Spring cleaning at Kilcullen Canoe Club
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| Members in spring clean mode today. |
It's officially if a chilly start to spring, and members of Kilcullen Canoe Club got down to a bit of spring cleaning at their premises today, writes Brian Byrne. With in excess of 70 members, the club is also taking the prospect of warmer weather as an opportunity to encourage new membership.
The club's top-class facility on the bank of the Liffey in Kilcullen makes it an ideal flat-water space for anyone dipping a paddle into water for the first time. According the the 2024 Committee Chair Padraic Reilly, interest in canoeing nationwide is at an all-time high, and it is a particularly attractive sport for young people — a third of the current membership in Kilcullen are Juniors.
"We train newcomers initially up to Kayak 1, which allows them to use the flat water in the Kilcullen area," Padraic says. "After that they can take further training for different types of kayaking, such as white water." The season runs mostly from April to September, though anyone hardy enough for colder canoeing can paddle outside that period if they want.
The Kilcullen club, generally accepted as the first official canoe club in the country when it was formed in 1959, has an impressive record of past members doing well in national and international competition. A section of the river at the clubhouse is devoted to training and practice in canoe slaloming. "There's also a fast-growing interest in canoe polo, especially amongst the younger members," says longtime local member and the club's Equipment Officer Ger Kearin.
PRO Mike Melton notes that canoeing with a club does not require a heavy investment in equipment. "Everything needed for canoeing locally is available in the club, and membership fees include membership of Canoeing Ireland, which among other things means everyone is properly insured."
Most members of the Kilcullen club are from County Kildare, but there are also associate members from other counties, even as far away as Kerry. There's a strong social aspect to the sport, and in addition to actually going on the water, club member events are organised, such as next Wednesday evening's Pilates Night for women members, marking International Women's Day in Sport.
The current premises was officially opened in July 2008, having been built as part of the Market Square development undertaken by the late Pat Dunlea. It replaced a wooden clubhouse nearby which had been home to the club for decades.
Individual and family memberships are available, and anyone wishing to join can either come down to the clubhouse, or make initial contact by emailing secretary@kilcullencanoeclub.com.
READ: Kilcullen's first canoes
READ: Canoe Club in New Era
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