Athletes head to Dartmouth, Nova Scotia for Canadian Canoe Kayak Championships – Halifax
Canada’s best on the water traveled to Dartmouth, Nova Scotia on Friday for the Canadian Canoe Kayak Championships, which run through Sunday.
The event, which features some of the best courses in Canada, was held at Lake Banook, which is often touted as one of the toughest courses in the country.
Athletes arriving in Dartmouth noted that crosswinds made rowing at this year’s event a challenge compared to courses elsewhere.
At 20 km/h, the slightest gust of wind can be a new challenge.
“Lake Banook has always had a reputation as one of the windiest courses in the country,” said kayaker Gillian Helliwell of British Columbia.
“With us, our wind is always in front or behind, so when it’s sideways, it makes things a little trickier.
AJ Thom of Burnaby, BC said he has been training for higher distances in preparation for the championships. He called this year’s event the biggest in Canada, saying that after a great morning on the water he was excited to race later in the week.
“The conditions are a bit different and so is the course,” he said. “You are training for your race.”
The event, which is the second major on-water event in the past month, might not have been possible without a new judging tower installed ahead of the North American Indigenous Games in July.
The new judges’ tower is equipped with new high-tech radars to record times more accurately.
This is also accompanied by an increase in office space.
“The tower has been there for about 30 to 35 years,” Wade Casey, CFO of Canoe-Kayak Canada told PKBNEWS.
“It had structural issues that needed upgrading, (and it has) more windows and more space.”
The new episode gives Canoe Kayak Canada’s Atlantic Division hope that future events will take place in Dartmouth.
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