20
Paddling
These guidelines will help you to get started.
To start, sit in your kayak. Your backside should be all the way back in
the seat and your knees comfortably bent. To find the proper footwell,
straighten your legs all the way out and then bring them back one “well”.
If your legs are too outstretched, you may experience strain on your lower
back. If your knees are bent too much, you may end up knocking your
kneecaps while paddling.
For proper hand placement on your paddle, start with your hands about
shoulder’s width apart and centered. If you place the center of the
paddle on top of your head, your elbows should form slightly less than a
90 degree angle. There should be an equal amount of paddle shaft beyond
each of your hands.
Some paddles may have the blades offset, or “feathered”, at some degree
from parallel. A feathered paddle presents less surface area for the wind
to catch as that blade moves forward through the air. Some paddles have
a flattened spot along the paddle shaft that will help keep your “control”
hand in a fixed position. However, a special technique must be used to get
each blade in the water. If the paddle is right-hand controlled (when the
right blade is held vertical, the left blade “scoop” is pointed mostly up),
the right hand will stay tight and the left hand loose. To learn the process,
hold the paddle tight in your right hand and loose in your left. Using the
right hand, rotate the paddle blade back and forth; it should spin in your
left hand. Now take a stroke on your right, then cock your right wrist back
(left hand staying loose and somewhat open) and take a stroke on your
left. If using a left-hand control paddle, reverse the process. The left hand
stays tight and the right hand loose.
The basic paddle stroke will give you forward power. Place a paddle blade
in the water near your toes. Pull the paddle blade back alongside the
boat to approximately your hip area while your opposite hand and paddle
blade move forward. Then lift the first paddle blade out of the water while
lowering the second blade into the water and take a stroke with the other
side.
If you pull the paddle out and away from the hull in an arc, it will force
the bow of the boat to swing away from the paddle blade. This is called a
“sweep stroke” and is used to turn the boat.
Paddling
To Next Page
Loading...
Need help?
General
