Greg Barton’s Forward Stroke
Greg’s version of the forward stroke perhaps typifies today’s modern racing-style stroke. Utilizing shorter paddles, wider blades, a higher shaft angle and higher cadence, it is powered with torso rotation that begins way down deep, at the toes—R.S.
With any competition, the motivation to squeeze out every bit of performance is high. While recreational and touring kayakers may take years to determine the optimal way to paddle, racers quickly find what works. With races often won or lost by fractions of a second, a small improvement in equipment or technique becomes readily apparent at the finish line. I started competing in kayaks at age 10 when I weighed 75 lbs. I often raced against kids who were 14 or 15 years old with nearly twice my weight and strength. The only way I could hope to compete was with more efficient technique. This paid off for me in later years, as good technique carried me to four Olympic medals.
You should have good posture in the kayak. Your torso should be vertical or leaning up to 10 degrees forward. You should not lean back or hunch forward while paddling.
The position of your legs and knees will depend on your equipment
and the type of paddling you do. It is more efficient biomechanically
to have greater freedom of the legs. Proper pushing with legs
that are allowed to move will add about five percent more power
to your stroke. Optimal position for maximum power is to have
your knees closer together, approximately 1" apart, and
slightly bent with freedom to move up and down. The cockpit openings
of racing kayaks are long and narrow to facilitate this knee
position and motion. Knees this close together will improve power,
but up-and-down movement is even more important. The cockpit
openings of cruising kayaks, however, are designed to lock the
knees in place under the thigh braces. But even with the knees
out to the side, having some freedom to move can still provide
good power. Using this technique, you would push with the leg
on the same side as the paddle blade in the water. Good paddlers
will actually pivot on the seat during each stroke, which increases
the amount of body rotation and allows extra power to be generated
by the legs.
For more severe conditions, it
is better to be connected to the kayak with thigh braces. This
will allow more boat control and the ability to perform an Eskimo
roll. The tradeoff is that the lower body can’t contribute power to the stroke. So use thigh braces if stability is a concern; if it’s
not (if you are paddling on flat water or are a highly skilled
paddler), then it is better to have more freedom of movement
in the legs.
For shorter distances, I prefer to paddle without using a backrest. Going without one promotes better posture and more pronounced body rotation. For longer distances, a backrest is a good idea as it lessens the strain on your lower back. The backrest should be adjusted to promote good posture without excessive backward lean.
The key to a good forward stroke
is using good body rotation and minimizing the use of the muscles
in your arms. Your arms should never bend more than 90 degrees—if they do, your arms are working too hard and you will tire quickly. The grip spacing between your hands should be such that your elbows are at a 75-90° angle
when the paddle is placed horizontally over your head. Gripping
at shoulder width is too narrow for an effective power stroke.
Your grip on the paddle shaft should be relaxed: Hold the paddle
loosely in your hands and release the fingers of your top hand
during the push phase of the stroke. Your top hand can be opened
up completely, allowing the shaft to rest between your thumb
and forefinger. Alternatively, your thumb and forefinger can
hold the paddle while the other three fingers are opened up.
Your bottom hand should also be held with fingers relaxed so
that the shaft can pivot in your fingers rather than force your
wrist to bend as the angle of the paddle shaft changes during
the stroke. A tight “death grip” can create serious
wrist problems.
Begin with your right shoulder angled forward and your right knee up higher than your left. The height difference between your knees will depend on the way your kayak is outfitted and on your paddling intensity. With loose-fitting thigh braces and moderate-intensity paddling, your right knee may be 2 to 3 inches higher than your left. At a full sprint in a kayak that allows complete freedom of knee movement, your left leg may be nearly straight with your right knee 8 to 10 inches higher. Your right arm is extended straight, and your left hand is approximately at the height of your head, but far enough out to the side that your elbow is bent no more than 90 degrees. “Spear” your paddle into the water by dropping both arms and catching the water close to the side of your boat. The paddle should enter alongside or in front of your feet. The object of “the catch” is to get the paddle quickly buried to the top of the blade. Pulling before the entire blade is submerged will cause a larger splash and result in less power.
