I’ve been working on this style for a couple of years and have found that it applies to canoes quite well. I know most of us don’t race or paddle for speed, but this technique is also efficient. Here are a couple of links:
or go here Tahitian technique 1
Or go here Tahitian technique 2
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Tahitian style paddling
- Thread starter Art D
- Start date
Thanks, Art for posting this. i have asked my. 90 mile team to watch it.
I remember Charlie Wilson mentioning much of this to me years ago. Imagining the catch going into semi-solid jello and then pulling the canoe past the stationary paddle with paddle blade kept as vertical as possible locked in the semi-solid water. Only part of what is in the video.
When I was on a government work trip to Canberra, I got an invitation to paddle for a couple of hours in an open seat during a training session with the Australian National Dragon Boat team. We had a very fast cadence, but the coach described the details of paddle handling in the same way. While there is some, he old idea of torso rotation duering the stroke is not so important as it once was thought and taught. I like to think I have discovered and practice much of this on my own.
The art of efficient single blade paddling in a canoe.
I remember Charlie Wilson mentioning much of this to me years ago. Imagining the catch going into semi-solid jello and then pulling the canoe past the stationary paddle with paddle blade kept as vertical as possible locked in the semi-solid water. Only part of what is in the video.
When I was on a government work trip to Canberra, I got an invitation to paddle for a couple of hours in an open seat during a training session with the Australian National Dragon Boat team. We had a very fast cadence, but the coach described the details of paddle handling in the same way. While there is some, he old idea of torso rotation duering the stroke is not so important as it once was thought and taught. I like to think I have discovered and practice much of this on my own.
The art of efficient single blade paddling in a canoe.
I had seen those vids a number of years ago but didn't quite get it until recently. The keys to the stroke as I see it are: using downward pressure instead of pulling back and pivoting the paddle at the grip instead of the middle of the shaft.
The downward pressure keeps the paddle vertical throughout the power phase and is equally pressured throughout the stroke. It also forces me to have a shorter stroke as the power phase is done as soon as the paddle hits the bottom of the rotation. As far as the pivoting the paddle at the grip like Puakea said I feel like the paddle doesn't pivot at all, but I'll take his word on it. The thing to remember is that there is no push with the grip hand or pull with the lower hand. Both hands move down together on the same plane.
After years of looking for the ultimate power stroke I finally figured it out by replicating what my wife was doing in the bow. A couple years ago I noticed that my wife's stroke had changed. She always had a strong stroke but what I noticed was she applied power applied equally throughout the stroke. With other strokes I felt a surge in power at a point in the stroke, but I wasn't feeling this anymore, it was all maximum power. When I asked her how she came to this stroke she said she learned it from our friend and professional canoe instructor in Hawaii, Chris. I don't remember getting the same instructions, so I either didn't "get" it or maybe Chris went over it with her while on the water where she was getting instruction that I couldn't hear because I was further away in the bow.
The downward pressure keeps the paddle vertical throughout the power phase and is equally pressured throughout the stroke. It also forces me to have a shorter stroke as the power phase is done as soon as the paddle hits the bottom of the rotation. As far as the pivoting the paddle at the grip like Puakea said I feel like the paddle doesn't pivot at all, but I'll take his word on it. The thing to remember is that there is no push with the grip hand or pull with the lower hand. Both hands move down together on the same plane.
After years of looking for the ultimate power stroke I finally figured it out by replicating what my wife was doing in the bow. A couple years ago I noticed that my wife's stroke had changed. She always had a strong stroke but what I noticed was she applied power applied equally throughout the stroke. With other strokes I felt a surge in power at a point in the stroke, but I wasn't feeling this anymore, it was all maximum power. When I asked her how she came to this stroke she said she learned it from our friend and professional canoe instructor in Hawaii, Chris. I don't remember getting the same instructions, so I either didn't "get" it or maybe Chris went over it with her while on the water where she was getting instruction that I couldn't hear because I was further away in the bow.
He is describing what I have been learning through experimentation. It all rings true.
