The splitwheel is a combination of a cartwheel and a 180-degree pirouette, most commonly done on the bow, although it can be done on the stern, followed by another end facing the opposite direction. In order to score as a splitwheel in competition, both ends must fall in the realm of ‘vertical’, that is, between 70 and 130 degrees above the plane of the surface. The move is properly a transition between throwing cartwheels either left or right, but can also be used simply as a way to turn yourself in the crease or to set yourself up high on the pile to initiate a series of ends going the other direction.

Getting started

The splitwheel will be easier for you if you’ve already accomplished some degree of flatwater cartwheeling and some degree of control on your bow and stern station, whether in practicing bow stalls, stern squirts, or simply in the course of practicing any or all of the above. Unlike some rodeo maneuvers, it’s arguable that the splitwheel is more easily learned and performed in the hole than it is on flatwater, despite it’s being difficult to visualize- but having said that, we’ll begin by discussing a flatwater drill as a pre-requisite- because while it is easier to pull off in the hole than it is on flatwater, there are definite pre-requisites.

Rock-a-babies- The idea behind rock-a-babies is to get you in touch with the idea that much of the energy that you’ll use to get to the next end is a gift from the last end- that is, the forces of gravity and buoyancy can be harnessed to make each end easier. The other great thing that Rock-a-babies does for those of us intent on working on splitwheels is that everything you do on both ends is controlled with one active paddle blade, just like it will when doing splitwheels.

As the name suggests, you’ll be rocking the boat from bow to stern and back, as well as rocking your own center of mass from bow to stern and back, in order to amplify this. Rock-a-babies are a drill we can use to develop balance, paddle dexterity, strength, timing, and most of all, an understanding about where the rotational centers of your boat are when your boat is on end- because it’s against these rotational centers you’ll be balancing and around them that you’ll be rotating.

We begin by edging the boat over towards the side on which you begin a modified front sweep stroke, to initiate the stern on that side. The stroke should not travel through the water very much- the object is to place your blade into the water and use it as a stationary traction point, against which you move the boat, using your abdominal muscles. As we do this, we also lean slightly back, adding our weight to the stern, driving it downwards, while lifting the bow up and out of the water.

As the bow climbs and the stern dives, the windup you achieve will begin to prepare you for the next stroke, which goes back in the other direction, by winding up your torso for the reverse sweep stroke. Soon, the rising bow/diving stern maneuver will stall- and before it does, you have two things to do:

use the last of your sweep stroke and your abdominal muscles and the buoyancy of the stern to rock your weight forwards, in anticipation of adding your weight to the next end, and

feather your forward sweep stroke to the surface, (note that your body is already wound up in the right way) and place a stern sweep- we’ll call this the ‘smash’ stroke- on the same side as your bow sweep was on.

As your stern rises toward the surface and your bow falls toward the surface, apply the stern sweep while throwing your weight forwards, towards the bow. This will drive the bow downwards until it, too, stalls. Use the last part of your smash stroke, your back muscles, and the buoyancy of the bow to spring yourself towards the stern, and feather the paddle to the surface in order to do another bow sweep to drive the stern under. Note that your smash stroke has already wound your torso up for the bow sweep stroke… and that you’re back where you started. You can continue this drill for as long as you like, and as you become more comfortable with it, you’ll discover that as you’re able to get vertical, all that remains is to put the two sides together.

Important points:

You should not be leaning on your paddle, except inasmuch as you are applying the rotational force of your torso against it. If you lean on your paddle, you won’t be able to get to the next stroke, and more importantly, you won’t be able to put your weight on the boat, in order to drive the ends.

You should be keeping the boat edged to a relatively consistent angle of elevation, but with your weight largely over the boat, not over the paddle.

Each stroke should be an expression of a wound-up torso unwinding- unless you’re Hercules, you’re probably not strong enough to do it with your arms alone.

There are two distinct strokes here, not one. If you hold your paddle vertically in the middle, you deny yourself the ability to wind and unwind your torso to give yourself power, you limit your ability to rock your weight fore and aft, and you also have nothing to brace against if you get off-balance. The first stroke is a sweep from the bow using the power face of the paddle, the other is a smash from the stern using the back face of the paddle.

The boat does not rotate around the center, it rotates around the center of buoyancy, which changes- when you’re on your bow it’s somewhere behind your heels, when you’re on the stern it’s somewhere behind your seat. The object of this drill is to train you to apply your weight and inertia against these rotational centers, as opposed to trying to turn the boat on a fixed axis in the middle.

As you get the boat more and more vertical, note that it’s possible to change your angle of entry by screwing it slightly on end. This will be *very* significant when it comes to splitwheeling… because that’s exactly how it works- once you’ve arrived on either your bow or stern station by using a stroke perpendicular to the water’s surface, throw in a sweep stroke parallel to the surface of the water, snap your hips, and you’ve got the first half of your splitwheel.

