When I was a teenager I fell in love with Nordic skiing. Most winters I'd see heavy snowstorms transforming the bleary and boring farmland into what I imagined to be Norway. You see, this guy had become my idol
https://www.nfb.ca/film/jack_rabbit/. Gosh it was fun!! Bushwhacking at night under the stars was my favourite adventure, setting tracks through field and forest, carving my own trails as I went. A few years later I took my skiing passion to Jack Rabbit's adopted home of Quebec, where I discovered the zeal of groomed trails. Countless hours turned to seasons, and into years, of splendid skiing. I trained hard, often hitting the trails twice daily December through March to get my fix. It was such an addictive sport, all that fresh air and nature, exercise and Zen. There was always so much to practice and learn, and practice some more. One important principle was that of the efficiency of movement through technique, and not simply relying on strength to power propulsion. And good waxing was always important too of course. I was such a nerd about that, carrying a full kit of waxes and klisters, torch and scraper, stripper and rags, cork and sandwiches. Well, gear and lunch all had to go in the same small pack, right? Anyway, double poling was one more technique to utilize along with kicks and skating, to go the fastest, furthest, with the least effort. Pole placement and timing, body position and movement, all had to work in unison and with fluidity. I still remember how that would work out for me. It was often like loose wires, sometimes everything would fall into place and I'd have a few kilometers of a lifetime when all would be perfection, and then all of a sudden it would all come apart. A micro slip here and a caught edge there, and then nothing would work. I became a spastic skier, flailing and swearing my way along trying once again to find the fluid motions of Nordic nirvana. Ah well, practice makes perfect as they say, and I had a whole lotta practicing to do. But still, I did reasonably well, and had a whole lotta fun doing it.
I have no problem watching the canoe double poler in the video do his thing. As he explains, he does a body crunch leaning forward as he plants and drives his poles, and they appear to be almost properly placed inline with his shoulders, not too splayed out. But it's the almost part that concerns me. Having to clear the gunnels complicates things. Not his fault. Just those few inches makes a difference I think, despite sitting in the narrow station of a solo canoe. Losing some power of the lats and relying more on the delts might strain that all important rotator. I am not a doctor, and might be talking out of my hat, but I never want to go through that kind of physio ever again. I'm sure the guy in the vid knows what he's doing; all the power to him. I wish him well and no disrespect. But I would rather just get out, bridle the canoe, and take it for a nice wet walk upstream. Maybe I just don't know how to have fun anymore.