Misnomers Part 1

Leg Drive

This is one of the most detrimental misnomers but widely used in the whole sport of paddling. But the problem with Leg Drive is it makes everyone push down on their leg as hard as they can and think that more leg drive (harder) is better. The problem with this is two fold. The first is that the goal of "leg drive" is meant to be to rotate your hips but the leg straightening is only half of doing this. For something to actually rotate one side must move forwards just as much as the other moves backwards. By focusing so much on the push most paddlers completely disregard the required "pull" on the other side of their body to achieve rotation and instead only succeed in repeatedly "driving" their tailbone into the back of the seat. This is linked to my second major problem which is that we are trying to paddle forward and leg drive makes everyone emphasise moving backwards. Leg drive should be reserved for rowers who facing the opposite direction and are in fact driving towards where they are going. So stop "Leg Driving" and start "Hip Rotating"

Chasing Runners/Bumps

Going downwind shouldn't be about chasing anything as chasing implies you watch to get to it. The problem here is that the runner we are meant to be surfing should be sitting underneath and slightly behind us so we can't really see it. The thing we are always looking at is in fact the runner in front of us. One of the biggest mistakes people make is seeing the runner in front and trying to get to it or "catch" it, which is in actual fact an uphill that you definitely do not want to catch up to because it will stop you. So in relation to what people are actually seeing I think we should be "following runners" not chasing them. We want to move behind an uphill and never crash into it. The runner in front shows us where to go but if we catch it we will slow down and have to start all over again.

The Catch

This one in my opinion is slightly different and not necessarily a misnomer although for so many of the people I coach it is. The big problem "catching" seems to invoke in most paddlers is that it is something that has to be done quickly or with a lot of effort. Someone who is actually really good at catching makes it look effortless and has "soft hands" that absorb whatever they are catching without anything "hitting". Most paddlers have even been told something like "hit the catch" which is the total opposite. A good paddler catches the water like a good cricketer catches a ball. If we hit the water it literally hits us back, there is splash, slip and jarring. A good paddler enters the water before they do work, filling the blade and then driving off it. So catch the water like you are good at catching or if it makes more sense in your head throw the word catch in the bin and call it your entry instead.