Finning backward applications?

[Diver0001]

Every photographer that does not crash into the coral knows how to back kick.

Well.... actually you'd be surprised. I once witnessed a "famous" National Geographic videographer doing a course in Egypt and while the video they got was out of this world, the way they were crashing around the reef to get those shots was utterly toe-curling.

When "the shot" takes precedence over everything else, people (even good divers) will engage in some pretty ugly diving.

R..

 

[Lorenzoid]

Every photographer that does not crash into the coral knows how to back kick.

Ah, I get it. The key is the definition of "photographer." There are a lot of horrible divers out there with cameras. I would not call them underwater photographers.

 

[Kharon]

You might need to continuously back kick for a while to stay stopped in a current. This would be more-or-less the same as kicking 100 feet or so in no current, so it is a useful skill even for OW divers.

There are a couple of videos. Here's one that's okay: (I'm sure there are better ones out there if you look)


I had some instruction on it in my cavern class and a few tips in intro to cave. But one thing that really helped me was setting up a mirror and watching myself flail away. Having someone video you might be even better. One thing that's a bit counter-intuitive is to point your toes as you extend you leg and flex your feet as your knees bend. That's probably not a very good explanation, but you want to keep your fins tips mostly parallel to the bottom. This helps keep trim.

Thanks for the link. Now all I have to do is go practice, practice, practice - and hope at some point I get it right so I can memorize how it feels when it's working.

 

[KeithG]

Well.... actually you'd be surprised. I once witnessed a "famous" National Geographic videographer doing a course in Egypt and while the video they got was out of this world, the way they were crashing around the reef to get those shots was utterly toe-curling.

When "the shot" takes precedence over everything else, people (even good divers) will engage in some pretty ugly diving.

R..

agreed. every "famous" photographer i have seen made me cringe. no respect for the reef or the creatures.

 

[halocline]

Thanks for the link. Now all I have to do is go practice, practice, practice - and hope at some point I get it right so I can memorize how it feels when it's working.

Maybe this will help. It sort of feels like you are scooping water with the top of your fin. But not entirely; if you do that, you'll find yourself going up as much as backwards, because you'll be pushing water down. Extend your legs, point your toes, try to roll your ankles so that the bottoms of your feet are together (it helps to spread your knees a bit) and then try to push the water forward with the tops and sides of your fins. This is where stiff paddle fins are a huge help. It really is sort of slicing your fin through the water.

 

[boulderjohn]

I can't think of any situation I'd ever be in where it would be required. Can't do it anyway with my split fins.

Like many who have already posted, I back fin frequently during dives. The ability to do it does indeed depend upon your fins, but having split fins is not in itself a barrier.

There are two very different methods for back kicking. One uses wide fin sidewalls for the propelling surface, and the other uses the fin surface for the propelling surface. I learned the latter method first, and I now use the former. If your fins do not have wide sidewalls, you must use the second method.

As for split fins, I have two contrasting experiences to describe. I was once teaching a refresher class for a father and son, and the son showed up with Atomic split fins that were ridiculously too big for him. He insisted they were his, but he had obviously walked away with his last diving experience with someone else's fins. I gave him my fins, which were still too big for him, and I used the ones he brought, even though they were so big the spring straps barely touched my heel. When I needed to back fin during instruction, I used the fin surface technique and I had no trouble back finning whatsoever.

In the second case, I tried to show someone with a different pair of split fins how to do it, and it was a total failure. She was doing it perfectly, but the fin was so soft it was simply flopping and accomplishing nothing. I have had a similar experience when borrowing floppy blade fins. I could still back fin with them, but it took me at least twice as many kicks to cover the same distance. I therefore conclude that the most important quality of the fin for that technique is stiffness, and you should be able to back kick with a stiff split fin.

 

[AJ]

There are two very different methods for back kicking. One uses wide fin sidewalls for the propelling surface, and the other uses the fin surface for the propelling surface. I learned the latter method first, and I now use the former. If your fins do not have wide sidewalls, you must use the second method.

I learned back finning drifting on the surface without fins and gear. The propulsion comes from movement off your legs, not your fins alone. You can even back kick without fins. Fins make it sometimes actually harder because they can put you off balance. I did not believe, but I have experienced it myself.

 

[DevonDiver]

I agree with that. Taking off the fins can make learning back-kick easier. Once you've got the movement and motion, you put the fins back on to pick up the power.

I use back-kick all the time - I have to maintain a static position in front of my students. Equally, it's how I hold formation on stops. Occasionally, I use it to reverse inside wrecks, or to back off from a subject after taking a photo.

 

[EricTheDood]

What's your preferred patterns?

Flip the DPV around and punch it!

Can you imagine the chaos?

 

[ScubaInChicago]

No need for fins at all for the backwards kick. You should be able to be in doubles, stage, and two deco bottles and back kick without fins. If you're not moving, you're doing it wrong

And "You're Gonna DIE" in that shark fight without some back kicking skills!