One thing that has been helping me as I learn is to see what you are doing with the paddle. It would probably help a lot of people to see the technique and maybe to correct our bad technique. Obviously show us the in the water clips, but a quick this is what I do just on dry land... Thanks for actually reading our comments, and putting so many of our ideas in your videos.
I like to think of my channel as a space where I can help people with their kayaking, so if people are commenting that is a pretty good indicator they want help on something. I will see what I can do on this for you!
Great video. My small experience is that the best way to learn how to escape a hole, is to spend some time play boating in “ friendly holes. This can help with keeping your elbows in position and eventually result in skills like cartwheeling that can walk you out of a hole😊
@@SethAshworth thats too funny i am a drywaller tapper by trade , and new to the sport , that seam was the first thing i noticed in in your vids ,all jokes aside thanks for all your shared wisdom at 37 and new to this i find you very helpful esp the safety stuff, (cow tail attachment) now if that seam comes back add screws cut out loose tape , and start fresh , but looks like a pro job so u should be good lol stay awesome
bobby turnbull thanks for checking it out. Glad there is some useful stuff amongst my waffling on. I’ll pass your drywall knowledge along to my landlady in case she needs it. Have fun 🤙🤙
Suggest expanding this video to include what to do if the exit point is *behind* you. Should you paddle backwards (and what would be your stroke and posture), turn the boat around, etc? Also, I have found that a critical skill in exiting a hole in the manner you describe is to be able to sit balanced in your boat so you are not 'leaning' on the paddle to stay upright. Chris Spelius at NOC used to teach this balance in Jaws on the Nolichucky by having people throw away their paddle and hand paddle out of the hole -- you can't lean on your hands for this maneuver!
Seth, Rarely, but it can happen, one can find themselves in a killer class-5 hole where swimming might not be enough. I found myself in one such hole on the Kings in high water. First I cartwheeled, then windowshaded repeatedly with no hope of bracing or taking even a single breath. I swam. But it didn't help because I kept recycling underneath the froth without any hope of getting a breath. What to do? Ditch your paddle, and life vest if necessary, and swim down, as deep as you can. After a few cycles of battling the hole and with no life vest I got out at a depth of 20 feet. As the bubbles cleared I could see the surface and used my last energy to swim up. I blacked out a few feet from the surface but remained conscious as I took my huge first breath. With oxygen in my blood my sight was quickly restored and my buddies towed me ashore. My kayak remained in the holed for almost half an hour until the pillar and float bags had been ripped out and my boat was finally recovered.
Dayum son! that is a beat down. I haven't done a hole swim video yet but being able to take your lifejacket off underwater is a skill kayakers should at least be aware of although hopefully they won't have to do it. Glad you are ok. What were some of the most useful lessons you learned from the experience?
@@SethAshworth First lesson, don't panic. You'll always have a second or two to think about your situation, and options, before getting sucked down so take a big breath and do your best to find a way to brace yourself up and catch a breath. If you can catch an occasional breath, no worries. Just as you talked about, you have plenty of options to brace and work your way to an exit point while remaining in your boat. But if you can't breath, and bracing and pulling gives you no opportunity to see where you are in the hole, or breath, about 10 to 15 seconds is usually a good time to swim (exit your boat). If you're swimming and find yourself repeatedly cycling in and out of the depth of the hole, toss your paddle and on the next downward cycle swim strongly down and into the swift current. Swimming down into the depths of the hole may seem counter-intuitive, but it can sometimes be the only possible way out. After a couple failed attempts swimming down, remove your life vest and try again. Your wet-suit will typically afford you some flotation, but once free of the hole don't relax and don't delay, swim strongly to the surface. Blacking out is a phenomenon that occurs when your blood oxygen falls so low that you lose your vision. Your peripheral fields blacken first and then the blackness quickly works towards your center of vision. Don't panic, you're still conscious and you can still sense up and down, so swim up to the surface. Having free-dived and previously blacked out on a few occasions I knew what to expect, didn't panic, and made it back to the surface.
Can the next video on this topic be getting out of holes that are walled in (think the top wave at Holme Pierrepont) or just generally have curling in sides that are harder to punch through/go over to surf out of the side? Loved this video, definitely going to help some paddlers at uni haha.
