Course for beginners - What next

So you completed the Course for beginners. What next?

First step is to become a full member of the club by filling in the form on the website and paying the membership fee to the club treasurer (he can be found each Tuesday after paddling upstairs in the Prospect of Whitby). Don’t forget to sign up to the forum where you will be able to find out about upcoming trips, polo matches, and keep in touch with all your new paddling buddies! Next you should take a look at the 2 star syllabus on the BCU website and pick up a Tower Hamlets Canoe Club 2 star logbook from the office.

On to paddling, and as with the beginners course, it all happens on Tuesday evenings, so come along, put your name on the board and join one of the coached groups.

Each Tuesday there will be volunteer coaches providing training geared towards gaining all the skills needed for the 2 star award. This means most evenings there will be a group working on open canoe skills, a group working on kayak skills and a group heading to the pool to work on rescue skills and rolling.

It is also worth mentioning that the club works on a slightly more informal basis now you have finished your beginners course. The focus moves away from a formal structured course and on to more paddler-led development. This means that there will be coaching each week, but it will be up to you to decide which skills you want to work on and to ask whoever is taking the group to make sure they are included in the coaching that evening. Once you reach the required standard for each of the 2 star skills you can get them signed off in your logbook and when you have everything signed off one of the coaches will be able to award you with your 2 star.