Basic strokes you never use..

[Kayak-Bloke]

I have a confession...
Despite having been paddling for bloody years I just cant get the hang of the good old bow rudder. Well more than that I just don't see the point of it...
I'm fairly happy with getting in and out of eddies very high and tight up but I don't use a bow rudder to swing me in.

Before the flood gates of damnation open at my dire lack of skills I will admit to watching slalom paddlers and those from a slalom background bow ruddering all over the place and it all looks so easy and snappy but I just get by without it.

Is this a vital tool for the paddler's box and therefore outlines my status as mediocre or are there other paddlers out there that have ditched some of the underlyling strokes from the first chapter of paddling?

So hoping it's not just me!

:-/

[DaveBland]

In isolation it's a bit useless, but I find myself combining it with other strokes to move the boat around when I want to keep the blade engaged on a specific side, eg with a bow rudder/draw/pull and sweep motion to move the boat's line a bit to one side but still moving forward.

[TechnoEngineer]

I felt the same until I took part in a MWE course as a demo student on the Dart Loop - I now use the bow rudder a lot. It's great for negotiating your way through boulder fields; the blade is in a good position to change the stroke from a rudder to a draw or forward stroke.

The stroke I never really use is the low-brace-turn.

[chrism]

Coming from a slalom/polo background where I had a pretty nailed bow rudder before I ever went near a proper river, what I'm wondering is what on earth stroke combination do you use to get in and out of eddies if you're not using a bow rudder?

Well more than that I just don't see the point of it...

That's rather more concerning that that you can't/don't use one!

[Simon Westgarth]

Coming from a slalom/polo background where I had a pretty nailed bow rudder before I ever went near a proper river, what I'm wondering is what on earth stroke combination do you use to get in and out of eddies if you're not using a bow rudder?

You can turn a kayak by a number of possibilities, such as simply edging the boat, when you arrive in the eddy. Generally a bow rudder is for tight on the spot turns, well what do you do if you wish to make a wider slower turn, edge less of course, and present less of the driving face to the turn. The need to bow rudder every turn is some what limiting, as I can ensure you, that such technique is not used in big volume, you have too much momentum and so goes the river, instead you plane over the eddy line and then turn, probably with a stern squeeze.

[clarky999]

Yeah bow rudders are really useful, not just for eddying in/out, but for general manoeuvring out in a rapid - the sort of hanging draw/bow rudder to boof/forward stroke just feels (and looks) so much better than sweep stroking all the time, and having an active blade in the water for longer helps 'feel' what the water is doing.

[morsey]

Bow rudder is not really a basic stroke, Bow rudder and/or just edging the turn are progression as they need momentum or current to work. The reason to use bow rudder when entering the flow is many; the paddle is placed in the down flow (not on the eddy line as you often see with low brace entries) which actively pulls you through the eddy line and starts to help you pick up momentum with the down flow and importantly gives you a feel for the strength of the current. It allows a very precise turn; the boat speed up the eddy plus the down flow and edging does the turning, the bow rudder controls the turn (head orientation from the start of the turn means you dictate the turn and can spot your chosen marker before your boat has completed its turn), you are in a forwards stable positions and the best bit is that when you are facing where you want to go the stroke turns straight into a forwards power stroke.

Forwards stroke, edge control, bow draw, bow rudder, combinations of, and the odd rear stroke, are key river strokes. :-)

So long as you use appropriate edging and have enough momentum to get across the eddy line in control and are looking to place your paddle into the down stream flow or eddy flow then you should be doing just fine. The points to avoid are placing the paddle into the eddy line losing momentum when you need it most and not engaging edge control and transfer.

My favourite section at CIWW is on the first left bend below the looping wave. Full speed through the pool left hand boof into the right eddy, edge transfer and land on a right hand bow rudder, convert into a bow draw and power stroke, turning you completely around and taking you out of the eddy and across the flow in one combo stroke (if you lose momentum a stern squeeze at the end of the power stroke should give you the kick across the eddy line), edge transfer into the other eddy and plant a bow rudder back in the flow turn and re enter the flow again converting the bow rudder into a draw and power stroke giving you speed to shoot off round the corner ready to boof over the lego into the next right eddy. It was better before they changed the course because you could add just one more forwards stroke on the right hand side out of the eddy to boof the old hole they had before they removed the red mid stream plastic. :-) But saying that, my more favourite move on the same section is to hit onto the plastic above the first right eddy, ollie and reverse sweep rock spin into reverse boof sending you backwards into the eddy where you carry the angle and momentum and cartwheel over the rear deck straight back into the flow and drive off with a power stroke. :-)

Remember, when doing a bow rudder, always keep the window open, these strokes look slick in white water and if you are wearing a shortie cag with the guns blazing it would be a shame to ruin a classic action photo by blocking your face with your hand. :-)

[morsey]

Agree with Simon W you aint going to bother bow ruddering into high volume because the eddy line is often massive and you are more concerned with cruising across it keeping trim and avoiding the grabbing boils and whirlies.

[Chrace]

Stern rudder.

[garya]

Sculling for support

Someone taught it to me a long time ago when I was a yongster as they though it looked cool... it put my paddling back years and caused me to get trashed in stoppers too many times to mention until I learnt to sit up and forward on a low brace in order to balance and pull my way out.

Sadly I still see so many people using when side surfing holes... The outcome is always predictably the same, its like watching groundhog day.

[davebrads]

I depends what you mean by the bow rudder.

The classic bow rudder is held towards the bow and steers the front of the boat towards the blade while the momentum of the boat carries it through an arc. With modern much faster turning boats it has become pretty much extinct as the boat slows down very quickly, though it is still used in trad open boats, mostly because they still don't turn very quickly and can carry the speed through the turn.