That HPP one sucks when you are tired and don't want to be in it anymore. Especially when you are starting out and maybe don't have best boat control yet.
@@SethAshworth I saw a paddler eventually roll and get ejected as a result of being in a walled hole. Can this ever be a solution? Does the underwater flow catch you when you are inverted?
@@vannicrider7953 great question. And this is where my answer might deviate from what a swift water rescue manual might say. Short answer is Yes but. Yes the bottom of a hole has water flowing out, yes it’s possible to ball up and get into that water and get pushed out. BUT what then? Now you are out of your boat and still going down stream. I always say getting out of your boat doesn’t usually improve your situation and so riding that water out of the hole should be your Last resort, not your plan A. Hence the video. Hope that answers your question! Thanks for checking out the video
I prefer to think about options where you are in control the whole time, and also something you could scale to shallow holes too. But if flip and wiggle is working for your situation what do I know!
@@SethAshworth it's called being someone who makes a living of kayaking and attending events for the top kayakers in the world and having a sponsorship with a kayak company run by a multi-world champion. You wouldn't know. 😂😂
I have found really focusing on relaxing my hips and core as I obtain the upright, slightly forward position helps avoid a hanging draw and enables the boat to be under you where it should be. The low brace is essential, as a hanging draw keeps you from being able to take the short strokes for the out, which sucks, and usually leads to more beatdown...not that that's ever happened to me 🤔. Thanks for another awesome video!
@@coldwateronly Thanks for Watching! Interesting PPOV on relaxed core. I generally think always trying to recruit more core muscles is always better as it spreads the load more. THAT BEING SAID, there are no absolutes so I will try and remember to try relaxed core and see how it goes. Thanks for the thoughts!!
Thank Seth for your video, really appreciate. Wondering if you developed a little more about when you're upside-down in the hole. Which role are you doing or what the difference aspect you're doing when you're in hole. You're mental game approach. How can you locate where is the down stream side ( easiest side to do a roll). Thank you Dominic
I'm interested to hear what Seth has to say, but what helped me the most with this is playboating. You flip accidentally enough times that, all of a sudden, you get tired of fighting the water, and you start to realize the times that you are fighting, so you stop fighting the chaos and start to go with it. It's hard to explain here. People would tell me to feel the water and what it was doing, etc., but it wasn't until playboating that what they were saying clicked in my head and body. It was like I had to have enough experience being upside down in crazy stuff that I was calm enough to be able to pay attention to what's going on around me. With that said, it helps me to feel for "resistance" in the water. Strong resistance in the water means maybe I'm using the wrong tool and need to try something different. An example: I suck at my offside roll. If I flipped over and somehow ended up in offside setup, I used to fight with everything I had to get over to my onside roll setup. Then I would onside roll, but it was usually an upstream roll, so I'd miss and have to roll again. Now, if I flip over and I'm closer to my offside roll setup, and I feel like I'd have to fight with everything I have to get to my onside setup, then I just stay in my offside setup and try a roll. Like I said, my offside roll form sucks right now, but with the river helping, I usually get up on the first try. TLDR: Get lots of experience being upside down (through playboating), and feel for resistance and go with it rather than fighting it.
Melody Ream second that...especially on holes that aren’t too grabby. The amount of fun I had consolidating my roll on the Thames weirs was considerable and taught me a great deal about ‘feeling the water’ and using the resistance I found to my advantage. Freestyle/play boating is probably the best way to improve roll and also what to when you can’t control the water, just the boat 👍🏻
Great video! Like Dominic, I would have liked some info on what to do when you are upside down and having trouble rolling up or staying upright. Techniques for both rolling up, and for what to do if you can’t. Can you reach down into current with paddle blade and use that to help you roll or to help get pulled out of hole? When should you decide to pull, and when shouldn’t you? Etc.
