What's it all about?
Hi there – we are Chris and Rachael and we will be running the brand new Canoe Polo course for Colywn Bay Canoe Club, along with some of our expert coaches from Bangor University.
Starting in September, we would like to offer you the chance to participate in a ten week course, designed to give you in introduction to the sport and some of the skills required, and aim to get you playing a proper match by the end of the course.
Canoe Polo is a fast paced team ball game. The idea is that five canoeists use their ball and paddling skills to score goals during the game. The games are usually 15-20 minutes long and there are 5 players on each team, plus a couple of subs. We use a normal water polo style ball, along with specialist paddles, boats, buoyancy aids and helmets with faceguards.
The skills used in canoe polo comprise of:
• Rolling – both paddle rolling and hand rolling
• High bracing & low bracing
• Dip Turns (whats a better name for this? – stern squirt?)
• Sprinting
• Throwing
• Catching
• Use of Tactics
Polo can be played on any area of flat water, including swimming pools, lakes and docklands etc We usually play in Stockport and York Swimming Pools, and train at Llyn Padarn and in Llandudno Pool. We also play some matches in Queens Dock in Liverpool. There is a great chance to travel to polo, with competitions all over the country and in Ireland.
Canoe Polo can be played by men and women of all ages, as well as U18s. It is a great way to develop your overall paddling skills as a lot of the techniques we use to get hold of the ball are also used on rivers to negotiate features. Polo gives you the opportunity to practice these skills in a safe environment, and will also get you confident with rolling on flat water. The best thing about polo is the teamwork required to win the game, it really does rely on every member of the team giving 100% to win!
... The Course.......
The course we are running is an introductory course, so as long as you have the following pre-requisites, you can register for the course:
1. Be comfortable in a kayak, with paddling ability when forwards, backwards and sideways
2. Beginnings of a paddle roll or handroll (we will help you develop this)
3. Ability to throw and catch a ball
4. A basic level of fitness
5. Team spirit and a bit of competitiveness!
You will also need something to wear in the water that has sleeves. A rash vest is ideal and can be picked up for about £15 on the internet.
You do not need to have played any polo before. We will teach you all the necessary rules and tactics, as well as develop your skills as outlined above. We are friendly and approachable, and have experience of establishing polo in Bangor University, a club which has gone onto win lots of competitions. We both remember what it is like to be a total beginner and will tailor your training to make sure you get the most from it.
At the end of the ten-week course, we hope to have some interested players and will look to put an entry into National Div 4 competition and also to enter some fun one-day competitions with local clubs. We may then run an intermediate course that will fine tune your play and look in more detail at some of the more advanced tactics and rules of the game. We are also looking to develop an over 18’s womens team that we can enter into National Division 2.
If you need any further info – contact us on rachael.c.hobbs@googlemail.com or 07737 863344