It is time for Wednesday’s Moving Water Practice on the Meramec River. PLEASE NOTE THE LOCATION CHANGE TO Meramec Greenway Trailhead: Meramec Landing Park Boat Ramp. This is MWA’s “moving water” training and practice sessions, which will run every Wednesday rain or shine (unless there’s severe weather), April 16 through July 31 (no session 7/2nd). If the primary instructor, Joe Sartori, is unavailable, another ACA instructor will lead. (Keep an eye on this FB page for weekly updates.) Other ACA instructors and experienced volunteers will be there to help (more welcome!). No need to pre-register. RSVP is appreciate
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE FORMAT WILL BE DIFFERENT THAN YEARS PAST DUE TO THE DIFFERENT VENUE AND LACK OF STILL WATER. This year’s sessions are with approval from the City of Valley Park. Come once or every week.
· You must come with all of your own whitewater paddling gear including a whitewater boat, helmet, Lifejacket (PFD), paddle and air bags. A spray skirt if you plan to use one.
· Each session, you must check in with the primary instructor before getting on the water.
· We will take as many participants as we have instructors and safety to support.
· If you are new to the primary instructor, be prepared to wet exit or attest to your wet exit skills.
If you are with Team River Runner and want TRR to bring you gear, you must contact them by the Tuesday night prior, stltrr@teamriverrunner.org. If you request gear and “no show,” TRR will charge you $10 for the inconvenience.
Fees: You must either (A) be an ACA Member to participate (join here https://americancanoe.org/); or (B) be a TRR-affiliated Veteran/Service member who has signed TRR’s 2025 Waiver. Otherwise, there is no charge for this event. We encourage you to join the MWA as your membership helps sustain our programs.
Waiver: Before you participate, everyone must sign the 2025 Annual MWA Waiver. We will not have paper waivers at the river.
Sign the waiver once and you are good for all of our Wednesday sessions. In fact, if you already signed the 2025 Annual MWA Waiver as an ACA Member for the Missouri Whitewater Championship Races or the MWA Clinic, you are all set!
Details: We will warm up with some sweep and forward stroke progressions, a little bow draw work, and then blending strokes. Then practice peel-outs, ferries, and eddy turns. Beginners welcome. If you are new to whitewater kayaking and have your sights set on the MWA clinic, this is perfect for you. If you are not new to kayaking, these sessions can help you strengthen and refine your skills.
ACA Instructors, let Joe know if you’re willing to teach a skill or an evening session. Joe is a superb instructor and can give you feedback (afterward) as you refine your teaching.
Questions: Joe Sartori <paddlenut99@gmail.com> {or CathyMcCredie <Cmccredie@charter.net}
