Geronimo Canoe Club is from Tsartlip First Nation. They have been a paddling juggernaut on the Coast Salish canoe race circuit since the early 1970’s. Every summer, Indigenous canoe clubs from around the Salish Sea gather in coastal and inland communities to compete in canoe races. Recently, Geronimo canoe pullers have taken their expertise to the outrigger canoe. This summer they are representing Canada at the world championships.
Geronimo attracts paddlers from many families on the Saanich Peninsula. However, their crews have primarily come from the Morris family. In recent years it’s increasingly prohibitive to race because the high cost of travelling (ferry, gas, camping and food) with teams of over two dozen people and large canoes. As a result, the number of canoe clubs and paddlers has suffered.
Pulling together
The W̱SÁNEĆ are maritime people. Canoes were our primary mode of transportation and when you see our people in their single canoes, paddles stroking through the water they can be easily mistaken for a pod of whales playfully pulsing across the ocean surface. We are built to pull, our broad shoulders providing propulsion and if you have ever been beside a canoe with 11 pullers pulling together you’ll experience first hand the awesome power in the Coast Salish paddle.
We carry with us an ancient understanding of the ocean and tides. For generations we moved about the Salish Sea engaged in deep relationship with our relatives from other families, other species and the islands. Needless to say we are born to pull.
Now Geronimo pullers are taking their love for the water and competition to the world stage. They will be part of the 19 athletes representing Team Canada at the 2019 International Va’a Federation World Distance Championships. The championships will be held in Mooloolaba, Sunshine Coast, Australia.
The Geronimo paddlers are still relatively new to the outrigger scene. In August 2016, six members of the canoe club won the Canadian championships in a borrowed canoe. The CBC captured their story. Their training was entirely done in a traditional Coast Salish war canoe. In addition, Len Morris Jr. won the men’s competition qualifying him for the 2017 world championships in Tahiti. He finished 13th out of 26 paddlers.
Represent!
The five members of the Geronimo Canoe Club who are preparing to travel to Australia are George Horne, Gus Morris, Jasper Morris, Len Morris Jr. and Joseph Seward. Last Friday, they paddled 55km from their home community of Tsartlip to Songhees Point in the Victoria Inner Harbour. It was an effort to raise awareness of their fundraising campaign to help cover the costs of their travel to Australia.
It was a fabulous demonstration that the Coast Salish paddling culture is alive and well on Vancouver Island. We are world class! I don’t usually use this blog to make asks. However, this will be an exception. If this story has inspired you, please help out the team in any way you can. You can donate to the team here!
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