Wing Paddlers

[josko]

FWIW with a new boat and blade (Taran and Epic midwing) my speeds have consistently notched up a quarter knot or so. Doesn't seem like much but I expect speed increases get hard to come by at some speed.

[mattdrayer]

Hi Josko -- timely!  I just finished reading the first set of blog posts published by local paddler Shawn Burke at https://thescienceofpaddling.net/ -- the articles are quite technical, but Shawn does a good job with context and concepts.  Topics such as drag, hull speed, paddle size, and more.  I hope that Shawn continues to publish more articles.

Matt

[mattdrayer]

Also, just to follow up on last year's discussion re: feather angle.  At the beginning of this season I tried out a Motionize unit for a couple sessions, because I wanted to see what it would say about my feather angle, and my stroke in general.  I started with zero feather angle and incremented periodically until the analysis looked good (path through water, distance per stroke, etc.).  I was amazed to see that an R75 feather angle was where I ended up.  However, I've kept the paddle at R75 for training and racing all season and honestly have been very happy with the results.  Oh, and I've also shortened the length from 211cm to 209cm and for downwind I've even shortened further to 208.5-208cm at times.

I'm attending Sean Rice's "Advanced" clinic this Sunday and we'll be doing some erg-work + video analysis along with on-water analysis, so I'm interested to get his take as well.

[mattdrayer]

Following up after Sunday's clinic w/ Sean Rice.  The good news is that I have a lot to work on  As with the session I attended with Sean in 2015, the material was informative and practical, and it's a whole lot of fun hanging out with a really great guy who also happens to be one of the best in the world at the sport.   I highly recommend attending one of Sean's clinics the next time he's in town.  

So the topic of paddles obviously came up during the technical discussion.  Sean sets his paddle to 212cm with a 60 degree feather.  Sometimes he'll go longer, to 214cm.  He said K1 paddlers will typically set their paddles shorter, with a 75 or 90 degree feather because they tend to paddle at a higher angle.  In his approach to paddling a surfski, the idea is that you want to reach as far forward as you can on the catch -- to your feet or even a bit more.  This explains my experience this year -- I changed the feather to R75 and had to shorten my paddle from 211 to 209.  Doing so has improved my rotation, but lessened my forward reach on the catch...need to think about this more.

As an additional data point, Sean's "cruising" cadence for a typical ~15-20k race is 52/104 strokes per minute (one side / both sides).  I think I'm around 42/84 strokes per minute right now.  So much to work on...

[Inverseyourself]

Interesting, Matt. Thanks for the insights.

I would interpret reach as mainly a function of  rotational abilities, assuming that one has mastered extending the active arm as far as possible without locking it. Beyond that, I guess it's a function of paddle length with an inverse relationship of that to cadence - the right balance needs to be found there.

Does Shawn say that you can extend your reach by bringing your torso forward BEYOND optimal rotation, extended active arm and increased paddle length? If yes, does he advocate a forward and back motion of the torso, decreasing the angle of torso and longitudinal axis of boat angle during the catch? Or does the torso-boat angle stay the same throughout the stroke?

52/104. I will never reach that over long distances, but I'm also much older :-(  These people are aerobic machines!

Andy

P.S.: I have been using my wing paddle for my Explorer lately. Tried switching to Euroblade mid-trip.....there was so little resistance that I had to check if my blades had fallen off.

 

[mattdrayer]

Quote

 

Does Shawn say that you can extend your reach by bringing your torso forward BEYOND optimal rotation, extended active arm and increased paddle length?

My takeaway re: posture is that I sit too upright, and I should be angled slightly forward -- not slouching or hunched, but leaning more forward.  This does seem counter-intuitive because sitting up straight is what I've picked up from studying K1 paddlers.  I have some video and will try to share it.

After a bit more explanation of his approach, essentially the idea is that you want your paddle "out in front", shoulders loose, arms loose, reaching forward on the catch (with no forward-back torso movement) and "grabbing" the water.  Foot -> leg -> hip -> torso -> draw blade back powerfully -> exit blade out/up to shoulder height -> reach forward with other arm -> repeat.

For me, my upper body is too tense and I don't angle forward (-reach), my arms are too tense (-reach), I don't engage my legs or hips enough (-rotation/power) -- basically I need to do a whole lot of relaxing   It does make sense, though, because I've been focusing so much on rotation this season -- sit up straight in the bucket, sink the blade and sweep it back, rotate around my spine, exit quickly -- I get tired just thinking about it   When you watch Sean moving on the kayak erg, he almost looks like a swimmer doing the freestyle while sitting in a chair.  So power.  Such fluid.

[josko]

Wondering how folks feel about wing paddles on rudderless (skeg) boats.  I'm loving mine with a rudder boat (Taran) but am starting to not use it on my Explorer in all but flat-calm conditions.  To me, that slight sweep (to keep the boat tracking in a cross wind) is a natural with an Ikelos and kind of an ineffective pain with a wing blade.