…and more Thank You!

On behalf of the Parents we would also like to thank the Missy Coaches for instilling excellent Coaching and Life skills. It is so nice to see so much improvement in the kids and this is all thanks to Lucie, Dean, Tamas, Rachel and Kyle!   Thanks so much!”   sent to the MCC Board from a Missy Parent

Sometime last fall, after the last chorus of “Go Missy Go” rang out on the finish line at CCA and burgee dreams were put away for another year, coach and paddler sat down together to map out a plan for another training cycle.  Any paddler knows that the end of one year means one thing… the beginning of the next.

For some, it was about transitioning to a new age group, for others it was about adding some muscle and shaving off some seconds to achieve a Personal Best. For many, it’s about keeping their eye on the prize – making a National Team, be it Junior, U23 or Senior. 

This coming weekend (June 21-23) marks a milestone in the training year not only for many of our athletes, but also for their coaches.   Paddlers from all across the country will be converging in Welland at the second set of National Team Trials to test a year of hard work against their personal goals.

As supporters, the hard work put in by our athletes is evident. We can see the hours on the water, the early morning swims and afternoons in the weight room.  We pack them off to Florida in the dead of winter to get a head start on the next paddling season.

The hard work of our coaches isn’t necessarily as easy to appreciate. As with any great teacher/mentor,  the ‘face time’ spent in coaching our paddlers is augmented by creating training plans, reviewing video, negotiating race schedules, organizing practices and making some of the hard choices for the good of the athlete and the good of the club.  In the background, they are advocates, counselors, mediators, first aid responders and sometimes the bad guy – if you need to be reminded of a thing or two.

Mississauga Canoe Club boasts a coaching staff with a pedigree of International experience that would be the envy of any club.  

In the end, it is in the spirit of teamwork between athlete and coach that they will be on the course in Welland to see where the year’s hard work nets out.  As they have done through the entire training year, they will be there to look out for our team, provide wisdom and encouragement and smooth the bumps in the road, whether it’s in support of a National Team nomination or a personal best. 

Whether you are on the course this weekend or waterside any time this summer, from Bantam to Masters; paddler or parent – take a moment and thank a coach!

On behalf of the MCC Board of Directors, Good Luck to all our Missy Paddlers and Coaches in Welland this weekend! 

About Your 2013 Summer Coaching Staff

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Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!!!!!!!!

To all of our volunteers who came out and helped make the Missy regatta (See Results) and the Missy Dragon Boat Festival (MBDF 2013 – Final Results) such a big success!  We faced a new challenge this year with sharing our weekend with the Ontario Team Trials, but in true Missy fashion, we pulled it off without a hitch thanks to our fantastic event organizers Claire and Melissa and all of the work put in by our Master paddlers, our parents, and our athletes, many of who volunteered when they could Saturday and on Sunday too.
The feedback from this weekend has been extremely positive.  It was wonderful to see so many young paddlers out on the water enjoying themselves.  They were a very impressive lot, and while we had a few swimmers, it was apparent that they are soaking up the lessons learned in their training.  Our Masters were pretty amazing too.  We were all mesmerized watching Rob Mays paddle C-2 single-handedly when his partner fell out of the boat, and challenge the 2-person crews he was competing against.  Very impressive!
For those who were at the Ontario Team Trials and volunteered there, thank you for everything you did so Missy could come through there as well.  It was an overcast day in Mississauga, but otherwise quite pleasant, while I understand those who went to Welland faced a cold and wet and (very) muddy day.  For those who haven’t been to Welland yet, this weather pattern is not uncommon.  Remember to pack with this type of weather in mind when you do make the trek.
Tribute to John Wood
I was also very happy to see the turn-out at lunch on Saturday for the tribute Bantam War Canoe   race in honour of John Wood.  Many of our former paddlers and commodores attended especially to pay tribute to John.  Once again, John’s family and Mac Hickox, who coached John on to the Olympics and his victory in Montreal, attended and had wonderful things to say in memory of John and in memory of the role Missy played in his life.  The stories of the glory days told by those who were at Missy at the time, are to be treasured.  Thank you Debbie, Michael and Mac for helping us to make the day great as we watched the Bantam War Canoe held in John’s honour.
Our job moving forward is to ensure that all of those young athletes who participated in this event remember the legacy of John Wood, and all of the other Olympians and World Cup athletes who developed their skill and passion for paddling at Missy. We have heard so many great stories and we are working on finding the appropriate ways to best record our history for all of our members to have access to it.  That means creating a data base, posting information on our website, reaching out to our alumni and keeping them informed, and more.  Over the years that I have been involved at Missy, I have come to appreciate just how much more the Club means to our athletes than a place to work out.  It is a place where life long friendships grow; where confidence   grows as new skills are mastered; and where leadership skills are built as the older athletes pass on what they know to the younger ones, who watch them and sometimes ask questions.  When I see the Club veterans return each year for the Missy regatta, the room is full of energy and life and the stories make it so clear that Missy will always be in their hearts.  Our coaches have told our young athletes about these legends, and then to see them walk through the doors is amazing!
Dragon Boat Festival
What an amazing event, and what an amazing cake to celebrate our Tenth Dragon Boat Festival!
This event is really putting Port Credit on the map.  Our vendors market was bigger and better than ever, with lots of free fruit and other treats to try.   Our name sponsor, Bayshore Home Health were also generous in providing first aid coverage for Sunday’s event, treating an assortment of minor cuts, and having available sunscreen, sunglasses, stress (squeezable) nurses and more.  The nurses were a big hit.
Forty nine teams of all levels competed and while not everyone went home with a medal, everyone went home with a smile, and some great memories.  Together, our event raised almost $22,000 for Cardiac Kids, so thank you again for your support and volunteer hours.
The Summer 2013 Season  is here!
The Missy Regatta starts off the summer season, so please stay tuned for more information about what your coaches have in store for the rest of the summer.   Thank you to those parents who loaned  their coolers for the weekend festivities.  Please remember to pick them up and take them home…as you will need to fill them soon for Regatta season!!! Please check the website often at www.mississaugacanoeclub.com It is guaranteed to be a great season!!!!!!
Cheers to Missy!
Mary Ellen
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2013 MDBF Race Schedule now available!

