Weather was wonderful for our BBQ, July 2nd.  Food and conversation flowed as we spilled out onto the lawn.  Thanks to Clif for flipping several dozen burgers and getting us all fed.  And, thanks to those who brought all sorts of wonderful contributions to add to our plates.  It was a great evening.  

The following week brought us two mainland additions to VYPC.  Brodie Muench and Eric Fast joined Patrick Dann and Elias del Valle for a five day intensive training camp in K4.  This team of youth are VYPC's entry to the Midget K4 division of the Canadian National Sprint Racing Canoe Kayak Championships.  The Nationals will be in Welland, Ontario, in 42 more days.  All four youth will be doing another intensive here in Victoria July 31st to August 4th.  At that point we'll have to concede we did the best we could with the time all parties had, and send them off to compete with our well-wishes.

During the K4 training week VYPC also trained out from VCKC in dragon boat on Tuesday and Thursday, in preparation for the festival on the weekend.  VCKC has generously arranged our access to one of their dragon boats both at the beginning and end of July (26th and 28th), before our next dragon boat competition.  Given the fierce winds of Thursday's practice we were decently prepared for weather the Nanaimo DB Festival would spring on us.  

Some of our members drove up Saturday morning, some camped in Nanaimo, some rented cabins, some were in hotels and we all gathered on-site early Saturday at Paddler's Village.  We came third in our first race and won our second race moving into the semi-finals in the Diamond Category.  Paddling short one paddler we finished third placing us in the Diamond B Final which we won handily at 2:10.98.  This time made us the ninth fastest boat over all in the festival.  Well done team VYPC!  We also want to thank spares from our third race, Brandon Gibson, Adar Brechner and Sandy Trautman for the great sportsmanship they displayed during the Silver B Final -- we know what you did, guys, that made such a difference for others!  ;-) 

More Summer News

On the horizon for next week -- training in fresh water, at Elk Lake, for HP Racers, Racers and Jr Racers only.  Explorers, Nuvo Racers, Comp Outrigger and Dragon Boat will continue at their usual venues.  July 26th and 28th will see us in dragon boat practice at VCKC, again, in prep for up-coming festivals.  July 30th we'll send our two Nationals entries from Victoria to the Pacific Division Nationals Qualifier, in Burnaby.  They will return with the rest of our K4 team for their last intensive before Nationals.  August 6th will be Gorgefest Dragon Boat Festival and the Victoria Dragon Boat Festival follows a week later on August 13-15!  

Keep paddling, keep training and keep having fun!

 

What a great day athletes and attending parents had May 28th at Burnaby Lake.  Thanks to all the volunteers and organizers for their work in pulling off this fun and easy-going event.  Our paddlers enjoyed the trip and the opportunity to get into a dragon boat together for the first time.

Our early day began overcast and with a drop-off at the ferry terminal.  Seems the mainland was also host to soccer competitions and foot and vehicle traffic was fierce as we neared Burnaby Lake.  Our bus even managed to get into a small accident on the way there.  But, we arrived in plenty of time before our heat.  Jody, Patti and Dale secured an area to locate VYPC and we checked the race draw.

VYPC had twenty athletes able to attend this weekend.  Just enough to fill every seat in a dragon boat, but not to rotate paddlers for rest breaks.  Marcus was our caller and we were given one of a handful of sterns that had been arranged by BCKC.  

Although we competed in the high school category our athletes ranged from 12 and 13 years old (gr. 7, Bantams and Midgets) and up.  So, it's with a great deal of pride that I announce to you that our times came within .3 of second to the times of the Ridge Seniors, the winners of this year's Championship.  That is phenomenal.  And, here's why -- the Ridge Seniors was not only able to rotate paddlers for rest breaks, but was loaded with the fastest Juvi (17-18 year old) sprint kayak male and female paddlers from the various mainland clubs.  Holy Cow, we rock!!

The heats were fun, albeit short-lived at 200 metres and it became clear fairly early that VYPC and the Ridge Seniors were the likely contenders for the Championship plaque.  The heats went very smoothly although, in the last 50 metres of the final, paddlers and observing parents expressed some clear disappointment in the line the boat took when our stern lost his concentration.  This accident was the only obstacle to an otherwise smooth and enjoyable trip, and spirits remained high on the way home.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Mary-Jane Abbott and CKBC for making the attending of this competition as easy to organize, and affordable, as it was for VYPC.  CKBC arranged for the bus transportation that we enjoyed to and from the site and we are very grateful for their thoughtfulness in doing so.

