Havasu Clinic

I had a great time paddling and teaching in Lake Havasu City this past weekend! The group there was super welcoming and open to learn about anything I had to talk about.

My father and I drove out to Lake Havasu early Saturday morning to see what they were all about before starting our clinics. We got there to find they had a sprint race set up for the day, and without skipping a beat they invited both of us to join in on the fun. Pulling names out of a hat, they filled OC-6’s to make the races as fair as possible, as well as introducing people from others clubs to each other. They also held fun one man races, and finished off with a team race where the clubs went head too head. I ended up paddling the course at least EIGHT times because of how much fun we were all having. They also were Barbecuing after and in classic Hawaiian style, wouldn’t let my dad and I leave until we were filled. (which was greatly appreciated :) food is definitely the key to a paddlers heart!)

After all the races we started the clinics and everyone I worked with was so stoked whether it was their first time in the canoe or their 100th time! We had about 16 people throughout the weekend join us and they all left with a huge smile on their face.

Although the paddling community in lake Havasu is small and pretty fresh, they’re doing everything right and with a little bit of time and training, they will be coming into the SCORA races with a strong presence. Not only with their ability on the water but the aloha they spread off of it. I couldn’t have been more honored to join and meet this amazing group of people and I highly reccommend if you ever head out to the Havasu area, to meet up with one of the clubs and see the amazing Ohana of paddlers they have!

Thank you to Gary from lake Havasu OCC, the Ashford family, and Toyota Socal for helping make this trip happen for my father and I!