Nicole Dannecker Week 6 Blog

Playing the game of "war" as part of a morning activity.

Hey everyone its Nicole again here with my sixth week keener blog! Its hard to believe that it is already the beginning on the last week of second session I guess its true when they say time flies when you’re having fun, especially since our amazing keener mom Anna Bruno helps us make the most of our keener experience both on and off the water by giving us solid advice and planning extra activities for us to do such as our Wal-Mart/Movies trip or taking us to the Beachburg fair this past Friday. Keeners would truly not be the same without her in the family. Then there are our amazing keener coaches Clay Wright, Tyler Curtis, Devyn Scott, Claire O’Hara and Stephen Wright, unfortunately Stephen and Claire will be leaving us this week. I for one have learned so much from them and I hope to paddle with them again one day! The coaches are one of the reasons that this program is so truly unique, they are some of the best paddlers in the world and they are able to relate to us when teaching us tricks whether it be getting a loop, or trying to get onto a wave that you can't seem to catch. They push us to strive to do our best and I have never achieved more in my kayaking career than I have this summer under their guidance and assistance.

          Though there are many challenges while in this program from the physical challenges such as paddling every day for three weeks to the mental challenges such as the Monday night speeches I could not think of a better way to spend my summer! The encouraging environment that surrounds all of us while we are here makes it easy to try new things or get up and speak in front of all of the keeners that you have only known for a couple weeks and feel comfortable and confident. The keener program is truly the experience of a life time and I am truly grateful to all of the people who made it possible for not only me but the other keeners to come and have this experience. 

Co-ordinators Report, Week Six!

It is hard to believe that we are already in the last week of the second session of Keeners. The summer is flying by, filled with long days on sunshine spent on the water.  This is one of fullest sessions- we picked up Kira a week ago, and Jordan Sanford returned for another Keener session this past Sunday, bringing us up to 23 Keeners!

Last weeks highlights were a field trip to Pembroke to see the new Batman movie and a trip to Wal-mart to stock up on some snack foods. My big purchase was tupperware bins with locking lids to combat the army of Chipmunks that constantly besiege our Keenerville kitchens. The chipmunks are still around, but have had decidedly less to snack on. Another highlight was having Thomas "Deuce" Fahrun on the water as one of Keener Coaches. Deuce was one of the original Keeners with Joel and Nick Troutman, and it is awesome to have him back with the Keener program. We are excited to have him coach next session as well.

Our Fearless Leader: Sir Stephen Wright. 

Big Water Beatdown Thursday started with a breakfast of bacon, and a game designed to build communication and trust between the group. The Keeners were paired off, with one Keener blindfolded. The other Keener was then given the task of walking the Blindfolded Keener through a maze/obstacle course- without touching them! They were only allowed to use verbal cues, and they needed to stay behind their partner. This exercise was particularly useful when Kalem Kennedy and Tim Truesdell decided to take out the topo-duo- a two person kayak affectionately known as a "Divorce Boat." In the words of Tim, they were "looking to get beatdown twice as hard." Luckily for them, I think it worked!

Tim and Kalem rocking the duo- trying hard to surf Left Side Phils. 

This big water beatdown we moved away from surfing Phils, and changed it up, taking rides in Left Side Horseshoe, and practicing seal launches off the jump rocks below Chopping Block. It was a nice change of pace, and a good chance to work on some new skills, as well as try existing skills in different features.

Jordan Launches off the Jump Rock

Ziggy surfing in Left Side Horseshoe

Friday's competition used almost every wave on the river- the "A" class competed with two rides each on Corner Wave and Garberator, the "B" Class had two rides each at Babyface and Corner Wave. The Coaches changed it up by taking 1 ride each on all four waves. There were a lot of ties, and a lot of zeros, as the level was challenging. Once again, Stephen Wright took the win for the Coaches class, followed closely by Joel Kowalski.  Nicole Diviney got her first official spin in Competition, and had some of her best rides ever, as did Eve Preucil for the "B" class. In the "A" Class, Luke Eckert took home the win with 90 points. The winning moves were an Air Blunt on Garb, and a Left spin on Corner Wave. Luke started using a Jackson Rockstar this week, and it has made a huge difference in his paddling!