My appreciation, too, to Dale, Jody and Patti.  I had fun laughing with you and getting to know you all better.  These parent-volunteers were wonderfully generous with their time in coming along and helping watch over, and keep track of, our group.  They also have some photographs of the day which I hope we'll be able to post to TeamPages when they become available.

 

VYPC attended RCKC's Season Opener this past weekend. We found ourselves in the midst of a rocky start when the race draw had our paddlers in back-to-back heats. The real difficulty was that appropriate boats and paddles were still coming back from the course as the next heat started and our new deck numbers had yet to appear. Unfortunately, three or four of our athletes were DNS out the gate. We had many more athletes attending than in the past (seventeen) – a common refrain from several event organizers!   The schedule settled down for most of the rest of the day, as paddlers and parents nursed their initial disappointment. Given that beginning, however, parents who'd lurched into action were working as a well-oiled machine organizing deck numbers, directing the collection of those and paddles, PFDs, hydration and nutrition breaks, etc. and behaved as their own team while our head coach enjoyed the co-operative generosity of other clubs, like RCKC, in scouting borrowed K4s for our athletes' use.   Given Saturday's 500 metre experience, and with a caution about shortened turn around time, as we began Sunday morning and the 200 metre events we had a seamlessly smooth running of those races.   The short of it? There were challenges, as always, yet spirits remained high. The majority of our paddlers felt this opportunity held it's own winning rewards, not necessarily evidenced in race placement but in fun, laughter, experience, teamwork, accomplishments, victories, versatility, resourcefulness and success. Congratulations to all VYPC athletes who are winners by virtue of your sheer determination!   If you would like to check your race times for the Slawko Fedechko Season Opener the attached link (I hope) will bring you to their Sportical page, on CKBC, for the event. Scroll down to the race results and, at “Results”, click the link.   http://canoekayakbc.sportical.com/events/585   Please upload any pictures or video you would like to share of your paddlers, or another, to the VYPC TeamPages site. Next – BC School Dragon Boat Championships, May 28th. Paddles-up!

Even though tomorrow, Friday, April 1^st is the first day of the spring season schedule for Racers and Jr. Racers, we're asking that they and the Outrigger paddlers in this weekend's regatta arrive around 3:30-3:45pm. We're trying to work with a slack tide at 4:22pm in order to smoothly transport the outriggers over to VCKC for Wake Up The Gorge. Once there, the practice will be held out of VCKC where parents can pick up their paddler around 5:15pm. Thanks all.

 

It's been a great winter. Wow. We're very grateful to Alan Poole, our cross-training coach for creating training programs particular to our paddling needs and for the guidance he has offered VYPC athletes. They all agree they feel the rewards.

 

As Commodore, I'm looking forward to seeing everyone out on the water this spring, older and newer paddlers, sharing their skills and strengths and working towards goals they set for themselves. I would also like to take this opportunity to appreciate our coaches for the work they do, on the water and behind the scenes preparing for the coming season, which promises to be a busy one. You should all have received the up-coming training plans in your in-boxes by now. That will give you and your paddler an idea of what they'll be doing during their training sessions. Remember, if you have a question that is within the purview of coach responsibilities our club communication policy is to, first, seek the answer directly from the coach. If, after having done so, you feel your question requires further attention, then please address it with me.

 

As most of you know Marcus Krieger is our Head Coach and oversees all our programs with the aid of Assistant Coach, Lisa O'Donohue. You will also see Marianne Pilon on the dock at some Outrigger practices. Marianne is bringing her extensive competitive Outrigger and Dragon Boat knowledge to our program and will work with Marcus towards a series of goals this year with an eye to the IVF World Outrigger Sprints Team Canada Time Trials selection this October, and towards the competition in 2012.

 

Please make note that the coaches give tremendous consideration to the make-up of team boats whether mixed teams, A or B boats. They have to consider the wind/weather, individual paddler's strengths, skill sets, strengths between paddlers, where the individual is best suited in terms of seating in the boats (e.g. Stroke, MeatSeat, Second, etc.), balance of the boat, boat crew dynamics, and so on.

 

We also wish to give all our youth the opportunity to do the best they can, within their own development and abilities. Our coaches recognize and work with a combination of paddling skills in our youth. There will be occasions where more skilled athletes will be matched equally and occasions where paddler abilities will widely differ. We do our best to be fair to the needs of all paddlers while mindful of avoiding athlete injuries. Please respectfully acknowledge these challenges for the coaches and defer to their knowledge and thoughtful decisions.

