This article offers tips and techniques for performing a high sculling brace from a kayak and was originally published in Adventure Kayak magazine.

Two points of stability allow you to balance more effectively than one. Sculling braces help you stay upright in tippy situations by acting as a second point of stability to your kayak. Practice the sculling brace by breaking it down into these three elements: body, boat and paddle.

Peer review

The scull should be about as long as
your cockpit with the blade just under the surface. Done properly, there should be very little aeration of the water. Your inward hand is just an anchor; it is your outward hand that does all the work changing the angle of the blade. » Michael Pardy, Paddle Canada level 3 instructor trainer, Victoria, BC

The angle of the blade will give more turn propulsion if it is closer to vertical, like a sweep, and more support if it is flatter to the water. This is useful for learning how flat an angle you want for a graceful sculling brace, and also how to put some support in your sweep stroke for confident edged turns in lumpy water. Blade angle is controlled by raising or lowering the elbow relative to the wrist, keeping the wrist neutral to prevent injury. » Ginni Callahan, ACA level 5 instructor and BCU level 4 coach, Cathlamet, WA

To be biomechanically friendlier as you edge further into the water, rotate your chest to the sky and roll the boat off your body, lessening the load on the paddle. This is similar to a Greenland static brace position. » Shawna Franklin & Leon Sommé, BCU level 4 coaches, Orcas Island, WA

I tend not to look at sculling for support as a stand-alone skill, instead it is a way to en- hance or add confidence to other skills and maneuvers. For example, when performing sweep strokes on the move, finishing a roll, or to perform braces on the move and prevent the blade diving. » Doug Cooper, BCU level 5 coach, Aviemore, Scotland

Body

For a high sculling brace, your elbows should be low with the paddle held horizontally near your shoulders. For a low sculling brace, your elbows should be high, directly over the paddle shaft, which is held horizontal above the cock- pit of your kayak. Use torso rotation to move your blade through the stroke.

Your lower body controls the position of your kayak. use your hips and knees to either hold your boat on edge, or to right the boat as with other bracing strokes.

Boat

Transferring some of your weight onto your sculling paddle will allow you to hold your boat on edge or recover from a near capsize on the sculling side. With a high sculling brace, your kayak can be held on almost any degree of edge, including nearly upside down.

Paddle

Skim your paddle back and forth across the water beside your kayak, maintaining pressure on the power face (high sculling brace), or the non-power face (low sculling brace). Keep the paddle on the surface by slightly lifting the leading edge of your blade.

To get a feel for this, swish your hand back and forth across the water, feeling the water pressure on your palm. As your thumb leads the way through the water, angle it slightly towards the sky. As your pinky leads, angle it towards the sky.

The transition points of the stroke—the points where you change your paddle’s direction of movement—offer little stability. There- fore, move the paddle at a slow to moderate pace and use longer strokes to reduce the number of transitions.

Sculling for Support

Use a high or low sculling brace to salvage a sloppy roll, to stabilize yourself when working your legs back into your kayak during a rodeo re-entry, or in any other situation where you need consistent extra stability.

Practice your sculling technique by moving your kayak in multiple directions using a sculling draw (sculling with a vertical paddle). Then bring the paddle back to horizontal and begin adding a little weight to the paddle as you scull back and forth. Finally, work on holding your boat further and further on edge while sculling for support. This gradual progression will help develop both your muscle memory and your confidence.

Meaghan Hennessy is a Paddle Canada Level 2 instructor trainer and BCU Level 3 sea coach based in Vancouver, British Columbia. She currently teaches for SKILS.

This article originally appeared in Adventure Kayak, Summer/Fall 2011. Download our freeiPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.

If you have discovered the power of canoe poling, you know that streams can be two-way streets and a canoe can be pushed upstream far beyond what is possible with a paddle. Rivers can be enjoyed in a simple up-and-back trip from the put-in, eliminating the need for a car shuttle.

Poking upstream in calm water is a great place to start, but as you progress, you may wish to confront stronger current. This is where poling gets technical.

