Despite a windy day on the water, the Yorkton Canoe-Kayak Club (YCKC) hosted its annual developmental regatta at York Lake on Sunday.聽 聽
The regatta encourages developing athletes from all across Saskatchewan to come and participate, and offers a welcoming and positive environment for all athletes.
This year, there were 46 racers from Yorkton, Regina and Saskatoon at the regatta.聽
Jessica Riley, the head coach of YCKC, said they typically see kids under 15 years of age at the regatta.聽
鈥淲e hopefully introduce them to basic racing structure, and get them prepared for if they want to compete next year. They may decide to compete full time or have a little bit more commitment,鈥� said Riley.聽
Basically, the regatta allows young athletes to try out the competitive side of the sport without an intimidating, intense atmosphere.聽
It wasn鈥檛 all smooth sailing on the waters because of a brisk wind that was blowing on Sunday afternoon. But Riley said that wasn鈥檛 stopping the dedicated kids.
鈥淲e would have loved a little bit calmer day, of course today it鈥檚 windy, but the kids are troopers,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hen they have these struggles 鈥� some of them are flipping, some are doing all that- but they鈥檙e learning not to quit, which I think is huge for kids. It鈥檚 nice to see them push through it and want to race.鈥�
The YCKC has been around for 30 years, but Riley said they have recently been pushing to promote the club to let everyone know it鈥檚 there and it鈥檚 available for anyone to use.聽
鈥淲hen people think of kayaking, they think of being on a lake somewhere, relaxing on a nice floating boat. They don鈥檛 exactly visualize this,鈥� said Riley. 鈥淭hat鈥檚 part of it 鈥� just educating on what we do and the racing part of it.鈥�
Riley added that they have seen the sport grow over the past few years, but she said it can always grow more.聽
The YCKC offers a number of drop-in programs for people of all ages to get a feel for the boats and the water.
Riley said it鈥檚 a great summer sport, and it鈥檚 great for kids to get involved. There are drop-in programs in the evenings during the summer.
Once September hits, all students and teachers can try it out for just five dollars on weeknights. That gives them a little taste of the sport, and hopefully gets them excited for next year.