What was almost an "aha" moment for me (I wasn't immediately sure I was understanding what was going on) was when I started putting the BB Viper to work.
I had picked it up cheap in an estate sale, but initially wasn't sure I liked it. I had set it aside, largely because it went against the lighter/smaller/faster blade theory of the Zav.
Not Long ago, I decided to give it an honest evaluation. And I discovered that although the weight was an issue, the bigger blade was giving me good speed with a slower stroke rate. And by concentrating on letting my body weight push the blade down at the catch and letting the boat move to the blade as I pulled back, I was moving with less effort - except for during recovery. It's the recovery phase where the weight is a noticeable disadvantage.
I'm actually starting to think the Viper might be more favorable to my usual pace on flat water. I've noticed that at least some of the paddles these guys are using look like they have more blade area than my Zav race blade, and maybe even more than my Zav recreational blade. Starting to think I might be better off with one of these outrigger paddles.
@Glenn MacGrady - what are your thoughts about this?
I had picked it up cheap in an estate sale, but initially wasn't sure I liked it. I had set it aside, largely because it went against the lighter/smaller/faster blade theory of the Zav.
Not Long ago, I decided to give it an honest evaluation. And I discovered that although the weight was an issue, the bigger blade was giving me good speed with a slower stroke rate. And by concentrating on letting my body weight push the blade down at the catch and letting the boat move to the blade as I pulled back, I was moving with less effort - except for during recovery. It's the recovery phase where the weight is a noticeable disadvantage.
I'm actually starting to think the Viper might be more favorable to my usual pace on flat water. I've noticed that at least some of the paddles these guys are using look like they have more blade area than my Zav race blade, and maybe even more than my Zav recreational blade. Starting to think I might be better off with one of these outrigger paddles.
@Glenn MacGrady - what are your thoughts about this?
I watched this over the winter before I got a chance to try out paddling with a bent shaft, and it didn't really click for me. Instead I found another video that walked through the mechanics in a more detailed fashion. That was going fine, but after some time on the water I watched John P's videos again and it made a lot more sense. I like that he really simplified things. Just get the blade in the water, keep your arms straight, and push down, everything else will sort itself out. I got a chance to paddle yesterday and try it out, and I'm pleased with how it went.
I'm still using this as my go to, most efficient and powerful stroke. I use it when I want maximum power but also when paddling at a more gentle rate for efficiency. What has helped me get a better catch and less cavitation is thinking about the stroke in two phases, power and recovery. The power phase doesn't start until the whole blade is submerged. It ends as soon as my arms reach the bottom of the rotation. The recovery starts at the bottom of the rotation and doesn't end until the blade is completely submerged again. By separating the two phases like this I find I get less noticeable cavitation, resulting in being able to get more weight on the paddle. This added weight directly results in moving the boat forward.
For best results your paddle needs to be vertical during the short power phase. I don't feel like I'm pulling back with the paddle, it's more pushing down. Even though your paddle is vertical in the water you can feel that it is pulling a lot of weight. The weight you feel is your boat moving forward.
The motion of my arms, once the blade is planted, is pretty much how they would fall if I was relying on gravity alone. I had been using this type of stroke for quite a while for casual easy paddling, but didn't think to use it as a power stroke until much later. I had described this stroke on here one time, joking that if I wanted to go faster I needed to switch to a heavier paddle.
This is especially a great stroke when using a thin bladed otter tail paddle, as it uses the whole blade during the power phase. It is a much different stroke than what Alexandra Conover uses with her ash beavertail. With her stroke the paddle rotates where her lower hand is on the shaft. This works for her because it is more efficient to rotate a heavy paddle near the throat than moving it the way Puakea does. It works well with the beavertail blade because the widest part of the paddle is at the bottom and gets more leverage. Using an otter tail in the same way won't give you as much power. Sometimes the most efficient stroke depends on your paddle and also how much energy you want to put into it.
For best results your paddle needs to be vertical during the short power phase. I don't feel like I'm pulling back with the paddle, it's more pushing down. Even though your paddle is vertical in the water you can feel that it is pulling a lot of weight. The weight you feel is your boat moving forward.