 

As of this writing, our Jr. Racers registration is FULL. It is my understanding that we are to expect a topping up of our Competitive Outrigger program within the next short while. Due to higher registration than in the past we will need to be extremely organized on the dock in order to be co-operative with others also using the clubhouse and the dock. We also require respectful treatment of the equipment we share. After practice, please promptly hang up your PFD, put away your paddle and change your clothes, clearing the clubhouse for the next user.

 

Remember, check TeamPages for the NEW schedule which will be in full effect this coming week.

 

To those just joining us, we say WELCOME! To those returning we say WELCOME BACK! To all VYPC members we say: Get ready for an active and amazing season, we think you'll have a blast!

 

See you on the water.

 

Rhys

Commodore

VYPC

“Creating Paddlers for Life”

 

 

This Saturday, March 26, 2011, juniors from the Victoria Youth Paddling Club (VYPC) will be participating in the Peninsular Paddle 2011.  This will be the first time in the 30 year history of the Paddle that a junior team will participate in the Victoria Canoe and Kayak Club (VCKC) fund-raising event for the benefit of the Lions Society Easter Seal Camp on Shawnigan Lake.  The Paddle will start in Brentwood Bay, Saanich Inlet and will follow the shoreline of the Saanich Peninsula for about 40 miles to finish in the Gorge Waterway, Victoria Harbour just above the Tillicum Bridge.  Four VCKC voyageur canoes will be utilized with two crews of six paddlers per canoe.  The crews will alternate on 1.5 hour shifts with the entire trip taking about 10 to 12 hours.  A safety boat provided by the Victoria Rescue Society will attend and the Lions Clubs of the Greater Victoria area will assist in fund-raising and transportation.

For more information please contact the organizer, Alan Thomson by phone at: 250-592-4170 or by email at: 3135thom@islandnet.com

You can also find details at:
 
http://www.vckc.ca/voyageur/

Marianne Pilon has served in varying capacities on the board of VYPC in the past five years, the most recent of which was her two year term as Commodore.  Marianne, thank you for your endless hours of hard work towards advancing the interests of our paddlers, and of the club as a whole.  VYPC has strengthened under, and benefitted from, your leadership.  And, it is with that strong foundation that we move into the second half of our first decade.  We're pleased you'll remain on the board to work with our new members, voted in at our AGM February 19th.  

Those members, and the VYPC board of 2011, are:

Commodore - Rhys del Valle
Vice Commodore - Joe Boyd
Secretary - Marianne Pilon
Treasurer - Clifton Cann
Director - Susan Lucato
Director - Imogen Glover 

Moving Forward

Current members, payments are not due until March 31st, BUT renew your program membership soon.  There appear some transfers between disciplines in the club and, if all current members plan to renew this spring, our Jr. Racers is full.  We'll look at alternatives, but lets make sure current members don't lose their spots - register your intent, please.  

Great reports from our Club Manager and Head Coach, at the AGM, regarding the strides all our athletes are making during the winter portion of their program.  Our Coaches are working on the spring/summer training plans as we wind down the winter season.  

We will not be doing Fitdex in Nanaimo next weekend, as previously planned; Marcus will run Fitdex this week in co-operation with Alan, again.

Thanks one and all for a great potluck feast last night.  We'll be putting your culinary talents to work at Gear Grab et al, this year.  

Athletes, keep training hard, we have an exciting season ahead.  

On Wednesday, February 9th, CanoeKayak Canada's Coaching Education Director, Peter Niedre accompanied our coaches during practice.  Peter spent time in the coach boat observing the Racers and Jr. Racers, while giving tips and direction to the coaches and athletes.  Later, we regrouped at the Pilon's house for a wonderful potluck dinner, after which Peter gave us a PowerPoint presentation and updated us on some of the goals and ideals of CKC.  

It was great to note that CKC is well aware of VYPC and acknowledges that we're sitting on a gold mine of talent out here in BC.  

They are also aware of the province-wide challenges faced by youth paddling clubs in securing High Performance Sprint Kayak funding and coaches.  Peter addressed some of the shortcomings, nationally, in youth and teen sports, and touched upon the import of using the LTAD model in training athletes.  

Although the 3rd largest club in BC, compared to those in the east we are a very young and small club, so it was great to see we've long held the values, and adopted the approaches, that Peter discussed with us.  An encouraging indicator of our growing success.  VYPC also shared our gratitude regarding our unique relationship with Brian Henry and ORPC and the benefits we enjoy through Brian's generous assistance, and our partnerships.  
As the evening wound down, Peter gave us some tips and ideas regarding entry and Explorer level paddlers, and reviewed film clips of HP athletes with our Racers.  

