O P E N C A N O E T E C H N I Q U E
The High Brace Roll Press your thumb to the roof of your mouth—or read this article
by Scott MacGreGor
ICE CREAM HEADACHE, a.k.a. brain freeze, is a sharp, stabbing pain in the forehead. The pain is caused by the blood vessels in the head swelling. It’s our body’s response to ingesting cold foods too quickly or irresponsibly dunking our noodles in frigid waters. For early spring paddling, when the wa-
ter is only a few degrees warmer than a Slurpee, the popular low brace open canoe roll takes the average paddler too long. The low brace roll is popular for good rea- sons and it is perfectly fine in July, but in March it’s like stabbing daggers into your forehead. To avoid the dreaded ice cream
headache when C1 freestyle pad- dling, I started doing a high brace roll. Now I use the high brace roll in C1, OC1 and even tandem rolling almost all the time. I even teach it in rolling classes. It’s fast and smooth and gets your head up almost im- mediately, plus it rolls you to an upright position. The low brace roll, on the other hand, leaves you wiping your runny nose across the front deck. With all these benefits why isn’t
the high brace roll more common- ly used? My guess is that when solo canoes where much wider and deeper, the concern about possible shoulder injury in the high brace position scared ca- noeists off. The open canoe high brace
roll is a bit like a kayak roll—the first part of a sweep roll followed by a C-to-C roll. Begin by setting up the same
as you’re used to—tucked for- ward to your air bags with your paddle at the surface, arms in a high brace position. As you sweep the paddle
out to the side, begin rolling your hips and righting the boat as much as you can. The sweep also brings your body and head to the surface. As you’re approaching perpendicular to the boat, pull on the high brace to lift your head and body out of the icy water. Now it’s just a matter of getting the boat underneath you, which you do by using your high brace as a draw stroke pulling the boat toward your paddle, rolling it level as you go. Feather your draw
stroke to a forward stroke and off you go. The most difficult part
of this roll for canoeists isn’t physical; it’s the mental game of retrain- ing muscles that are used to the low brace roll position. Canoeists
are so used to coming up forward, it’s hard to get used to coming up amidships looking up rather than at the bow looking down. The editors of Better Homes & Gardens
magazine suggest that to alleviate the pain of an ice cream headache you should press your thumb against the roof of your mouth. The editors of Rapid magazine suggest whitewater canoeists avoid the pain altogether by using the high brace roll to get their heads out of the water as soon as possible.
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PHOTOS: IAN MERRINGER
RAPID
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