The SDCA board met today and we've set some dates and targets for 2009's paddling season.
Foremost is the April 25 Earth Day paddle. It offers many options, and all will revolve around the Big Sioux River near Flandreau. Here's the options list, paddlers can pick their route this year:
A) At 10 a.m., the SDCA will gather at the powwow grounds one mile north of Flandreau to put in a paddle to the low-head dam in Flandreau proper.
B) Participants can finish their paddle at either the city park in Flandreau (about 2.5 hours on the water) or paddle on to the dam and finish there (about 3.5 hours.)
C) The Sierra Club will host their Earth Day Regatta starting at a sandbar put-in below the dam in Flandreau starting at noon. Paddlers will travel from Flandreau downstream to the Egan city park. This is about a 3 hour paddle.
D) Powwow grounds (longer route) paddlers can portage the Flandreau dam and continue down to Egan for a total of 5.5 hours of paddling.
As usual, we'll provide shuttling for all comers by sharing rides back and forth.
We put this together in a way to make it approachable for everyone from beginners who want a bite-size chunk of paddling in April to the more aggressive paddler who wants to maximize his or her time on the water.
A wide range of events - including a second paddling fair to be held in May on Lake Marindal near Irene - are in the works, a complete list with some maps will be up on the blog very soon.
Saturday, February 28, 2009
Wednesday, February 25, 2009
Another fine day for paddling
The Feb. 22 YWCA pool event was filled with new faces and a success no matter how you slice it.
Twelve people came and got wet, working mostly on rescues and boat familiarity, and really, just having fun at some points. Another half-dozen members and family came to watch or talk.
At least two participants came out because they either read about it on this here blog or were impressed enough by the Feb. 1 event they thought it was worth trying it out. We had at least four "first time EVER" kayakers, all of whom got on the water and know now what it feels like to be one with their boat.
The club hopes to host more events in the pool before spring, or even after, if folks were interested. Does it look like fun to you? If so, write or call an SDCA board member and suggest a date. Right now we have a line on Sunday mornings 10 a.m. to noon at the YWCA, but there are many pools in many towns, so seek and ye shall find.
Jarett
Twelve people came and got wet, working mostly on rescues and boat familiarity, and really, just having fun at some points. Another half-dozen members and family came to watch or talk.
At least two participants came out because they either read about it on this here blog or were impressed enough by the Feb. 1 event they thought it was worth trying it out. We had at least four "first time EVER" kayakers, all of whom got on the water and know now what it feels like to be one with their boat.
The club hopes to host more events in the pool before spring, or even after, if folks were interested. Does it look like fun to you? If so, write or call an SDCA board member and suggest a date. Right now we have a line on Sunday mornings 10 a.m. to noon at the YWCA, but there are many pools in many towns, so seek and ye shall find.
Jarett
Saturday, February 7, 2009
Two weeks notice
Here's an image of the Big Sioux River, near Flandreau, I took after the successful pool training we had Feb. 2, as shown in the great photos below.
This part of the river will be on the Earth Day cruise, which will be in April, so keep that in mind as we make it through winter.
Also, a second pool training session is set for Feb. 22, 10 a.m., Sioux Falls YWCA.
We currently have four people who are interested and we'll certainly add a few more, but cap it at 12. E-mail Jarett or any board member for more info.
If any members have images, ideas, or thoughts on a Big Sioux River route to add to the 2009 agenda, please share them here on the blog.
JCB
A new feature on the blog: At the top of our page, on the right is a SDCA membership form. You can click on the small flag-shaped black and white symbol on the line that says "Scribd" and a printable membership form will come up. Use that form to sign up with the club if you wish. Fill it out, and mail it to
South Dakota Canoe Association
Box 90227
Sioux Falls, SD 57109
We soon hope to have an HTML form for online registration.
This part of the river will be on the Earth Day cruise, which will be in April, so keep that in mind as we make it through winter.
Also, a second pool training session is set for Feb. 22, 10 a.m., Sioux Falls YWCA.
We currently have four people who are interested and we'll certainly add a few more, but cap it at 12. E-mail Jarett or any board member for more info.
If any members have images, ideas, or thoughts on a Big Sioux River route to add to the 2009 agenda, please share them here on the blog.
JCB
A new feature on the blog: At the top of our page, on the right is a SDCA membership form. You can click on the small flag-shaped black and white symbol on the line that says "Scribd" and a printable membership form will come up. Use that form to sign up with the club if you wish. Fill it out, and mail it to
South Dakota Canoe Association
Box 90227
Sioux Falls, SD 57109
We soon hope to have an HTML form for online registration.
Sunday, February 1, 2009
Pool Photos
Click on photos to enlarge. Email me if you'd like copies of any of these photos. dahlmeis (at) hotmail (dot) com
Sunday, January 18, 2009
We're locked in: Pool training on Feb. 1
Unloading & parking directionsThe rental contract is signed and the South Dakota Canoe Association will host its first YWCA pool training session starting at 10 a.m. on Sunday, Feb. 1, 2009.
The event takes place at the YWCA, 300 W. 11th St. in Sioux Falls.
Paddlers should bring their own clean boats for pool work. Members will do their best to loan boats to those without, but the session ends at noon.
Life jackets/PFDs are required in the pool. We would like to have a head count soon, so if you are planning to attend, e-mail Jarett Bies at jbies0341@hotmail.com.
During the event last year, we had about 10 people come out and we worked on wet exits, rolling, and rescues. Everyone had plenty of time in the water, and we had plenty of room.
Of course we want everyone who comes out to have ample pool time and I'm sure we will work together to make sure that's the case on Sunday!