Using Rock-a-babies in the hole- Once you’ve managed to figure out your balance on flatwater, try doing rock-a-babies in the hole- begin from a side-surfing position in the crease, perform a sweep to bring your bow upstream, then edge the boat such that you present the sliciest possible profile to the oncoming water, commit your weight upstream, towards that end, and using a smash stroke perpendicular to the water’s surface, initiate the bow into the oncoming water and drive it that way with your torso. As soon as the bow begins to go downstream, use a sweep stroke parallel to the surface of the water, using the back face of the blade, to provide traction for the reverse sweep you’ll be using to commit your weight towards the next end, this time on your stern, slightly upstream and slightly behind you. Once the stern end comes down into the crease, use your forward sweep stroke to anchor you as you use your torso muscles to initiate your stern, and use a pulling sweep, using the power face of the blade, to assist you as you commit your weight once again towards where your bow will be when it enters the water. As your bow enters the water, you’ll find yourself back where you started- play around with this, rock back and forth, work your way to vertical, then back down again.

The combination of front and reverse smash strokes on the downstream side of the boat, aggressive edging, and aggressive weight commitment fore and aft will result in both bow and stern describing circles parallel, but opposite in phase, to each other- with the center of the boat remaining largely stationary. As you work your way more and more vertical in the hole, you’ll discover that in order to remain upright you’ll need to initiate each end such that it enters parallel to the grain of the current- if the boat is edged off-parallel to the current, the end will deflect against the oncoming water, either flipping you or flattening you out in the hole.

Cartwheel approach- If you’re familiar with the double-pump initiation of a cartwheel in the hole and can initiate ends at or near vertical, you’re very close to having your splitwheel- all you need to do is work that 180 twist into the mix and get that second end vertical and you’re there.

Begin by setting up on the pile in a spot where you know you can cartwheel in one direction, and begin by pumping the bow up and initiating your bow in the other direction. As your bow goes down, instead of reaching across your body with your opposite paddle blade, instead perform a reverse pry with your initial paddle blade, and use that pry to give yourself traction to pirouette the boat 180 degrees so that your head is on the downstream side of the pirouette. Spot with your head the place where your stern will initiate, and once you’ve turned the boat on it’s long axis, pull with your active paddle blade to slice your stern down into the crease, while committing your weight upstream and upwards, in the direction in which you’ve spotted. Once your stern has initiated, quickly transition towards using the opposite paddle blade to do a smash stroke, driving that next end through vertically… at which point you can begin your series of cartwheels in the other direction.

General principles- A splitwheel simply involves linking two vertical ends with a half-twist, but should be distinguished from more advanced moves, such as the morpheus and the matrix, by noting that the half-twist on a splitwheel always involves the paddler twisting downstream of the boat, rather than on the upstream side.

In order to reliably ‘hit’ these half-twists, your weight needs to be on top of your boat’s Center of Buoyancy, or in a transition to or from that state- if you’re off-balance, you’ll be spending too much time bracing to get there… which is why splitwheels are considered an ‘advanced’ move, despite being no more intrinsically difficult than any other vertical move.

Flatwater practice- In order to practice this move on flatwater, ideally you’ll be able to perform a flatwater cartwheel initiation into a bow stall. If the bow stall has eluded you, or if the flatwater cartwheel is something you’re uncomfortable with, you should begin with those maneuvers first. If you can do this, however, flatwater splitwheels are simply a combination of an initiation to one side, a transition into a half-pirouette on that station, followed by the initiation of the next end, all using the same paddle blade. Broken down, the sequence will follow this order, assuming that the first end will be the bow:

Initiate to one side by edging over to one side and pumping up the bow while committing your weight slightly astern and finishing the stroke by pulling your weight forward and upwards, sinking the stern.

As the bow-pump stalls, reverse the stroke and commit your weight forward and downward, raising your butt into the air and bringing the boat up into a balanced position on your bow station.

As you reach your balance point on your bow station, sweep your active paddle blade across the front of your body to begin rotating the boat, using the back face of the paddle blade. Lead with your head, looking over the shoulder opposite your active blade, looking towards where your stern will initiate.

Halt the pirouette of the boat on station with a brief pull against the paddle blade, and transition this pulling stroke into the more vertical stroke that will begin to drive your stern down into the water and throw your legs up over the top. Use the finish of this stroke to commit your weight upwards, towards the next end.

Spot the place where your bow will enter, place your bow smash, and unwind your torso to drive the next end through… and repeat.

As ever, certain principles apply-

Every stroke is an expression of a ‘placed’ stroke, against which you move yourself or the boat.

Every stroke should be an expression of your torso winding or unwinding, or your hips articulating one way or the other, rather than an articulation of your arms. Your arms may be strong, but your torso is stronger.

Balance is key, and your weight should always balance over the boat, except inasmuch as you must commit some force of your weight against each placed stroke.

You lead this maneuver with your head through all phases of it’s execution. Look where you’re going in order to stay ahead of the boat.

So there you have it, more detail than you probably wanted on how to perform a splitwheel. If these directions are unclear or if you have something to add, please let me know.