Session 3:  Performance - how to go fast and be smooth

Rowing

  1. The stroke motion is continuous, not broken into jerky pieces.
  2. Have the blades (oar tips) enter the water at the same speed the boat is moving.
  3. Have the blades (oar tips) enter the water with a knifing motion that produces little splashing of the water.
  4. Swing your back at the same rate your legs are moving, all the while keeping your body weight over the middle of the boat.
  5. Your head and nose height remain unchanged throughout the stroke.
  6. At the end of the stroke, you recover by swinging out of bow quickly and smoothly, sending your hands and arms immediately away from your ribs.
  7. At the end of the stroke shift your abdominal weight to the stern and set the angle of your back before you move your seat.
  8. As you come up the slide on the recovery leave your arms straight, with body angle cocked forward about 25 degrees - your back is straight and braced.
  9. As you come up the slide your seat moves on the tracks at about the same speed the boat is gliding in the opposite direction.
Kayaking
  1. The paddle motion is continuous, not broken into jerky pieces.
  2. Have the blades (paddle tips) enter the water at the same speed the boat is moving.
  3. Have the blades (paddle tips) enter the water with a knifing motion that produces little splashing of the water.
  4. Once your paddle enters the water and you are fully "connected", simultaneously push with your upper hand while rotating your abdomen as if you are pushing the water past the boat.
  5. Your head and nose height remain unchanged throughout the stroke.
  6. Following the stroke you recover by quickly relaxing your extended upper shoulder and then gently letting that arm drop toward the water and then pick up speed just as your paddle enters the water.
  7. When paddling continuously for more than 10 minutes, practice the use of recovery cycles of 50%, 30%, and 10% in order to preserve energy and propel the boat under power.
  8. After 30 minutes of continuous paddling, practice energy conservation (in your shoulders and arms): leave your arms straight longer on the drive, pivot your hips more, and trace an imaginary horizontal figure 8 with your paddling hands.
  9. This fluid stroking motion allows the boat to glide through the water, without being upset by abrupt body movements.
Sailing
  1. Use reckoning dead abeam to reset a tight course when tacking port/starboard.
  2. Tip the boat, right it, secure it, and set sail in winds greater than 5 knots.
  3. Be able to define and describe the function of all parts of the dinghy boat.
  4. Explain right of way rules re: crafts, location, course, and upwind position.
  5. Be able to make a smooth jibe in winds greater than 10 knots.
  6. Demonstrate safe upwind and downwind landings at a dock.
  7. Show at least 2 effective approaches for getting out of irons.
  8. When playing "chase" with another sailboat, be able to stay close to them.
  9. Explain how to read a chart for depth, current, and right of way.