1st Run Workout

Well I am off to a slow start. Tonight I decided (stupidly) to go run with the Cardio Core workout group at the track. When Amber said track, I should have clued in, but no. When we got to the track there was only one other person from the group there. So we did about three or four warm up walks around the track. Then the leader showed up, and announced that tonight workout was going to be a "speed" workout, I thought I was going to die.

We did four warm up laps and then 100m on, 100m off for two laps. Then 200m on, 200m off for three laps. Then for "fun" we did two 100m sprints. (can you so ouch!) Thank God it was over. Now it was just one cool down lap and stretching.

The first run workout was a hard but a rewarding one. Since I started running I might as well continue. Now it will be three times a week.

Long and Hard Paddle.

Today was going to be a long technique paddle. Since this would be only my fifth paddle since November of last year, I thought practising technique would be a good thing.

When I was packing up the car to go to Deas Island, I knew from the wind and the rain, that this was going to be a hard one. When I got to the slough the rain had actually gotten heavier. So I quickly got on the water, for what I knew was going to be 2 hours of cold hard work. My motivation was that afterwards, I get to sit on the couch and drink coffee and watch the Masters.

The start of the paddle was ok, with the wind dying down a little. As I approached the marina on the way out to the islands, I checked my GPS, and it read 12.4 kph. I though hey this isn't so bad, good speed, medium hard, not bad.

As I got out into the main channel to Ladner, I noticed that the GPS was still quite high for the amount of effort I was putting in. Then it dawned on me, Idiot, the tide is going out, and you are going with the wind. No wonder I was going at that speed and barely paddling. It dawned on me that when I get to Westham Island, I was in for a major slog, all the way back to Deas.

It wasn't long before I got to Westham, and I could see the channel just churning, from the current and the wind in front of me. I came around the corner, and bam, it hit me. It blew me sideways, toward the straight. So I put the power on, and hammer to the Westham side of the channel, to get some (very little ) protection from the wind. I start grunting my way back toward Ladner, along side some of the biggest fishing boats I have ever seen.

As I was approaching the top of Westham, I decided to see just how long it would take the current and wind to send me backwards. So I stopped paddling, and looked at my watch. Less than 5 seconds and I was going backwards as fast, if not faster than I was going forwards.

I really had to go hard where the Ladner channel and the Westham channel meet. The water seems to swirl pretty good there, and there was no protection from the wind. After reaching the other side out of the wind. I stopped for a bite of a Cliff bar. Then it was off again into the current and wind. I cruised (if you could call it that) along side the floating homes. I thought to myself, boy I sure would like to live on one of these.

I got to the main channel that heads toward the Fraser, and turned toward Deas. I looked up and there was a canoe with two women just hammering toward me. They managed to slow down enough to say hi and off they went. They were sure fast. From here it was a slow paddle (still battling current and wind, which was now across my beam) back to Deas. At the end my GPS read: 17.68 kms.

Not bad for a wet, cold and windy Sunday.

Hot Paddle in September

Today was one of the hottest days that I can remember in a while. (of course my memory is not that good)

It was a easy two laps with Shota in the Extreme and me in my Thunder. I kept having to stop and look to make sure Shota was doing ok. After coming in, I went and stretched again because I was tightening up. Then it was time to practice balance and more starts. The balance section went good, but the start section wasn't as good as I had hoped.

For the balance it was more of the same. Sitting still with my eyes closed, and paddling around, with side draws. Rocking the boat, and bouncing the boat. After the main balancing drills were done, I started to try new ones. I tried to tip the boat over as far as I could without going over. A new one was taking my PFD and putting on my seat, and paddling around. This made the boat extremely tippy by lifting me up by about 2 inches above the seat. this is where I got to cool down from the heat. Boy that felt great.

The starts weren't very good. I kept leaning over to the right for some unknown reason. I went swimming on numerous occasions. I just could not get it hooked up, with any consistency. I just have to keep working on it, to get it dialed in.

I gave Shota a shot at the Thunder. He got in the boat while I held it by the bow. I did not let go, and he got the idea on how tippy this boat is real fast. I asked him if he wanted to try it again, but he said no.

Still lots of fun on such a warm day.

