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New water ski club looking for members in Ashcroft, Cache Creek and area

The club will be headquartered on Kamloops Lake, and no experience or equipment is required
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Ashcroft resident Alfonse Daudent at Bruker Marina at Tobiano, where he hopes to establish a local water ski club.

A water ski club is not the first thing one would normally associate with a desert area, but a local resident is trying to establish one on Kamloops Lake that is headquartered in Ashcroft, with members coming from Ashcroft, Cache Creek, Savona, and the surrounding area.

Alfonse Daudet and his wife, Rhonda, moved to Ashcroft from the Lower Mainland in 2017, and took possession of their new house on July 4.

“We got tired of the rain, and liked the dry heat here,” says Alfonse. “I love to water ski, and liked the proximity to Kamloops Lake.”

He acknowledges that Savona would have been the more logical place to move to, but explains that he has to commute to the Lower Mainland a couple of times a month, and Ashcroft is more convenient for that, being a half-hour closer.

“And the fluctuating water level at Savona means lots of bugs. I don’t like mosquitoes.”

Daudet currently has a permit for a water ski slalom course at Turtle Bay on Mara Lake in the Shuswap, and has asked for a transfer of the permit to Kamloops Lake.

He has formed a water ski club in co-operation with Bruker Marina at Tobiano, and says that the slalom course will be on Kamloops Lake on the opposite side from the marina.

“There won’t be any environmental impact there.”

He is trying to get people who have boats at the marina to become members of the club, but notes having a boat is not a prerequisite to taking part.

“If we find people who want to learn to water ski we can teach them. I can tow them with my boat.

“The main purpose of a water ski club is camaraderie, and promoting the sport. And we can host tournaments, which attract a lot of people.”

Daudet has been involved with the sport since 1980, is the former president of the Don Pedro Water Ski Club in northern California, and is certified as a tournament boat driver by the American Water Ski Association

He has “tons” of surplus equipment, which he will lend to those who want to try out the sport. “You can spend $600 on a pair of water skis and then find out you don’t like it.”

He says a good introduction to water skiing is kneeboarding, which can be started around age four. He has a daughter who started to water ski at age seven, and notes the sport is a good way for families to stay together.

“Once kids are hooked, they like to spend time with their parents on the lake.”

Daudet says that the club currently has four members: two in Savona and two in Tobiano. However, he is gearing things up for next year, and trying to gauge local interest and start planning for 2019.

“We have to transfer the permit, and build a free-standing dock. It won’t be fixed; we just need to anchor it.”

Daudet says he hopes to start building in April of next year, aadding he’d like to have members by January of next year so they can start organizing and planning.

“There’ll be a fee, but that depends on the number of members. The membership fee for the water ski club in Kamloops is $450, but this one will be a fraction of that. It’s a not-for-profit venture.

“We just need to pay for the lumber and the equipment.”

Membership will include slalom water ski lessons, and once he has a certain number of people interested, Daudet plans to organize a get-together to start planning for 2019.

He adds Kamloops Lake has an advantage over the Shuswap because the water temperature is higher.

“It’s warm water, and good water. If people have to wear wetsuits or drysuits, it takes away some of the fun.

“In Kamloops Lake in mid-August, the water temperature averages 73.8° F. All you need is a bathing suit and a life jacket. “And we have life jackets as well. People can eventually buy their own equipment, but they can try things out first.”

He says there are relatively few boats on Kamloops Lake compared with other areas.

“Kamloops people go to the Shuswap, but there’s more moisture there, and it’s colder. I intend to pass the memo around about Kamloops Lake because people from Kamloops haven’t got the memo. More boats on the lake would be good.”

Daudet started a water ski club when he lived in California, and by the time he left, there were 40 boats in the club.

“A lake is more challenging for water skiing, so we might eventually put a log boom in. But in the morning, you can get decent calm water.”

He adds people do not necessarily have to know how to swim in order to water ski, and that the sport can accommodate many people.

“I once had someone who was blind learn to water ski.”

He notes there is a real social aspect to water skiing.

“You meet a lot of like-minded people who have a lot in common. Clubs turn into a really festive situation, like a social club.

“Everyone has a love of boating, and there’s more of a social than a competitive aspect. You have Christmas parties, beach parties, poker runs, all sorts of things.

“It’s not limited to water skiing; there’s wakeboarding and kneeboarding. It’s the most exhilarating sport in the world. There’s nothing like it, and it keeps you in fantastic shape.”

For more information about the Ashcroft water ski club, call Alfonse Daudet at (250) 217-0616, or e-mail alfonsedaudet@gmail.com.



editorial@accjournal.ca

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