The CORA Off-the-Water Video Forum Series has resumed this Autumn 2024 with the next up presentation being Canadian Outrigger Hall Of Fame Induction on SUNDAY NOVEMBER 10 ~ 4PM (PACIFIC).
CORA is hosting this online Town Hall presentation for 2024 Hall Of Fame inductees spread across Canada and around the world. Microwave some popcorn, heat up a warm drink, curl up next to the fireplace, and join us this Autumn evening as our Inductees and Guest Speakers share with you some great tales.
This is an opportunity to get to know those individuals who have been recognized this year including Janet Davis, Ron Dickinson, Zoe Norcross-Nu’u, Ron Zander Williams, Laurel Archer, and Bob Stewart who have made significant and exemplary contributions to outrigger canoeing in Canada over their lifetimes as athletes / coaches-builders and as pioneers. Although their histories have been published on the CORA website, their friends and colleagues have personal insights they wish to share.
Guest speakers are being invited and will hopefully include Ian “Pipes” Bolden (Gibsons Paddling Club)Mike Billy Jr. (North Vancouver Canoe Club), Russell Gunner (Club Physio Plus), Jamie Boulding (Strathcona Park Lodge), Amy (Benskin) Leonard (Sea Kayak Guides Alliance BC), Jacinta Sheridan (“Paddlers Without Borders”), Lance Mamiya (Team Pacific Northwest/FreeLance), Lyse Fortin (Comox), Chelsey Brooks Tidmarsh (Sistership Dragon Boat Association), Ashley Barker (Royal Canadian Air Force Search And Rescue), Julio Villareal (Outrigger Canoe Club Cancun), Matt Kelly (Predator Performance Designs), Mike Petryna (Ontario “Hard Rock Miner”), Jim Farintosh (Pickering Dragon Boat Coach), Stephen / Danielle Kala (Mountain Home CC) and several other luminaries.
Topic: CORA Town Hall: Canadian Outrigger Hall Of Fame Induction Time: Sunday Nov 10, 2024 4:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)
CORA introduced a new initiative for 2022 at the CORA 2021 Pre-AGM that was continued for 2023 and 2024. To encourage participation by new paddlers at CORA 2024 events, a new Junior / Novice OC Paddle Draw Grant was funded. Every Junior / Novice participant at each CORA Cup Series 2024 event was given 1 entry for the end-of-season draw. It was possible for each Junior / Novice participant to have up to a maximum of 5 entries for the end-of-season draw. The response was impressive with 148 entries in total from 12 Western Canada OC clubs. There were at least 10 entries in each of the Junior Women, Junior Men, Novice Women, and Novice Men divisions such that 2 winners were drawn from each of these 4 divisions.
CORA wishes to extend a round of appreciation to Oddball Workshop, our generous sponsor, for contributing Gift Certificates for each of the 8 Junior / Novice winners to redeem for a paddle of a length of their choosing within 1 year from the end-of-season draw date (28-Sep-2024).
CORA wishes to congratulate the 8 Junior / Novice 2024 OC Paddle winners:
Jacob Seward – (Geronimo)
Talia Halperin – (Kelowna Paddle Centre)
Larry Gibson – (Island Brave)
Emily Silver-Douglas – (Star Nation)
Lucas Truscott – (Lotus Sports Club)
Shell De Martin – (Harrison Outrigger Team)
Rob Marus – (False Creek Racing Canoe Club)
Francheska Rodriguez – (Lotus Sports Club)
CORA wishes to extend a round of appreciation to the Race Coordinators (Jim Heuving; Don Mulhall; Vivian Thomas; Grace Morissette; Launa Mandrell) from CORA Cup Series host clubs Penticton (twice), Fort Langley, Latitude 48, and Lotus, as well as the club reps who collected the names of Junior / Novice participants at these 5 events, and forwarded these entries onto the CORA Board for the draw at the Penticton Awards presentation.
CORA recognized that there were many individuals who had made “Significant and Exemplary Contributions” to Canadian outrigger canoeing, but their stories had never been captured, and they had never been formally recognized. CORA spent January 2021 thru June 2024 tracking down this history, and fact-checking as best as possible the exploits of those individuals who founded CORA, who founded / nurtured CORA clubs, who inaugurated / perpetuated races, who excelled at IVF / Molokai / Catalina / Queen Liliuokalani events, and who designed / built / imported / distributed canoes to grow the sport.
As of the September 2024 CORA Board Meeting, the CORA Awards Committee communicated the outcome of the Canadian Outrigger 2024 Hall Of Fame Process to the CORA Executive, such that there were 6 individuals inducted into the Canadian Outrigger Hall Of Fame for 2024.
CORA is hoping that Penticton Paddle Sports Association will graciously offer to host a Canadian Outrigger Canoeing Hall Of Fame presentation for the 6 inductees at the Lotus CORA Cup Series Championships Iron event on the September 28/29 weekend to recognize these individuals. CORA will have an online Town Hall in November of this year to recognize the inductees for 2024. CORA invites individuals who have known these Inductees to speak on their behalf at the November 2024 virtual Town Hall session.
CORA wishes to congratulate the 6 Canadian Outrigger Hall Of Fame 2024 Inductees:
Bob Stewart (Vancouver, BC)
Janet Davis (Oakville, ON)
Laurel Archer (Comox, BC)
Ron Dickinson (Halfmoon Bay, BC)
Ron Zander Williams (Toronto, ON)
Zoe Norcross-Nu’u (Comox, BC)
You can visit the CORA website and view the “Virtual Hall Of Fame” that has the names / headshots of the 6 individuals inducted this year and links to a 3-page PDF that has their contributions in 2-pages and a 1-page set of references on every online article that CORA could find where they were mentioned.
