Canoeing is an amazingly fun water activity. It can be referred to as
either a sport activity or a recreational activity. In canoeing, single
bladed paddles are used to balance the canoe in water.
It is pretty ironical that half of the people owning a canoe do not have
much knowledge of using it. Being amateurs, they do not know how to
paddle in the right way. Sometimes, it is actually funny watching them
fumble with their strokes.
In order to remove this clumsiness and start enjoying your activity of
canoeing, read out about the following 3 strokes. Take a note that
becoming perfect in these strokes will require months of practice. The
practice time maybe more or less, varying with different individuals.
It is important to note that you should practice each stroke on both sides
of the canoe.
1. Forward Stroke:
This is the primary and the most basic canoe stroke. Even though it is
considered the easiest, it will require the canoeist to maintain a proper
and straight sitting positioning and an accurate torso rotation.
2. J- Stroke:
The canoe has the tendency to move in the unwanted direction at times.
Owing to this, a stroke is required to compensate for an action. This
stroke is known as the J- stroke. It can be said to be a pretty advanced
stroke as compared to the forward stroke, but it is of immense
importance in keeping the canoe moving in the required direction.
3. Draw Stroke:
This stroke provides the same function as the previously mentioned J
stroke. It would facilitate the direction of the canoe best if used by the
paddler. This will compensate for the direction of the canoe while it
keeps moving forward.
The last two of these strokes need extreme practice and a lot of patience
to master. Meanwhile, it is advisable that you always accompany a
friend during all your canoe outings.
Apart from these, paddling in the tandem is the hardest. It is because of
this reason that only the expert should perform this. In this method, all
the three strokes mentioned above will have to be used in a systematic
way to keep the canoe moving safely in the right direction.
Before learning these strokes, it is important to know about their
anatomy. Basically, all the canoes consist of 3 phases- catch, power and
recovery. If you want to achieve expertise in the activity of canoeing,
then it is crucial to get the perfect canoe from the best canoe brands.
Some of the famous canoe brands are Pelican 15.5 Foot Recreational
Canoe, Nova Craft Bob Special 15 Foot Canoe, Lincoln Hidden Pond 14
Foot Canoe, and others.
The difficulty level of these strokes might vary from person to person. It
might seem like a bit out of your league task at first, but trust me…All
you need to have is patience!