Commercial Expeditions : Barra & Mingulay Archipelago - Outer Hebrides / Mull Mini Exped for Sea Kayaking Wales

 

Mingulay 

Taking on ‘The Atlantic Edge’ on the remote archipelago’s of Barra and Mingulay as my first commercial expedition lead with seven clients and John Gray, a supporting SKL, felt a bit like climbing the Eiger for my first alpine route in another life! A lot of objective dangers with no room for poor decision making or complacency. An F6/7 and 3m swell forecasts drew a very clear ‘off the water’ deadline in the sand just three days from our launch date with the added complication of an exposed F5 forecasted for our second day.

We made a plan to aim for Mingulay with the three main crossings ahead of us, but to review as we went, crossing by crossing, to see how the group performed in the conditions. We created two pods that moved together, with small refinements with each crossing until we finally arrived to the sight of over one hundred seals lounging on Mingulay bay. 

Day one

Day two delivered the forecasted higher winds and the team enjoyed the pleasures of Mingulay wildlife and exploring this remote island with sightings of a Golden Eagle, Sea Eagles, Puffins, Skuas and more, while many seals congregated on the steep sand of the bay. (Photos: Jonathan)

Day three was an early start to meet some key tidal gates for the group to get back to Vatersay before the non negotiable weather arrived. A successful return taking advantage of lighter winds round the west side of Sandray back into Vatersay and camp  

The arrival of strong winds gave us the opportunity to day boat around the skerries off Barra’s east coast which were fantastic in themselves. A great trip then back onto the ferry for another MacNCheese!

A same day turnaround on Oban allowed for re supply then back onto ferry bound for Mull and the second expedition camped at Fidden Farm overlooking Iona  

Fidden Farm Campsite 

Day one was a little shakedown of the group with a lovely paddle round Erraid with some group rescues back in the bay before dinner and a planning meeting of the mini expedition. Launching from Ulva slip up the east/north coast and through the entertaining Ulva Passage lead to an exciting navigation across the westerly swells into a small piece of paradise to pitch our tents overlooking white sands, Little Colnsay and Ben More overseeing from the horizon. (Photos: Wendy Hamlet)

Day two took us out to Little Colnsay with a circumnavigation and a sling shot crossing down to Inch Kenneth then back in time before closing to the Ulva Boat House and a refreshment before landing back at the slipway and home. 

Photos: Wendy Hamlet

A trial by fire on Barra with a soft landing on Mull feels about right. Next stop Norway in July to joint lead Tromso Expedition with John. I expect it will be gentler than Barra with fantastic scenes and awesome paddling. 

Deconstructing the Impossible : The Power of Part Tasking in the Performance Lab

 Part Tasking is the fastest way to deliver performance of a complex skill. Take the lost paddle and split paddle recovery roll in dynamic water. We could break this into all it’s parts as an example:

Part 1

1. Rolling up with a split paddle in flat water
2. Moving the biomechanics of the roll from cognitive to associative to autonomous 
3. Putting the role into a gentle moving water to benefit from the upstream mandate whilst maintaining an affective domain
4. Moving the split role into the dynamic environment with psychological exposure to moving tide race conditions increasing the Cynefin domain to complex domain 

Part 2

1. Back to pool to address 2nd Part Task of retrieving the split paddle from the front deck underwater then roll up. 
2. Preparing psychologically for a ten second submersion to maintain an affective domain and the ability to focus on the transactional activity of recovering the split paddle, pausing to set up then follow through on the technique of the roll and remain un distracted by the environmental chaos. 
3. Then finally pressure testing and completing all the parts in a 5 kt dynamic environment: Throwing away the paddle, recovering the split in the chaos, check the blade angle then rolling up with the reduced leverage of the split paddle relying on a well constructed adapted roll with good body form to finally recover and complete the process. 

