Paddle Smarter, Not Harder: Women’s Skills Workshop

Instructor: Paula Hubbard, Marilyn Cooper, Laurie Collins

Cost: $225 (+ housing, if needed)

This course is all about helping grow the women who have recently started in our sport and for those who may have been paddling for a while but have never had outstanding formal instruction. The women who did this course last year absolutely loved it! The class emphasizes the ways in which women can use proper technique, better balance, and a supportive learning environment to develop and enhance skill development. Learn how small women can keep up with the big boys, or even leave them in the dust. Explore ways of using your body to facilitate assisted and self-rescues, and see how a lower center of gravity can be a huge advantage in some aspects of paddling. This is all about paddling smarter, not harder.

The classes on both days will be on flat, calm water on the Sassafras River.

On Saturday, the focus will be on strokes. It will start with a review of the basics, and emphasize effective use of the body to get the maximum performance with minimum effort. Don’t worry about being the slowest paddler in a group, we will spend a lot of time on the forward stroke making keeping up easier. Then we will work on boat control with grace and finesse. This will include standard sweep strokes, draw strokes, and blending strokes for efficient, elegant, and precise maneuvers. We will finish with support strokes, bracing and sculling. These strokes can increase your confidence in rougher water by giving you more stability. While it sounds very serious, be prepared for fun, games and lots of laughs, no pressure.

Sunday will be all about Recovery, Reentry and Rescues. The focus is on different ways to perform self and assisted rescues. The class will start with a review of the basics, then we will work on different aspects of a rescue starting with boat maneuvering, using your body to effectively perform an assisted rescue, climbing back into a kayak using a variety of techniques, plus a few more scenarios. There will be more fun, more games and more laughs.

There will be housing options. If people want to, we can rent a charming house in historic Chestertown. If you feel more comfortable getting a motel or renting your own Airbnb, that’s fine too. We will have some way of socializing on Saturday night. We can do a potluck in the back yard of the house, or at a local park, or go to a restaurant and sit outside.

To register for this event email: CrossCurrentsSeaKayaking@gmail.com