Bendigo Canoe Club - Events

05/02/2026

Tonight a big crowd on the lake including 9 active women - welcome all.
[email protected]

31/01/2026

Well we are pleased to see our Active Paddling Group on the water.
We meet on Thursday's and have a great support from our coaches to help our new paddlers.
We welcome Tara, Amanda, Kate, Anna Shane, Leigh to paddling .

Please contact us on [email protected]
ALL welcome

08/01/2026

Hi all, the club is disposing of surplus boats, and members will be offered this opportunity before we contact other clubs. Please express your interest within 1 week
Tony 0411605239

1. Plastic Druid River Kayak - relatively stable - ideal for tripping,
multisport Good condition .

2. 16` Canadians Canoe for camping & touring. Designed by Bryan Harper, Olympic
paddler. All the timber work has been replaced .

3. Panther Wildwater Kayak was used at national titles currently set up for teenagers - fast.
ITS FREE

4. Heritage 14` Pisgah Sea Kayak - as new condition The Pisgah is a kayak brought to you by Liquidlogic Kayaks.

5. Carbon Kevlar Super Mambo Slalom Kayak (current specs) ex Australian team boat. Perfect for juniors, a fun boat.

6. NSP- Inflatable Stand Up Paddle Board. The Allrounder Elements is one
of NSP's best-selling craft and come with paddle, pump, and carry bag - quality commercial grade craft.

17/12/2025

We are very fortunate to have the following opportunities available for our
paddlers and families.

Please share the following with your networks.

Adult Paddling Group – Flying the Flag

The club is very pleased to offer the following support for our adult
members as part of the APG.

ü Provide weekly Coaching : Thursday`s 5.30 & Mondays. Commencing after new
year.

ü Provide suitable equipment

ü Support adult members with entry fees ($30) VIC Marathon (Short & Long
Course) event, Geelong

ü Transport of craft

In Victorian canoe marathon paddling, the General Class is the perfect way
to get involved without any pressure. It’s designed for newcomers, social
paddlers, and anyone who simply wants to enjoy the experience on the water
in any type of craft - kayak, canoe, SUP etc. No racing experience required.
You can paddle at your own pace, be part of the friendly marathon community
while building confidence and skills. If you’ve been curious about giving
marathon paddling a go, or you have been paddling for a while and do not
wish to paddle the ICF racing class, General Class is ideal. Jacinta and I
paddled in this class a few years ago for the Australian Titles and it was a
lot of fun as did other canoe club members. I’ll continue to assist on
Thursday nights @5.30 pm up until the Victorians. All welcome to join this
session, Julie with support from Matt. Monday sessions with Garry are also
available.

11/12/2025

07/12/2025

Le tour de Goulburn
We had a great paddle today - very hard not enjoy it!, what a stunning River.
Congrats to all the paddlers and thanks to all the helpers.
David Cole and Macy wins the handicap -congrats
Nice to see 7 wildwater boats with 4 wildwater doing the classic. Our goal is simply to get paddlers on the river to enjoy.
Personally, I really enjoyed our paddle.

02/12/2025

Dear paddlers and families

Dear Paddlers, families and friends are cordially invited

End of Year breakup 6.00 pm- Monday 8th December.



Let’s celebrate what we have achieved this year and we love to see all paddlers and their families on Monday 8th December for the End of Year Celebration.

Can you all please let know either way so we can organise catering.

Non members are most welcome

Bendigo Canoe Club - Lake Weeroona Pavilion

6.00 pm, Monday 8th December 2025

A social paddle, activities and pizza dinner, lite refreshments will be provided.

RSVP asap to [email protected] or text tony on 0411605239

Allan will say a few words about our achievement this year Toby Sexton will provide a short presentation on his trip to the world Wildwater titles in Slovenia Maya Murphy will provide a short presentation on her trip to the world Marathon titles in GYOR

