It definitely depends…
…on the type of paddling you do. You’re right about surf waves and the same can apply to playing in rock gardens and similar situations. My point was that most people here probably don’t do a great deal of that.
I agree about trying to punch through with the paddle parallel to the boat. Another technique that’s worked for me in many cases is spearing through the top of the wave and getting a blade on the back side. That allows you to hold the boat in position as the wave comes by.
agree 100%
I’ve tried (but not practed regularly) rolling with half a paddle for exactly the reason:
If I got knocked over and lost my paddle at the same time, I should be able to pull the spare out from under the bungie (easy) and roll with that half.
Understanding the other blade is out of the water all the time and only got in the way for the most part, rolling with half a paddle is actually pretty easy to do.