Hm.. I'm a bit bummed that you said not to give up, but didn't mention that sometimes it's better TO give up and swim. If you're at the start of a long day of paddling, and are in a really sticky hole that you wont likely get out of in your boat, and it's above a pool, swimming may be better. Obviously you should fight, and you're (almost) always safer IN your boat, but to a point. Some holes just aren't worth it. Swimming is better than becoming exhausted, and drowning when you do finally decide you need to swim, because you have no energy or oxygen left. (But also, fight for more than 5 seconds. hahaha)
There is a time where the tactical swim might be the right move. HOWEVER I think it is actually much much much less than people think. Swimming puts you at unnecessary risk, especially from foot entrapments etc. Swimming also puts strain on your group to help you rescue all your gear. Loosing a paddle at any time on the river can create a huge headache. Plus you will quickly run out of people to kayak with if you are swimming in situations you could paddle out of. And to your point of swimming at the start of a long day, there is no better feeling than getting absolutely pitted at the start of your day and working your way out, you feel unstoppable. Whereas knowing you swam already (especially when you could have gotten out of it) has the opposite effect, you will spend the whole day worried about swimming again instead of enjoying what you are paddling. And finally swimming is exhausting! So yea there is my 2 cents on it. There is a time for a tactical swim, but if you can paddle out that should be plan A
One thing that has been helping me as I learn is to see what you are doing with the paddle. It would probably help a lot of people to see the technique and maybe to correct our bad technique. Obviously show us the in the water clips, but a quick this is what I do just on dry land... Thanks for actually reading our comments, and putting so many of our ideas in your videos.
I like to think of my channel as a space where I can help people with their kayaking, so if people are commenting that is a pretty good indicator they want help on something. I will see what I can do on this for you!
Great video. My small experience is that the best way to learn how to escape a hole, is to spend some time play boating in “ friendly holes. This can help with keeping your elbows in position and eventually result in skills like cartwheeling that can walk you out of a hole😊
Interesting video, thanks. I am a sea paddler, but it is very interesting to learn from other paddling styles.
A good friend told me the perfect way to test any hole out!! Hey Bill that hole looks sweet 😂 😮
Awesome of you to make these vids thanks plenty.
Maybe see you on Ottawa sometime!
Hope it helped you. Thanks for checking it out.
Thanks Seth I’m learning and you are helping . Also helps reading the comments
Nice table, Glad your engaging in good flossing practice. Staying heathy 2020!
carl smith my view is if I have time to sit at my computer o can floss whilst doing it.
Good video. Now paint that wall.
But if you look back like 5 or six videos you will notice a slow improvement. so thats something
@@SethAshworth thats too funny i am a drywaller tapper by trade , and new to the sport , that seam was the first thing i noticed in in your vids ,all jokes aside thanks for all your shared wisdom at 37 and new to this i find you very helpful esp the safety stuff, (cow tail attachment) now if that seam comes back add screws cut out loose tape , and start fresh , but looks like a pro job so u should be good lol stay awesome
bobby turnbull thanks for checking it out. Glad there is some useful stuff amongst my waffling on. I’ll pass your drywall knowledge along to my landlady in case she needs it. Have fun 🤙🤙
Thank you for sharing your expertise. And the sheetrock finishing IS exquisite! But really you are a great source of info that's well displayed!
@@kennethstallings3182 my landlady did a great job on the wall. See more recent videos. Thanks for watching 😂😂😂
Great video, concise and to the point. Thanks
Glad you liked it, Let me know if you think of something else that could help your kayaking!
Suggest expanding this video to include what to do if the exit point is *behind* you. Should you paddle backwards (and what would be your stroke and posture), turn the boat around, etc? Also, I have found that a critical skill in exiting a hole in the manner you describe is to be able to sit balanced in your boat so you are not 'leaning' on the paddle to stay upright. Chris Spelius at NOC used to teach this balance in Jaws on the Nolichucky by having people throw away their paddle and hand paddle out of the hole -- you can't lean on your hands for this maneuver!
David Fallside thanks for watching Dave, I think an addition video is in the pipeline for sure
Seth, Rarely, but it can happen, one can find themselves in a killer class-5 hole where swimming might not be enough. I found myself in one such hole on the Kings in high water. First I cartwheeled, then windowshaded repeatedly with no hope of bracing or taking even a single breath. I swam. But it didn't help because I kept recycling underneath the froth without any hope of getting a breath. What to do? Ditch your paddle, and life vest if necessary, and swim down, as deep as you can. After a few cycles of battling the hole and with no life vest I got out at a depth of 20 feet. As the bubbles cleared I could see the surface and used my last energy to swim up. I blacked out a few feet from the surface but remained conscious as I took my huge first breath. With oxygen in my blood my sight was quickly restored and my buddies towed me ashore. My kayak remained in the holed for almost half an hour until the pillar and float bags had been ripped out and my boat was finally recovered.
