Kayaking
Congratulations to Ashley Thomas and Carol Rogers for making the 2012 National Parakayak Team! They will travel to Poland to compete in the World Championships in May 2012. Their trip is not funded, so please consider supporting these two amazing athletes on their journey! Any donation is appreciated. We are so proud to have these two national athletes as part of Bridge II Sports!
In 2010, Ashley Thomas, Executive Director of Bridge II Sports, was invited to try out for, and made, the USA Para Canoe and Kayak (USACK) National Team. Her pioneering spirit and ultimate international success, coupled with the capable coaching of Stephen Knight, lead to the recruitment of two other disabled locals. From there, the Bridge II Sports ParaKayak Racing Club was born. The team began practice in October 2010, with introductions to kayaking in swimming pools and on land.
Head Coach, Stephen Knight, has been nurturing novice kayakers for 20 years and kayaking himself for more than 30 years. However, working with prospective paralypians was a new and exciting challenge for him. To get an early start on the 2011 race season, the team built practice stands for use in swimming pools, allowing them to optimize their paddling technique. They also used pools to learn the precarious art of balancing the unstable race kayak, known as the K-1. For paddling fitness, the team used kayak-specific ergometers.
The 2011 Team
Facilities
Currently the club practices at Lake Crabtree County Park in Wake County. The lake is centrally located and does not allow motored boats... ideal for flatwater kayak racing. Wheelchair access to the lake (typical of lakes at other race venues) is an adventure in itself. The team “crawls” across the sandy beach on indoor-outdoor carpet and uses a stool for a make-shift dock. The team's goal is to build an accessible dock for everyone's use at the canoe and kayak put-in. In addition, students from Duke's engineering department are working on a boat-carrying scooter for the team. If an accessible dock were in place, the Triangle could quickly become a go-to site for parakayak and paracanoe flatwater racing on the east coast.
Take a look at the plans for an accessible dock.
Watch this video about UNC students who created an accessible way for Ashley to get her boat off her car.
2011 Season
The first major test of the 2011 season was the USACK Team Trials in Lake Placid, NY. It was a major test for Ashley, trying to improve on her performance of the previous year. In their first race, the primary opponents of Will and Carol were nerves. A month later, all three performed above expectations at the USACK Sprint National Championships in Gainesville, Georgia. Ashley's impressive performance received a standing ovation from the sprint racing crowd.
Successes
Even in its infancy, the team has won accolades and had racing success, all while promoting its goal of raising awareness of Parakayak racing.
Ashley Thomas ~ 4th place, 2010 ICF Sprint Championships, Poznan, Poland, Women's Trunk/Arm Class 200m K-1 Sprint; Gold Medal, 2011 USACK Team Trials, Lake Placid, NY, Women's Trunk/Arm Class 200m K-1 Sprint; Gold Medal, 2011 USACK Sprint Championships, Gainesville, GA, Women's 500m K-1 Sprint, 45-49 yrs.
Will Archibald ~ Bronze Medal, 2011 USACK Team Trials, Lake Placid, NY, Men's, Arm Class 200m K-1 Sprint; Gold Medal, 2011 USACK Sprint Championships, Gainesville, GA, Men's Novice 500m K-1 Sprint, 30-34 yrs.
Carol Rogers ~ Gold Medal, 2011 USACK Team Trials, Lake Placid, NY, Women's Arm Class 200m K-1 Sprint.
The Future
In 2010, Paracanoe and Parakayak were selected for inclusion in the 2016 Paralympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. All team members are committed to training for participation in the Paralympic Games. In the meantime, our goal is to race annually in national and international events to keep ourselves competitive and in the forefront of parakayak racing development and exposure.
Contact:
Fiona Allen
fiona@bridge2sports.org
866-880-2742 ext 4