21/11/2025

From the Coaching Corner
Kayaking is a wonderful fun activity; it is low impact that improves aerobic fitness, strength and flexibility at any age.
Poor Balance moments that make you nervous
When people think about kayak balance there is a range of things that go through their minds.
Let’s work through it with practical suggestions in brackets.
People need to be really confident with their forward stroke (push & pull at the pontoon to find the sweet spot and also find the exit point when the paddle lets go)
At the BACK OF THE STROKE when the top hand pressure comes off the face of the blade to the back (sometimes quickly) causing the kayak to dip & be very unsteady (need to commence the exit just before top hand stops or when bottom arm is at the knee and really avoid the negative part of the stroke (back) (do 1 set of seated dips per day to stabilise arm pressure)
The AIR TIME BETWEEN STROKES CAN BE A PROBLEM spot (try to reduce air time by moving quickly to an exit when the top hand at ideal position > stable catch. remember keep the paddle in the STABLE positive part of the stroke for as long as possible by driving and not pulling. The goal is to lean forward 15 Degrees (initially by keeping the weight on the thighs)
Washes or rough water forcing you to support strokes (you need to build trust in the catch to keep you upright – do this by really leaning on the catch when paddling 1 sided in your warm ups or when doing short power sets.)
SOME PEOPLE LEAN AWAY FROM A PARTICULAR SIDE ( i- lean) or paddle) away ( will need to do some one sided paddling on that side every day as part of their warm up) Also as the boat is moving try to lean on that side?? just before the catch (part of balance check)
Spend time in the boat @ least 3 sessions per week.
General balance drills to be done every session
1. Push & pull (identify exit point)
2. One side paddling as part of warm up – 4 one side then change > 3> 2
3. Pause paddling (count 1 working up to 1, 2, 3 then power)
4. Always focus on the positive part of the stroke.
5. The G.O.A.T does balance drills in every session.
6. Short tempo sets incorporating breathing with stroke work – remember the higher the stroke rate the more contact the paddle has with the water
Other suggestions for variation and to extend skills
1. Paddle twirling
2. Hand paddling
3. Passing paddle under boat
4. Throwing a ball
5. Standing up in your boat
6. Move boat backwards then start paddling forward
7. Start, with paddle in the water.
8. Side on waves caused by wind
9. Quick 180 degree turn around buoy

15/11/2025

I was out at the Bendigo Canoe Club - Events Frank Fraser Friendly sprints and 5km/10km championship at Lake Weeroona this morning

It’s was great to see so many out-of-town competitors but also, so many young athletes! It’s good to see such a strong future in the Canoeing community

A big thank you to Allan Hillgove for inviting me to welcome everyone but also for his contributions to the Bendigo Canoe Club

Another thank you to UFS Eaglehawk Dispensary for their support of the event. The City helps too, but it’s the contributions like David’s that help make these events sustainable

Ready. Set. Go 🛶

10/11/2025

Dear paddlers

We are all very proud of Garry, Belinda and Paul who just took on the mighty Hawkesbury classic and finished!!

“A Real sense of Achievement”

Garry and Belinda took on the 111km night paddle, whlist Paul took on the 65 km dash 8:27:58.2.

Garry 13:14:41.6 was one of the few paddlers to attempt it in a k1, whilst Belinda 13:06:31.5 paddled in a tk1 and just got in before dawn.

They were well supported by Graeme Smith a previous 2 times HC k4 competitor.

Results link below

Paul`s Report

Garry, Belinda and I all started the Hawkesbury Classic at 4.15pm on Saturday with Garry and Belinda attempting the full distance of 111km and myself, the 65km Wiseman's Ferry dash. We started in hot sunny conditions with very strong head winds which cut our speeds down and increased the effort involved considerably.
These winds did eventually moderate but not until closer to the 32km mark a the Sackville Ferry.
It took me just under 4hrs to reach the ferry just as the light faded to darkness, what an experience. Thank goodness for my Garmin GPS that Garry had programmed for me with a red line showing the path I should take. At first it was all very discombobulating and daunting but eventually I learnt to rely on the red line.
Setting off from Sackville I had to steel myself for another 4 to 5 hour paddle. I can't imagine how Garry and Belinda felt given the astronomically larger timescale of constant paddling.
My major incident was a couple of hours into this next leg when I collided with 3 kayaks, with no lighting, paddling towards me. The young paddlers abused me by saying I should be looking where I was going. I told them that I could not see them but surely they must have seen me given that I had lighting at the front and back. They asked if I was doing the full distances but when I told them I was only going to Wiseman's Ferry. The only other obstacles I only just avoided by luck were the numerous buoys that were impossible to see in the pitch black.
The last 10kms were excruciatingly slow given a strong incoming tide. My speed dropped from just over 9k/h to just under 5k/h. Boy was I happy to see the finish.
I so fully appreciated Graham Smith support as I pulled in to both Sackville and Wiseman's. He was a god send. I take my hat off to both Garry and Belinda for their magnificent achievement arriving at the end just moments before daybreak. A superhuman feat of physical and mental endurance.
Happily we all came first in our respective classes.



