"PG" wrote in
:



While I got your attention, there's another question that's been
bothering me. Somewhere I have read that a good paddler should be able
to go backward in a straight line almost as fast as going forward.
When I try to do that, I find that at slow speed I can maintain a
straight line, but at higher speeds there is a pronounced turn to the
right, which I cannot compensate for with sweep strokes. My rudder is
always up so I can't blame it. I thought perhaps I was doing an
inadvertent edge, but doing a deliberate edge in either direction
still gave more or less the same result. Do you think there is
something assymetric in my technique, or is it inherent in the boat?

It's probably not the boat. One of the skills you're tested on when taking
a BCU 3 star assessment is paddling backwards in a figure 8. It turns out
to be one of the skills that prevents a successful completion of the
assessment. After a day of training and assessment with 11 other people the
most common problem was being able to change directions once you started to
turn. First, if you *want* to turn you should edge the boat to the outside
of the turn. Once you've started to turn the boat will tend to continue to
turn in that direction, even if you edge in the opposite direction. The
trick is to bring the hull to a flat position, initiate the turn in the
opposite direction with a sweep stroke, then edge away from the direction
you want to go. Most likely there is something asymetric in your technique
that is causing the boat to start to turn right and once it starts it tends
to go that way.

I like using a reverse stroke when teaching beginners torso rotation.
Rotating the torso until the paddleshaft is nearly parallel with the boat,
then present the backface of the blade to the water for the catch, then
uncoil you body and repeat on the opposite side. Start slowly and gradually
put a little more into the stroke and you should be able to maintain a
straight course.