It has been replaced by a pivot/bow draw stroke, which many paddlers still refer to as a bow rudder, on the one hand because it isn't too dissimilar, but also because no-one seems to have come up with a name for it that is being consistently used. This is placed further back close to the pivot point of the boat, the blade is more open and is generally more active as it is drawn and/or sliced through the water during the turn.

It is a very useful stroke, and is much used by class boaters for changing direction in mid flow. In my opinion it marks out someone who has become a white water boater. It is especially useful as it gives the quickest change of direction with a minimum of effort, though as Simon and Morsey have pointed out it isn't a lot of use for breaking into or out of the current which is where (traditionally) the bow rudder was taught.

[DaveBland]

Isn't the point about all strokes that they become combined? It's not very often you think "I'll go there put a draw in there, a stern rudder here..." it just kinda happens as you let it flow. There's no way that thinking about individual strokes can happen quick enough, better to let instinct take it's course. After I've paddled something I generally have no idea what strokes I did. It's always a surprise to see a photo of vid and see what actually happened.
But then, that's maybe where I'm going wrong?

[Kayak-Bloke]

Some very useful stuff here.
I probably didn't put it into context very well. When I said I didn't really see the use of it I meant when breaking in or out which as someone stated is where it is usually taught.

For me Dave summed up my style exactly I do utilise a high paddle angle but it's not a true bow rudder as I was taught it. I feel the water on the open face of the blade and usually finish with a pull into the eddy.

Moresy, Don't worry if there are cameras about I'm fully prepared to ditch the paddles entirely rather than obscure my face...

:-)

[TechnoEngineer]

Oooo I forgot to mention - cross-bow-rudder ;)

[Adrian Cooper]

That Colorado hook has been bugging me for some time.

The thing is, it seems to be all about names. Let's be honest, I'll bet most of you at some point stic a paddle in one of the quarters of the boat and drag yourself around it a bit. Maybe it's not one of the strokes in the British Standard Approved List but it will be an approximation based on the requirements of the circumstances.

Bow rudder, maybe not; bow draw maybe more likely

Stern rudder? I bet you stick the boat in at the back somewhere and push it around a bit to straighten up, especially when surfing.

Sculling for support? Probably not, but when you find yourself over on your side having dropped off that pourover, you skim the paddle over the surface to give you a bit of support to flick yourself back upright. Maybe you even use it as part of a screw roll.

Low brace turn? Yeh, I'll think I'll go with you on that one. Even in a canoe I will try something with a bit more positive pressure.

Remember, as the Bard said ''A rose, by any other name, would smell as sweet''

[DaveBland]

It's all just stirring the porridge really.

[morsey]

Oooo I forgot to mention - cross-bow-rudder ;)

What! Dave is stirring someones porridge and you want to ditch the cross bow! Think seriously about this, bow rudders look slick but cross bows dem is fine.

Chugging down the river, sloppy forward strokes, poxy flat turns, all manner of back paddling... Stop. Raise your game!

Stage one: Sprint forwards, throw a cross bow rudder whilst edging the back deck under the water, as the boat starts to turn and with the paddle vertically, release the paddle, yep that's right, let go. Now swiftly swap your top and bottom hand and continue with a bow draw and power stroke. Sprint away and then repeat on the other side only this time as you swap hands throw your body weight forwards smashing the bow under water and dropping the paddle horizontal out in front balancing on a bow stall, smile, and bask in the glory. The clouds above will part and you will be showered by the "Ricks-Freestyle-Mind" meteorological effect: It is gonna be rainin bitches! You will become an instant hero, you will be invited to HPP for baton twirling conventions, you will grind down your paddles to mimic tear drops (shed for those paddlers stuck in the mundane) and you will rekindle your youthful artistic flair for gluing sequins and glitter to everything. Some say that on his gap year, whilst working rafts on the Colorado, The Stig would front surf top hole on Sockdolager then cross bow with his oar and spin 360degrees on his bow before flipping end over to land upright on the pile. No cross bow, No monkey!

[DaveBland]

Morsey, that just made my day!

[harleyw]

Morsey you need to video yourself do that baton twisting and all

[Strad]

SO now I recognise the manoeuvre in Morsey's avatar....

[morsey]

Morsey you need to video yourself do that baton twisting and all

Sorry, no can do, slight technical hitch:

[Adrian Cooper]

Robocop?

[Bod]

Simon,

How come they printed your name on the hinge? Very personalised.

[morsey]

Haha, not sure that nickname can be reinstated now Bod! :-)

[The Chuckster]

An old stroke that I am keeping alive that nobody else uses any more..... The Shudder rudder!!

[DAB]

I personally have never used the dutch rudder

http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.p ... h%20Rudder

[TheJesusofkayaking]

Morsey you need to video yourself do that baton twisting and all

Sorry, no can do, slight technical hitch:

Kayaking injury?

[morsey]

It occurred at the inaugural Bristol Docks Canadian Canoe snap your biceps clean off the bone anchor throwing competition.

[SwamP]

Hugely useful stroke that I used to use all the time for a whole host of things in various differing on water environments...

Lastly it's a great thing to repeat repeat repeat repeat, for training, stretching and strengthening the rotator cuff in an in-sport environment.

I've never used the pawlata if that counts as a stroke.

[Alec Ferris]

I've given up using the bow rudder on whitewater but use it on the flat quite a bit. I never use a hanging draw, though; I don't see the point of using it on a rapid instead of paddling away from the obstacle and keeping your speed.