KAYAKING
The Three Golden Rules of Whitewater Kayaking By Ken Whiting Liquid Skills Photos: Paul Villecourt ALL PLAYBOATERS need to understand and apply the three golden rules of whitewater kayaking. They are essential. What are these three golden rules? • Separate your body movements • Maintain control of your kayak with an active blade • Use the power of your torso. Let’s start by looking at what these rules mean, and why they’re so important.
Rule # 1: Separate Your Body Movements
Good playboaters have learned to let their upper and lower bodies work independently, yet cooperatively with each other. What does this mean? It means that there needs to be a distinct
Rule # 2: Maintain Control with an Active Blade
Today’s short boats are incredibly responsive. This makes them very easy to turn, but it’s also easy to lose control of them as even the smallest river feature will push them around. The only way to maintain control of your kayak is to have an active blade in the water (See photo top left).
What does this mean?
It means that it’s important to get your next stroke in the water as soon as one stroke is finished. By having a blade in the water, you can take an active role in deciding where you’ll go, rather than always reacting to the things that happen to your kayak.
Rule #3: Use the Power of Your Torso
separation of movements at the hips between the upper and lower body. This separation of movements will allow you to control the kayak in the most efficient and safe manner possible. 38
Use much more than just arm and shoulder muscles for all paddle strokes. You need to use the power of your whole upper body for any stroke you take. Rotating your torso is how to incorporate your front and side stomach muscles into all strokes. By using these larger muscles, you’ll be able to harness all or most of your power, and will
improve stamina as your efforts are spread over more muscles. Torso rotation is also important for keeping your shoulders safe from injury. Torso rotation involves three components: • Winding up the body • Planting a pivot blade • Unwinding the body. Winding up the body means turning your upper body at the waist so your chest no longer faces the direction that your kayak does. Once your body is wound up, your paddle gets planted in the water as a pivot. As you push or pull on this pivot blade, your knees and stomach muscles together will pull your body back to its position of rest. The act of using stomach muscles, along with your knees, to return your body to its position of rest is referred to as unwinding the body. Think of your body as an elastic band. The more you wind it up, the more power you’ll have available to you. Though there’s no need to fully wind up your body for every stroke, your stomach muscles should be involved with each and every stroke you take. About the author: Ken Whiting won the 1997/98 World Freestyle Kayaking Championship. This is a segment from his new book entitled, The Playboater’s Handbook II. For more information on any of Ken’s books or videos, visit www.playboat. com, or check out the Liquid Skills Kayak School at www.liquidskills.com.
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