Celebrate the Rappahannock!

We want to invite you to a fun and educational day of family-oriented events that Celebrates the Rappahannock River!  Join us Saturday June 1st at Riverfront Park, the events kicks off at 10 a.m.

Next to the ACA National Headquarters  the Rappahannock River provides great resources to the community, one of which is an excellent venue for all kinds of paddlesports.  For more information click here.

Don't Make Her Beg - Learn How to Share Your Paddling Passion With Your Best Friend!

Pleeeease Buy the Book So I Can SUP With You!

ACA certified Stand Up Paddleboard Instructor, Maria Christina Schultz has created this "how to" guide so that others can enjoy paddling adventures with their best friends.  

How to SUP With Your PUP guides you through simple training and is designed to make the learning process smooth and safe for human and pup.  It includes everything you and your dog need to SUP - from types of gear to a full training plan.  

Buy your copy of How to SUP With Your PUP from the ACA's eStore.

Garden State Sea Kayak Symposium

If you haven't ever been to the Jersey Shore you might not find a better reason than the Garden State Sea Kayak Symposium June 8-9.  Join Tuktu Paddle and the Jersey Shore Sea Kayak Association for training from top instructors in:

• SUP
• Canoeing
• Surfing
• Rough water paddling
• ACA instructor classes
• Kayak fishing
• Greenland rolling
• and more...

Visit www.tuktupaddles.com/gssks.html for more information.

National Championships - Canoe Poling

2013 Overall Champion - Intermediate Division - Mena S.

Over the weekend, ACA members from across the country (representing 6 different states) converged on the Westfield River near Huntington, Massachusetts for the annual Canoe Poling National Championships.

A special thank you to Harry Rock and his wife for organizing and hosting this year's event and to the ACA Canoe Poling Committee Chair, Scott Stepenuck for his years of service to the poling community.

Stand tall!

Standing Tall on the River

Former Secretary of Defense Gates and the ACA

Executive Director Wade Blackwood and ACA Board member Kirk Havens meet with former Secretary of Defense, and current Chancellor of William & Mary College Robert Gates last week to discuss paddlesports programming for veterans with disabilities.

Learn more about the ACA's Adaptive Paddling Program.

Kokatat Instructor of the Month - May

The ACA is pleased to announce our May Kokatat Instructor of the Month—Ron Smith from Pinckney, Michigan!

Ron has been a paddling enthusiast for over thirty years growing up in the Great Lakes Region.  After becoming an ACA Instructor, Ron formed Black Parrot Paddling, LLC and along with his wife, Suzanne, who is also an ACA instructor, has taught canoeing, kayaking and SUP to hundreds of clients over the past 18 years.  Ron has served in the past on the board of the Great Lakes Sea Kayak Club and as Safety Officer for the Great Lakes Sea Kayak Symposium held yearly on the shores of Lake Superior.  He serves as Senior Paddlesport Director overseeing the canoeing, kayaking and SUP programs for YMCA Storer Camps in Southeast Michigan. Splitting his time between southeast Michigan and Gulf Shores, Alabama, Ron is working to establish a cadre of ACA instructors along Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama Gulf Coasts in order to provide quality instruction resources for the growing Gulf area paddling community.  Ron is a Level 5: Advanced Open Water Coastal Kayak Instructor, Level 4: Open Water Coastal Kayak Instructor Trainer, Level 2: Essentials of Canoe Touring Instructor Trainer, and Essentials of SUP Instructor.  Ron also holds the ACA Adaptive Paddling Endorsement.

Congratulations Ron!

National Canoe Poling Championship

 

The ACA National Canoe Poling Championship will be held this Saturday May 25 at the Westfield River at Hillgate Park in Huntington, MA.

Join the event...or just show up to watch highly skilled paddlers navigate whitewater standing up!

Learn more about this canoeing art form.