Qajaq Rolls
Published August 16, 2011 | 
Time once again to take a break from my own endless chatter and recommend another blog worth checking out. Since I’ve spent a lot of time on traditional stuff recently, now is a good time to send you over to check out Minnesota resident, Christopher Crowhurst’s Qajaq Rolls. I really like what Christopher is doing with his Roll of the Day series. I’ve always thought that one of the best things about the internet is that we can go online and learn just about anything. Of course for this to happen, other people have to go be generous enough to share what they know with little to no financial reward. Continue reading
Posted in Learn To Roll, Learning, Paddling, Traditional Paddling | 
Christopher Crowhurst, dubside, Helen Wilson, Maligaq, rolling | 
1 CommentUP
Published July 20, 2011 | 
All the while the world is turning to noise
Oh the more that it’s surrounding us
The more that it destroys
Turn up the signal
Wipe out the noise – p. gabriel
Talking about rolling and body position can be a challenge on land. Inevitably we find ourselves standing there, reaching far over our heads to practice (or demonstrate) paddle placement on the surface of the water, sweeping the paddle, and recovering over the kayak. It doesn’t work, mind you. In fact, the more you ingrain the reaching over your head movements on land, the more you or your students will be reaching toward the bottom of the lake once they get out in the water. Still, there is just something in our crazy brains that makes us want to always reach UP. Continue reading
Madness & Method
Published July 15, 2011 | 
Everyone teaches rolling in their own personal way. Over the years I’ve learned that as instructors we need to be flexible. While we all may begin with a mental outline that serves us well most of the time, we quickly adjust that outline to fit each individuals needs. Take Helen Wilson for example.. With this student she thought it would help if she dressed up like a big yellow and blue bunny rabbit… Continue reading
Posted in Events & Symposia, Learn To Roll, Paddling, People, Traditional Paddling | Diane Carr, Helen Wi, rolling, Roy Martin | 6 CommentsJust Gotsta Believe
Published May 11, 2011 |
don’t give up now / we’re proud of who you are
don’t give up / you know it’s never been easy
don’t give up / ’cause I believe there’s the a place
there’s a place where we belong
- gabriel
Sometimes its only faith that keeps you going; The belief that if you work hard enough, if you face your fears head on, you’ll always overcome. Eventually. That was last night’s pool session in a nut shell. I spent another evening just trying to resurface as my 10-year-old son spent his night on his knees on a diving board trying to make his body fall in.. head first.
On her website, GreenlandorBust.org, instructor Helen Wilson responds to a question about weight and flexibility this way, “With rolling I have found that a person’s size has very little to do with ability. A person’s flexibility however can play a huge role.”. Then she goes on to talk about various exercises and yoga. All good stuff. That said, I don’t really have a “size” role model when it comes to rolling. I’ve not seen anyone 5’7″ and 220 do a straight jacket roll. Not to say no one has, I’ve just not seen it. At 45 I’m pretty flexible though, so if size doesn’t matter I’ll get there.. It’s a matter of faith. Well, to be honest.. I don’t really care about straight jacket rolls, but there are a few more I’d like to add to the my own personal list. 
Continue reading
Chillsville
Published May 8, 2011 | 
Got no deeds to do / No promises to keep.
I’m dappled and drowsy and ready to sleep.
Let the morning time drop all its petals on me.
Life, I love you / All is groovy.
- Simon & Garfunkel
There are 2 main ways to approach kayak rolling, the high power, hip flick way, or the relaxed, chilled out way. I prefer to chill out. Both ways work, but the chilled out way works even when you’re just zapped. When it comes to learning to roll, we almost always tend to go for the power. It’s partially animal nature, and partly an expression of the anxiety lingering around because of the fear that you might blow it. Learning to chill out is practically its own step in your rolling progression; “Ok, you’re coming up now. Next we’ll move on to the “chill stage”… Continue reading
Spin Cycles
Published May 5, 2011 | 
I will shape myself into your pocket
Invisible
Do what you want
Do what you want
- radiohead
I’d learned what I do know of traditional rolling from the cockpit of my old blue NDK Explorer. Later I moved on to a Valley Anas Acuta. Step by step I was progressing. There came a point though, when I felt I wasn’t getting any further. I’m not sure if it was the volume of the kayak or just me hitting a wall. I stopped. I walked away with most of layback rolls in place up to elbow rolls.. and just starting to work on forward rolls beyond a storm roll & reverse sweep. At the time I was really feeling like the volume of the kayak was beginning to raise its ugly head. That can real, or it can be a psychological limit. Sometimes when you feel something, it doesn’t matter if it’s true or not. It becomes true simply because you feel it to be so. Continue reading
Recoveries
Published August 20, 2010 | 
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people
Power to the people, right on
– lennon
We’re almost done with the Low Impact Rolling Series. I hope you’ve gained something from it. Remember, it’s not important that you do everything the way I do it. In time everyone finds their own way. But my hope is that through this series you may have found a tip or technique that has helped either firm up your roll or to make it easier and more efficient. I also hope that you’ll take what you’ve pulled from this and share it freely.
Today we move on to “recoveries”. I’m using the word recovery for this post because a roll is a combination of techniques, many of which we’ve covered previously. The recovery is just that last bit, where we get the boat back under our bums. I’m going to break this down as it relates to two sorts of rolls.. A standard “C2C, Sweep” roll recovery and a layback recovery. My goal is to show you where the two rolling styles converge and where they become distinct and how I deal with both. The layback roll is unquestionably the lowest impact roll from start to finish, so let’s start there. Continue reading
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