What ’ s the point of
FLATWATER freestyle ?
Words and photos : Matthew Brook
Back when all this lockdown business began , there was a lot of talk about the lessons we will be taking forward from this pandemic . Despite the many frustrations and negatives , we all came to realise lots of human benefits . An enforced simplicity of life hammered home the importance of simple pleasures , family time , and prioritising mental wellbeing .
Yet almost a year on , as restrictions lift , the paradigm has shifted . It seems we are no longer talking about the values and lessons we will preserve from lockdown . Instead , the overwhelming consensus appears to be , “ Let ’ s get back to normal as soon as possible .” I do not mean to knock that ; the desire to see friends again and get back out on river trips is very much one I share ! Personally , however , I do not want to lose the narrative of , “ What can I learn and take forward from this moment .”
Why am I saying all this ? Well , being confined to local areas pushed paddlers out onto lakes , ponds and canal in freestyle boats , rather than to the creeks and rivers they preferred to frequent previously ! It was exciting to see so many more people exploring the realm of flatwater freestyle and experiencing the fitness and skill benefits it brings . Now that we can return to the river , it would be all too easy to leave that flatwater freestyle training behind and allow those skills to atrophy . To my mind , that seems like a massive missed opportunity .
As someone who grew up without rivers in my local area ( but an ample helping of sea and canals !), flatwater training has always been my go-to . It ’ s not glamorous , nor is it necessarily the thing I want to be doing the most ! Often , I find myself yearning for a river environment , even during a flatwater session . But there are two values that I heavily associate with flatwater : 1 ) learning to enjoy what is on the doorstep and 2 ) being disciplined in training , even if it isn ’ t the most thrilling . These two values were hammered home for me during the lockdown , and perhaps , looking back , they will resonate with other people too .
MATTHEW BROOK
Matt is a whitewater kayak coach based on the south coast of England , specialising in downriver freestyle . You can find out more about his range of programmes and courses here : whitewatercoach . co . uk or follow him on Facebook : https :// www . facebook . com / w hitewatercoach . co . uk .
Matt is a member of the Immersion Research EU team . immersionresearch . eu /
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