Dayum son! that is a beat down. I haven't done a hole swim video yet but being able to take your lifejacket off underwater is a skill kayakers should at least be aware of although hopefully they won't have to do it. Glad you are ok. What were some of the most useful lessons you learned from the experience?
@@SethAshworth First lesson, don't panic. You'll always have a second or two to think about your situation, and options, before getting sucked down so take a big breath and do your best to find a way to brace yourself up and catch a breath. If you can catch an occasional breath, no worries. Just as you talked about, you have plenty of options to brace and work your way to an exit point while remaining in your boat. But if you can't breath, and bracing and pulling gives you no opportunity to see where you are in the hole, or breath, about 10 to 15 seconds is usually a good time to swim (exit your boat). If you're swimming and find yourself repeatedly cycling in and out of the depth of the hole, toss your paddle and on the next downward cycle swim strongly down and into the swift current. Swimming down into the depths of the hole may seem counter-intuitive, but it can sometimes be the only possible way out. After a couple failed attempts swimming down, remove your life vest and try again. Your wet-suit will typically afford you some flotation, but once free of the hole don't relax and don't delay, swim strongly to the surface. Blacking out is a phenomenon that occurs when your blood oxygen falls so low that you lose your vision. Your peripheral fields blacken first and then the blackness quickly works towards your center of vision. Don't panic, you're still conscious and you can still sense up and down, so swim up to the surface. Having free-dived and previously blacked out on a few occasions I knew what to expect, didn't panic, and made it back to the surface.
Can you cover how to know what side to roll on once your already upside down. Cuz I often pick the wrong side
Can the next video on this topic be getting out of holes that are walled in (think the top wave at Holme Pierrepont) or just generally have curling in sides that are harder to punch through/go over to surf out of the side? Loved this video, definitely going to help some paddlers at uni haha.
That HPP one sucks when you are tired and don't want to be in it anymore. Especially when you are starting out and maybe don't have best boat control yet.
@@SethAshworth I saw a paddler eventually roll and get ejected as a result of being in a walled hole. Can this ever be a solution? Does the underwater flow catch you when you are inverted?
@@vannicrider7953 great question. And this is where my answer might deviate from what a swift water rescue manual might say. Short answer is Yes but. Yes the bottom of a hole has water flowing out, yes it’s possible to ball up and get into that water and get pushed out. BUT what then? Now you are out of your boat and still going down stream. I always say getting out of your boat doesn’t usually improve your situation and so riding that water out of the hole should be your Last resort, not your plan A. Hence the video. Hope that answers your question! Thanks for checking out the video
Thank you for this, Great stuff man!!
Jason Liggett Hanna for watching!
the flip+wiggle is my personal favourite method for getting out of holes
I prefer to think about options where you are in control the whole time, and also something you could scale to shallow holes too. But if flip and wiggle is working for your situation what do I know!
@@SethAshworth it's called being someone who makes a living of kayaking and attending events for the top kayakers in the world and having a sponsorship with a kayak company run by a multi-world champion. You wouldn't know. 😂😂
@@jamesshort6856 OMG please tell me how to make a living kayaking! Sounds awesome ;)
I have found really focusing on relaxing my hips and core as I obtain the upright, slightly forward position helps avoid a hanging draw and enables the boat to be under you where it should be. The low brace is essential, as a hanging draw keeps you from being able to take the short strokes for the out, which sucks, and usually leads to more beatdown...not that that's ever happened to me 🤔. Thanks for another awesome video!
@@coldwateronly Thanks for Watching! Interesting PPOV on relaxed core. I generally think always trying to recruit more core muscles is always better as it spreads the load more. THAT BEING SAID, there are no absolutes so I will try and remember to try relaxed core and see how it goes. Thanks for the thoughts!!
Thank Seth for your video, really appreciate. Wondering if you developed a little more about when you're upside-down in the hole. Which role are you doing or what the difference aspect you're doing when you're in hole. You're mental game approach. How can you locate where is the down stream side ( easiest side to do a roll).
Thank you
Dominic
Would like to know more how to get back up in a hole and not pull the skirt and swim. Sorry English is not my first language
Ok i think i get what you are getting at. I'll see what I can come up with.
