Canoe Slalom with LVPC
As the Resident Club at LVWWC we are continually looking to develop paddling opportunities across a range of disciplines and at all levels, from beginners through to GB Team representatives.
In 2021 Lee Valley Paddlesports Club entered into an exciting partnership with the England Slalom Talent Programme to become a Talent Club Partner. As well as supporting club and coach development through its Talent Club Partnership Manager, Pathway Strength and Conditioning Coach and Talent Coach developer, the Club is provided provision of a Paddle UK employed Talent Programme coach in order to support Slalom activity for LVPC members.
As the Club programme develops we aim to provide a number of white water sessions exclusively for Club members each week. A significant benefit of the Talent Club Partnership was the commencement in 2021 of the opportunity for established paddlers to access Talent sessions hosted at LVWWC.
In order to meet the safety requirements and the limited number of spaces the opportunities have been split into Club Performance Programme and Club Development Programme.
Elements of the Programme
We are able to offer several options within our overall Slalom Programme for current LVPC Club Members. The programme is designed to meet a range of needs, from those who would like to improve their boat control by learning slalom technique, to people who are keen to start training and racing.
Club Slalom Skills
Develop precise boat control and improve your paddling by learning slalom techniques.
You will use your regular kayak (plastic welcome!) and work in a group of up to three paddlers, with a slalom coach who will be on the water with you. The content is tailored to each group, with emphasis on accuracy and control of break-outs and ferry glides (upstream gates) and precision when moving downstream (offset gates).
This is a 3 week course, using a combination of flatwater and then Legacy or Olympic depending on the group. Open to Legacy or Olympic assessed Club members of any age.
Dates: Please check WebCollect or contact us for next available dates.
Club Introduction to Slalom
Learn and practice the fundamentals of slalom.
This course offers structured, progressive skill development and practice. This will set you up to continue training and to start competing in Div 4 events if you wish. You can use your own slalom boat or borrow a slalom boat from the Club. Each session starts with flatwater gate skills then moves to the lower section of the Olympic for the remainder of the hour. Depending on ability, we may also move to other sections of the Legacy or Olympic.
Your coach will be on the water with you and at times also work from the bank. At the conclusion of the 4 week course you can join another 4 week coached course, or join the open training sessions (see below).
Open to Legacy or Olympic assessed Club Members, any age.
Dates: Please check WebCollect or contact us for next available dates.
Club Slalom Open Training
An open session for Club Members to practice on slalom gates at the bottom of the Olympic course. A coach will be on the bank to offer advice and feedback. These sessions will be an ideal follow-on to the Introduction to Slalom course, or for Club Members who have some familiarity already with slalom and would like to practice with others.
Dates: Please check WebCollect or contact us for next available dates.
Junior Introduction to Slalom programme
The Junior Introduction to Slalom programme will be funded by our Talent Club Partnership with Paddle UK and is primarily aimed at children 9 -11 years old. We will teach basic paddling skills and progressively introduce slalom. Parents of Junior Club Members from 12 – 16 years old should contact Ciaran Edwards to discuss their options (i.e. this programme or the standard Introduction to Slalom), which will depend on their current experience.
Questions?
If you have questions about any aspect of the Club’s slalom programme please contact:
Ciaran Edwards lvpcslalom@gmail.com or Jonathan Males lvpcchair@gmail.com
Not a current LVPC member?
You can become a member by visiting our LVPC WebCollect page where we manage membership applications, water bookings and fees. The link is here: https://webcollect.org.uk/lvpc/subscription
We offer both individual and family memberships.
This mirrors the current ENTS squad access to Olympic Course sessions, which are typically between 2 and 5 sessions per week. The exact number each week will vary from week to week based on the competition calendar and the periodisation of training provision within the year. Given the safe working capacity of the Course, this opportunity will need to be limited to approximately 10 paddlers and be reviewed annually in line with the appointment of the England Talent Squads.
Session content and course design will be led by Talent coaches and communicated through the Club General Committee 2-4 weeks in advance. Sessions will be a range of midweek evenings from 17:00 onwards and Saturday mornings depending on other bookings at LVWWC.
Paddlers accessing this programme must be members of LVPC and will be charged £100.00 per month to cover their contribution to the cost of the water they are accessing. LVPC coaches will be welcomed to support any paddlers accessing these sessions. As this programme develops we will be looking to support regular coached sessions.
In order to manage session demand this opportunity will be released to Club Members prioritised by duration of Club Membership. Should there be an oversubscription of new club members then the opportunity will be released in ranking order. Paddlers would need to be paddling and competing at a Premier or Division 1 level.
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From 1st May 2021 RTA and TID squads will be repositioned and named Slalom Schools. In order to continue to support these paddlers the Club will provide a range of opportunities including water access and coaching each week under the Club Development Programme.
Sessions will be shared alongside Talent Programme provided water sessions and paddlers will continue paying monthly fees (£75.00) in order to contribute to the cost of the water they access. LVPC coaches, alongside the Talent Club Partnership Coach will, between them, support the coaching provision to this group. The Talent Club Partnership Coach will be recruited from the 1st April.
An example programme of weekly provision will be:
1 Flat water session
2 Olympic channel session (1x Bottom of the Olympic/1x Olympic)
1 Legacy course session
Additionally there will be 1 weekend camp per month, location TBC. We will also be looking to offer opportunities for other club trips, gym support and development through other paddling disciplines.
It is important to note the inherent variability associated with water planning. The plan above is a working example, there is a need to maintain a level of flexibility (along with transparency and clarity) in relation to the amount of water used and the charges made to ensure that costs are sustainable. Costs, water bookings and coaching provision will be reviewed at least on a 3 month basis.
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LVPC General Committee: Slalom Reps
The General Committee of LVPC has representatives from the active paddle sport disciplines that the Club supports.
In December 2020 three new Committee members for slalom were appointed. You can contact us via slalom@leevalleypaddlesportsclub.org . These Committee members are:
Jonathan Males
Ciaran Lee Edwards
Irina Medunyak
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