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Sea Kayaks Techniques Bulletin Board
Re: rolling...or not
Posted By: Shawn Baker In Response To: Re: rolling...or not (Tim Mattson)
Date: Monday, 10 March 2003, at 12:57 p.m.
Some folks argue that 'rolling isn't the Holy Grail of kayaking'. It sort of is. But calling it the 'Holy Grail' implies it isn't necessarily an easily-attained goal...but it is extremely worthwhile.
: Don't give up. Many people on this bulletin board tell stories of learning to
: roll after just a few lessons. Others talk about reading a book or two and
: then heading to a pool and rolling. I've read instructors in this forum
: claim that they can teach just about anyone to roll in one or two
: sessions.I've taught some people to roll in one or two sessions. My quickest success was with a buddy who is a SCUBA diver, and was 100% comfortable underwater. I was doing hipsnap drills with him, and he fell away from the side of the pool and handrolled up.
My most difficult experiences are with students who don't want to put in practice time outside of the session. They have poor flexibility and are afraid of the water. I can't help them with these things in a rolling class. I recommend Yoga or stretching regimens (maybe need a Dr's supervision to start), and lots of time playing in a pool underwater. I'm working on an article to cover some of these exact ideas.
: But the truth is that some of us just can't easily learn to roll. Some of us,
: even after lessons with excellent instructors, take a long time to learn
: to roll.Took me 4 weeks of 3+ hour pool sessions, and then just barely had a pool roll. I don't want 4 weeks to sound like it was easy--while I was learning, it felt like the process was taking forever. I inhaled a lot of water. I didn't have a "real" instructor...just some kind souls who showed up at weekly roll practices.
Took me 5 more years to get a reliable roll, and the last year has become closer to bombproof. You never stop learning.
:Just enjoy the ride and invest what it takes to learn the roll....Just don't give up and you'll get there.
Amen to that!
You have to have the desire. If you absolutely, positively want to learn how to roll, and commit to learning it, you can do it. If you just sort of want to learn how to roll, you might get lucky, or more likely, you won't.
Shawn
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