The weekend was leisurely, with the ladies having an early morning session at Garb, and lots of work by Tino, Luke, Sean and Duncan on the Keener Videos. I know I am excited to see them when they are finished.  It was Tino's birthday on Sunday, and the girls banded together to make a delicious chocolate cake with strawberries to surprise him. Well done ladies!

There has a lot of practice of boat emptying drills to get everyone ready for our trip to the Lachine rapids in Montreal tomorrow. The LaChine rapids are on the St. Lawrence river which runs through Montreal is a 4 hour trip from Keenerville, but well worth it. The rapids host the infamous Big Joe and Pyramid waves, big green glassy waves that you can get some of the biggest tricks of your life on!

Jessie practicing boat emptying drills. 

Last Night's speech night was filled with farewell's and "Thank you's"- to the coaches, co-ordinators, Joe, and of course, to everyone's parents for sending them here and allowing them to be a Keener.

We are all looking forwards to our last week together, and it will be sad to see this group go.

Have a great week, and be sure to check back for more blog posts! For daily photos and updates, check the Keener Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/okskeeners

Co-ordinators Report Week 2!

Rush Sturges and Ben Marr show Keeners how
it is done at Garb. Photos Galen
Volckhausen. 

It has been a fun-filled second week here at Keenerville. Our usual coaching staff of Tyler Curtis,  Joel Kowalski, and Tino Specht was supplemented by guest coaches Ben Marr and Rush Sturges.

Monday dawned sweltering hot- temperatures have been in the 40s all week- (That is around 95 degrees to those of us on the Fahrenheit plan) leading to loads of sunscreen and, lucky for us, inspiration to spend lots of time on the water.

Tuesday was a movie trip to Pembroke, where all the Keeners discovered the joys of Wal-Mart- especially the candy section! New friends were made- notably the chipmunks that have discovered all the treats Keeners brought home with them. This has led to a new off river activity of chasing chipmunks out of the cabins. I'm not sure who is more scared- the Keeners, or the chipmunks!

Race Day wednesday saw a several different styles of races- a boater cross down the Lorne rapid with 2 slalom gates, as well as a regular boater cross on Normans, and a time trial on Coliseum. Joey won 1st place for the boatercross, and Patrick dominated the time trial.

Race Day Wednesday saw tight competition. Here is a still from the boater cross at the Lorne. 

Levels are dropping quickly, but Corner Wave is still green, glassy and gorgeous. Babyface and Push Button have been great tools for Keeners trying out some of their first blunts, while Garb has been challenging some of the more advanced members of our group.

Keener Coach and Video Teacher Tino Specht gets huge air

on Garb. 

For Competition Friday, there were two comps: One at Garb- won with a 200 point ride by Joey. Quinton was close behind in second with a score of 155.  The competition was tight at Pushbutton, with Greyson, Otis and David tied for 1st.

The Keener Ramp: Ready and Waiting

One on river highlight for the week was Thys getting his first ever surfs on Babyface and Pushbutton- no small feat! Off-river highlights would be a morning warm-up game of Ultimate Frisbee, where we learned that Greyson has serious frisbee skills, as well as playing "Samurai", a game where one person is blindfolded, covered in clothespins, and given a pool noodle. The object of the game is for the other players to remove the clothespins without getting thwacked by the pool noodle. The Keeners got well into the game- with excellent Samurai performances by Otis, Joey, Hannah, Archie, Canon and Matt.

The upcoming week looks to be the best yet- Former Keener Rafa Ortiz will be joining the coaching staff for the week, the infamous Keener Ramp has been revamped and re-installed, and we are planning a trip to the Rouge river. I think everyone is hoping to make the most of their last week here.

That is all for now! For more updates and photos, check the Keener Facebook page: 


Anna

Today, Sunday July 8th was Hannah's 16th Birthday. Thanks Ruth for the delicious cake!