Alva Duo Makes USA National Kayak Sprint Team!
The best part of running our paddle race series over the last decade has been watching the progression of the groms. With the future of our sports in the hands of the youth, we could tell from the start that the future was bright for this group. But honestly, we had no idea that we were watching some of the best paddlers in the country with some reality-based Olympic aspirations.
If you are not familiar with Rivertown Racers they are a Petaluma-based non-profit that supports and develops Youth Kayaking. Since most of the kayaking at the Olympic level is done in specialized K1-style racing kayaks the program is focused on the sprint discipline. If you know about the Kayaking culture you know it's based on a puritanical work ethic and discipline to be the best that takes years to develop. And over the last 10 years coaches Susan Strabird and Misha Riszkiewicz. have driven that message home with one secret sauce. They kept it fun!
And the results have been spectacular. The perennial powerhouses for Sprint Kayaking are based in the Pacific Northwest, Gig Harbor to be exact, and down south in Newport/Long Beach. With programs tied to major universities and 60+ year histories, these two programs have dominated, challenged only by their East Coast rivals. What chance do some punks from Petaluma have? Honestly, we thought it would be a rope-a-dope. And at first, it was. But remember that puritanical work ethic and discipline part. These kids caught on and some big things have been happening over the years. Audrey Johnson, Philip Majumdar, Ariel Bryant, Gaetano Walsh, Jasper Caddell, Jacob Johnson, and Leah Ahmed make up a long list of kids who have excelled at the national level in their age group categories.
It started with some podium wins at Nationals in Oklahoma and a sprinkling of hardware. Then at an event up North, the kids stepped it up big time taking a pretty nice haul of Gold Medals. A few weeks back in April Zachary & Petri Alva (pictured at top Petri in foreground) competed at the 2023 Sprint Trials in Folsom Lake Sacramento. Their focus distance this year was the 500 meters, the standard for making the national team. Petri just missed the Under 23 team by about a second but was selected for the World Cup Team earning a spot in 2023 Szeged, Hungary Championships coming up this May 11th-14th. Zachary turned in a stellar regatta and was selected to the Senior World Championships Team and has a chance to compete for a spot in the Paris Olympics in the Men's K4! Both will be competing at the national championships in Florida in August.
Quick ad break for the book Boys in the Boat, which tells the story of the USA's '36 Olympic Rowing team. It's a magical book about the human spirit. Looks like we may have a little of that magic starting to percolate in Petaluma and you can be a part of it. The cost of traveling across the globe to compete is a costly endeavor. If you want to wave your wand and make some more magic we would love if you could help out with the Alva's campaign by making a donation using the link below.
The link to their donation page: https://www.givesendgo.
Congratulations to the Alva brothers. We seen firsthand the dedication and determination they have had over the years and it's rewarding to see it pay off. Good luck Nationals!
See the Alva's at full speed in the quick video below.