Re: [Paddlewise] Peter O - bad forward sweep

At 07:40 AM 1/7/02 -0800, Jolie Smilowicz wrote:
>I'm just a beginner but believe the instructions I was given were "reach
>forward to plant, then rotate your body as your sweep all the  way back to the
>stern..."

That's something that we teach beginners learning a sweep stroke.  If you 
place the paddle in the water and think of rotating the boat with your 
torso rather than pulling the paddle through the water it works well but 
it's a lot easier to do from a stationary position.  There are a couple of 
other things to think about.  Keep a low paddle angle and extend the 
outside arm to draw a "C" in the water.  Finish the stroke by making sure 
that the paddle blade comes all the way back near the stern.


>  I'm sure someone more expert out there could add something about
>adding some bracing capability--like changing paddle blade angle a bit?--to
>keep you upright?

Probably the most effective addition to a sweep stroke is a good amount of 
edging.  That usually involves tilting the blade back just a little to 
provide a little bracing support.  On exercise that I like is to do a 
forward sweep with the boat edged toward the side with the paddle in the 
water.  At the end of the sweep flip the blade over to a low brace position 
and skim it across the surface toward the bow for another sweep without 
changing the boat edging.

Personally, I don't use a sweep stroke by itself when traveling forward and 
expect it to turn the boat much (especially when I'm in my 18'6" long 
Northbay).  If I'm paddling toward a destination and find myself drifting 
off to the left (for example), I'll maintain my cadence but throw in a 
sweep on the left and edge to the left with each sweep, turning the boat 
slightly with each stroke until my bow is pointing at the destination 
again.  If done well, the forward momentum is maintained throughout the 
course change.

While it is always useful to make all your stroke efficient, there are 
other turning strokes that are more effective if you want to make more than 
a minor course correction.  IMO, a forward is most effective as a setup 
stroke for other turning strokes.  When paddling through a narrow winding 
waterway I like doing a forward stroke followed by a bow rudder turn for 
nice carving turns.  For a sharper turn, a forward stroke followed by a low 
or high brace turn can turn a maneuverable kayak 180 degrees.  If I want to 
do a quick about face I'll initiate the turn with a sweep stroke with the 
boat on edge to get the boat starting to turn, then edge the boat the 
opposite way aggressively and do a high brace turn.  Starting the high 
brace with the blade a bit back toward the stern and bringing it forward as 
the boat turns usually gets me around 180 degrees.  If not, I just keep the 
boat on edge and scull back and forth with a bit more forward pressure to 
finish the turn.

There's another method that I'm still working on but haven't been able to 
do it as effectively as I would like.  Chris Duff uses this method to turn 
around 180 degrees when he's teaching classes.  He'll initiate the turn 
with a sweep stroke then plant in a stern rudder and edge the boat 
aggressively.  I think he starts the stern rudder with the blade almost 
under the boat but I haven't quite figured it out yet.  In any case, it's a 
real pretty and effective turn.


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