Improving Paddling Stroke for speed and efficiency
I am mostly a surfski paddler... similar to a K-1 but for the ocean. I have raced for many years and every year I learn more and more about my stroke. I also race OC-1, OC-6 and Dragon Boats. In this article, we will only address kayak, K-1 and Surfski paddling stroke style. Last year, I realized that I needed to focus on sprints to get a better race start. This year, I believe I am focusing on an even more important and more basic part of the stroke, the catch, stroke and release . My stroke was not clean enough, not generating as much power as some of my fellow paddlers paddling at the same pace. Their boats were going faster! I recognized something was wrong so I went to work fixing it. It took nearly 6 months of focused work. Steps to an efficient paddling stroke used by the pros: 1) One of my training partners said it best, "draw your paddle like a bow and arrow." To draw this bow you must turn your...