Kayaking: The Eskimo Roll

[dog_paddle]

I have been teaching "Intro to Kayaking" every winter at the local university for the past decade. In those ten years over 300 students have come into the pool with me and been taught the roll. I have had a 100% success rate in getting students to roll- if they come to every class session!



This is my first attempt to teach it with words and pictures, I hope you find it beneficial. Although I am showing you how to do it in a whitewater play boat- this style of roll can also be used in sea kayaks and touring boats as well.

FIrst- body positioning and boat fit. It is important to have a snug fit in your kayak- that way when you move/shift your weight in the boat- the boat will move with you.

So, you should have 4 points of contact with the boat: your feet, your knees, your hips and your lower back should all be touching the kayak. A wide stance in your boat will be good- your heels touching each other, with your toes touching the outer wall of the interior of the kayak. Next your knees you should be as far apart as possible- the wider your knees are in your sitting position the better. Like your toes- your knees should be touching the walls of the kayak.

Hips- your hips should be touching the edge of the seat as well. If your not making contact (the seat is wider than you are) then get some foam pads and glue them to the side of the seat to get a snug fit. Finally, your lower back should be touching a back band or the back of the seat- that way when you push your feet forward- you shouldn't really be able to shift back very much....If your in the boat correctly you should feel you are "wearing" the kayak- not just sitting in it.

Now that your sitting in your boat correctly...Flip over!



The first thing you will need to do, is get into Step 1....putting your paddle parallel to your kayak. You should be leaning over (like doing a sit-up) almost having your forehead touching your left knee. Your right arm will be crossing your chest and your right hand will be just in front of your knee. Try to push your hands as high out of the water as possible.



Next, sweep your right hand out along the surface of the water, in a wide arcing motion until your arm is even with your waist (but stretched out).
What your trying to do here is create a lever, that you can use to brace yourself upright. Try to have your left hand over your butt. Really get your left hand to slide over the edge of your kayak, and be on the bottom of the boat (not on the side wall or chine). The further your left hand is over your butt and on the bottom of the boat- the more of a lever you will create and the greater success you will have. Getting your left hand over your butt, will get your right hand closer to the surface of the water...the higher your right hand is- the better. If your right hand can actually be a little in the air, the much higher odds of rolling you will have.





Now that your in the correct upper-body position, the most important thing is about to need to come into play. The HIP-SNAP!....what you do with the lower body is the most important part of the roll. This is why you need to have a snug fit in the kayak.



So, as you can see from the photo- the boat begins moving upright before my right hand starts going down...this is because I am hip snapping and getting the boat moving towards the up-right position with my lower body. To do this, simultaneous push into your foot braces or outer wall with your left foot, and lift your left knee hard into the side wall of your kayak.....at the same time start pulling down against the water with your right paddle blade (the blade should be flat on the water creating resistance)...this will get you moving towards the surface, in essentially what is a "high brace" position.



Now, that your 2/3rds of the way up, you need to start shifting your focus from your left side to your right....make sure your looking down your right arm into the water (not looking to the sky- gasping for air)..also be pulling your right knee up firmly against the right wall of your kayak



Now that your up, switch your weight momentarily to your left butt cheek which will essentially balance you back to a stable position. Also pull your blade out of the water and get ready to start paddling again like nothing ever happened!