BC School Dragon Boat Championships

On Sunday April 29th BCKC hosted the 2nd annual BC School Dragon Boat Championships on Burnaby Lake. Teams from Nanaimo, Pemberton, Pitt Meadows, North Vancouver, Vancouver and Burnaby participated in the event. We were treated with fantastic weather for the event, which was a huge relief considering the miserable rain we've had for so much of this April. Dave did another terrific job in organizing an eager crew of volunteers needed to manage the about 220 student athletes and about another one hundred spectators. Everyone had a great time and we even managed to get the parents involved in the racing during the lunch break with a parents challenge race in which 4 boats of parents participated in a fun race, putting on a impressive performance in front of the students. The 2007 BC School Dragon Boat Champions are Laoyam Eagles of Pemberton (Secondary school division) and Sherwood Park Elementary of North Vancouver (Elementary school division). Congratulations to all the teams!

BCKC Biathlon Races

Tonight was the second event of the BCKC Biathlon series, where racers compete in combined running and paddling disciplines for the coveted BCKC Green Knight Trophy. The 2007 series began on April 10 with a 2 km run followed by a 7 km paddle. The team of Emily (C1) and Jim (K1) were the victors in a tightly contested race. In tonight's event, a 2 km run followed by an 8 km paddle, Dan (K1) and Jim combined to take the win with a healthy lead in combined time over their nearest competitors.

war canoe refinishing project

John and Dave have been hard at work repairing and refinishing our favourite war canoe. The outer surface has now been sanded, the blemishes have been sealed with epoxy and a couple areas of wood rot on the gunwhales have been repaired. The next step will be to reapply the outer coat then we'll be good to start our new season of war canoeing. Time for all of us to start preparing our knees for the first practise in May, so lets get out our knee blocks to spend a few minutes each day in the high kneel paddling position.

Spring Open House

On Saturday afternoon some of the school dragon boat program participants came out with family and friends to try kayaking on Burnaby Lake. Members of BCKC's youth team were on hand to instruct the new paddlers. The kids had fun in the recreational plastic kayaks and a couple adventurous paddlers tested their skills in trainer racing kayaks. Is a future Canadian Olympic champion in one of these photos?

School Dragon Boating

Hundreds of Burnaby's students are currently taking part in a school dragon boating program hosted by BCKC. The program continues until the end of the month, culminating in the BC School Dragon Boat Championships on April 29 at Burnaby Lake.

Spring is here

After snow on Monday and freezing temperatures it finally warmed up. First practise in T-shirts this year, except for Kiran who just came back from her training camp in Florida. Although half way through she rolled up her sleeves as well. 6 athletes, Emily (C1), Kiran (K1), Connor (C1), Jim (K1), Jeff (K1) and Katja (K1) came out to be coached by Lynn on this beautiful Friday afternoon.