WILDH2PRO wrote:
(ORIGINAL POST AT BOTTOM)

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So, according to that (very credible) source, I've been using the paddle upside
down?! I've been paddling with the higher area half of the blade (assuming the
ridge where the shaft combines with the blade is the dividing point between the
two) facing down, just like my last paddle, a similarly asymetric Werner
Freestyle! Granted, the review is for the AT2, not the AT4, but I would have
to imagine the designs are similar enough to employ the same paddling style.

Any of you AT paddlers out ther care to weigh in on which side of the blade
goes down? Haven't paddled for a week, and even so, whatever I'd done to my
elbow doesn't seem to be getting any better. No paddling for me for a while, it
looks like...waaaaa!

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Most paddles I've seen are to be used with the smallest blade surface
down. The reason for this is that you don't need a lot of paddle in the
water to propel a boat. I'm still using the original paddles I purchased
years ago and I find that I put no more than 1/2 the blade in the water
at a time and could easily go to a paddle that uses considerably less
blade. Swimmers (world class freestylers), for example, propel
themselves at close to 5 MPH using a paddle the size of, oh my, your
hand. When training with paddles on their hands, they tend to get
tendonitis due to the excess stress.

Now a boat is considerably larger, but WW paddlers routinely roll their
boat using their hands as well. How much blade is necessary is probably
considerably less than what most of us think. I have taken my son's
shorter, narrower, blade out and found that I liked the response. I tire
less quickly, use less muscle, and have greater turnover (more
revolutions per minute). This is consistent with what is observed in
similar power sports (such as cycling) where a faster cadence and lower
gearing results in a more satisfying and comfortable expenditure of
energy, even though it seems less efficient. Cyclists used to recommend
an RPM of 60-80, but modern thinking puts a comfortable cadence between
80-100, with 120 seen in some individuals. I prefer a cadence of 90-95
and find that I am working too hard at lower cadences.

The end result, however, is the same. It takes X amount of energy to
move a particular hull 1 mile. You can do this with a fat, long paddle,
or a short, skinny one. The number of calories expended is virtually
identical. It comes down to which is more comfortable for the paddler
and which leads to a reduction of stresses on the anatomy.

Rick