For our club, winter is a time for endurance activities and refining of long term goals. Our club members have been taking part in some distance races in San Diego and Newport, with peaking goals set for this summer’s Olympic Hopes Regatta trials in June, and the Nationals in August.
The coaches and Board of Directors have been looking at our recruiting goals. We are going to try something different this year and want to avoid using paid advertising on social media. We have printed many postcards and hope to get them placed in businesses and schools throughout Ventura.
This coming September, it will be ten years ago that this website was started and the efforts to rebuild the canoe club started. In that time, we have done the following:
- Created our 501(c).3 non-profit and established a Board of Directors.
- Written and updated our bylaws for governance of the club.
- Gathered equipment (mostly through generous donations) – we have over 25 boats, many club paddles, and life jackets for beginners to use.
- Built a boat trailer for transporting and storing our boats. (The trailer has about 20 boats on it currently, including three doubles.)
- Developed relationships with businesses and governance at the Ventura Harbor
- Established an access point for the club at the Harbor that includes a dock and free parking area
- Hosted dozens of beginner “tryouts” and introduction classes to over 75 people
- Attended the National Championships as a club with all club members earning medals.
What we have not done very well yet is attract and keep young paddlers in the club. We know our sport is challenging — athletes have to develop balance, strength, and endurance, while also not being afraid of having to swim a boat to dock in the cold Pacific waters we have locally. For youth to participate, it also takes involved and supportive parents willing to get them to our workouts at the Harbor. (We have only one water workout a week during our off season, and three or more in season.) This makes it hard for anyone living further from Ventura Harbor to consider joining us, too. However, we also know that paddling is fun and thanks to our generous supporters, we can supply beginners with equipment and keep our club dues to only $20 a month. We’re certain that there aren’t many, if any, club sports that can match that.
We currently have three coaches and less than 10 active members. We really hope to double our numbers with this year’s recruiting and are focusing only on youth. We’ll hold two separate recruiting opportunities, each a week in length, one soon after school lets out in June, and another in August after we return from the Nationals.
If you’re reading this post and know any youth in the Ventura area that might be interested in our club, please share our flier posted above and have them check out venturacanoekayak.org/join — help us reach our recruiting goals.
THANKS!