Starts, Starts, and More Starts

Today's workout started like the rest, with stretching. Having my muscles warmed up and loose is very important to having a good session. I start with the legs, and then move progressively up the body:

Calves
Hamstrings
Quadriceps
Lower Back
Upper back
Shoulders Arms
Neck

I did two loops of the slough, before heading to the beach to practice balance and starts. First up was balance drills. Side draws, backwards paddling, bouncing the boat,etc. Then I though of a new one, I took my feet off the foot board all moved them side by side towards my butt. I managed to get my heels touching the seat platform. Then I paddled around in that position. I almost went in doing this. I got a cramp in my right leg, and pushing my feet back to the foot board, I tipped over, but saved it right at the last moment.

Then I started doing the start progressions. Starting with just sitting still and keeping my paddle in the start position. Each time I would try to hold it longer, from one second all the way to the full ten seconds. Next was paddling backwards and then one hard stroke forward. Again with each time I would increase a forward stroke all the way to eight strokes.

Then it was full start from a stopped position. Always lining up to something and looking both left and right to line myself up. Then it was a quick hard stroke, and building to eight strokes. Then session was really good, and I didn't go swimming. So since the water was warm, I decided to really go for it. This time I would pull as hard as I could, if I went in, oh well. I managed to stay dry and it really increased the speed of my starts.

As always a planned one hour session turned into a hour and a half session. Once things are clicking, you just don't want to lose it, so you keep going.

Touring Through Delta

This mornings paddle was basically touring. Myself and my new foreign exchange student went for a leisurely paddle out of Deas Island and into one of the channels that go all through the area.

This was Shota's very first paddle in a kayak. Straight from Japan, and straight into a kayak. Sounds good to me. I had him in my Current Designs Extreme, and I was in my EVO surf ski. All I had to do was show him how the rudder peddles worked, hand him my SET wing blade, and off he went.

He had a smile on his face the whole time. I think he was having fun. We ended up seeing seals and blue herons, and heard, but did not see, one of the local bald eagles. At the end of our 12 kilometer journey, (boy is he going to sleep tonight) Shota practised paddling near the dock, while I did some full out starts to 100 meters. I managed to do about 5 starts, before things began to go south. So that's when I ended it.

A good paddle on a nice day.

Dark and Dreary K1 Practise

I got off to a late start tonight, so by the time I got to Deas, it was 6pm, raining, and dark. The rowers were already out on the water. (the ones that actually braved it) Good thing I had my neon yellow shirt with me for visibility out on the water.

So I decided to try going out without stretching. Turn out to be not so good of an idea. Big surprise. I started to seize up by the time I got to the bridge on the first lap. So I had to stretch in the boat on the next length, by over rotating in the boat. This worked out ok. When I got back to the dock, I hopped out and stretched properly. Mental note, ALWAYS STRETCH, even if it is pouring rain.

Back for another lap of the slough. This time I was concentrating on pulling my blade out of the water fast and at the hip. I have a visual clue, as to when my on side blade is at my hip. My off side hand is just before the center of the boat, at that time I snap the blade out of the water, and continue to rotate past center a little to set up for the next stroke.

If you sit in a chair, you can go through your stroke to see where your visual clue is. It will be different for different paddle lengths, arm lengths, etc. As you rotate look at your on side blade, and stop it at or just before it reaches your hip. Now look at your off side hand to see its location. That is your visual clue, as to when to pull the blade out of the water. It sure is easier to do this in a chair versus an ICF flat water boat.

So I made sure that I had my weight on the blade all the way through the stroke, and then snap it out of the water. It is important to keep the power on, all the way through the stroke, not just at the beginning.
This was working ok, but I would lose it, and get it back again. Still not an automatic thing, needs work. Reminds me of a saying I heard “Amateurs practise till they get it right, Pros practise until they can't get it wrong”

After working on this, I decided or the rain did for me, to cap it at two laps, but that was not the end of paddling. Now I started to work on an area that I am weak on, and that is starts. My starts are very poor.
So the first thing was to break down the function of the start and work on it step by step.

The first thing is paddling to the start line, and get ready for the start. So I had an imaginary line, and use it to line up. I did a couple of things here, at first I would ease up to the line and just sit there. Then I would go past the line and paddle backwards slowly to the line. This is because as part of tactics, you should go past the line by a little amount and have the starter call you back. Be forewarned though, some starters can get a little annoyed with this tactic, and can start bagging on you.

