Canoe kids learn the strokes at camp

BY LAUREL MYERS

Ramsey Lake has been rippling with activity all summer with young paddlers stirring up the waters as they learn to handle canoes and kayaks.

The Sudbury Canoe Club has been running a Canoe Kids - Learn to Paddle day camp for kids aged 7-12. While at the five-day camp, the kids learn the basics of paddling, aspects of water safety, are introduced to sprint paddling and also get an opportunity to paddle a dragon boat (22 people) and a war canoe (15 people).

For one boy, the camp has opened up a whole new world of opportunities.

Nathanial Gryska said he had been paddling a couple times before, but the camp had really honed his skills.

"It's really fun," he said. "I've learned how to paddle in canoes and kayaks, and all the different strokes."

Having attended the camp four times - twice last year and twice this year - the 11-year-old Valley boy has joined the Sudbury Canoe Club's kayak team. As part of the team, Nathanial has an opportunity to participate in regattas around Ontario, kayaking either on his own or as part of a two-person team.

It's just as much fun for the camp councillors, as well. Andrew McMillan joined the team this year as the Canoe Kids co-ordinator. For the past four years, he has been a Canoe Kids coach in North Bay.

"It's been going well," he said of the camp. "There's been lots of kids and it's a lot of fun."

For many of the kids, it's their first time in a canoe, he explained.

"If it's not their first time, generally the only other time they've been in a canoe is when they've been at this camp in previous years," McMillan said. "They always want to do the paddling, all day. They really want to get out on the boats, especially the kayak polo boats (a smaller kayak). They're very steady, very balanced, and easy for the kids to steer. They're perfect for the young kids."

He admitted working with the kids is a rewarding experience.

"I love it. They're always high-energy and enjoy everything we're doing, for the most part. They're really creative and they get so excited about the littlest things."

McMillan has a strong canoeing and kayaking background to pass on to the kids. He has been a competitive sprint canoer for more than seven years and went to the Canadian National Championships for the past six. He won a bronze medal at the Canada Games in 2005 in Sprint Canoeing, and is also a member of Team Chiro. Other councillors at the camp are just as versed in the art of paddling.

McMillan said the canoe club is hoping to be able to accommodate more children next year.

The Sudbury Kiwanis Dance Festival recently donated $1,500 to the program. The money will be used to purchase a new kayak for the camp.

Camps are held Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. - 4 p.m. with room for up to 15 children each week. Spots are still available for the camps in August on the first, third and fourth weeks. No previous canoeing experience is necessary but a minimum Red Cross Aqua Quest Five (or equivalent) is required.

Registration is $180 and is eligible for the Children's Fitness Tax Credit.

Call the Sudbury Canoe Club at 673-6032 for more information.