The SDCA hopes to host more of these events as the winter continues. E-mail Jarett with dates and we'll aim to set up a second or third session for those who can't make it Feb. 1.
If you're coming, don't forget to bring spray skirts, dive masks or goggles, or any other gear you might use in a self-rescue or to keep water out of your nose during rolling practice.
There's a door just off Dakota Avenue (on the east side of the Y) that goes directly into the pool area. Please plan to take kayaks in and out there, and bring extra towels to wipe down your boats afterwards, to keep the water from freezing.
Write me with questions if you have them, or bring them to the Outdoor Campus on Jan. 24, the weekend before the pool event, for the SDCA annual conference.
The event takes place at the YWCA, 300 W. 11th St. in Sioux Falls.
Paddlers should bring their own clean boats for pool work. Members will do their best to loan boats to those without, but the session ends at noon.
Life jackets/PFDs are required in the pool. We would like to have a head count soon, so if you are planning to attend, e-mail Jarett Bies at jbies0341@hotmail.com.
During the event last year, we had about 10 people come out and we worked on wet exits, rolling, and rescues. Everyone had plenty of time in the water, and we had plenty of room.
Of course we want everyone who comes out to have ample pool time and I'm sure we will work together to make sure that's the case on Sunday!
The SDCA hopes to host more of these events as the winter continues. E-mail Jarett with dates and we'll aim to set up a second or third session for those who can't make it Feb. 1.
If you're coming, don't forget to bring spray skirts, dive masks or goggles, or any other gear you might use in a self-rescue or to keep water out of your nose during rolling practice.
There's a door just off Dakota Avenue (on the east side of the Y) that goes directly into the pool area. Please plan to take kayaks in and out there, and bring extra towels to wipe down your boats afterwards, to keep the water from freezing.
Write me with questions if you have them, or bring them to the Outdoor Campus on Jan. 24, the weekend before the pool event, for the SDCA annual conference.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Update on YWCA pool sessions
The YWCA pool is available from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Sundays in January, February, and March. I just got the word today.
Obviously, this time might be difficult for some who attend services during that time, but if it would work for you, please e-mail me at jbies0341@hotmail.com, and tell me what dates would be best, how many people, etc. If this time and day is just impossible, let me know good alternate times/days, and we'll keep working to set up some other choices if we can.
You can let me know just by posting here on the blog, too, if you wish.
Since I got this word Wednesday evening, I doubt we could make it happen as soon as Jan. 11, but I guess we'll see. But the facility is really nice and it sounds like we'd have the whole pool for wet exits, rolling, and rescue technique practice.
I look forward to hearing back and of course I will update when we have a date. We'll probably need to cap sessions at 10 to 15 paddlers, but before we go capping anything, let's see if anyone wants to get their boats out and paddle indoors this winter.
Please share this news with members who don't get on the blog very often, and I look forward to getting these sessions set up fast!
Jarett
PS - Don't forget the annual conference Jan. 24 at the Outdoor Campus in Sioux Falls, it starts at noon.
Obviously, this time might be difficult for some who attend services during that time, but if it would work for you, please e-mail me at jbies0341@hotmail.com, and tell me what dates would be best, how many people, etc. If this time and day is just impossible, let me know good alternate times/days, and we'll keep working to set up some other choices if we can.
You can let me know just by posting here on the blog, too, if you wish.
Since I got this word Wednesday evening, I doubt we could make it happen as soon as Jan. 11, but I guess we'll see. But the facility is really nice and it sounds like we'd have the whole pool for wet exits, rolling, and rescue technique practice.
I look forward to hearing back and of course I will update when we have a date. We'll probably need to cap sessions at 10 to 15 paddlers, but before we go capping anything, let's see if anyone wants to get their boats out and paddle indoors this winter.
Please share this news with members who don't get on the blog very often, and I look forward to getting these sessions set up fast!
Jarett
PS - Don't forget the annual conference Jan. 24 at the Outdoor Campus in Sioux Falls, it starts at noon.
Saturday, January 3, 2009
Newsletter: Annual conference agenda set and ready for Jan. 24
The South Dakota Canoe Association will host its annual meeting starting at noon on Jan. 24.
The meeting will be held at the Outdoor Campus, 4500 S. Oxbow Ave. in Sioux Falls, and will include an election of officers for 2009.
Long-time SDCA inspiration Dick Davidson will again present information on one of his many arctic trips. In addition, members Rick Johns and Jarett Bies will share some insights on paddle construction and places to paddle in NE South Dakota, respectively.The second half of the event will include a paddling discussion on the Missouri River by Pat Wellner of Pierre. This portion will be interactive, since the SDCA hopes to organize a cruise in the Pierre area in 2009.
Richard Jacobsen will put out an invite and share information on canoeing in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area, and Ed and Kay Hoffman, the couple behind the “Pedal and Paddle” Web log will share some stories of their adventures last year.
A business meeting with election of officers for 2009 will take place at the end of the conference. Several board positions are still open and like any club, “new blood” is almost always a good thing.
The meeting is free, so come out and bring a friend. There’s a chance to see some boats in the lobby, renew your membership and also get ideas for cruises and events in 2009 on the docket. Hope to see you there.
Meeting agenda
Noon: Welcome from Gene Preston
12:10 to 1:50 p.m.: Presentations on paddling, paddle building, and arctic canoe adventures
1:50 p.m.: Break for conversation
2 to 3:30 p.m.: Missouri River paddling, Boundary Waters canoeing, and paddling for fitness
3:30 p.m.: Club business meeting/officer’s election
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