Re: Training drills

Hi Janita,

I bought the Brent Reitz Forward Stroke DVD from lloyd @ fastkayak.com in the US .It was delivered to Aus in a week and really helped with technique. (EPIC have one as well and there is a section on this site on forward stroke by Oscar/Greg).

There are also a lot of clips on youtube

I find no matter how good i feel on flatwater with technique it goes out the window in a messy ocean.

I have recently heard of a drill advocated by Zsolt for deconstructing one's existing stroke. You should talk to him about it, but the basic idea is that you spend multiple weeks deliberately doing nothing other than what I would describe as "impulse strokes" which consist of nothing other than suddenly applying power for a fraction of a second. The power is applied for only ~1 food of distance, and you try to pull your paddle out at your knees. A high stroke rate is not used--instead, you really focus on getting a very hard catch at the beginning of the stroke. Really, you are not doing an entire stroke--just a catch.

I am sure that Zsolt's program is much more involved than just what I have described, but the above drill sounds like it is just what you need.

I hope Big O, Dawid and the other top South African paddlers can share their training drills as well.

There are some bits and pieces on surfski.info but nothing as specific as you are looking for. I both have the Reitz and Barton/Chalupsky dvd. I just dont know if the bent elbow technique of Reitz is correct. However he seems to be a better teacher if we compare the dvds. :

Janita.

I think a good method is to have an expert check you and your normal paddling partner's technique and explain any 'issues' with both techniques and what to look out for in each others technique.

There is then the possibility that your technique can be checked on a regular basis by your partner.

We had a great session on a lake with Oscar Chalupsky two weeks back. He got us to consider the stroke in four steps.

The first was to focus on the "bottom" arm in the stroke - to plant the paddle and rotate without bending the arm - at least at the catch. The exit is opposite the hip and the paddle naturally "flies" out at that point.

Second step, focus on the upper arm (in the stroke). This should not be straight at the catch - Oscar said my fundamental problem was that I was keeping both arms straight at the catch, which meant that the paddle blade was already at an inefficient angle when I planted the blade.

Oscar had us on the shore, rotating while keeping the arms bent in front of us - the shape described by arms, body and paddle is the "box". That box shape needs to remain all through the stroke.

Steps 3 & 4 are the same as 1 & 2 but on the other side.

I'm probably describing it incorrectly but I'm working on an article with the Big O that will hopefully explain it a bit better - in the meantime the Forward Stroke DVD is a great one to watch.

Oscar recommended spending time on flat water in a stable boat - practising 20 strokes of each of the 4 parts i.e. you're paddling on one side at a time, focusing either on the bottom or top arm, 20 strokes of each.

Thanks to everyone for such great and prompt feedback.
I am reading it all thoughtfully, will print it out and re-read at night so I'll know what to do when the alarm goes off in the morning.
Keep this thread going please if anyone else has some ideas...and I will give you some feedback once I have a chance to put it into practice and hopefully notice the results.
Thanks again and I'm still listening...
Janita K

Well not much to add - I am not nearly as qualified as some others to give tips, but I have to recommend the "paddling on one side" drill mentioned above. I think it has done a lot for my stroke and it definitely transforms the stroke of the beginners that I have introduced to paddling. Give it a try - 10 to 20 strokes on one side then the other.

"paddling on one side"

Probably the worst drill I could think of.


But each to their own I guess.