The American Canoe Association has set the date for their annual National Paddlesports Conference which is taking place in Louisville, KY on September 30 – October 2, 2011.

If you have never attended then you really should consider going this year. It brings together instructors, ACA members, and clubs from all disciplines across America. If you enjoy learning from others and mingling with fellow paddling nerds then this is the event for you.

The organizers have just just put out the call for presenters so if you think you might be interested in giving a talk or demonstration you have until April 29^th to get your proposal in.

From the  proposal package:
The American Canoe Association (ACA) is accepting proposals for a wide range of classroom presentations, hands-on workshops, and on-water trainings as part of the ACA National Paddlesports Conference.

We are looking for individuals, clubs and organizations to provide their expertise in a broad range of paddlesports related topics that would be beneficial to all members of the paddlesports community.

We look forward to reviewing your proposal and hope you will be able to join us this fall at the nation’s premier paddlesports conference.

Get the all the conference information here.

Jealous that I can’t make my way to Canoecopia this weekend, I decided to troll through my friend Birgit's Facebook gallery of photos from the Toronto edition of MEC’s Paddlefest last year.

As you can see it’s really more about having fun then anything else.

The dates for the 2011 Paddlefest were just announced and this year it is taking place June 11-12 at Sunnyside Beach right in the heart of Toronto.

Fun fact: Did you know that MEC Paddlefest Toronto gets more people on the water then any other event in North America? Yep, it’s true. When clinics are about to start it seems like there are 10,000 people running around the beach all trying to find their canoe or kayak. Well not 10,000 but at least 8 of us that’s for sure!

Here is what I love about Paddlefest. It is completely an urban paddling event taking place in downtown Toronto on Lake Ontario. With Toronto being a true cosmopolitan city, the participants at the event reflect that huge diversity. It’s a completely different atmosphere then anything you have ever been to before. At least ½ of all the students in my clinics had never been in a canoe or kayak before and it’s so exciting introducing large groups of new Canadian’s to paddling.

You can get more fun facts and all the details of the event via their website meca.ca/paddlefest. If you are thinking of going, make sure you book first thing on May 29^th when registration opens. Last year all 800+ clinic spots completely sold out in just over 24 hours. That’s a true fun fact.

If you are mapping out your 2011 canoe & kayak symposium schedule don’t forget to leave room for the Atlantic Paddle Symposium which just opened up registration. It takes place this year in Terra Nova National Park in Newfoundland, Canada May 20-23, 2011.

This is the fourth year for the Atlantic Paddle Symposium which has turned into a highly successful event over the years as it’s moved around the Canadian east coast. Generally speaking; its similar to other symposiums with a variety of clinics for all types of paddlers including canoeing, whitewater kayaking, sea kayaking and stand-up paddling. The biggest different with this over others is that it takes place in that paddling dream destination, Newfoundland.

I’m pretty excited to be on the guest coach list and I’m joining an awesome group of names who I have looked up to for many years including Mark Scriver from Ottawa, Maligiaq Padilla from Greenland, fellow P&H Team Paddler Christopher Lockyer and Brenna Kelly who also a member of the Canadian whitewater freestyle team. The list is to long to mention everybody, way to long.

If you are thinking of attending why not turn it into a learning vacation by participating in one of the several courses/trips planned around the symposium. If I had the vacation dates available I would jump on the six-day Bay of Exploits Expedition in a heartbeat. Icebergs, rocks, Newfoundland. What else is needed to sell it? Nothing else.

More info: atlanticpaddlesymposium.com

Top photo credit: Wayne F.
Bottom photo credit: Don U.

This was turning out to be a pretty decent day but then it took a turn for the worse when I got news that Rapid Media has decided to stop running their extremely popular Palmer Fest/National Sea Kayak Symposium festivals that take place in the Ottawa Valley each May.

If you haven’t heard about it do not read a past write-up on it I did as you will quickly be as bummed out as I am. For me, it has always been one of the best events to both attend and teach at each year.

Why is it stopping you ask? Simple, the event runs at a loss and the three months of full-time work to put together is difficult to justify each year. Even though the event sells out each year, there is limited capacity at the site so it isn’t a matter of just increasing the numbers. You can find out the more detailed on the press release they sent out.

Here are my top 3 reasons why I loved Palmer Fest over many others:

This past weekend Tim Dyer from White Squall and myself hosted the 3rd Annual Georgian Bay Storm Gathering at Snug Haven Resort just outside of Parry Sound. 55 intermediate and advanced paddlers from all over Ontario came together to play in the lumpy, cold waters one last time before the season wraps up.

Snug Haven Resort is a great location to host an event like for several reasons. Firstly it’s located in a sheltered harbour in Georgian Bay making launching and landing easier. It allows instructors to find the perfect location for their lessons as teaching in high winds isn’t optimal. The location is also perfect as participants can run back to heated cabins with showers at the end of a long, wet day.

Of course running an event with the word "Storm" in it on the Great Lakes is always a gamble. Those who participated in last years Gathering will remember fondly the ultra smooth waters of Georgian Bay the entire weekend. It was great news to finally saw, “Small Craft Wind Warning” come up on the marine forecast as we got closer to the weekend.