We’re predominantly a sprint canoe club but can also help paddlers prepare for marathon and surf ski paddling too. Some of our club paddlers do all three – and we have everyone from juniors starting out, adults picking up a new sport, to national and world champions from each discipline training regularly at the lake.
Here’s a breakdown on the differences:
Sprint
The main distances are 200m, 500m, 1000m and 5K. You can compete in these races as an individual (K1), with a paddling partner (K2) or with three other paddlers (K4). There are a number of age categories in our three main national regattas – Blue Lakes 1 and 2 which run in the last three months of each year at Lake Tikitapu in Rotorua, and Nationals – which is the showpiece of New Zealand Canoe Sprint, normally held at Lake Karapiro in Cambridge. Find out more on the Canoe Racing website.
Marathon
Paddlers normally race these in a K1 or slightly wider kayak over a distance of about 26-27km (about 3 hours) and include regular portages, where the paddler must carry the canoe or kayak for a short distance overland. Canoe Racing New Zealand runs a national marathon championship once a year, with many long distance paddlers also taking part in the 10km Krazy Kayak series as well as other events such as the Cambridge to Hamilton race.
Surf Ski
Surf or Ocean Ski racing is a very popular sport in New Zealand, and the Pacific, with many great harbours and long distance races to get into. Keep an eye on the Canoe Racing New Zealand website for details of what on offer.