NEXT LEVEL
TO TAKE YOUR BOATING TO THE
WAYS 16
2
Walk Before You Run
Rapid contributor, adventure guide instructor and teaching
guru, Jeff Jackson, has studied the learning process that all boaters go through. “The stages of skill progression go like this,” says Jackson, “no one gets to escape the steps.” First, perceive a new technique and then pattern it after an instructor or expert. Next, adapt the technique to new conditions or locations. Then refine and vary the technique, personalizing it to your own style of paddling (you have one, you just may not know it yet). Expert paddlers then compose new combinations of moves and further refine them, a cycle that repeats itself indefinitely. Be patient with yourself—as the theory goes, it takes 10,000 hours and a lot of swimming to become a true expert.
3 1 KNOW YOUR
SAFETY “Typically, the biggest hurdle holding paddlers back from stepping up and into class IV is confidence.” says Wave Sport sponsored boater, Tyler Fox. “To build confidence, take a swift water rescue course. Knowing that solid safety is in place will make paddling bigger drops a lot more manageable.”
Change Your Perspective
“Get out and scout the rapids you are super comfortable on,”
advises big water boater, Benny Marr. “Look at them differently, break them up into harder moves, pick new lines down them.”
4 5 6 36 RAPID SPRING 2012
Look Where You Want To Go…
…not at the giant hole you’re trying to avoid. All beginners are taught this,
but it’s a difficult skill to master as it involves actively rejecting a natural reflex. In bigger water, there are a lot more forces at work—more water to push you off line and greater consequences. Find a familiar stretch of water that consists of a few straightforward moves. Paddle it once or twice to get familiar with the ideal line. Then paddle it looking one move ahead. Great paddlers look ahead two moves. Looking where you’re going maintains your line and your confidence—your body will intuitively line you up.
Mix It Up
“The number one thing I would recommend is to not let your kayaking become routine,” says Team Dagger
manager and Green Race record holder, Andrew Holcombe. “Much of the time most paddlers actually spend kayaking is in the same place on the same river. It’s easy to simply do the same thing day after day. If you want to step up your paddling, challenge yourself on your local run. Then, when you go to something new, you’ll have that much more experience to draw from.”
MASTER THE LOW BRACE
Class IV and V water means technical water. Drops and slides that you don’t find on easier rivers require a rock-solid low brace to keep you upright. Ready at a second’s notice, a good low brace will prevent the need to roll and helps protect your shoulders from over-extension or dislocation. Get familiar with your paddle and how you need to rotate your wrists to compensate for feather in order to perform an effective low brace on both sides. Practice tilting your boat towards your brace and engaging your lower knee in order to recover. Upon landing a boof, a standard low brace will go a long way in stabilizing your boat. On a shallow slide, use a low brace for stability as well as to keep your boat pointed in the desired direction.
PHOTO: MARILYN SCRIVER
PHOTO: MICHAEL NEUMANN
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