Remaining reasonably disciplined in the process and avoiding shortcuts or overthinking on how unobtainable the final technically complex and apparently chaotic environment may seem, is the method. Part Tasking is used across all technical sports and when climbing at my limit on a hugely overhang and sustained 8b rock climb in France, I was instructed by my friend (mentor/coach at the time) not to look across the giant unending cave roof that the climb followed and just concentrate on the lower section that I was working on. I of course sneaked a glance and felt my stomach drop but eventually with each session we began to put seemingly improbable sections together until the complete route began to take shape and become achievable. Part Tasking works. Use it!

The Invisible Architecture: Framing the Rolling Lab

In a bid to focus on the theory behind skill acquisition through a constraints led approach (CLA), the focus is on transferring my own learning and development around the kayak roll into a framework for delivery for others to support my Performance Coaching journey and evidence.

From experiences  in coaching in climbing I am aware of the paradox between the theory of maintaining a distinct margin between my own skill levels and those I am hoping to improve versus the concept of coaching a skill requires a different set of skills and approach to personal mastery of it. 

When delivering a new coaching session it can be haunted by the whispers of ‘imposter’ until your delivery beds down. Establishing a clear method usually works well for me leaving enough room or gaps for individual diagnostics and a bespoke coaching response. Without a coaching framework your reducing the opportunity, conversely, with too much application of theory you are just talking and reducing the  opportunity. Too much rigidity in the framework stifles learning or coaching opportunities and too little can produce woolly disconnected outcomes. 

A well designed framework is generally not obvious to the student and guides the session without being seen. The intentionality of this invisible design is to reduce cognitive clutter for the student: yet as a coach: I must remain critically aware of when to reveal the blueprint. For a Sea Kayak Leader or Coach: understanding the 'why' behind a technical adjustment is eventually as important as the 'how': as it builds the foundational knowledge they will one day use to lead others.

#SkillAcquisitionTheory #ConstraintsLedApproach #CoachingFramework 

Metacognition and Heuristic Traps : Hell’s Mouth (F5/7 4.5 kt 1.5m)

 

As someone who has exercised an appetite for personal risk taking in other adventure sports such as climbing, I am always very conscious of keeping that ‘little devil’ tucked safely away when working with others in any leadership role. My goal is to try and create a safe space to fail fast for rapid performance growth. That is not just physical but obviously psychological too. If a client or peer’s confidence could be damaged, I try a different tact, even though we might benefit from the technical learning opportunity in front of us. But if our cognitive load is threatened then we have stopped learning and are just surviving. 

A recent morning out on the North Coast of Anglesey’s Hell’s Mouth reminded me of the omnipresent heuristic traps where things might seem all cool ahead but the actual reality of the oncoming situation would likely escalate outwith the remit of the day  

We were looking to set up for a return down wind run with the tide to create some manageable ‘on the water navigation’ in conditions. One of my peers made an observation ‘that I seemed “super cautious” from the conditions in the video. As he said it is hard to understand the conditions from video. Our immediate position was  reasonably tame but the future water and our intention to break into a long downwind run were likely beyond what we were looking for from the day if we were to push deeper up into the race. 

The objective risks were that any rescue would have eventually just washed out in the race pushing us back east but in no apparent real danger. But the danger of creating cracks in someone’s confidence versus any benefits of us knowing they can be rescued in that environment was high with little reward. Only a few weeks ago, our team of four had successfully executed a rescue in the group in the same location whilst out playing with similar conditions, all be it with opposing tidal direction. It would have been easy for us to slide effortlessly into that heuristic familiarity trap thinking circumstances were the same. 

What was different?

There were two of us not four. 

Our exposure to rescue drift in South Easterly F7 gusts and 4.5 kt tidal flow. 

Limited VHF signal in area. 

Our objective to build confidence in ‘on the water dynamic navigation’ for a 2 mile 5 kt downwind run back to Bull Bay.

I am always pleased when my ‘little devil’ is left on the shore when he is not required!