The motion of my arms, once the blade is planted, is pretty much how they would fall if I was relying on gravity alone. I had been using this type of stroke for quite a while for casual easy paddling, but didn't think to use it as a power stroke until much later. I had described this stroke on here one time, joking that if I wanted to go faster I needed to switch to a heavier paddle.
This is especially a great stroke when using a thin bladed otter tail paddle, as it uses the whole blade during the power phase. It is a much different stroke than what Alexandra Conover uses with her ash beavertail. With her stroke the paddle rotates where her lower hand is on the shaft. This works for her because it is more efficient to rotate a heavy paddle near the throat than moving it the way Puakea does. It works well with the beavertail blade because the widest part of the paddle is at the bottom and gets more leverage. Using an otter tail in the same way won't give you as much power. Sometimes the most efficient stroke depends on your paddle and also how much energy you want to put into it.
Outrigger paddlers typically use bent shafts that have a ("tulip") shape the same as or very similar to marathon canoe racing paddles, but usually somewhat greater in blade area.
You can even see this on the ZRE website. Their flatwater paddle page has Power Surge and Revolution blades from 7.5-8.5 inches in width, the former blade being 18 inches in length and the latter being 17 inches in length. Their outrigger paddle page has the Power Surge blades from 8 to 9.5 inches in width and 19 inches in length.
Brad Gillespie has been custom making wood bent shaft racing paddles for decades, and now specializes in outrigger paddles. He makes the outrigger paddles up to 10.5" wide. (He's made one straight paddle in his career—my Gillespie Free, which he custom made to my specs.)
I experimented with different bent shafts when I got my Huki outrigger in 2004 (now owned by @Pseudonym). I settled on a 8.75" wide ZRE Power Surge outrigger blade at 48.5" overall length. It's still my favorite bent shaft.
I think paddling, steering and surfing ocean waves and swells probably requires greater blade power than paddling on lakes or rivers. More "anchor" is required on the catch and more leverage is required to battle wind and waves and to control bump surfing.
I note that most outrigger paddlers now seem to prefer double bend shafts over single bend shafts.
I think the bigger blades help with the acceleration needed to catch waves and ride swells. The more waves you catch and the better you catch and ride them will probably serve you better than power alone. I don't think it is the most powerful team that always wins the race.
I wasn't looking for one, but a year or so ago I picked up a like new Bending Branches Viper double bent because the price was too good to pass up ($50) and I thought it would be interesting to try. I didn't think I was liking it at first, but I kept trying it over time, and it's growing on me.
It's weird....my 10.5 oz 8" wide Zav Power Surge is my fastest paddle (or more accurately, I'm least slow with it), but I seem to be able to go longer with the 24 oz 8.75" wide Viper. Part of that may be because it's more comfortable to my wrists, although I can't describe why. And maybe it's also because I'm forced into a slightly more relaxed pace. I dunno, but it's fast becoming my favorite flat water cruising paddle. I still use a Zav a lot, but when the wind comes up (wich is often) I find myself switching back to the Viper. My last day on the lake was almost exclusively under Viper power, except when I was using the ottertail to thread through the trees while stalking bass
One of my paddling buddies tried it on a recent day trip and immediately fell in love with it.
I still can't wrap my mind around why it feels so good.
All sound advice, thanks lowangle. I'll certainly be referring back to this when I get out again, hopefully next weekend. It did not occur to me to try this stroke with my otter tail paddle, I've been focusing primarily on my bent shaft. I'll have to give that a try as well.
I have a Bending Branches Cruiser Plus, a single bent shaft. I'll be sticking with it for at least the next year while I figure all this out, but it looks like I should try a double bent shaft at some point. Sadly the used market in my area is rather lackluster, so it may be tough to pull off.
Double bend more ergonomic. Keeps shaft wrist straight, not bent-cocked.
Am in tent in the Jersey Pine Barrens.
Am in tent in the Jersey Pine Barrens.
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