EVENT DESCRIPTION:

This weekend clinic, which is co-organized by KCCNY and the ACA Atlantic Division Open Canoe Slalom Committee, is intended to introduce novice and intermediate paddlers to slalom competition as a means to enhance their whitewater skills and assumes some river paddling competence. Special emphasis is placed on youngsters and women at this event. The Slalom Clinic/Race will be held held on the Class 1 whitewater of the Ten Mile River at Webatuck Craft Village, Wingdale, NY.

The competition is divided into novice and expert divisions with the emphasis on instruction rather than competition. The race is further broken down into classes that are defined by the number of paddlers (solo or tandem), their sex, their age, and/or the type and length of their boat. The race will include classes for "recreational" (REC) whitewater boats, separate from the specialized slalom boat classes. While a limited number of open and decked slalom boats may be available for participants to try out, if you have a whitewater boat of any type, please bring it so that there will be no waiting lines for boats when the clinic is in progress. Be sure to indicate on the entry form the type of boat that you'll be bringing.

Whitewater canoe and kayak slalom is a timed event over a prescribed course, not unlike ski slalom, but with some notable differences. The gates, which are numbered, must be run in order. Some of the gates, with green and white poles, require the paddler to paddle downstream through them, while others, with red and white poles, require upstream negotiation. The clear gate number shows the side to approach the gate and the red slashed gate number is the exit side of the gate. It is permissible to run a gate in a reverse, or stern first, attitude to make the gate easier to negotiate. In addition to time, penalties are assessed for touching or missing the gates. These penalties are added to the time in seconds to form a total score for the run. Both open and closed boats use the better of their two runs for the final ranking.

Click here for some "Slalom Tips" for paddlers new to slalom.

SCHEDULE:

Saturday
	08:00 am to 10:00 am		Late Registration
	08:00 am to Noon		Course Set-Up
	12:30 pm to 03:30 pm		Slalom Clinic
	03:30 pm to Dark		Open Practice

Sunday
	Dawn to 09:45 am		Open Practice
	10:00 am to 10:15 am		Competitor's Meeting
	10:30 am to Conclusion		Slalom Race
	Immediately after race		Course Take Down
	After course take down		Awards

NOTE: In the event of an unfavorable water level or other conditions precluding presentation of the Slalom Clinic and Race on the 10 Mile River, the H.A.C.K.S. Slalom training site on the Housatonic River at Falls Village, CT, is our alternate location for this event. Check back with this web site throughout the week prior to the event for notice of any change in location.


REGISTRATION FEES:

Registration fees for the Clinic are per person charges regardless of the number of race classes entered. Pre-registration fees for entries received by the Wednesday before the race are fifteen dollars ($15) per person for novices and five dollars per person for experts (who will be asked to help with clinic instruction). An additional five dollar ($5) late registration fee will be charged for any entries received thereafter, including on-site registrations Saturday morning, 8 to 10 AM.


ENTRY PROCEDURE:

Mail completed entry form and signed ACA waiver, including a check for the correct amount made payable to:

KCCNY Slalom Clinic Registrar
7 Newbury Place
Huntington, NY 11743-3240
631-351-3099

Entries should be mailed no later than the Saturday one week prior to the event to ensure receipt prior to the pre-registration deadline. Late entries will be accepted at the race site from 8:00 to 10:00 AM on Saturday, the first day of the event, for an additional five dollars ($5) per person.


DIRECTIONS:

From the the New York City Area: The race site is located at Webatuck Craft Village on Route 55 between Route 22 near Wingdale, NY, to the west, and Gaylordsville, CT, on Route 7 to the east. Use one of several routes to I-287 to the White Plains area and go north on I-684. I-684 becomes Route 22, about 23 miles north of White Plains, when it crosses I-84. Proceed north, about another 19 miles, to and through Wingdale, NY, and turn east on Route 55 and go about 2 1/2 miles to the race site.

From New England: Use Route 7, north from Exit 7 on I-84 for 18 miles, or south from Exit 2 on the Mass Turnpike, I-90, for south on Route 7 for 49 miles to Gaylordsville, CT. At Gaylordsville take Route 55 west for about 3 miles to the race site at Webatuck Craft Village.

At the Race Site: At Webatuck Craft Village, turn north on Webatuck Road (County Route 22) into the Craft Village; go across the bridge, past the furniture showroom and parking lot on the left, then turn left into the driveway. Our sign: 'Clinic Camping' will be posted. Go to the top of the hill into the Main factory parking lot and turn left and proceed to the south end of the lot for Clinic parking and camping. This area is only a short carry for your boat(s) to the river. We ask that you do NOT unload your boats in the parking areas for the Craft Village businesses as they are limited and we've agreed not to use them.

NOTE: In the event of an unfavorable water level or other conditions precluding presentation of the Slalom Clinic and Race on the 10 Mile River, the H.A.C.K.S. Slalom training site on the Housatonic River at Falls Village, CT, is our alternate location for this event. Check back with this web site throughout the week prior to the event for notice of any change in location.


AREA SERVICES:

The Webatuck Craft Village Association has made a portable toilet available in the parking lot adjacent to the camping area. The toilets in the Craft Village and factory buildings will not be available to clinic participants. There are several craft shops, a restaurant, a gift shop, and our host - Hunt Country Furniture. Van and tent camping, including some picnic tables, is available at the south end of the upper parking lot near the Hunt furniture factory on both Friday and Saturday nights. The nearest motel accomodations are the Dutchess Motor Lodge in Wingdale, NY (www.dutchessmotorlodge.com - 845-823-6400 or 914-525-9276). There are several small towns within a 5-mile radius that have additional camping, lodging, and dining amenities.


CLINIC:

The clinic on Saturday will be broken down at the discretion of the organizers into at least three groups (e.g. kayaks, solo canoes and tandem canoes) and will last about two hours. Practice on the course during the clinic will be reserved for clinic participants.


RACE CLASSES:

Classes will be divided into Novice and Expert divisions as required. A paddler who has finished in either the top three in an NESS class of five or more boats or the top 50 percent in Slalom Nationals in either open or closed boat will be considered an expert. The race chairman reserves the right to reassign any competitor to the other division in order to maintain fair competition. Experts may enter up to three classes in the race and may be asked to help with instruction in the clinic. All others may enter two classes in the slalom race and one in the clinic.

OC-1 Short (13') for men, women, masters (40 or over*), and juniors (under 19*); OC-1 Medium (15') for men, women, masters, and juniors; OC-2 (15') for men, women, mixed, masters, cadet/senior, and juniors; C-1 for men, women, masters, juniors, and cadets (under 15*); C-2 for men, women, mixed, cadet/senior, masters, juniors, and cadets, and, K-1 for men, women, masters, juniors, and cadets. Separate REC classes for recreational whitewater boats of any length will be held in each class as required. (*Age as of December 31 of the calendar year of competition.)


RACE OPERATIONS:

Open boats will use the 2007 ACA OC Slalom Racing Rules, with 10 penalty seconds per gate touched and the better of the two runs count for final ranking. Closed boats will use the 2009 USACK Slalom Racing Rules, with 2 penalty seconds per gate touched and the better of the two runs for final ranking. Awards will be given to the top three boats in each class. All competitors will be expected to perform a work assignment during the race.