[Paddlewise] Rolling Notes [Long]

I taught my 12-year old daughter how to roll our Umiak (kids' or small adult,
non-touring kayak) this summer.  Here are some notes.  I do not pretend that
it is ideal pedagogy, but it may give adult/child learners some ideas.
  1.. Background.  Her biggest assets going into the project were her comfort
with water and her experience that kayaks and rolling are a regular part of
our summer vacation.  In our family, kayaking is a normal rather than an
exotic activity, everyone paddles a little, and her dad and her older sister
roll routinely, and she perceived rolling as something you do when you get
older.  Add to these motivation.  She had mentioned wanting to learn several
times in the off season, and I waited for her to bring it up again in the
summer and carve out time on her own, rather than being the driving force
myself.  Ever since she began paddling the Umiak years ago, she eschewed a
Euro paddle and insisted on using Greenland paddles.  Eventually I made her
one proportionate to her measurements.  She is about 4 feet 8 inches and
weights about 70 pounds.  She used a nose plug for these exercises.
  2.. Session 1:  I had her practice laybacks and simple sculling on her right
side, to the point where she had the kayak about 90 degrees to the water.  I
then had her scull while she lowered her head more and more into the water,
eventually immersing it so that she could look toward the bottom.  She could
hold her breath a long time, undoubtedly thanks to her off-season
participation in the local swim team.  She would take a quick breath, keep
sculling, then return to head underwater.  All this was to instill the feeling
not only of the layback but also of bringing the head out last.  Then I taught
her the "Eskimo rescue," which she found fun and reassuring because she
realized an unsuccessful attempt entailed only a slight delay.  I had her
repeat all the sculling exercises on the left side and asked her which felt
more comfortable.  The right side was her preference, so right-side emergence
[i.e., submerging on port, rising on starboard] was what I had her learn.
  3.. Session 2:  We experimented with a paddle float that I had bought many
years ago and never used.  I discovered that almost any degree of inflation
was too much for her, because it made the paddle so buoyant either she could
not roll over or she couldn't control the paddle underwater, so eventually I
let all the air out.  Even that proved awkward, so instead of setting up with
the paddle on port [left], I had her place the paddle in the water on her
right side, roll left without the paddle, and grab it while coming up from
being capsized.  She came very close a few times, persevered, and eventually
did one roll.  We quit on that high note.
  4.. Session 3:  The usual backsliding occurred that afflicts many adult
learners:  Inability to repeat the successful roll.  I assured her this
happens to everyone and we tried concentrating on various aspects of
technique, such as hand position, correctint the diving paddle, head posture,
etc.  No rolls.  She seemed to take it in stride, not especially frustrated or
impatient.
  5.. Session 4:   I took out the Euro paddle that we had gotten with the
Umiak and that she had never used, explaining that it operated like a paddle
float.  It seemed too big for her and felt a little weird compared to her
normal Greenland paddle, but she understood that it would not dive so readily
as her Greenland model.  We talked through the mechanics, emphasizing locking
the left hand on the side of the kayak, sweeping the paddle to a right angle
position, lying back, and bringing the head up last.  She made it on her first
try.  She then proceeded to do 7 more rolls in a row, never having to do a wet
exit or an Eskimo rescue once.  During two of the rolls, she particularly
impressed me by missing the initial attempt but staying capsized, keeping her
cool, holding her breath, restoring the paddle to its set up, and re-trying a
roll.  I hadn't told her to do that.  In her sixth roll, she actually missed
it twice, staying submerged and re-setting twice and finally getting it.  This
is where her ease in the water really paid off.  She is a pretty strong
swimmer and did not panic or get disoriented in the slightest.
  6.. The 4 sessions were stretched out over 2 weeks.  Too bad we had to leave
the day after she got her roll.  We'll have to start a little rusty next year.
On the other hand, I'll put in some minicell to fit the kayak to her thighs
and that should make quite a difference.
  7.. The biggest lesson I drew is that the paddle float is a mistake for a
light child.  The big Euro paddle provided everything she needed. Not sure how
helpful it was in the end to have spent a lot of time with the sculling,
although she enjoyed it and it is the beginning of a skill she should develop
in any case.  It certainly boosted her confidence.   I was lucky in not having
to devote much time on dry land going through the mechanics.  With some
learners, that is extremely important.  Her light weight and torso flexibility
were undoubtedly additional advantages.  Finally, Lake Huron water was nice
and warm this year, so our sessions could be long.
Tom Joyce
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