Once the blade is immersed, the
pull begins. Push with your right leg (if you are set up to allow
leg movement, this will start pivoting your right hip backward
on the seat), and pull the blade through the water by rotating
your right shoulder back (while your left shoulder goes forward).
The first part of the power phase is accomplished with body rotation—not
by bending your lower (waterside) arm. The most powerful part
of the stroke is early in the power phase as the paddle is approaching
vertical and the blade is approaching your knees. The main power
comes from your torso and from whatever motion you create with
your hips.
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Body rotation continues, and the
lower arm can begin to bend. Don’t let the paddle submerge below the top of the blade as the paddle moves between your knees and hip—it
will take more effort to draw the blade from the water and will
slow the boat down. The paddle can move out away from the boat
as the stroke proceeds: It will end up six to 10 inches away
from the side of the kayak with a conventional paddle and up
to 18 inches away with a wing paddle. Allowing the paddle to
move out away from the kayak will promote better body rotation.
The exit
occurs as the blade draws even with the hip. Pulling back any
more pulls the boat down in the water and will decrease the
kayak’s speed. The exit is accomplished by lifting the
wrist and elbow upward. If only the wrist flips up, then the
elbow will be bent more than 90 degrees (a no-no), and the
top arm will not be in a powerful pushing position. At the
end of the right-side stroke, the right leg is straighter and
the right shoulder has rotated back (the left shoulder has
rotated forward, ready for the next stroke).
The left hand should maintain a nearly constant height throughout the push phase. If you are pushing at shoulder height, then your hand should remain at that height until the paddle exits the water. Your left (top) arm should be nearly straight as the paddle exits and become totally straight before the catch for the next stroke. If your top elbow straightens early in the stroke, it results in a poor paddle angle that pulls up on the water instead of pulling straight back.
In the early ’70s, it was commonly thought that you shouldn’t cross the centerline of the kayak with the upper hand, yet all the top paddlers were doing just that. Some instructors still say not to cross the centerline, but if you don’t cross the centerline with your upper hand, you aren’t
using enough body rotation.
Feathering the paddle occurs during the recovery phase as you prepare for the catch on the opposite side. Either a feathered or unfeathered paddle can be used for this stroke. A feathered paddle is more efficient but requires more wrist action.
A high-angle stroke with the top hand pushing at approximately eye level is best for maximum power and speed. A low-angle style (pushing lower than shoulder level) is less tiring. Therefore, the style height will vary depending on the intensity and duration of your trip.
The low-angle style is easier to transfer into a brace stroke, so a lower top hand is preferred for paddling in wind and/or waves. With a low angle, the top blade is less exposed to the wind. For a good brace stroke, the paddle must become nearly horizontal. With a high-angle stroke, the bottom blade must be moved out away from the kayak, and the top hand must be dropped for an effective brace stroke. With the low-angle style, you are halfway there already, so a brace is much easier.
A paddle length of 200 to 215 cm
is best for smaller paddlers (5'5" or less). Taller paddlers should use a length of 210 to 225 cm. A low-angle style requires a slightly longer paddle (up to 5 cm) than high-angle. Paddles longer than 230 cm should never be used—they
are too long for an efficient forward stroke, even for a tall
person paddling a wide double with a low-angle style.
With good technique, it’s possible to reach the water with
relatively short paddles. Longer paddles are heavier and substantially
increase the effort, with minimal increase in power. They will
either cause the stroke to sweep well away from the kayak (turning
the kayak instead of propelling it forward) or to submerge too
deeply in the water, creating drag.
Techniques developed over decades
of racing will greatly improve your forward-stroke efficiency.
Using good body rotation to pull your paddle through the water,
combined with proper hand location and paddle placement, will
allow you to paddle faster and farther with less effort. Start
with a racer’s power stroke, then adapt these ideas to
fit your personal style.
Greg Barton is a four-time Olympic medalist in sprint kayaking and is a paddle and kayak designer. Along with world champion open-ocean racer Oscar Chalupsky, Greg recently released a forward-stroke video, which is available online: www.epickayaks.com
