The Balmy Beach Canoe Club is now offering dragon boat practices at its canoe club location right by Ashbridges Bay!

We offer:
- BuK boats
- Enclosed body of water (fewer cancellations!)
- Change room facilities
- Clean washrooms
- Experienced flatwater and dragon boat coaches
- Open 7 days a week
- Flexible practice times
- Very close to the downtown core

All at very competitive prices

Because we are a Canoe Club, we are able to accommodate and train paddlers who are interested in trying out or fully cross training in flatwater boats such as C-1s; Kayaks; War Canoes and other sprint boats.

This is an ideal situation for teams looking for a solid alternative to the current practice options or for teams looking to augment their current practice schedule with additional practices at a more affordable price.

To book or for more details please email Rob Chang at RobbyChang@gmail.com

So is it safe to say that Rob Chang is Balmy Beach Canoe Club dragonboat coordinator?

Well there's really only one washroom..but anyway.

that is one more than the outer harbor has

Questions:

1. What are the water quality projections for Ashbridges Bay? Typically the bay is badly polluted with bird pooh and ecoli during summer months. Has anything been done to improve this problem?

2. What is the weeknight parking situation at 6,7,8 PM? Weekends? Are the volleyballers filling the lots early? Is the $5 per car still in place on weekends and/or weeknights?

3. What is the cost per 1 hour practice? Can 1.5 hour practices be booked?

4. Can we book the blue BuK boat exclusively? We do not want to use the old yellow Chinese boat.

I only ask because we tried training at Balmy Beach a couple of years ago and these issues made it difficult. We had to switch to a different location mid season.

hahaha, chances are the water is still just as gross...
and from what i'm told, you can find a lot more in the water than just bird poop...but the truth of the matter is, everyone is better off not knowing if you'll be practicing there.

Please email all questions to RobbyChang@gmail.com

Based on the history of this forum, we'd prefer to not have discussions in here.

If that's how you feel then why use it to advertise your program?

There's a difference between posting an announcement and carrying a conversation on this forum and allowing all the idiots to jump in. Just look at what is happening on Derek's thread. I think Beach is making a good move here. Only serious people would email anyway.

It's right beside the Ashbridges Bay Sewage Treatment Plant

Hey, it's all good for the kids who have trained their for years

What with their invisibility powers and x-ray vision and third legs

hehe

Looks like they are seeking Dragon Boat paddlers for their Beach crew.

BBCC has been looking to make use of a perfectly good BuK that spends 99% of its time unused. This was well before Rob Chang ever came along, so no its not that.

So is it just the Blue boat or the yellow one tooo?

The location would be perfect but..

Water quality tests done there last year (and published in the Star) revealed the water in Ashbridges Bay had ecoli levels 5,000 TIMES acceptable level.

I'd choose the BuK

"There's a difference between posting an announcement and carrying a conversation on this forum and allowing all the idiots to jump in. Just look at what is happening on Derek's thread. I think Beach is making a good move here. Only serious people would email anyway."

The main reasons why questions should be asked on the forum is:

-many questions can be answered in a central locations so Rob doesn't become a parrot repeating the same thing to different people in e-mail

-some people forget to ask certain questions and a forum discussion clears a lot of it up

• Example: The yellow vs. blue boat - I didn't know there was an
  issue and I never would have thought to ask because
  I've never been there. So unless Rob mentions it in
  an e-mail people like me could have been stuck with
  the apparently inferior yellow boat.

Fair enough

We will always use the BuK boat first unless otherwise informed. That being said, the other boat is good for resistence training.

Rob, just in case you are unaware, the yellow boat is a Chinese fibreglass boat and has insufficient seat spacing and closed bulkheads under every seat so there is no where to put your legs. It's sort of like the old Euro style boats with 12 benches. A practice in this boat is pretty much a waste of time since it is virtually impossible to reach properly and brace one's self to deliver a proper stroke. Over 6' tall?? Your knees are in your chest.

A fundamental question that every team manager or coach should ask a prospective training site is "what is the seat spacing in the boats you provide". It should be 800mm (31.5") or more which is the international standard. Anything less and your money is not being well spent.

only the west coast whines about seat spacing and leg bracing.... This makes our Gemini's sounds like a BUK

It's just this one boat actually. Hey, is the west coming to race at NACCC in August?

His name is mentioned a lot in this forum.

Who is he exactly?

Is he like the president of balmy beach? Or like their head coach or something?

Just wondering.

Virus alert at the BBCC link.

Just a reminder that there are very good practice options available at the Balmy Beach Canoe Club (just minutes away from the downtown core).

Our rates are the lowest among all paddle centres!

Saw a team paddling out of the bay and into the open waters the other day. Must be nice to paddle out in the open water without a break wall getting in the way =D

Anyone know if this site and facilities are any good?

Very good location. Very relaxed atmostphere without lifeguards yelling at you to do this or that and the equipment is all new.