I hope you are having a great winter and are looking forward to this year’s kayak league season. I am writing to inform you of some new things at JKL for 2009. All of the coaches learned a lot from the 2008 season, and we have developed an improved program for this year. We listened to suggestions from everyone including kids, parents, and coaches in order to make the most out of the Kayak League. Enrollment was excellent last year for our first year, and we expect to do even better this year. I urge you to tell your friends about JKL so that we can achieve the numbers that will help us to give you everything you want and expect from the kayak league. Remember, if you refer a friend who signs up for the whole season, you get $75 off your tuition!
Winter Pool Sessions (Denver/boulder team):
The pool is the best place to get ready for the kayaking season. You can learn and practice your roll in warm clear water, and it’s a great place to practice flatwater freestyle tricks and paddling technique. We will be hosting a pool session every other Sunday starting February 8th, and continue until April 19th. Our time slot is 5 – 8pm at the Flatiron Athletic Club in Boulder. The schedule will be on the website soon.
We will be coaching you on your paddling technique, rolling on and off-side, hand rolling, flatwater freestyle tricks, and anything else we can fit in. This is also a good opportunity for the advanced group to learn how to teach others to kayak by helping the younger kids. Anyway, the pool is going to be really fun and you will get better at kayaking by attending. I hope to see you there.
Winter Pool Session (Fort Collins Team)
The Fort Collins team will be hosting a free pool clinic starting February 19th. It will be every thursday until March 12th at the Eldora Pool and Ice Center in Fort Collins. Time is 8-9:15pm. Let us know if you want to sign up for this pool clinic.
Preseason Camp-Week of Colorado Kayaking
The pre-season camp is going to be sick! We will paddle everyday on different rivers throughout Colorado. We will seek out the best play spots and river runs in the state and challenge our skills to get ready for the kayak league season ahead of us. The camp dates are June 15-19, and finishing up at the FibARK whitewater festival in Salida. You will be able to meet, watch, and learn from many pro kayakers as well as compete in the events at FibARK. Points earned in events will add up to the Colorado Junior State Championship and to your team’s overall standing at JKL (see the “events” paragraph for more details). We will also get to run the classic sections of the Arkansas River and work on our river running skills. From FibARK we will spend Monday through Wednesday checking out new playspots and river runs in Colorado. This will allow you to develop your playboating and river running skills with excellent coaching from the JKL coaches. You will have the opportunity to work with all of the JKL coaches through out the camp. Thursday and Friday will be Safety and Rescue days, where you will learn and develop river safety and swiftwater rescue skills necessary for whitewater kayaking. We will finish the camp at the Gunnison River Festival on June 27-28th, where we will compete in the Junior events. We need parent volunteers to help carpool and chaperone, so please let me know of any interested parents. Parents should not need to chaperone for the whole week. If you can help for even a day or two, please let your coach know.
Practice Schedule changes (Denver/Boulder Teams)
The Schedule will be the same as last year for Level 1-3 groups, which will be Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1-4. Level 4 and 5 groups will meet Tuesdays and Thursdays from 1-4 every other week, and Wednesdays from 8:30-5:30 on opposite weeks. This way we will have time to do full river runs on those days, and check out other rivers that are too far away for a three hour practice. I will get the full schedule posted on the site as soon as I can so that you will know when the season starts and ends. We will also do at least one full river day for everyone, and go somewhere with good runs and playspots for all levels.
Events
This year’s events schedule will be somewhat different than last year. I have taken suggestions from everyone and come up with a great event schedule for 09. All events will contribute to your team’s overall standing and individual points toward the Colorado Junior State Championships in August. We will have sport and expert divisions and events aimed at all ability levels. We want these events to be fun for everyone. The first two main events will be FibARK in Salida and The Gunnison River Festival. JKL Members will be able to compete in the Junior Divisions at these events. We will be competing against non Kayak League members as well, so you have the opportunity to win the Junior Division at each event and also add to your overall points that go toward the Championships. The Championships will be held the first weekend in August at the Glenwood Springs Whitewater park. There will be a winning team as well as an individual in each class. We will have lots more sweet prizes this year too!
You can also earn points by entering local community rodeos and events. The Golden Community Rodeo is an example of one on the front range. It is a series of events that will also contribute to your overall points. These local rodeos are optional, and we encourage everyone to participate. Everyone will have to pay the entry fees for each event. It’s usually $20-30.
Winter Trip to Chile
That’s right, the Junior Kayak Leaque is going to Chile. This is going to be an amazing trip that will be an educational, cultural, and great kayaking experience. We will be joining The New River Academy at their riverside lodge for two weeks. The New River Academy is a small renowned traveling high school that spends a semester immersed in the Chilean culture completing their high school classes and becoming fluent in Spanish. They do all of this while kayaking the greatest rivers and surf waves in the world under professional coaches. The other semester is spent in New Zealand. We have been graciously invited by David Hughes, the Principal and director of New River Academy, to join the school for this great opportunity. The exact dates of the trip are to be determined, but it will be January or February of 2010. Mr. Hughes will arrange for all school work to be sent and there will be time set everyday to complete it. We will have access to email so the kids may remain in contact with their teachers and parents. We will also spend time learning Spanish while we are there. We will visit towns and meet and communicate with locals and learn their culture. I suggest taking a Spanish class at school next semester. It will really pay off. On top of all of that, we will be practicing kayaking with the New River Academy students at their front yard playspot and running some beautiful Chilean rivers. I urge everyone to join this trip, it is a unique experience. Please feel free to contact David Hughes with any questions. He has been very supportive and generous to the Kayak League and we continue to work together as much as possible.
David Hughes: New River Academy, www.kayakschool.org, 304-640-1001, hugeh2o@yahoo.com
