Why I did what I did is a longer story, full of personal limitations and misconceptions, so I’ll just talk about what I did and the results.
Starting Status:
Personal Stats: 58 yrs, 6’1”, 215 lbs (down from 230, 6 months earlier)
Kayaking Experience: 3 times, but 20 min arm endurance exercises in gym for a year.
Gear: 12 ft Walker Bay Tandem Inflatable, with fwd seat reversed for leg drive.
Garmin watch with speed, Max HR% tracking and display.
Location/Conditions: Seattle. Flat water in Lake Washington and it’s ship canal.
Begin:
Go out twice a week for an hour on the water with the goal of getting the muscles and tendons in shape without injury. Search the web regularly and read as much as possible. Best advice: train at 50 to 70% MHR. Worst advice: hyper extend shoulder at the catch for more power (one month down time for injury). Best video: Paddling with Zsolt. An older V8 was occasionally available for rental. No stability issues. An old V10S was also available. A good way to play “Marine Biologist” (impossible for me). My inflatable is a barge, so no stability training there.
I talked to the local surf skiers at the Cross Sound Race. Advice: get a wing paddle, now. Don’t go cheap. Feather it, now. Try as may skis as possible. Get a lesson. The SWIFT gang meets Wed night at Sand Point at 6:00. There is a web board for local discussion and coordination. I start stalking them.
Before the paddle twist was sorted out, my form was wildly random. Going straight was a constant problem. Most web advice on twist is justification, not engineering, just like listening to snow ski instructors (I once raced at the national level). You have to have a stable stroke angle first, then find the feather angle that works.
Blisters were a problem. In hindsight, carry a glove that stops blisters (some make blisters) and put it on when it starts to hurt, but before it blisters. Calluses are your friends.
Speed would jump about: 3.0 mph, then 3.4 as I got in a lucky good stroke or two. I could not figure out what I was doing different stroke to stroke.
Six months pass:
Weight 200 lbs. My average speed for an hour is up from a jumpy 3.0 mph to a more stable 3.8 mph. Form still feels a bit random. Went to first demo day at Deep Cove in Vancouver. The new V8 is no different for me than the old. Speed about 1.0 mph faster than the inflatable. The Big Ease is a little faster than the V8 with the same stability, but a tight fit in the hips. The new V10S is stable at rest, but I’m into the secondary stability every third stroke. I can feel that the speed wall is further out than for the Big Ease. Fit is fine (36” waist).
Back home I did stability training with those big balls, 3 times a week, 10 minutes at a time, feet eventually on a chair level with the ball. A month later at the next demo day I’m never into the secondary stability in the new V10S . It worked for me. Form still feels a bit random though.
I went to a two day forward stroke clinic. I do not look like Zsolt; ego crushed. Catch, leg drive, and arms all changed. It took three months to put all the pieces of my stroke back together again.
One year from start:
The locals don’t even notice me stalking them anymore. Training is now three times a week. My hour speed is at 4.3 mph in the inflatable. Form feels stable. I can now LOAD my strokes. My V10S Ultra should show up in a week or two. My Goal for the next 6 months in the V10S is an hour average speed of 6.0 mph and a solid remount.
After that: waves and a bit of racing
A big thanks to all the beginners on this site who talked about their experiences/questions and everyone who commented and included their weight and background.
