Re: [Paddlewise] Hand Rolling

From: Niels Blaauw <niels.blaauw_at_wanadoo.nl>
Date: Fri, 08 Nov 2002 13:24:41 -0800
Peter Treby wrote:
> 
> Does
> anyone handroll their real, sea touring boat? By what method? What about a
> loaded boat? Possible?

I have two touring kayaks, one of which I can handroll. The boat in
question is an Oasis Rainbow, which is a wide, very stable kayak, 4.25
meters long. The one I can not handroll is a Prijon Seayak.

I think there are two reasons why handrolling a whitewater boat is
"easy":
- Because of the low volume of the boat, you sit very low in the water.
When you roll it, you don't have to lift your own weight completely out
of the water. In a high-volume seakayak, you have to bring your weight
from completely submerged to completely out of the water.
- A whitewater boat is more stable then a seakayak. With the famous
hipsnap, you tilt the boat to a flat, stable position. After that, using
the stability of the boat, you can lift your body out of the water and
move it to any position you want. In a seakayak, you can't use this
stability. With the force of your roll, be it a paddle or a hand, you
have to lift yourself out of the water and into the stable position in
one go. That takes quite some force.

Although the actual handroll might be a party trick, practicing it is a
great way of perfecting your hipsnap. While practicing, you will have
lots of opportunity to practice your wet exit. You can put half of your
spare paddle under your bungies, make two attempts you handroll, then
grab the paddle and roll up with that, so you don't have to wet exit.

So, practicing your handroll, even if it will never succeed, will
improve your normal roll, your ability to take descisions while upside
down in the water, your wet exit, your rescues... That's a little more
then a "party trick", right?

Niels.
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Received on Fri Nov 08 2002 - 04:36:23 PST

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