The Yorkton Canoe Kayak Club is getting ready to host its annual Developmental Regatta this Saturday, August 16 at York Lake.
YCKC will be hosting a plethora of athletes from both the Saskatoon Racing Canoe Club (SRCC) and Wascana Racing Canoe Club (WRCC) for the competition; a competition that will be similar in racing style, sprint, to those seen on television during the Summer Olympics. "It'll be a pretty good turnout from Regina and Saskatoon on the sprint end of it as far as I know," offered YCKC coach Jessica Riley in regards to the visiting clubs. "There will be a lot of boats, cheering and a good atmosphere."
In addition to the competitive side of things, the Regatta will also contain fun races. A fun race is a canoe or kayak race in which anyone interested, experienced or not, can get into a boat and race. "We'll also have some fun races on the day so if you've never paddled before and you just want to hop in and go for a 200 metre distance, you're more than welcome to do that," said Riley, adding that 200 metres is an ideal distance for a beginner.
However canoeing and kayaking will not be the only event taking place on Saturday. YCKC will debut it's new Dragon Boat to the public with a series of races involving local Yorktonites to kick off the Regatta. "We've got four confirmed teams and we've still got some people looking to sign up between now and then," mentioned Riley when asked about the Dragon Boat racers. "We're also trying to get some Dragon Boat teams from out of Regina and Saskatoon, so we'll see if they can put something together.
"Also we have our team of athletes that are coming for the competition that will be together for the first time just to experience that Dragon Boat aspect as well."
The Regatta will begin Saturday, August 16 at 9:00a.m. out at York Lake with the Dragon Boat races and proceed throughout the day with K1 (solo), K2 (two person team) and K4 (four person) racing.
