Chuck Holst wrote: >it is very easy to extend a standard paddle for a strong >brace, effectively turning a 7-foot paddle into a 9- or 10-foot paddle. Chuck Sutherland wrote: >Long paddles provide the bracing to stay upright >even in rough water conditions and the leverage to control the boats in high >winds and rough seas. >Short paddles may be great for speed, but in current training little >consideration is given to survival in extreme paddling conditions. G'day, Don't want to stop a good discussion, but maybe both opinions are valid? Anyway the following is sufficiently twisted that the debate has a fair chance to continue. I'd suggest that a long paddle and low angle stroke in the hands of a solidly built person, i.e. someone with plenty of muscle, fat, cartilage and bone, seems to be just as fast as the more classic high angle 'racing' stroke. Its also stable in the hands of a competent paddler in choppy conditions at sea. For some but not all people that solid build is associated with less flexibility and reduced torso rotation but their increased overall strength allows them to better withstand the higher levels of mechanical stress associated with less body rotation and longer paddles. On the other hand the high angle racing stroke with a short paddle is favoured by instructors over here and seems to work well for people who are less solidly built. Perhaps for some but not all this is associated with more flexibility, but a reduced ability to accommodate the stresses and load mismatch associated with the higher leverage that a longer paddle requires. Seems to me that the ability to manoeuvre a short paddle relatively quickly provides support and stability as effectively as the increased leverage supplied by a long paddle. Can't say I've ever noticed much difference in speed or stability on the sea between people with long paddles and low angle strokes vs. those with shorter paddles and high angle strokes. Stability in particular seems to come with confidence and skill as much as paddle length. Not familiar enough with flat water racing to say that the same applies there. All the best, PeterO *************************************************************************** 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/ ***************************************************************************Received on Fri Jul 09 2010 - 06:44:15 PDT
This archive was generated by hypermail 2.4.0 : Thu Aug 21 2025 - 16:31:42 PDT