History
Belfast Canoe Club (BCC) has a proud record as the oldest canoe club in Northern Ireland. It was founded in 1960, and had major influence in the setting up and early years of both the Canoe Association of Northern Ireland and the Irish Canoe Union. BCC paddlers have had international competitive honours in sprint and marathon racing, whitewater racing, and slalom. In order to widen the opportunities for young people to become involved, the club re-formed in 2011 with the particular objective of promoting canoeing, particularly competitive canoeing, in the Belfast Area.
Location
The club is located at Shaws Bridge and this is usually where the club paddles will take place.
Club Provision
New members are not required to buy their own equipment as the club have a large supply of equipment which is available for members to use. However for those people who are interested in taking up the sport on a more full times basis, they are recommended to buy and use their own equipment.
Membership
The club offer 2 different memberships for people to join the club;
- Annual Membership Fee £30 (Non-CANI Registered)
- Annual Membership Fee £25 (CANI Registered)
It is important to note that while there are no age restrictions within the club, however any children under the age of 12 who join the club must be accompanied by a parent member.
Training sessions
Much of the club training takes place on the River Lagan upstream of Shaw’s Bridge, Belfast, and the Club has a container at Ardnavalley Scout Centre for boat storage. A limited number of spaces are available for members wishing to store boats. Club members regularly travel to events all over Ireland and in G.B. Belfast Canoe Club is the only club in the greater Belfast area offering coaching and regular evening and week-end training sessions in racing kayaks for both juniors and adults. (Kayak racing is an Olympic sport). Our coaches also coach the CANI racing squad. The club uses a website- teamer.net – to communicate with members and share documents etc. Once registered, members can receive notifications of all sessions direct by e-mail and/or text to mobile phone. Teamer notices will be sent to a parent’s e-mail or alternatively to a young person’s phone or email through arranging it with a parental figure.
Additional information
Belfast Canoe Club is a competitive club and is actively recruiting both young people and adults with basic kayaking skills interested in competitive paddling. The club will run “come try it” sessions and other courses usually in April and May where potential new members are encouraged to come along and take part and see whether they enjoy the sport and would like to take it up on a more full time basis. In order to take part, paddlers must be competent to swim with a buoyancy aid, have some previous experience of kayaking, and be confident with support strokes.
If you would require more information on the club please visit the clubs website or clubs facebook page, or alternatively contact the club via malcolm@belfastcanoeclub.org
