You, Me and the CCC

Steve Johnson at MMRT 2024 -photo by Gordon AllenThe water was over 4K again and another newcomer, Steve Johnson, was there that day. Steve and I did not know each other at the time, and it would take a while but we eventually became paddle buddies. We each had a good swim that day which is something we still talk about to this day.  The club members were so helpful, and I remembered their names thanks to Patrick Pugh, who, on a Facebook post, encouraged club members to keep a paddle log.  Ever since I’ve kept a detailed log which has come in handy.

Afterwards, Patrick would take me down the Haw at a lower level and teach me more. He had me try to catch eddies including a little one on the no-name rapid right before Gabriel’s Bend.  I missed it and went down the rapid backwards. I ended up swimming but till this day I always try to catch that eddy.

I was lucky enough to paddle with the famous Paul Ferguson who put me to shame. I was in my 7 ft Big EZ and he was paddling a 16 ft barge of a canoe but I was the only one hitting everything. I remember Larry Ausley coaching me to do peel outs when I met the Lunch Stop hole upside down and took off on my first hard swim. Afterwards the whole group waited for me and encouraged me to get back to paddling.  I remember Cody Buffkin posting about his first year in the club and what it had done for him. Reading it, I hoped one day I could say all those things.  Seven years later here are parts of my story about how much the Club has done for me.  Hopefully it has done the same for all of you.

The many great, experienced paddlers in the club are the reason I’m a member now and my paddling career has advanced.  My first ACA course was a CCC-sponsored Swiftwater Rescue class taught by Matt Thomas and Larry.  Rick Higgins and Wayne Jones would later convince me to run for the position of Safety Chair.  Serving as the Safety Chair for the club was a true honor and it started my passion for paddle sports Safety and Education. I became an L3 River Safety and Rescue instructor followed by a L4 Swiftwater Rescue Instructor certificate and a L1 Kayak Instructor.   This year I became an L3 River Kayak Instructor and I’m still working to get my L4 Whitewater Kayak Instructor status.  These certifications, especially the River Safety and Rescue and Swiftwater Rescue have been some of my proudest moments as I have been able to really give back to the club.  I look forward to doing the same thing with my River Kayak instructor certification.

To be fair, it is because of the club that I have stayed in the sport and spent thousands of dollars on whitewater gear, kayaks, trips and classes.  It is also because of the CCC that I have spent hours of personal time training or helping other paddlers.  With that being said, I wouldn’t trade a single second of it as I truly enjoy teaching just as much as I do boating.  Education and kindness are what I received from the club when starting out and I see teaching as paying it forward.  The CCC has multiple instructors in both Kayak and Swiftwater Rescue and a few in Canoe who provide excellent instruction to club members. However, this valuable line-up of instructors isn’t a forever list, we always need more instructors to step up and take over.  If we don’t, then we could end up running short on instructors. When I started as the Safety Chair, we had no current Safety and Rescue instructors and we had to go through the process again from the bottom.
Luckily, there are always courses available to get new instructors certified, but we need paddlers who are willing to donate time back to the club to help.  Maybe you’ve seen the recent announcements about upcoming instructor certification opportunities.  Now is the best time to sign up. We have active instructors to teach and assist. You don’t have to do it all on your own.  Our instructors can help you prepare for the course, guide you through the steps and work with you after the course ends.  The CCC website provides information on how the Club will help to subsidize your costs in getting certification.

These notes about my start, my being an instructor and our upcoming instructor courses all go back to the original questions.
What does the club mean to YOU?  What does the club do for YOU and YOUR fellow paddlers?  What or who do YOU think of when you think of the Carolina Canoe Club?  This article will also appear on the CCC Facebook page so feel free to add your remarks there so others can see.

Here is the inspiration behind this article.

Recently, I have been working with a fellow paddler on his roll.  He paddled many years ago but forgot almost everything during his absence.  He was trying to get his roll back before going to the NOC to take a four-day Intermediate class.  I encouraged him to attend a Wednesday CCC social and roll session and as expected the club was very welcoming to him. Nate Taylor helped him on his roll.  I worked with him a couple times since and he is now better at rolling than me.  He ran the Cape Fear at 6.5 ft with us and worked the river, ferrying and surfing like an Intermediate.  I look forward to paddling with him more in the future. He is truly a “get after it” paddler.
While loading our gear after our last session, I noticed a newer whitewater kayak on a trailer with a couple recreational kayaks. I went over thinking I might know them.  I didn’t know the fellow or his boys. He said he knew of the CCC but was not a member. He had not attended any roll sessions or socials, despite living just down the road.  He too was headed to the NOC the next day for a four day “Intro to Whitewater” class.  We talked about what the club had to offer, and I reassured him members would help him out when he returned.  Hopefully, we will see him soon.

As I finished loading, I noticed another kayak across the parking lot so once again I had to meet them.  It was another beginning paddler who knew of the Carolina Canoe Club but wanted to practice rolling before going to roll sessions or joining the club.
In both situations, new paddlers were reluctant to join the CCC until they gained more experience.  Why is that?  The club was always welcoming and helpful to me as a brand-new whitewater paddler yet now it seems somehow unapproachable to these outsiders.

So, I ask all of you: What can we do to help bring whitewater paddlers into the club and our family?  What can we do to offer classes and access to training, so newcomers don’t have to travel as far to learn the fundamentals? The NOC, ERA and WWC all have top notch instructors, established programs and constant water flow but I would argue the CCC has much to offer as well.  We have expert certified instructors as well as many past instructors, who while no longer giving formal classes, still work with new paddlers and guide them along the way.  We have Campbell Falls on the Cape Fear, a favorite place of mine for training. It may not give you a full down river run, but it always flows and is good for beginners. Like other places on the Haw and Neuse. the proximity allows Triangle boaters to sleep in their own beds and costs much less.  The Triad and foothills have the Mayo and Dan and the mountains are blessed with many settings and opportunities for instruction.

So how does our club, its members, and instructors benefit the paddling community the best?  Would it be helpful to list our instructors on our website like some clubs do?  Should we offer more intro classes on a local level?  Involve our club instructors more in working with club members?  Have more trips scheduled in advance, in addition to the one or two-day-notice trips based on rainfall?  Regardless of the answers to these questions, we need instructors (remember that conversation.)

Personally, I am attempting to host Intro to Kayaking classes at local locations in addition to the River Safety and Rescue and Swiftwater Rescue classes to continue to give back to the club in the way I know how.  We have a Swiftwater Rescue Course coming up in a couple weeks and an Intro to Whitewater scheduled in early September.

In closing, let’s go back to those questions.  What should the club be and what can we do to make it successful? The CCC runs on volunteers, people just like you.  Ask yourselves those leading questions again and remember this club runs on volunteers just like you.  Volunteers to step up and be instructors, volunteers to coordinate trips, volunteers to sacrifice that extra surf-time to help the eager, new paddler.  Volunteers fill the positions on the CCC Board and Staff as well. Soon, the Nominating Committee (volunteers) will be looking for candidates to fill Board openings. Consider helping the club in a leadership position.

If you value this club and what it represents as much as I do, please consider volunteering to help keep it going for another 50+ years and if you don’t have the time to volunteer, help your club out by finding others who can.  Please remember the stranger you help on the river or in the parking lot just might be interested in joining a group like Carolina Canoe Club.