ULKC’s Alps Adventure

by admin | May 11, 2018 | Kayak Events, Uncategorized

With the smell of freshly lit barbecues and people breaking out their summer wardrobes, a special kind of excitement fills the hearts of the members of the UL Kayak Club, as on the back of the summer breeze calls for what we have waited all year for; the annual Alps trip.

Three weeks spent driving, camping and kayaking through the gorgeous Slovenian and Italian Alps along with friends, gaining new experiences and creating memories that you will never forget; what’s not to get excited about?

This trip is easily one of the most popular and enjoyed events that the club runs and overall, it’s just three straight weeks of paddling, craic and amazing experiences which is what the club was built to encompass.

We always strive to improve in whatever aspect we can, from skills to safety and communication and through this trip we get the chance to improve overall while enjoying the backdrop of the unforgettable beauty of the Alps.

Needless to say, a trip like this requires a serious level of preparation if one wants to feel their arms after a week. Therefore, while most students around this time spend their study breaks watching the new episode of Riverdale or going for lunch, you can instead find members of ULKC heading to the boathouse.

If you’ve been down by the pontoon or have been down by our stretch of the Shannon lately, you may have heard the sound of questionably good music taste booming down the river.

No, you’re not going crazy from exam stress, it’s simply nicer to paddle along to your favourite indie rock playlist than to have the only soundtrack to your workout be laboured breathing and the panicked sounds of those who looked at a swan the wrong way and really, really regrets it.

So, if you spot any of us down on the river be sure to say hi! It makes us feel better to not have to try to awkwardly haul a boat out of the water with dead legs while silent strangers look on.

At the end of all this preparation we do the only thing that can properly mark the beginning of such a trip; have a massive barbeque!

Our annual Alps Barbeque officially marks the start of what we’ve been training for throughout the year and allows us to celebrate the end of another great semester with the club. This year it will also share this celebration with the Irish Cancer Society as we shave the heads of our volunteer members in support of the charity.

We hope to share the experience with you as much as we can, so make sure to keep an eye on our social media to keep track of our adventures!

UL Kayak Club Intervarsities 2018

by admin | Feb 20, 2018 | Kayak Events, Uncategorized

With steeled eyes and determined hearts the University of Limerick Kayak Club (ULKC) set out to defend their eight-year reigning title at Kayaking Intervarsities this weekend.

Hosted this year by the University College Dublin. The nationwide competition has been the holy grail of kayaking by clubs across the country since its establishment in 1980.

Through years of work, dedication and spirit the ULKC has brought home the top trophy eight years in a row in the longest ongoing winning streak in the Kayaking Intervarsities history.

Despite this impressive record Club Captain Eoghan Calnan has expressed: ‘Intervarsities as a whole doesn’t decide which college club is the best…it’s about having a target to aim for in every club to develop their skills in every discipline.’

‘Throughout the semesters and the summer we’re consistently training for and doing white water, long distance and taking part in polo competitions. We’re on our local stretch of white water every week and I couldn’t even count how many kilometres are paddled in a single week by members of the club.’

While ULKC dedicates a lot of time and focus towards varsities, they have expressed that the true secret to the ongoing success of the club in competition is the dedication to the sport and its disciplines by its members.

The Intervarsity competition combines the many disciplines of kayaking into a massive three-day event that allows college paddlers across the country to meet and compete with one another once a year.

With ULKC pushing for their ninth consecutive win, Club Captain Eoghan Calnan welcomes the challenge of both friends and friendly rivals alike gunning to knock ULKC from their long-standing position.

The 2018 Kayak Intervarsities start on Friday the 16^th February with the Whitewater and Freestyle disciplines, then continue to Slalom and Long-distance competitions on Saturday to finally come to an end following the Polo portion of the competition.