Ok, so I started actually *reading* the Paddlewise digests again, instead of filing them away... I've been getting an exchange of Pilates instruction (on the appartati) from a friend this summer, and its gotten me thinking about this whole leg thing. The driving idea behind Pilates (anybody with depth please interrupt/correct)is finding a way to get your large, deep muscles (the psoas, the hamstrings) to do your work, both because they are potentially stronger, and because they are better situated to do the work, instead of the superficial muscles (the quadriceps, gluts, biceps, etc). So, some muscles in your abdomen and back are functioning to stabilize you and conduct the force deeper into your body, right? It occurs to me that maybe all the legs are really doing (all sprinting and professional kayaking aside), is stabilizing the lower torso within the cockpit to allow it to do the real work. SO, pushing against the back band and leg pegs actually makes sense... ...and also not needing either a back band or foot pegs, if your body is adequately braced within your boat. I was travelling with the Feathercraft Kahuna last week, and I've never found the foot pegs to be very solid on it. I was experimenting with wedging my knees up against the rib in front of me, maybe something like a masiq? I've never paddled a SOF, and this was a revelation. Severn PS - I've been paddling with a GP for the last two years, but I was using a Euro last week for the first time in quite a while, and I loved it! The GP has improved my bracing considerably, actually. PPS - I found a hack to fix the terribly uncomfortable seat on the Kahuna - I wedged my inflatable paddle float behind the seat, so I could adjust seat distance and angle by varying the amount of inflation. If the mouthpiece had been longer, I would have been able to do it on the move... *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************
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