Garry’s report -Hawkesbury Canoe Classic - a tough day at the office.
This year the Hawkesbury Canoe Classic promised to be a fast race with favourable tides and a full moon. Unfortunately, the tidal advantage in the first 30ks to Sackville was totally negated by very strong headwinds, described as brutal by a paddler there who has forgotten more about paddling than I will ever know. The second leg of 30 km up to Wisemans Ferry was much calmer, but paddling against the incoming tide was hard work. From Wiseman's Ferry, strong northerly then westerly winds produced really rough water conditions that at times required maximum skill simply to survive in the boat. There were brief periods of calm however, with the moon now high in the sky, the water glassy shimmering silver, the hills jet black in the background and a pale blue grey sky dotted with stars - absolutely magnificent.
And three times during the night the sky was streaked with meteors, one exploding into multiple pieces. Belinda and I finished within a few minutes of each other, and with the marvellous assistance of Graham Smith, have to put this down as a fantastic experience.

The Hawkesbury is actually four events over different distances and includes a relay. Of the 60 competitors paddling 111 km in the Open Classic event, there were 11 DNF's including two very good paddlers, both previous winners.
Belinda came in a fantastic 38th and Garry a few minutes later, a creditable 40th.
Thanks everyone for your support.





Results

https://www.webscorer.com/race?raceid=412881&live=1

https://www.canoeclassic.net/

Race results: 2025 Hawkesbury - Final Start List @ Windsor, Australia. Saturday, November 8, 2025 16:00 (GMT+11)

01/10/2025

Hello all

We would really appreciate if you could share this information with your networks and anybody who may be interested.



It will be informal, and the students Juniors will have the opportunity to paddle a double touring kayak with an experienced paddler



2025 Active Paddling – Girls & Boys.

Kayaking is a fantastic activity for health and fitness.
Bendigo Canoe Club is very pleased to support our youth by providing opportunities for 13 -17 year olds to try kayaking, improve their skills & fitness and be part of a fun group .

This fun and informal program will be delivered at the Lake Weeroona clubhouse and the juniors will have the great opportunity to paddle a double touring kayak with an experienced paddler. The 6 sessions will be conducted on Tuesdays 4.30 pm from October 7TH .
For new applicants and families please contact Tony prior to registering to organise a time to show you the clubhouse and equipment, try out a kayak and have a chat about the program. We require your name, DOB, address and parent's mobile.

The program is subsidized by the club with support from our members and all equipment will be provided. You just need to bring a change of clothes and a positive attitude. If you have any questions regarding the program please contact Tony (secretary) on 0411605239, [email protected] Please feel free to share with anybody who may be interested.

This program is a great taster program to lead into the successful club academy program below

Become a Member of the Bendigo Canoe Club/Bendigo Academy of Sport - Canoe Program

What is the Academy Program?

This program is a partnership between the Bendigo Canoe Club & Bendigo Academy of Sport and is supported by Paddle Victoria.

· The program provides a positive healthy experience that includes regular sessions focussing on flatwater, and team boat skills with the opportunity to do white-water, ocean & recreational paddling. All equipment is provided; we have camps, trips and include athlete education sessions and a strength and conditioning program at La Trobe University.

· Program is Fun, its outdoors, safe, social, supportive, you will learn new skills, build self-esteem, confidence, independence and lifelong skills.

· Our program is unique as we provide athlete with kayaks for the duration of the program; therefore families are not required to purchase a boat upfront.

· This model really assists the athlete’s development, and provides families time and guidance to make better decisions.

· They can strive to be your best in an individual sport whilst being involved in a wonderful team environment. This is support by National level coaches.

· The program is exceptional value and heavily subsidized to keep the costs down.

· Athletes must be 12 years of age by 1/10/25 and under 19 years as of 31/12/25

“The Bendigo Canoe Club & Academy of Sport Program has provided a nurturing training environment, educating young athletes in numerous aspects of fitness, technique and life skills. The young paddlers are enthusiastic, respectful competitors at events in at all levels of competition. The program introduces young paddlers to numerous styles of paddling allowing the paddlers to plan their future paddling life. I fully endorse the program and congratulate all involved and look forward seeing more well-rounded young paddlers going on to become long term paddlers.”Mark Heggie. Executive Officer Paddle Victoria

When & where is it held?

Nov 2025 —End of May 2026 at Lake Weeroona—Bendigo

Regards Tony 0411605239 on behalf of the BCC Committee

We are accepting expression of interest

Please complete application form below for the Bendigo Academy of Sport Canoeing/Kayaking Program