A group of volunteers from Johannesburg Canoe Club and Sports4life took the Sports4life development squad down the Klip River to do their river proficiency tests on September 26.
Together, they paddled from the Meyerton Sports Ground to the Meyerton Caravan Park, a distance of 7km. On the first trip down this stretch, an experienced paddler from Johannersburg Canoe Club piloted the two-seater canoe with the learner paddler in the back seat.
They were taught how to navigate obstacles like trees, rocks and eddies and how to read the approaches to a rapid to correctly “shoot the rapid” as it is known in the sport.
After this the learners were put in the front seat and had to navigate the same 7km to pass their test. Apiwe Makhoba was the only paddler who did the test in a single seater canoe while Ayomide Aregbesola, Jose Faria and Karabo Serathi were each in two-seater canoes.
“All four did a great job on the river and all four passed their river proficiency test,” said Pete Russouw from Sports4life.
