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15 July 2020
Dear Paddler,
Some may be labouring under the false hope that I have been fired.
This is not the case.
My penchant for inappropriate verbiage has forced me to curtail my weekly “contribution”.
In these confusing times, one could dig a hole for oneself if strong opinions were to be “aired”.
The inconsistent and illogical decision making around this pandemic has left most of us exceptionally frustrated. And, in the short term, very thirsty.
Thankfully, however, we are “back on the water”, for the most part. This is due, in the main, to a mammoth effort on behalf of our president, Kim.
She has sat on the SASCOC “war room” committee and has been like a Jack Russel in her efforts with the department of sport and various other authorities.
Many, more sizeable, federations have been clamouring for copies of our paperwork while her efforts have been continuously hampered by the fact that the goal posts are in a continual state of flux.
Janet also spent a huge amount of time ensuring that all our “professionals” were certified.
Neither get paid for these efforts.
Giving an update on the exact situation is a risky business, as things could change within the hour.
Suffice to say that currently all registered members of CSA are allowed to train. This needs to be done within the parameters of responsible practice such as social distancing, no sharing of equipment, etc.
No club facilities may be opened, except for boat storage racks.
CSA has held a number of zoom meetings with club officials in order to bring them up to speed with what is required from an official standpoint.
It is even starting to look like we will be able to hold a few events in the not too far distant future. This will depend on the race format, the local authority restrictions, and the fact that the event is not held in a “hot spot” area.
CSA is hosting a zoom meeting for all organisers who are hoping to host a race before the end of the year, next this Wednesday evening.
As a federation we are committed to the hosting of our national championships, for all disciplines, before the end of the year. Notwithstanding the fact that the rug may be pulled out from underneath us, we are confidently forging ahead with alternatives. Far rather plan for a positive outcome and have to pull the plug at the last minute, than to have nothing to aim for. Keep your eye on this space.
Unfortunately the organisers of the Fish had to make the very difficult call to abandon this year’s race. One of the important aspects of being able to host the race is the clearing of the trees, that takes place around this time of year. This is a costly and very time consuming exercise. The organisers were loath to commit these resources when there would be a solid likelihood of the race not happening. Another contributing factor centred around the sponsors withdrawing due to covid concerns.
All is not lost, and there are a few innovative projects on the go at the moment, such as the virtual Berg. Hank even travelled down to the Cape and paddled the actual Berg.
While we have been fighting a covid battle on one front, we have a second front on the go with SASCOC. Those who may be keeping up with the saga in the press will be aware that Canoeing South Africa spearheaded a demand for a special general meeting, in order to table a vote of no confidence in the SASCOC board. The board refused our request and we declared a dispute. The acting, acting president (the actual acting president Barry Hendricks has been suspended) Alec Skhosana, sent us a letter informing us that the board sees “no need” for a dispute.
In the interim, the IOC has become involved and have sent Sam Ramsamy to facilitate new elections. Currently the SASCOC board is a circus of power mongering and cynical behaviour. Hopefully the new elections will come sooner rather than later and we can get rid of the lot of them.
Until then, we will soldier on.
Well, that’s a quick update.
Keep training.
Please register with your club, union and CSA, they all need your support to keep the ship afloat.
Your SG
Copper 1111
And for the joke;
An Irishman was terribly overweight, so his doctor put him on a diet.
‘I want you to eat regularly for 2 days, then skip a day, then eat regularly again for 2 days then skip a day …… And repeat this procedure for 2 weeks. The next time I see you, you should have lost at least 5 pounds.’
When the Irishman returned, he shocked the doctor by having lost nearly 60 lbs!
‘Why, that’s amazing!’ the doctor said, ‘Did you follow my instructions?’
The Irishman nodded … ‘I’ll tell you though, by jaesuz, I t’aut I were going to drop dead on dat 3rd day.’
‘From the hunger, you mean?’ asked the doctor.
‘No, from the damn skippin’!