Heuristic Trap Identified	Environmental or Social Trigger	System 1 Intuitive Response	System 2 Metacognitive Intervention
Familiarity Trap	Operating in the race during a familiar tidal window.	Devaluation of risk because the environment feels known and safe.	Dynamic risk assessment to identify specific daily variances in flow and wind.
Commitment Trap	Pushing to reach a specific eddy to complete a technical demo.	Feeling the need to meet the session plan despite changing conditions.	Recognising the sunk cost and selecting a safer alternative landing or turn around point.
Social Proof	Observing another group take a high risk line through the surf.	Assuming the line is safe because other paddlers are currently using it.	Independent inspection of the feature to ensure it meets the specific group capacity.
Expert Halo	Peer group deferring to my decision without providing critique.	Accepting the lead role without inviting external validation of the plan.	Actively inviting peers to challenge the proposed route.

THE SCIENCE OF DECISION MAKING: SYSTEM 1 VS SYSTEM 2

In high consequence environments: the brain naturally relies on System 1 thinking. This is a fast: emotional: and intuitive process that allows for quick reactions. While essential for immediate technical survival: System 1 is highly susceptible to heuristic traps.

As a Coach: the goal is to employ metacognition to trigger System 2. This is a slower: more logical: and deliberate mode of thinking that can override the biases of the expert halo or the scarcity of a tidal window.

During a coaching session in the Menai Straits: a coach might feel the pressure of the scarcity trap as the tidal window begins to close. System 1 might urge the coach to rush a technical demo to maximise the learning time. 

By utilising System 2: the coach pauses to evaluate if the safety margin has been compromised by this time pressure. This metacognitive intervention ensures that professional standards remain the priority over the completion of a specific task.

#HeuristicTraps #RiskManagement #FutureWater #DecisionMaking #CoachingScience #PerformancePsychology #AffectiveDomain

The High Brace Project: Mapping the Path to Muscle Memory

 Moved my focus back from the complex domain of dynamic water to the complicated domain of another pool session to focus on the high brace project. I’ve worked through the full session without any hands on the euro blade paddle using the constraints of my paddle float and Greenland Paddle through the ‘form’ teachings from the storm roll. 

It feels like a good high brace works best when I commit more of my torso mass down the line of the diving paddle (including my head). This opens the hips to flick the boat up as well as holding the unrecoverd weight in the boyant support of the water until the final recovery transition from the paddle. When I begin to deconstruct a skill such as this, there is a moment when I know I have the correct methodology to begin to move it from associative to autonomous performance and in that moment it is now time to embed it to muscle memory through repetition… Lots of it!

Once it’s programmed into muscle memory then I can move the process to pressure test in the sea in moderate water then into dynamic conditions for the real test. Onwards!

Pool session:

Coaching Model / Focus	Date	Venue & Environmental Context	Ratio / Client Profile	Specific Theory Applied	Core Objective & Progression	Critical Reflection & Learning
LTAD: Skill Refinement / Training to Train	Feb 2026	Indoor Pool: Complicated Domain. Controlled environment.	Solo.	Biomechanical Deconstruction: Motor Learning Stages: and Constraint Led Approach.	High brace project using paddle float and Greenland Paddle constraints.	Transitioning the high brace from associative to autonomous performance. Committing torso mass and head position is the key to hip flick

#LongTermAthleteDevelopment (LTAD) #SkillsAcquisitionTheory (SAT) #ConstraintLedApproach (CLA) #Rolling #CynefinDomain #FailFast

Moving between Cynefin Domains: From Complex to Complicated and back to Complex

 

Trearddur Bay F7 2.5m Swell 

Moving from above (Complex Domain) to the pool (Complicated Domain) to drill into biomechanics of the offside roll using Constraints Led Approach (CLA) with an air bag and a Greenland Paddle (GP) can seem somewhat of a theoretical construct than a relatable shift from the ‘field’ to the ‘lab’ to improve performance in the ‘field’ again. But in my view for increased performance it is critical.

