Like the forward stroke, bracing is a fundamental paddling skill. A high/low brace allows you to stay upright during times of instability on the water.
There are two kinds of braces: High and Low. With practice, each person will develop their own bracing technique, and adopt a particular brace based on what type of use it’s put to: maintaining stability, or recovering from an instability.
Low Brace:
This brace is typically used to make small adjustments and maintain your stability while paddling. The low brace is ideal for side-surfing in a hole, however it does put your shoulders in a weak position in which your shoulders are not well suited to absorb a lot of shock. It is best used while your boat still has some form of stability; when the boat is on very little edge/tilt. If your past the point of no return, or your boat has tilted further than you can normally balance, you’ll want to use a high brace.
To low brace, hold the paddle just higher than the deck of your boat, elbows up, knuckles down (sort of like a push up position), making sure the back of the paddle is facing downward toward the surface of the water. If you start to tip over or lose stability, simply “press” down into the water with the back of the paddle blade while doing a hip snap. Remember to brace on the side you are falling toward, and keep your wrists down, elbows up.
A useful quote from Canoe and Kayak Magazine: ““The most important thing to remember about a low brace is that your paddle blade merely stops your downward momentum when you lose your balance,” she says. “You regain your balance by rotating the boat back underneath you with your hips.”
Tip:
1. When low bracing, try to keep your paddle blade forward of your torso. This will help prevent injury to your shoulder, as well as put your body in an aggressive paddling position for when you no longer need to brace.
2. Keep a straight torso, letting the boat be on edge rather than tilt your whole body.
3. Low paddle position: Keeping your paddle at relatively low position will keep the blade flatter on the surface on the water making bracing more effective.
High Brace:
This brace is typically used when the paddler is severely off balance, in an effort to recover from an instability. This brace is best used when you are past the point of being able to balance on edge. The high brace keeps your elbows close to your torso, and gives your shoulders a lot of dynamic range of motion for better shock absorption. With that said, the high brace is not the greatest for an extended period of time, as this usually means your boat is high on edge- a risky position!
From the low brace position, simply cock your wrist backwards toward your chest, and tuck your elbows down near the sides of your torso. The paddle will now be around chest height, and ready for a high brace using the power side of your paddle blade. If you start to tip over or lose stability, simply “press” the power face of the paddle down into the water while doing a hip snap. Remember to brace on the side you are falling toward.
Tip:
1. Do your best to maintain bent elbows while doing a high brace. This will prevent over-reaching and excessive strain on your shoulder.
2. Try to keep your paddle blade forward of your torso. This will help prevent injury to your shoulder, as well as put your body in an aggressive paddling position for when you no longer need to brace.
3. Keep your elbows in tight to your torso so as to prevent shoulder injury from overreaching.
4. Maintain a straight torso.
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Safety First!
It is important when bracing to stay within your paddler’s box. To be more specific, try not to reach too far out from your boat, too far upward (for a BIG brace) or too far backward (if you happen to be tipping over while on your back deck). These actions put your shoulder/s in compromising positions, and leave them open to injury. If you feel like you are out of your paddler’s box, and might be putting yourself at risk for an injury, let yourself FLIP OVER and roll back up. It’s better than a dislocated shoulder…
Happy Bracing,
Kim Russell
http://wavesport.ning.com/profiles/blogs/how-to-high-and-low-brace