Seat Positions

Seat positions: Seat #1

When thinking about your seat position and job there, consider FIRST, your role in safety and stability of the canoe, THEN, making the boat go and getting the best out of the crew.

STROKE QUALITIES NEEDED: mental toughness, an internal metronome, boat-run analysis skills, a model stroke, stroke flexibility, comfort with the ups and downs of big water. Click here for more and the rest of the seats...

- care for the nose of the canoe - don't let it hit things!, hold the nose when the canoe is at rest (unless your steerer tells you otherwise), be prepared to guide it in to the dock, esp.in a wind
- you are a metronome; set the rate - see Brent's overview of stroke rate above, check the conditions and set your stroke accordingly (upwind, downwind, upcurrent, downcurrent, cross... etc)
- check in with your crew about the rate/style (may do this via your 2 seat)
- need mental toughness - you can feel all alone up there, you are catching relatively non-moving water (heavy) as compared to the motor seats, you often can't hear what's going on and you can't watch anyone else for motivation
- learn to draw (stroke or hanging) effectively, and collaborate with your steerer about when to assist with turns (and when not to)
- you have to be good at water changes - you typically do more than anyone else
- the space in 1 seat can be narrow, and you can rarely afford to put a heavier person in 1 (causes the boat to hobby horse or be nose heavy)
- be able to let the crew know when you feel their efforts! ("Yup, I feel that!")

That's all I can think of!

Risa

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Seat #2

Safety considerations: help 1 seat protect the nose of the canoe, WITH ONE SEAT watch for shallows/rocks/logs and notify steerer, 2 seat and 4 seat protect the ama by putting a hand on the iako when the canoe is just sitting (esp in waves, if canoes are side by side, people are moving around in the canoe, etc).

Qualities:
- PERFECT timing - the ability to look at 1 seat's back/shoulders/top hand and mirror the catch, power phase, exit and recovery **Neither 1, nor 2 can have strange stroke mechanics - role models for the boat**
- both 1 and 2 need good Hut, Hoe and first strokes - role models
- same as 1, analyse conditions, support 1 seat in delivering the stroke style - stroke FLEXIBILITY
- communicate to the boat on behalf of the stroke pair and give feedback to the stroke - good with short, clear messages (not long sentences)
- encourage 1 seat
- good, solid, anchored catch
- mental flexibility, ability to take feedback and modify
- may help draw the nose on heavy turns (as directed by steerer)

- if 1 seat is a metronome, 2 seat must have perfect timing AND the ability to look at 1 seat's body/top hand and match the stroke (visualize).
- 2 seat knows that 1 seat is stressed and lonely up front, translates calls from the boat, encourages 1 and has BRIEF conversations to analyse boat run/stroke style with the stroke
- 2 seat analyses the conditions with the stroke and helps set the stroke style
- 2 seat can reach the front iako, so puts a hand on it when sitting still
- 2 seat MAY help with turns, if requested by the steerer (helping draw the nose around, esp. if in a sprint turn and 1 seat does an uni)
- 2 seat needs to be level-headed, generally cheerful/encouraging and a good analyst (with the stroke)
- ideally, 2 seat will read the stroke's mind and respond without cuing!
- 2 seat may ask for a push/bump from the motors to help bump the rate up
- oh, yeah, and 2 seat, like the stroke, is catching dead water and must role model a pretty, easy-to-follow stroke!
- in a change race, 2 seat gets the stroke back into the rhythm/onto the right side after a water change

I love 2 seat!
Risa

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Okay, 3 seat and 4 seat:

I'm talking about them together because some features are decided by the crew or the 2 people in those seats.

- often heavier, taller, longer-limbed paddlers sit in the "meat seats" because the belly of the boat is wider and deeper and centering the weight helps "trim" the boat fore and aft

- depending on the club, 3 or 4 calls the changes, calls the start, calls for "digs" or "pushes" to accelerate the boat for catching waves, to make a move or to bring the hull speed back up after a turn or deceleration (including "power series" or "power 8s")

- calling changes is modified if the boat is surfing - changes are called when the boat is running or wallowing, not during the "dig" when trying to accelerate the boat

- care is used when calling changes in the rough water - not when the ama is riding up higher than the hull or popping on the peaks of a wave

- changes may get slightly shorter later in a long effort/near the finish

- at 3 and 4 seat, the water is moving (pushed by 1 and 2 seat strokes), so the paddlers need quicker and decisive catch and acceleration through the water

- timing is easier (theoretically) as both paddlers just have to keep their heads up and follow the stroke pair (still needs to be perfect!!)

- IF you have a huli line on the boat, either 3 or 4 can prevent a huli by leaning out on it

- when sitting still, 4 seat puts a hand on the iako (as with 2 seat)

- IF the spare paddle is rubbered to the front iako, 3 seat accesses it if needed

- depending on the boat, either 3 seat or 4 seat is at the "belly" where the greatest water collects, so that person bails if the water reaches the toe knuckles (bailing is a skill to be learned)

- both 4 seat and 5 seat are in good positions to read the waves and call digs to surf the boat (one, not both) - this, too, is an important skill to be learned

- 3 or 4 need to quickly, clearly relay commands/comments between the bow and stern if they can't be heard

I love 3 and 4 seat and have learned they are harder than they look!
R

And #5 seat:

- the water is moving back past the boat, pushed by 1, 3 seats, so 5 seat needs a quick catch/anchor in the moving water and ability to accelerate through quickly (in order to power the boat)

- usually a smaller person (in balance with the weight of 1, 2 seats)

- 5 seat can see if timing is out (as can steerer), so MAY cue the crew to time up

- 5 seat needs good boat feel like a steerer, must protect the ama both by seeing it and feeling the boat rock right. 5 seat should automatically come to the left if the ama is unstable/popping - can draw or hanging draw so steerer can poke on the right if the boat is very unstable

- good communication between 5, 6 seats for the above - Ideally, 5 seat is also a steerer

- 5 seat is in a good position (as is 4) to call "pushes/digs" when working to catch waves - can see the position of the wave under the hull and ama - 5, 6 together can drive the boat onto a wave with a few hard strokes!

R