This Saturday morning, during Functional Assessments held on the mainland, our coaches will be joining a BC coaches meeting with Peter and National Development Coach, Rob Stott.  

We appreciated being included in this visit out west, and Peter going the extra mile (sic) for us, and are encouraged by the acknowledgement from CKC and their vision for the future.  

Thanks to Tim and Cara Marks for a wonderful slalom event at our January 29^th Pool Night. We had another great turnout of VYPC paddlers, friends and family and were joined by several athletes from Nanaimo Canoe & Kayak Club. Smiles were noted all around. Thanks, too, to all the parents and helping hands who braced themselves in the cool of the evening to load and unload the boats. And, a big shout out to Susan Simmons who generously gave of her time to help one of our Jr. Racers with his swimming skills.

 

Curious about the summer? Our Spring/Summer courses and programs are now uploaded at www.vypc.ca Next: We're looking forward to next week's visit by National Coaching Education Director, Peter Niedre; readying for our AGM on February 19^th at 6:00pm, and; about a dozen of our paddlers will be joining VCKC for their Voyageur canoe practices for their annual Easter Seals fundraiser for Camp Shawnigan, Paddle for the Kids.

Well, as we roll towards the last month or so of our winter programs to our year-end and head into our AGM, now would be a grand time to review our recent past.

 

Jaden Langford's departure meant and means a decent amount of scrambling for footing as we shift hats and acquire our bearings in this transition. Jaden did his best to transfer his accumulated knowledge of several years with VYPC to the club so that we weren't left with a gaping maw. But, it is fair to say we, stepping into his shoes, remain in a degree of awe of him. We would like to thank our members for their patience as we undergo this transition. It is appreciated.

 

I would also like to take this opportunity to draw our members' attention to another tremendous resource on the Board that we have enjoyed these many years and who, stalwartly and most positively, shoulders on. I'd like to publicly state my deep gratitude to Marianne Pilon for her resourcefulness, her can-do attitude, her ability to field my questions, carve out decisions and patiently take my calls throughout her multi-tasking work day, as well as volunteer when needed. I am also deeply appreciative of the amount of hand-holding and information-sharing she has done as we transition from Jaden.

 

As you know, Marianne will be stepping down from the position of Commodore at the AGM, February 19th, having served her full term. Although Marianne will remain on the scene, please consider taking a moment to let her know how her involvement with keeping VYPC going has positively affected or benefitted you and yours.

 

We had a great pool night in December and are looking forward to an enjoyable follow-up tomorrow, January 29^th, 6:30pm at Crystal Pool after we meet to load boats at 5:30pm. Most of us relaxed over the holidays and we launched into our first outrigger race of the season in January. Despite the loss of a few paddlers battling the flu and other ills it was a good day for VYPC. We were the only Junior Teams at the Lotus Icebreaker race yet we managed to place 1^st and 6^th in our heat. Both our Junior team and our Junior/Open team laid down faster times than many of the adult boats in several of the heats of the day. Well done, all!

 

As we move into 2011 we have been working on the spring/summer courses and programs which we will get posted on our www.vypc.ca website within the next few weeks. We've already begun having enquiries and it's exciting to see that more girls are expressing an interest about our programs, in paddling, in outrigger and/or in getting ready for the World's competition in 2012.

 

Joe Boyd has been organizing VYPC's involvement in VCKC's annual Peninsula Paddle for the Kids. This is a fundraiser for Easter Seals Camp Shawnigan and we currently have an almost full boat from VYPC, with more paddlers yet to confirm their involvement. Check your inbox for information and updates on the practices and the March 26^th all-day event.

 

Looks like an active year ahead of us. Please look to TeamPages, and your inbox, for the details on our AGM, the spring/summer schedule and any up-coming events.

 

 

This past weekend, VYPC parents Joe Boyd and Paul Pilon were trained in "Big Canoe Leaders" by VCKC. These two volunteers will be leading our involvement in the 2011 "Paddle for the Kids" fundraiser for children with disabilities

Paul says: Learning running turns with outside lean to the gunnel was interesting! We ended the day discovering several innovative ways to flip and upright a voyager canoe. The final slalom course test involved using every maneuver we learned including running turns with lean, figure 8 spins around two closely spaced bouys, running sideslip and backing up - a bit nerve wracking for a newbie.