Lightening Book Review: Sea Kayak Handling by Doug Cooper

By: David H. Johnston on Thursday May 14, 2009

Published in Book Reviews

Hot off the Pesda Press press is a brand new book by renowned kayak coach, Doug Cooper.

Sea Kayak Handling is a practical manual for both beginner and intermediate paddlers who are looking to improve their boat handling skills. Strokes and manoeuvres covered in the book include forward paddling, staying on course, turning, moving sideways, support strokes and working with skegs and rudders.

I was very impressed with the huge collection of colour photographs scattered throughout the book making it very easy to see exactly the key elements of each stroke.

Sea kayak instructors who find it difficult to break down complex strokes (like forward stroke) can make use of this book as it will help distil down the key messages or concepts to give to your students. Basically you have a mini lesson for each stroke. After the course you have a great resource to show your students to help enforce what they just learned.

One of the real hidden gems is the extensive companion video library that Pesda Press established on their website. It's a nice extension that allows beginners to see the major strokes and skills discussed in the book; broken down step by step in video form.

Sea Kayak Handling by Doug Cooper can be purchased through your local book shop, online at Amazon or directly through Pesda Press.

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