Kember's Question:
Question: I am doing an assignment for Physical Ed., and I was wondering if you had any pictures or step by step info on basic foward paddling.
— Kember NortonJonathan's Answer:
Kember, you have stumbled into one of my favorite soap box subjects. But you asked for it.
It's my firm conviction that authors of kayaking books waste way too much time deconstructing the mechanisms of the forward stroke. One mostly excellent book I read a few years ago described paddling as "a complex cycle of separate components." To which I reply, Jeez: Any four-year-old can watch someone paddle a kayak, then hop in and do it too. How complex can that be?
Okay, I'm finished pontificating. And I'm not suggesting there isn't plenty of technique to be learned, and nuances to be mastered, while learning to paddle. But it's silly for instructors to try to turn it into a rocket science.
My preferred method of teaching someone to paddle is to put them into a boat (after a thorough review of safety procedures) and let them paddle. Once they've got the basic information — which way is up on the blade, and so forth — it doesn't take long to get the general idea and start having fun. Then I can start to work on the finer points with them.
The ideal goal with all types of paddling, whether canoe, whitewater kayak, or sea kayak, is to avoid wasting energy. One of the best ways to tell if that's happening is to listen to your stroke. If it's noisy--splashing, bubbly, with slaps against the water and bumps against the boat--you're compromising efficiency. The paddle should enter and leave the water with as little fuss as possible. If the blade makes a splash when it enters the water, and lifts a scoopfull out at the end of the stroke, that is wasted energy. So I tell students to work on smoothness before anything else.
Another way to avoid wasting energy is to use as many muscle groups as possible. If you sit straight upright in the boat and use only your arms to swing the paddle, you'll actually fatigue much more quickly than if you use your entire upper body.
Throughout all this it is important to relax. Try to concentrate too much on doing everything exactly right and you'll lose more than you gain. Keep your posture and grip on the paddle loose, and don't worry about imperfections.
When you've done some work on making your stroke a fluid, relaxed process, then you can begin to refine your technique to suit the boat. For sea kayaking I prefer a fairly long, low stroke unless I'm powering out through surf or I need instant acceleration, at which point I'll tip the paddle a bit higher and dig a little deeper. Again, however, efficiency is paramount: There's nothing to be gained by sticking the paddle so far in that you're paddling with as much shaft as blade. In a canoe, I try to keep the paddle shaft as vertical as possible, which helps keep the blade close to the boat so it does more propulsion than turning. Likewise with a whitewater kayak.
My final advice to my students is this: Develop an efficient stroke, then refine your own style without worrying too much about anyone else's style. Experience will tell you what works for you.
Happy paddling,
—Jonathan