In the pool, my use of the process to part task or ‘chunking’ the Greenland Storm Roll technique accidentally opened the door for a lightbulb moment on building good form into my next goal: The high brace.  The realisation was simply to look down to the bottom of the pool (or towards the tip of the Greenland paddle) and by default, my body position was optimised for recovery. I had watched this video about twenty times and sunk in the pool attempts to roll.

It wasn’t until I practiced it through the lens of the high brace that I managed to do it. The full storm roll followed instantly. Giving myself the cognitive space to just think differently allowed this to happen with impact, and now, I will look to take this (from ‘associative’ to ‘autonomous’ performance) into moderate seas and try and embed it to muscle memory.

Pool Session:

Target offside hip flick via paddle float balance brace with focus on head drop. Storm roll deconstruction: focusing on the final high brace phase.

Highly productive session. Head staying down improved the storm roll form significantly. Interlinked CLA facilitated rapid technical gains.

#LongTermAthleteDevelopment (LTAD) #SkillsAcquisitionTheory (SAT) #ConstraintLedApproach (CLA) #Rolling #CynefinDomain #FailFast

Pressure Testing: Lost Paddle with Split Paddle Roll Recovery in Dynamic Water

 

(Video: Duncan Greene)

In the pursuit of the Advanced Performance Coach qualification, we often talk about skill acquisition as a linear process. We start in the pool, move to flat water, and eventually take the skill into the sea. However, proficiency in advanced environments requires a more robust approach. We need to test our skills at the point where technical precision meets psychological pressure. This week, my focus shifted to a very specific recovery scenario: the lost paddle and subsequent split paddle roll in dynamic water.

Step	Progression Stage	Task Constraint (T)	Environmental Constraint (E)	Theoretical Rationale / APC Link
1	Lever Reduction (Baseline)	Use a full paddle but choke up (hold the shaft halfway down).	Calm, shallow water (waist deep).	Skill Regression: Gradually reduces the lever to focus on the Kinetic Chain before removing the blade entirely.
2	Isolation (The Half-Paddle)	Switch to a single split-paddle piece. Hold it firmly in the "power hand."	Controlled environment (Pool or flat water).	Part-Task Practice: Isolates the roll mechanics without the cognitive load of retrieving the paddle.
3	Cognitive Integration	Start with the split-paddle tucked under the deck bungees.	Calm water, coach in close proximity for safety.	Cognitive Load Theory (CLT): Introduces "Extraneous Load" (retrieval) once the motor pattern of the roll is stable.
4	Environmental Scaling	Half-paddle roll in moving water (small eddies or slow flow).	Introduce minor "E-Constraints" (moderate moving water).	Representational Design: Testing the resilience of the movement in a low-consequence but dynamic setting.
5	Pressure Testing	Capsize where the student must find the split and roll up.	Dynamic water (3 kt flow or small surf).	Autonomous Stage: Validates that the skill is embedded in muscle memory and can be executed under high emotional/environmental stress.

The Technical Challenge: Biomechanics of the Split

When you lose your primary paddle in a tide race, the immediate technical requirement is to access your splits and execute a roll. This is a significant test of your biomechanics. Unlike a standard roll where you have a long lever, the split paddle provides much less leverage. This forces a total reliance on the kinetic chain.

The power must come from the lower body. The knee drive and hip flick must be timed to rotate the hull, while the upper body maintains a rigid power box. If you attempt to pull with your arms, the blade will likely dive, and the roll might fail. In my recent sessions, I have been focusing on the catch phase of the split paddle. Ensuring the blade finds ‘grip’ (laminar flow) before applying the flick and has been the difference between a successful recovery and a wet exit. This is a good example of managing fluid dynamics under stress.

The Psychological Component: The Affective Threshold

The biggest barrier to this skill is not physical but psychological. Capsizing in a turbulent tidal flow without a paddle in your hands immediately spikes your arousal levels. If you cross your affective threshold, your fine motor skills degrade, and your urge to exit increases.