Get in Position

Facing upstream in the eddy, stand with your feet square, one or two feet behind the center thwart to lighten the bow. A good rule of thumb for all upstream work is to keep the bow sitting higher in the water than the stern. Position the canoe very close to the eddyline and almost parallel to it, with the bow pointed slightly into the current.

Plant the Pole

Plant the pole on the eddy side of the boat. That is, the side away from the current you’re entering.

Push and Tilt

As you push across the eddyline and enter the current, tilt the boat away from the side where your pole is planted. This will carve a turn and counteract the tendency to get flushed down- stream. Tilt the boat, don’t lean your body— stand up straight and tilt the hull by weighting one foot.

Recover and Plant the Pole
 behind you


As you muscle your way into the current, be sure to plant the pole well behind your body. In fast water, by the time you recover and plant again, your boat may have lost its forward momentum and begun drifting backward.

It’s typical to find that by the time you start pushing, the pole is now planted right beside your body and you’re just pushing yourself sideways. The common beginner scenario is a series of these sideways pushes on alternate sides of the boat, resulting in some flailing around and finally washing out the bottom of the rapid. Get in the habit of planting the pole well behind you to set up the proper angle, even if it means drifting back a little in order to find good purchase on the bottom.

These four basic tips apply in virtually all situations. Start poling in gentle current and work towards more advanced techniques for steeper drops.

Matt Swift is an American Canoe Association poling champion living in Blacksburg, VA. He discovered canoe poling in 1988 as a way to explore the shallow streams of Southwest Virginia without having to set up car shuttles.

This article originally appeared in Canoeroots & Family Camping, Fall 2011. Download our freeiPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.

This techniques article featuring tips for escaping sticky hydraulics was originally published in Rapid magazine.

At some point in your paddling career you’ll find yourself stuck in a hole. Once there, you need to know how to get out, ideally while staying in your boat. If you’re upside down, start by using the re-circulating water to your advantage to roll upright. A small paddle motion and hip flick on your downstream side should be enough—a large and violent attempt is both unnecessary and undesirable.

Now that you can breathe, here’s how to escape the hole:

SURF IT SIDEWAYS

After rolling, tilt and brace downstream to keep the current from flipping you over again. Use a forward or reverse stroke with the brace and your body weight to move your boat forwards or backwards to the sides of the hole—often its weakest points. If you get to the side of the hole, reach for the water outside the hole with your paddle blade—this may help pull you out.

RODEO AWAY

If you can’t surf out the side of the hole, try using the subsurface water. Force one end of your boat underwater as deep as possible, ideally getting your boat into a vertical position. A vertical boat will often stick deep enough into the water to catch the downstream current and flush you out of the hole.

REACH FOR IT

If your boat doesn’t reach down deep enough, try to grab the downstream current with your paddle. Flip upside down in a tucked position and slowly reach a paddle blade towards the bottom of the river. Try to keep your elbows as close to your body as possible to protect yourself. The bigger the hole, the farther you’ll have to extend your arms. Once the downstream-flowing water grabs your blade, hang on and let it pull you and your boat out of the hole.

GET WET

Sometimes, the downstream current is too deep to reach. After all, your boat is designed to stay on the surface. If you’re still stuck, pull your skirt, allowing the boat to fill with water and sink below the surface. If you can, stay in your boat, catch the deep water flowing downstream and ride it out of the hole.

SWIM UNDER

If you do exit your boat and find yourself still in the hole, you’ll need to swim beneath the surface into the downstream-flowing current. As the hole pushes you underwater, tuck into a ball to go as deep as possible and let the water carry you out of the hole where you can resurface in relative safety.

Keep your wits about you and do your best to remain in your boat. Staying calm will help you think clearly and choose the right tactic to make your escape.

Bryant Burkhardt is an ACA Instructor Trainer in both whitewater and coastal kayaking for California Canoe & Kayak, based in Sacramento.

This article originally appeared in Rapid, Fall 2011. Download our free iPad/iPhone/iPod Touch App or Android App or read it here.