  brace better - but after a little practice I'm beginning to doubt it.

Shorter has great advantages in racing and whitewater where speed of stroke 
is important and you use a steep power stroke (reducing the need to raise the 
hands to clear the water).  Too short a paddle in touring reduces the power 
of not only your bracing, but more importantly, your sweep strokes.  During a 
sweep stroke, a shorter paddle has less leverage and the reduced reach also 
places the effort closer to the turning (rotational) point of the boat.

Here again, people sometimes tend to simplify the length and/or blade-size 
"equations" too much.  Dave Kruger wrote:  >Generated significant tendon pain 
when "graduated" from a 235 cm Werner San Juan (monster blades) to a 245 . . 
. .Switched to a 220 cm Lightning standard sea kayak paddle that summer
(medium-size blades) and have been relatively tendon-pain-free since<
You cannot separate paddle length from blade size.  Either a longer paddle 
*or* a larger blade will increase the drive of the paddle and thus slow your 
stroke and also place more stress on your muscles and all the suspension 
hardware in your wrist, elbow and shoulder joints.  If Dave had switched from 
the 235 SJ to a 245 Camano (10% less blade area) instead of maintaining the 
same blade area, he would have had about the same force in his forward 
stroke, with more reach during his sweeps and braces, but with more paddle 
sticking out into the wind (everything has its up and down sides).
In touring, we usually use a longer paddle than in racing or WW because it 
allows us to keep the elbows down low, near our sides, to reduce the effort 
expended in raising and lowering the weight of the arm/paddle combo during 
each stroke and to also keep the blade low.  Even if we can all agree on 
this, however, there are still other arguments for preferring either a little 
longer or shorter that people will come up with.  This is certainly reflected 
in regional differences you will see.  For example, the Brits seem to prefer 
sub-220 cm paddles for single touring kayaks, while many in the Northwest USA 
have championed 230-240 cm or longer for the same boat category, and we sell 
mostly 220-230 cm paddles for single touring boats.


>   I'ld be interested in other opinions on paddle length. Several people
>  have talked on Paddlewise about problems arising from the use of feathered
>  paddles with cocked wrists. But as I heard on Saturday it doesn't seem to 
be
>  necessary to rotate the wrist provided the paddle length and forward stroke
>  are adjusted appropriately. 

See Matt Broze's excellent instruction on this subject at the Mariner site 
(www.marinerkayaks.com).  I use Matt's low-hand control technique in surf and 
WW or during those few and brief times when I'll switch to feathered use in a 
touring kayak; it works.  


Just my sense of this best-of-all-possible-worlds.

Harold

***************************************************************************
PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed
here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire
responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author.
Submissions:     PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net
Subscriptions:   PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net
Website:         http://www.paddlewise.net/
***************************************************************************