I’m looking for some beginner classes in Minneapolis/St. Paul. I didn’t find much on the ACA website. Any suggestions?
Rolling?
If you’re interested in learning to roll, check out Alex’s rolling clinic at:
http://www.rollingclinic.com
Alex is always happy to help someone learn to roll, and he’s in the Mpls/St. Paul area.
several options…
There are several kayak clubs in the cities which are good places to meet up with fellow paddlers. The Inland Sea Kayakers (http://www.inlandseakayakers.org) have weekly paddles as well as classes. The Superior Kayak and Outdoor Adventure Club (http://www.skoac.org) also offers classes. For whitewater, the Rapids Riders (http://www.rapidsriders.org) is a great group who run whitewater classes in the spring.
As for more formal classes, I don’t know the paddlers who run it but Paddle Masters (http://www.paddlemasters.com/) is another local kayak instructional option. The University of Minnesota - Duluth also has an excellent kayak program including intro classes (http://www.umdrsop.org/kayaking).
Although you just missed out on the Inland Sea Kayak Symposium, the Great Lakes Sea Kayak Symposium is also occurring later this summer which is an excellent place to get instruction.
Once you take some intro courses and if you then wish to learn to roll, I’d be happy to help you out. Although at times I’ve been mistaken as an instructor, unless specifically asked to teach a beginning class at a symposium, I tend to lean more toward whitewater and Greenland style kayaking as that’s where my passions particularly lie.
Alex