Sea Kayaking: Basic Skills, Paddling Techniques and Expedition Planning (Mountaineering Outdoor Experts) - Softcover

The latest addition to the award-winning "Mountaineers Outdoor Expert" series, "Sea Kayaking: Basic Skills, Paddling Techniques and Expedition Planning", offers authoritative advice for paddlers of all levels, from beginners considering their first gear purchase to competitive kayakers looking to perfect their forward stroke. As a longtime paddling professional and National Team coach, author Dan Henderson draws from a lifetime of personal experience, teaching, and his academic research in exercise science to instruct readers on everything they need to know to get out on the water, including: Gear - how to pick the right kayak for your body size, skill level, and lifestyle; Foundations of safety, how to plan and prepare, and must-know advice for assisted and self-rescue; Basic paddling styles to advanced techniques (side slipping, edging, bracing); Techniques for a range of conditions caused by wind, waves, currents, swells, and more; Expedition planning and camping; and, Getting the most out of kayaking for fitness.

DAN HENDERSON is president of Cascade Canoe & Kayak Centers, Inc., one of the most popular outfitters in the Northwest, with two locations in the Puget Sound area. Henderson often speaks at paddle shows and symposiums and has written numerous articles for Wavelength, Canoe & Kayak, Sea Kayaker, and other publications. As the co-author of the International Canoe Federation Coaching Manual (the world and Olympic governing body for kayak and canoe racing) and many articles on paddling technique, as well as being a Master's candidate in Biomechanics with a focus on the kayak forward stroke, Dan is a world leader in writing, research, and understanding of kayak forward stroke efficiency.Stay in touch with Dan on his blog. Dan's lifetime paddling distance equals nearly three times the length of the equator, a milestone that he almost exceeded in the fall of 2008 during an attempt to circumnavigate Vancouver Island. (He had to call off the effort on October 5th due to emerging storm patterns.) Other paddling accomplishments include: * Open canoe touring, flatwater to class 3. * Decked canoe whitewater to class 5, slalom and downriver; member 1988 US Wildwater Team. * Flatwater canoe sprint 1978 to present; member US Flatwater Team 1982-88; trained and raced in Hungary 1981-83 and 1985-86; Pan American * Championships bronze medals 1983 and 1987; multiple national championships in flatwater Senior canoe events and Masters canoe and kayak. * Flatwater canoe/kayak sprint coach 1989 to present; Seattle Canoe and Kayak Club Head Coach 1989-93; US National Development Coach 1993-96; * Cascade Canoe & Kayak Racing Team Head Coach 1997 present; Seattle University Canoe and Kayak Team Head Coach 2007 present; US **World Championship Team Leader 1995 and 2003; US Junior World Championship Team Coach 1993. * Sea kayaker 1989 to present; instructor 1990 to present. * Washington State Boating Commission, paddlesports representative.