Then I practise some of the stuff that might come up as you sitting at the line. Scratching my head, looking at my watch, that sort of thing. I can't tell you how many times myself or someone else has gone in by just adjusting their hat, or fiddling with something at the line. So I did this for about 5 to 10 minutes.

Next up was raising the paddle for the start. It is one thing to sit there with your paddle in a “neutral” position, it is another to hold it in a off balance position, as in the start for any amount of time without practise. So I did this one for about 15 minutes. I would raise the paddle just like the start, with the blade in the water, and hold it for as long as I could.

Now came actually starting. The first four strokes are the power ones, to get the boat up and moving. So in my mind, I would be saying “racers start within tens seconds”, raise the paddle to the set position, hold it for a couple of seconds, and then hammer the first four strokes, and then glide. I would try to get a explosive start, like a 100 meter sprinter on a track. I did this about ten times, each one with different success. Not consistent at all. Needs more work. I managed to only swim twice during this section of the workout, and one was because I was braking really hard, so I wouldn't hit the beach.

By now it was dark, and almost 8 pm. I hustled to get the boat bagged and on the car, and then changed. I was the last person to leave the park. It sure is creepy in the rain and pitch black. Other than that it was a good practise.

Good & Wet K1 Practise

The K1 practise today was at Deas in the Thunder. It was raining non-stop the whole time, but the good thing about it was it was warm.(Not like winter, when it is raining all the time and cold.) I liked it, because you can regulate your temperature better, then in the heat. If you get too hot you can strip off a shirt or two. In the heat there really isn't much of an option than to get wet.

After getting my gear ready and my boat down to the water, I went to the rowing club's porch to do my stretches. I wanted to stay dry for a little longer, before going out and being soaked for the next hour and a half. My coach is really on me about stretching before paddling, and the more I do it the more it becomes a habit. I can really notice the difference if I have not stretched before hand. My rotation is not very good, and my legs really cramp up.

So now before I start paddling, I make sure that I have done my stretching routine. This workout was going to be a steady technique paddle, and after each lap get out of the boat and stretch. The water on the first few laps was flat from one end of the slough to the other. During all the rest of the laps it was a different story, the wind had kicked up and made some nice waves to practise on.

It was not the same from one end to the other though. At the club house side, because of the trees around the slough, the wind was low, but at the marina side, the wind was blowing. This was great. I like paddling in bouncy, wavy water to get used to it. Especially in the Thunder. With these conditions I would practise powering up in the flats and then in the wavy section focus on getting my blade in vertically and power all the way through the stroke.

Turning at the marina end was fun as well. Practised cranking the tiller bar over, and turning slowly around, to maximize the effect of the beam waves on the boat. I wanted to practise technique with the boat really rocking from side to side.

After about an hour and twenty minutes, I decided that was enough. My technique was going south rapidly, and I was getting tired. The one good thing about it, was that even though I was tired my balanced stayed the same. Usually at this point I am bracing like mad, but it was only my technique that was suffering.

K1 + Ski Boats = Swimming

Today was a short (one hour) paddle at the slough. When I got there, a water ski boat was attempting to get his kids to water ski. Good to start them young. As I was doing my stretches, I noticed that he was getting a large inner tube setup to pull behind the boat. I though, humm this is going to be good. I need some practise in some larger waves, and it was hot out, it might serve two proposes. You can see where I am going with this.

Just as I was getting in my K1, the boat took off with two kids in the tube, and heading off for the far end of the slough. I waiting a second or two to let the water settle down before going. Once I was moving I saw that the boat was hanging around the middle of the slough. One of the kids had gone airborne, and was regrouping. Just as I was getting even with them, they took off, but this time spinning donuts, making some rather large and confused waves in all directions.

Since I knew this was coming, I thought I was ready for it, boy was I wrong. The first set came complete beam side and they were big rollers, which I managed to stay up in.But I forgot being so close to shore, the reflective waves nailed me on the other side. In I went. I did not mind in the least. I needed cooling down from the heat, and it made for a nice short swim.

After emptying my boat, it was off for a couple of laps, with the odd power up, and some steady state paddling. Then about 10 to 15 minutes of balance training. It was a good short paddle / swim.

