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AGE DIVISIONS: all paddlers are divided into the following age categories.  

• ATOM:  under 10 years of age on the 1^st of January of the year of competition.
• PEEWEE:  under 12 years of age on the 1^st of January of the year of competition.
• BANTAM:  under 14 years of age on the 1^st of January of the year of competition.

ATOMS

Atoms are an eager bunch of 8-10 year olds. They like to try new things, dive right in and learn how to paddle. They spend their day at the club circulating between "jellybeans" (really stable plastic kayaks) mini kayaks, (tippier!) War Canoe (can you say noise?) and a whole host of dry land activities including capture the flag, soccer, dodgeball, flexibility exercises, and trying to drive the coach into early retirement.

Our atoms do not race at local regattas for a number of reasons which can be outlined in the Long Term Athlete Development Model however, we do build relays and fun races into the program. The focus of the atom program is fun and fundamentals. It has never happened that an Atom paddler has  been named to the Olympic Team, so we tend to take it easy for the first couple of years! There will be plenty of time for training if the paddler chooses to continue on in the sport. Back to top

PEWEES

Our peewees are impressive to say the least. They manage to surprise us every year. How can these 11-12 year olds catch on so quickly? They learn how to not only balance in these incredibly tippy canoes and kayaks, but to race in them as well! There is nothing as exciting as watching your Peewee child head up to the starting line for the very first time.

Peewees can switch between canoe and kayak and race in both, no need to specialize yet.  Their day is a mix of dry land and on water programming. They will rotate in 2 hour blocks of time. They will head up the lake now and go for longer paddles, focusing on technique and balance. Our coaches go with them in motor boats. Safety is our number one priority.

There are usually 2 Peewee regattas and the Peewee and Bantam Championships each year. The Championships are a 3 day affair held in Dartmouth in late August. Medals are given out to the top three but the focus is on maximum participation. The races are divided into novice and experienced categories so the kids compete at their own level. The War Canoe races are exciting and everyone is out of their seats to yell from the shore. Back to top

BANTAMS

Bantams are a whole other story; budding champions and budding personalities! It's all about the group for our bantams. What better way to spend the summer than to be with your friends for eight hours, in the fresh air, being physically active and learning to excel in a sport.

Our Bantams are influenced by our Junior and Senior paddlers. Many of our Bantams choose to enter our full year program and so continually rub shoulders with Olympians Karen Furneaux, Richard Dalton and all of our National and Provincial Team paddlers. Imagine a hockey player who gets to practice everyday with Sydney Crosby!

Some of our Bantams are brand new to the sport and we make sure that they are able to learn at their own pace. There is no age limit for beginning to paddle. Others have been paddling for a few years and may be thinking ahead a couple of years to attending Florida training camps, as well as competing at the Canada Games or Junior World Championships. 

There are usually 2 Bantam regattas each year as well as the Bantam Championships in late August. In addition, some of our Bantams may be asked to race with our Midgets in Division Regattas. The schedule will be available early in the spring and like the Peewee families, vacations are best planned around the regatta schedule. Back to top