I'm interested to hear what Seth has to say, but what helped me the most with this is playboating. You flip accidentally enough times that, all of a sudden, you get tired of fighting the water, and you start to realize the times that you are fighting, so you stop fighting the chaos and start to go with it. It's hard to explain here. People would tell me to feel the water and what it was doing, etc., but it wasn't until playboating that what they were saying clicked in my head and body. It was like I had to have enough experience being upside down in crazy stuff that I was calm enough to be able to pay attention to what's going on around me.
With that said, it helps me to feel for "resistance" in the water. Strong resistance in the water means maybe I'm using the wrong tool and need to try something different. An example: I suck at my offside roll. If I flipped over and somehow ended up in offside setup, I used to fight with everything I had to get over to my onside roll setup. Then I would onside roll, but it was usually an upstream roll, so I'd miss and have to roll again. Now, if I flip over and I'm closer to my offside roll setup, and I feel like I'd have to fight with everything I have to get to my onside setup, then I just stay in my offside setup and try a roll. Like I said, my offside roll form sucks right now, but with the river helping, I usually get up on the first try.
TLDR: Get lots of experience being upside down (through playboating), and feel for resistance and go with it rather than fighting it.
@@meldosify1085 Unfortunately not everyone shares your enlightened view of freestyle kayaking. I wish more people did!
Melody Ream second that...especially on holes that aren’t too grabby. The amount of fun I had consolidating my roll on the Thames weirs was considerable and taught me a great deal about ‘feeling the water’ and using the resistance I found to my advantage. Freestyle/play boating is probably the best way to improve roll and also what to when you can’t control the water, just the boat 👍🏻
Very nice! Thanks!
Thanks for checking it out. Hopefully it gets you out of a hole sometime!
Thank you! I appreciate these videos
Thanks for watching! Let me know if there is other stuff that would be helpful
Great video! Like Dominic, I would have liked some info on what to do when you are upside down and having trouble rolling up or staying upright. Techniques for both rolling up, and for what to do if you can’t. Can you reach down into current with paddle blade and use that to help you roll or to help get pulled out of hole? When should you decide to pull, and when shouldn’t you? Etc.
more info on what to look for whilst upside down in a hole. I dig it. I will do my best!
Top tips, excellent content 😎
Angus Robins thanks for watching 😁😁
Watching this with a dislocated shoulder from my first rafting trip wondering what went wrong haha
Got a video? we can probably figure it out
@@SethAshworth I don't unfortunately, I was too busy struggling haha
push you bow Info the hole also could help
Like I mentioned right at the start of this video, lots of ways to het there, this is just my favourite
Hm.. I'm a bit bummed that you said not to give up, but didn't mention that sometimes it's better TO give up and swim. If you're at the start of a long day of paddling, and are in a really sticky hole that you wont likely get out of in your boat, and it's above a pool, swimming may be better. Obviously you should fight, and you're (almost) always safer IN your boat, but to a point. Some holes just aren't worth it. Swimming is better than becoming exhausted, and drowning when you do finally decide you need to swim, because you have no energy or oxygen left. (But also, fight for more than 5 seconds. hahaha)
There is a time where the tactical swim might be the right move. HOWEVER I think it is actually much much much less than people think. Swimming puts you at unnecessary risk, especially from foot entrapments etc. Swimming also puts strain on your group to help you rescue all your gear. Loosing a paddle at any time on the river can create a huge headache. Plus you will quickly run out of people to kayak with if you are swimming in situations you could paddle out of. And to your point of swimming at the start of a long day, there is no better feeling than getting absolutely pitted at the start of your day and working your way out, you feel unstoppable. Whereas knowing you swam already (especially when you could have gotten out of it) has the opposite effect, you will spend the whole day worried about swimming again instead of enjoying what you are paddling. And finally swimming is exhausting! So yea there is my 2 cents on it. There is a time for a tactical swim, but if you can paddle out that should be plan A
@@SethAshworth great comment! thanks a lot
How to get out of a sticky hole in time, if you know what i mean
How not to do it: ua-cam.com/video/uRQzPe0Z7j8/v-deo.html
#SoPitted
Mucho bla bla
Not sure what that means but thanks for watching!!!
Algorithmus