Taranaki Outrigger Canoe Club Waka Ama
The dedicated voluntary committee that operate the Taranaki Outrigger Canoe
Club (TOCC) Waka Ama are as quick to take care of club business on land, as their teams are out on the water. Their latest grant from TSB Community Trust was received in July this year; barely a month later they were the proud owners of two new waka ama, along with all the necessary safety equipment, lifejackets and paddles.
“We were fortunate to secure our 2 new waka quickly, since then they have already been blessed and in the water, taking part in the Wanganui Masters Races and a weekend long specialist coaching camp. We were also able to get some lifejackets that are better suited to our smaller paddlers which was important given the increasing number of children getting involved with club activities,” Rosie Johnson, of the club funding committee, shared with us.
The Club is completely run by volunteers, including the heavily involved committee members. Such as Karen, who carries out a huge amount of organisation behind-the-scenes for the adults on the water, or husband and wife coaching team, Nath and Mars. “Having 4 waka makes such a big difference to our community and our ability to co-ordinate the busy club schedule. Nath and Mars are out on the water everyday from about 3:30pm with after school practice, then back out for adult training and social paddles in the evening. With more waka we can get more people participating and give our kids more time out on the water getting prepared for their races.”
The TOCC Waka Ama, based in New Plymouth, has grown in popularity to well over 300 paddlers from across the Taranaki region who regularly make use of the facilities and the club expertise.
“We currently have 198 paddlers (98 juniors and 100 adults) affiliated with Waka Ama NZ and actively competing in competitions throughout the North Island. We also have a wide group of non-affiliated paddlers who are either new to the sport, paddling socially or part of the community groups and organisations we work with. This includes the Youth Justice Programme, YMCA New Plymouth and 8 local high school crews that we recently supported to compete in the Secondary School Waka Ama Sprints Nationals.”
The Club is doing a fantastic job of getting a wide variety of people involved in the sport too. “Last year we managed to get 11 teams to the annual regional sprint event; our youngest paddler was 5, and our oldest paddler was over 60.
We have grandparents, parents and children all paddling together. It’s a great experience for everyone because you really learn to work as a team and how to rely on each other.”
However, TOCC Waka Ama is much more than just a sports club, it is a community and important tikanga. The Club was recently recognised by their waka ama region of Te Puku O Te Ika with the inaugural Pou O Te Puku award, in recognition of their contribution to regional and national competitions, as well as their character and behaviours off the water. This is a great honour for the
club that demonstrates the club represents all the principles of waka ama - compassion, patience, team spirit and respect.
Ka pai to all involved - keep making Taranaki and Te Puku O Te Ika proud.