Even I, jazz musician, knows the waltz has 3 beats...and so does the forward stroke (so we say). I also know how much time we spend struggling to teach new paddlers the wonders of torso rotation, which is important. I have often found that a little 4-beat waltz lesson helps break up the learning.
PAUSE: sitting after recovery and while rotating and waiting for the 3rd beat to pass, the boat glides along while we wait to start the next stroke. After all, at recovery the boat is going as fast as it will go with the effort and cadence we are using. Then why would we hurry to start another stroke? It will not accelerate the boat. Applying another stroke to a nicely moving boat is a waste of energy and adds to the number of strokes per minute with no benefit.
In essence: The first beat of the waltz is capture & propulsion. The 2nd and 3rd beats are recovery and pause. Now, go forth and make beautiful music.
Paddle safe...
DS
7 comments:
Who's the geek with the GoPro affixed to his head?
What a beautiful analogy and an appropriate fourth beat. I'll definitely try it on the water to see how the timing works out.
Thanks, Harris. Ken, I don't know, but he keeps showing up in my pics :-)
Perfect! I agree with you, no hurry necessary! But I think more then beats, it is more like a continuous 'mantra' without end, a fluid and endless movement...
Why only a picture and not a video demonstration with the music too. ;)
I will work on it.
Nope, did not work for me. What a bummer! I had a perfect Viennese Waltz picked out :(
My stroke is decidedly a two-beat affair: catch/power -- exit. I forced myself to add the third beat between exit and re-entry of the blade but it felt very unnatural and slowed me down by about .2 knots. I am a fidgetier so it is very hard for me to sit and do nothing when I am paddling. That's one problem. Second, at the end of my exit phase, the opposite paddle ends up in perfect position for re-entry. I found myself having to use effort to both stop the natural motion of the forward blade as well as maintain the wound up torso in the tensioned position, not letting it unwind.
In short, doing a three-step forward paddle stroke would be learning something new for me. Could be done, I am sure, but I doubt it would happen. For several decades now I've been learning to ride a bike without breaking a sweat--as soon as I take my mind of the pace, I find myself cranking on all cylinders. Sounds hopeless.
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