My strategy for this goal has been to intentionally stay below that threshold by practicing in progressively larger water with trusted partners. By removing the fear of consequence, I can keep my cognitive load low. This allows me to focus on the technical cues of the roll rather than the environment around me. Each successful recovery demystifies the situation and builds a deep well of confidence that is essential for any coach working in advanced water.

Strategic Coaching: The Adaptive Lens

From a coaching perspective, the split paddle roll is more than just a self rescue tool. It informs how I approach the coaching box in dynamic environments. Understanding the struggle of a paddle less recovery makes me a more empathetic and observant coach.

This skill also links directly to the hand of god rescue and my focus on adaptive coaching. If an athlete has a physical adaptation that limits their ability to roll, my ability to remain calm and position myself for an immediate uprighting rescue is vital. We want to avoid the exhausting process of a traditional deep water rescue whenever possible. By refining these high level recovery skills, I am better equipped to support the performance of every student, regardless of their physical requirements.

Long Term Athlete Development

This journey toward the APC is a personal exercise in Long Term Athlete Development. It is about recognising that at every level, there is always room to refine the basics and push the personal boundaries of what feels possible. 
My next focus now, is on these four linked goals; surfing commitment, tide race coaching, specialised rescues, and psychological composure. In this, I am building on the coaching foundation that is hopefully technically sound.

#LongTermAthleteDevelopment (LTAD) #SkillsAcquisitionTheory (SAT) #ConstraintLedApproach (CLA) #Rolling #CynefinDomain #FailFast

Skill Acquisition: The "Fail Fast" Approach

 

I’m trying to burst through a few specific goals laid out above. The first is to simply improve something that I know has lots of scope for easy gains in my current performance. My surfing lacks commitment to my edging (I think) and to drive more edge means for me, to find the point of failure and then try again quickly to refine what I learned. Failing fast like this leads me to utilising my edge better and ultimately surfing better (I hope!). 

Why have I chosen to go to failure in this? 

Well, strengthening my roll in the tide race is continuous development and each successful roll de mystifies things and removes consequence from a failed surf and speeds up my learning as well as relieving cognitive load. This will eventually allow me to concentrate and try out technical adjustments to the practice of surfing technique than worry about recovery as much. 

Number 2 in my goal hit list supports my ability to coach others in dynamic environments such as a tidal race. Again, it’s also feeding another goal which is to practice a particular rescue that I want to develop to support others safely in bigger water. 

Number 3 is to try and get practice using the ‘hand of god’ rescue in dynamic water. This is difficult to practice because few paddlers are willing to throw themselves upside down without a paddle in a fast bumpy tide race, so I am forced to stock my paddling buddies in the tide race to see if I can position myself to quickly aid a failed roll before they do a wet exit. No 3 is also directly linked to my strategy to drive and support performance in an adaptive environment, where an ability to upright an athlete/student to support their recovery immediately avoids the sometimes more difficult traditional methods when a physical adaption is restricting that approach

Number 4 is just the final stage of building self rescue confidence and requires the right day with the right people to facilitate the calm required to capsize with no paddle in the tide race and operate calmly underwater below my ‘affective threshold’ to get the job done. 

In my view, all these four goals are all linked in to bigger objectives in my APC journey. My personal Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD), strengthening my ability to coach others in dynamic water (Coaching Box) and my ability to build trust in rescue and recovery in advanced waters (Split Paddle Rescue and Dynamic Group Rescues). 

The Pod at Rhoscolyn 

So my strategy to try and achieve these session goals has been to develop a ‘pod’ of like minded peers, who are seeking to drive their personal skills without judgement and adopt a fail fast approach to our sessions. The Pod tries to create safe places to fail in dynamic conditions in the knowledge that we are spotting the paddler for recovery, but is less focused on leadership (as it is taken as a given) and more focused on gaining further Performance Integrity and Long Term Athlete Development (LTAD).

#LongTermAthleteDevelopment (LTAD) #SkillsAcquisitionTheory (SAT) #ConstraintLedApproach (CLA) #Rolling #CynefinDomain #FailFast