2013 Mississauga Dragon Boat Festival Race Card

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Busy Week at Missy!!!!

Paddlers, parents and coaches have a busy week ahead as the Mississauga Canoe Club kicks of the summer paddling season.

607The week starts with the Elementary Dragon Boat Festival, scheduled for Wednesday, June 5 (rain date Friday, June 7), starting at 4:30 p.m.  This is a featured community event to introduce kids in grades 4-8 to the sport and club, through some friendly competition among the schools in the area.  A longstanding Missy tradition, many of our most dedicated club paddlers have their roots in the Elementary school challenges.  We have an outstanding 14 boats participating. Come and cheer on these young paddlers.

Our High Performance athletes head to Welland on the weekend for the Ontario  Team 226Trials.  This event is key for any athlete aspiring to one day paddle at the National level.  This is the main carding event for the 2013 Ontario Team and Canada Games Team.  We wish all our Missy paddlers good luck and good paddling!

Back at home, our busiest weekend of the year will be under way.  The Mississau276ga Canoe Club home regatta will be hosted on Saturday, June 8.  All WOD Division clubs will be particpating with paddlers from Atom to Masters.  This is a great event for novice and pro, giving most of our club level paddlers their first race events of the season.

The highlight of the weekend is the 10th Annual Mississauga Dragon Boat Festival on Sunday, June 9.   Presented this year by Bayshore HeaMDBF Logo 1lth Care, we have 50 community and corporate dragon boats registered for a fun filled day of racing.  Through this event, we proudly raise funds for Cardiac Kids as well as for our canoe club.  Check out our 2013 Dragon Boat Festival page to see all the sponsors who are generously supporting our events.   Come on down and join the fun. Cheer on the teams, visit the vendor alley and discover what Missy has to offer!

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Athletes Race Hard at Team Trials #1

Led by MCC’s senior presence, Dana Morgoch, a selection of MCC’s High Performance athletes raced well at this past weekends’ National Team Trials in Montréal.
With a good result, Dana placed 8th in the C1 1000m event with lots of potential to climb the ranks at the next set of Trials.  Dana paddled fantastically well in his semi final to qualify for the A final which seemed to spark a few other great MCC results.

Keir Johnston made a giant leap forward with his progress towards his goal of making the men’s kayak team with a 5th place finish in the K1 1000m B final.  Congrats Keir and coach Lucie!

Keir teamed with club mate Anatolyy Mykhayletsky in the K2 1000m event and placed 9th, again with great potential in six weeks!  Good luck guys!

Two of MCC’s Junior athletes also raced in Montréal- Katie Vincent and Evan Bezemer.  Even scrapped the rust off and put together a few great races in both C1 and C2 events.  Definitely a big step forward for him in his ambitions to represent Canada later this summer at the Junior Worlds.  It’s back to the grindstone for him and coach now.

Once again, Katie Vincent made headlines on the race course.  Racing up a class (or two), Katie performed beyond expectations in the C1 200m event placing 2nd just behind Canada’s multiple time Senior World Champion.  It was simply one of the most exciting women’s canoe races MCC’s coaches have every seen.
Katie also recorded a 3rd place finish in the C2 500m event on Sunday.

This group of athletes made MCC proud and will lead the rest of our High Performance athletes at coming events.  Way to be MCC!

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Register Now! Officials Course Level 1

An introduction to officiating is being offered at the Mississauga Canoe Club on Saturday, May 11. It will be a half day course (morning) and provide an overview of officiating duties and racing rules. This is the first step in becoming a canoekayak racing official and will be followed by the opportunity for on the job training at regattas though out the summer.

Officials are needed to ensure that all competitions are run safely and fairly.

If you would like to attend or have any questions please send a note to: joanne.i.bryant@gmail.com (WOD Divisional Officials Coordinator)

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A big Thank You to our Missy family of Volunteers

Mississauga Canoe Club thanks its Volunteers

National Volunteer Week – Thank you to Missy Members on the Volunteer Thank You Wall

This is National Volunteer Week and as we start a new season of Missy Spirit, it’s a perfect time to say a heartfelt thanks to all the paddlers, coaches, friends and family who volunteer their time and energy to making the Mississauga Canoe Club, our Division and our whole sport the best it can be!   Your contribution, whether in a boat, behind a barbecue, on a board or at a Bingo is most appreciated – we could never do it without you!

Boat Drivers

Boat Drivers!

our volunteers check in

Organizers!

Barbeque-ers!

Barbeque-ers!

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