K1 Practice – Look Ma No Paddle

Today was another K1 technique practice with balance drills at the end. It was the usual loops around Deas with some power ups just to make things interesting. My back is sore from the weekend so i wasn't into really pushing my limits. I did manage 6 loops in the time that I had.

Coming in after the last loop, I decided to do some balance drills at the beach. So I positioned myself about 3 meters from the shore and started to do some side braces, and leaning the boat over as far as I could. then I started to do the closed eyes drills. Side braces, forward strokes, and backward strokes, all with my eyes closed. Then I tried to sit in one spot and lift my arms up to shoulder height with my eyes closed. This did not work out too well, as I decided to wash my shirt since it was sweaty, lol.

After draining my boat, I decided to do some no paddle drills as suggested by Lynn my coach. So I tossed my paddle on shore and started to paddle down the slough. Before I knew it i was 150 meters from shore. what can I say no guts, no glory. It is one thing to go this in shallow water, it is another to do it where you will need to swim a fair distance to get back in.

I continued to paddle around with just my hands for the next 15 minutes. I was having fun, this was a blast. I paddled back to the beach area, and parked about 5 meters from the shore. Then I was trying to sit there and bring my arms up in a “T” at shoulder height. Then I would bring them slowly down and forward, to makes things interesting. Then I tried to bounce the boat at the same time. I could only do this for a short time, as it was getting a little too tippy without a paddle.

I ended up going in again because as I wasn't paying attention, and was drifting backwards towards the shore, and digging the stern into the shore. Oops.

I have come a long ways since starting to paddle ICF K1s. When I first started I could barely paddle a Laser trainer, and now I am closing my eyes and staying dry. I remember trying a boat with this level of stability and being scared to let go of the dock. I would stay up for about 5 seconds max, before going swimming. Just goes to show you that if you keep at it you will succeed.

K1 Technique Practice

oday was a technique practice in Deas slough with the Thunder. Each time out now I am getting better with both balance and technique. Mind you there are set backs some times.

I have been paddling for almost a week now with my new one piece paddle. It is a Think carbon mid wing blade, and has a different feel to it than either my Epic or my Set. This is going to be my main paddle from now on. It has a bigger bite at the catch and has a smooth exit. I would like to thank Daryl of Think Kayaks for setting me up with the new paddle.

This practice was all about technique and distance. I worked on what Lynn was telling me the day before about pausing at the catch or setup and then powering through the “entire” stroke, not just at the beginning. By moving my seat up really helps in this regard, as I can really push hard off the foot board.

I concentrated on slowing my stroke rate down, and make each one count. Trying to setup each stroke properly with lots of rotation, and putting as much weight on the blade as I could without getting tippy. With each time out I am improving this aspect of my paddling. Also keeping my on side arm straight through the stroke is working out. Doing this helps keeping the power on the blade through out the stroke.

You can really feel the boat jump forward. After a couple of laps, it was time to practice some balance. Did the usual, eyes closed, side draws, forward, backward strokes, as well as I started to try bouncing the boat. Having your eye closed gives a whole new meaning to being able to feel the boat.

Then it was off for three more laps of the slough. This made the distance by the time I was done, to 11 kilometers. I am looking forward to the next practice. Whenever that maybe, with work being so busy right now.

The thunder is definitely my hardest boat to paddle, but it is still my favorite. It gives you a sense of accomplishment being able to paddle it.

K1 / Surf Ski Practice at Deas

Today we were in singles, Amber in the EVO, and myself in the Thunder K1. It is hard to tell someone how to paddle when you can't really see them. Being in the front of the K2, it is not very good to keep looking back to see how Amber is paddling.

So we spent about an hour and a half, just working on technique. The one good thing is that Amber has good balance from rowing, so she can just hop into the EVO and go. It makes it a lot easier to just have to worry about technique than it is to add balance into the equation.

We did some drills were you touch the opposite side of the boat after each stroke to hep with rotation. As well as, taking one stroke and rotating two more time in the air, and then taking a stroke on the opposite side, and so on.

We were at the slough at the same time as the rowers from Deas were out, and they were giving Amber the gears about paddling instead of rowing. All in good fun.

Deas K1 Practice

This morning, since I came home early was going to be a K1 practice in the Thunder. It was low tide and breezy. This was go for a technique practice, because you can turn in any direction to paddle different conditions. With the wind, against the wind, across the wind, etc.

