Paddling Psychology

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Racing Hurts and can be a bit boring. There. I said it. The secret is out. 

There are two areas that you need to perfect for success

  • Training Mindset
  • Racing Mindset

Racing Mindset

The Racing Mindset is by far the easiest: 

  • It involves a very real and observable goal, and doing what is needed to get it.
  • Set a very clear goal. Obsess about it. Talk about it. Telling people your goals adds pressure on you to achieve them.
  • There is lots of powerful short term Extrinsic(External) motivation, such as prizes and accolades. (More on that later in the Motivation section) 
  • Positive visualisation will help. Imagine yourself crossing the finishing line. Everything else is just what happens to get to that point.
  • Positive mindset alone will NOT get you over the finish line first. It has to be built on solid foundations of training and Trusting that training.
  • Accept that it hurts as much for the winner as it does for everyone else.
  • Realism is important. Learn to anticipate the pain and effort needed to perform well…and be OK with that. 
  • Compartmentalise if that helps: Acknowledge pain and tiredness and then lock them in a mental box for later. This takes practice 🙂 
  • Don’t obsess about things that you can’t control. If the weather is bad or you chip your favourite race fin then just let it go. 
  • Love the weather. Train in bad weather and you will have an advantage over everyone else. When bad weather hits, it is then a good thing for you during a race. 
  • My favourite two techniques in longer races are:
    1. Pick people off, one at a time. Just lock onto the person in front and feel the joy of slowly reeling them in. As you approach them save a little pace until you are ready to blow past them (Smile and make it look easy)
    2. If you can’t reel in the person in front, then start to concentrate on the back of their board. Just stare at it and nothing else. You will quickly find yourself in a light trance. This meditative state will help you ignore aches and pains. 

Training Mindset

This is much harder. You put in hours of training for some future benefit that can seem a very long way off on a cold winter day. 

The answer is: 

  • Sign up for a race
  • Pros
    • This gives you a definite goal
    • It gives you a timescale
    • It gives you motivation
  • Cons
    • You will panic and want to quit. DON'T
    • You will doubt your abilities DON'T. Thats why you are training
    • You will doubt your kit. You will make more difference than kit will BUT i personally use every Race as an excuse to upgrade kit :-o
  • Work on your motivation. Intrinsic(internal) motivation is what will get you through those early season training sessions. Paddling for the pure joy of it and knowing that with every paddle stroke, you are improving. Enjoy the people you are paddling with and sometimes it even means stopping mid session if you are passing a nice waterfront coffee shop. 
  • Unexpected rewards are great, just don’t do it too often, or it becomes expected, and your sessions will start to suck. 
  • Train in a group
    • Training groups that stay together quickly become friends. This can get you through your worst training “Off Days”
    • If a group does not fit, then try other groups. You might end up evolving through several groups to reach your potential
    • Learn to accept a place in the group. You might be:
      • The Student
        • You don’t instantly need to be as fast or skilled as everyone else. Good groups will let you fit into this role and improve at a rate that suits you. 
        • You might be “Not Invited”to certain sessions where the group wants to blast. This is OK. Your time will come.
      • The Journeyman
        • You have served your time and are now a pretty average member of the group. Enjoy this phase. Most people expect nothing more from you than being “Able to take care of yourself” 
      • The Teacher
        • You have knowledge to share 🙂
        • Just remember that not everyone is receptive all of the time (or any of the time)
        • Help people set and achieve their goals and all will go well
      • The Strongman/Rock
        • You can lead a draft train for eight hours into a headwind and everyone loves you. 
        • Stay humble and enjoy knowing that you make those around you feel more confident
        • Consistency is the key here. Learn to measure your pace very accurately and not speed up too suddenly for others to keep up.
        • You are also the person who can help to push others just beyond their comfort zone without breaking them. You are a coaches dream when you can accurately add 0.25km/h to the average pace.
        • Be the expert in measuring pace both in time and effort. 
      • The Medic
        • You are good at putting people back together (Mind & Body)
        • You always have a supportive word and plenty of Duct Tape. 
      • The Slug
        • Don’t be the slug. 
        • You refuse to accept any other roles but still expect to spend all day at the back of a draft train being towed along. 
        • You may even be tempted to pop out from the draft train after several hours and sprint the last few hundred yards and beat everyone else. 
        • Everyone hates you
        • Slugs are Students with Ego Problems
        • Don’t be the Slug. 
  • The Mental Toolkit that you will build over time, is the best way to get you through the rough sessions, and help you really push hard during the good ones.
  • Look out for more articles on how to build that Toolkit 🙂

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