very important
Posted by: jcbikeski
on Oct-02-12 10:21 PM (EST)
this is part of why a rudder is good if you have an extra bad shoulder issues. When doing a control stroke to your rear you should rotate your body to avoid having the paddle go behind the imaginary line between shoulders. With practice this is mostly easy but sometimes if hurried or surprised you may quickly make such a stroke without rotating. A healthy shoulder will normally manage a small amount of such bad technique but otherwise some may not want the risk which is why a rudder can help those folks avoid more problems.
The other point being made was that corrective strokes take a bit more energy than using a rudder though for me it's not a big deal compared to other hassles with using rudders or skegs. But if I'm going ten miles with the wind in my rear quarter I'll be more than happy to drop it.