The one thing that I was concentrating on for this practice was leg drive. I wore my stickiest shorts, so I would have to really push hard in order to get any kind of rotation. You really need good contact with the foot board in order to get good drive. With this in mind, I kept moving my seat up after each lap. With each adjustment I could feel I improvement in the drive and the control of the boat. Now I see why my coach was bugging me do move my seat up for the past year.

By the time I was finished a hour and fifteen minutes later, the set was as far as it could go towards the front. Now I need to back it off a notch and move the foot board closer to keep the trim level.

Another good practice with some improvements made.

Paddle Testing At Deas Island

Today I was out testing different configurations of my paddle set up.

I am looking to get another paddle, and this has brought on the discussion of blade size and length to consider. I have tested five different paddles in the last couple of weeks, trying to find one that works for me.

Daryl Remmler from Think Kayaks has been helping me out with this. He has the most paddles of anyone I know.After testing I have narrowed the list down to one. Now I just have to determine the proper length. Daryl had a look at my SET, and we lined it up to his Think paddle.Mine was a good 4 to 6 cms. longer. Which was strange because Daryl and I are roughly the same size. (or height should I say)

So now I am in the process of testing different lengths to find the optimum length for me. I went to Deas Island to do some testing. When I got there the wind was starting to pick up a bit. I thought this would be good for the testing because it will really push me since I was in the Thunder for today's paddle.

So I reduce the length of my blade by about 4 cms. I set it up as short as it would go. Right from the get go, it made a very noticeable difference. I was more stable in the boat than I have been lately. It took me a while to figure out why it made so much of a difference, then it dawned on me, because the length was shorter, I was not bringing the blade past my hip as much. My coach has been on me for this. With the longer blade set up it was very easy to bring the blade past my hip and get into a unbalanced position, and in the Thunder you really notice this, because there is NO forgiveness.

I had a really good paddle with this set up, and it is the length I am going to go with. Now I need to work on the optimal feather angle for me. Everyone seems to have an opinion on what is the best feather angle. Some say 72 degrees, some say 60 degrees. My opinion on it, is that it is up to the paddlers bio-mechanics that determines the correct feather angle.That is the amount that your control side wrist can actually rotate. Everyone had different ranges of motion in all their joints, so to say that a specific feather angle works for everyone does not jive with me.

Here is how I set up my paddles:

I bring all the items I need to set and tape up the blade with me.

When you place the blade into the water on the "on" side the blade should be in a neutral position. That is where the blade is angled to its maximum "catch" position. Too much facing out and the blade is in a open position and you lose power. Too much facing in, and the blade is in a closed position, and as well is losing power. It will not matter which blade size you have, if you have the blade in the right angle you will feel it, because it will be hard to pull.

You can do this on a dock or in your boat, I am going to use the dock as an example. First sit in the proper position for paddling, Knees bent, chest up,(not slouching) looking forward.Now rotate your core like you would in the boat as your are setting up for the stroke. Place the blade in the water vertically, stop and hold it. Look at the blade, does it look in the right position? rotate the blade until it is in a neutral position.You can do some test stokes to determine if it is in the right spot.

Now still holding the shaft and with the blade in the right position, mark the location. Once the spot is marked you can tape on something (string, cut o-ring, rolled up tape, etc) to locate your hand to the paddle. This is so when you grab the paddle it will orientate to the correct position. Make sure you test it a couple of times to make sure. If the blade does not line up in the neutral position when you grab the paddle, you should redo the set up.

With the control side done, you can now move to the other side. With the paddle loosened at the joint (two piece paddle) so it will just rotate if you turn it, place the blade in the water. Look at the position of the blade, and adjust it either way if it is not in the neutral position.Once you have the blade in the right spot, tighten the paddle. Then mark the position on both halves of the paddle. This way you can find the right spot quickly.

This way the blades are set up to your wrist movement. Now what is left is just finding the right distance for your hands on the paddle. I use the generic, place the paddle on my head, and move my hands until they are at 90 degrees to my elbows / biceps. Then I mark each handle at that position with some o-rings and tape.

Then all you need to do is go out and do a test paddle. You should have a solid feel all the way through the stroke. That is it.