The Collingwood Dragon Boat and Canoe Club offers open paddling sessions on Tuesday and Thursday evenings from 5:30 until 7 p.m., and Sunday afternoons from 3 until 5 p.m., from May 30 until Sept. 5 for all members.

This program offers a variety of paddling options for men and women interested in developing their skills in Sprint Canoe, Kayak, and Outrigger Canoe. The program includes singles, doubles and team boats.

This program is a great way to refine personal goal setting, meet new friends while enjoying paddling at the historic Collingwood Harbourfront. Members are not required to compete but Inter-Club regattas are held on some weekends through the summer. This culminates in the Canadian Masters Canoe Championships at the end of the summer.

Potential Regatta Dates:

· Saturday June 11^th: Mississauga Home Regatta, Mississauga ;

· Friday, July 1^st: Dominion Day Regatta, Toronto ON or Ottawa ;   

· Saturday, July 9^th: Collingwood Regatta, Collingwood ;

· Saturday, July 16^th: Balmy Beach Regatta, Toronto ;

· Saturday, July 23^rd: Richmond Hill Regatta, Richmond Hill

Sunday August 28^th: CANMAS Championships, Welland

This year the Club is introducing a new voucher system which allows interested participants to purchase five one-hour sessions for $50 to try out the boats and familiarize themselves with the Club.

Should they wish to join the Club as a member, they will be credited with the full $50 towards their membership fees.

The cost of the open paddling program is $135.

Now in its fourth season, the Thursdays of Thunder sprint racing series pits club members against each other in friendly competition over a short, 200-metre (approximate) course.

Club members race in OC (outrigger canoe), sprint canoe, and sprint kayak.

For 2011, we hope to also get people involved in racing team boats (pairs and fours).

Thursdays of Thunder starts July 7, and runs every Thursday starting at 6 p.m. until Aug. 25 (Aug. 31 is a rain date).

As an added bonus for 2011, participants are encouraged to head to the Huron Club (corner of Pine and Second) for post-race banter.

The cost of the Thursdays of Thunder program is $2 per night of racing (open to club members who have registered for either open paddle, or the competitive dragon boat team).

The Collingwood Dragon Boat & Canoe Club is supported by the Ontario Trillium Foundation