Sioux Empire Paddlers 2016-2017 Membership Giveaway

It’s that season again! With the cold weather moving in, Sioux Empire Paddlers would like to keep their membership giveaway tradition. To show our appreciation to our members, we will be doing another membership giveaway this year. Last year we had some great prizes but I think this year will top it.

Besides the regular benefits of being a Sioux Empire Paddlers member we want to do a little something extra. This year we will be giving away some great items to get you ready for the upcoming paddling and camping season. We might be adding prizes down the road but this is what we have for you so far.

Prize 1: One - RTIC 20qt Cooler – This 10 day cooler is made tough for those long paddling trips down the river or for everyday use.
Prize 2-4: Three - RTIC 30oz Tumbler – These tumblers are very well known and very popular in the past years. These tumblers have been known to be great insulators for cold and hot drinks.
Prize 5-7: Three - RTIC Can Holders – One of my favorite items in the summer. These can coolers keep your drink cold for hours on end.
Prize 8-9: Two – Selfie Sticks – Why, because everyone one needs a selfie stick on the river!

Rules: There are just a few rules but we want to keep it simple.

1. Must be a current Sioux Empire Paddler Member by the day of the drawing
2. We will draw members names on 04/05/2017 7:00 pm CT
3. Individual memberships get one name put in for the drawing
4. Family memberships get two names put in for the drawing
5. Individual and Family Lifetime memberships get five names put in for the drawing
6. Each member can only win one prize (includes individual and family memberships)
7. Winners will be drawn in order of prizes (example: First name drawn gets prize one, second name drawn gets prize 2, etc.)
8. Winners have 7 days to reply back to us about pick up arrangements (winners will be contacted by all routes possible: Phone, email, social media, text, or in person)
9. This membership giveaway is for new and existing members

If you have any questions about when your membership expires or questions about the membership giveaway 2016-2017, please email us at info@siouxempirepaddlers.org.

Click here to become a member today: Sioux Empire Paddler Membership

Some of the benefits of being a Sioux Empire Paddlers Member:

• FREE winter pool sessions (have six scheduled for 2016-2017 winter)
• FREE Sioux Empire Paddlers decal
• FREE labor on kayak repairs
• Discounts on ACA memberships
• Access to Certified ACA Instructors to help improve your paddling skills or develop new skills
• Option to become a Board Member, Education Committee or Membership Committee
• Organized paddles
• Discount at local retailers (Nybergs Ace and SunNFun)
• Discount for annual Poker Paddle
• FREE Sioux Empire Paddlers Members Events (Coming summer 2017)
• Special pricing on scheduled paddling education classes, tours and rentals (Coming summer 2017)
• Opportunities to become an ACA Certified Kayak Instructor or Certified Kayak Instructor Assistant through Sioux Empire Paddlers

Sioux Empire Paddlers Membership

Sioux Empire Paddlers Membership Fees:

1 Year Individual Membership $25.00

1 Year Family Membership $45.00

Lifetime Individual Membership $250.00

Lifetime Family Membership $450.00

**SEP members can use their current membership fee to get a discount on lifetime memberships**

Sign up today!

Memberships

1 Year Individual $25.00 USD 1 Year Family $45.00 USD Lifetime Individual $250.00 USD Lifetime Family $450.00 USD

We now offer a 12 month payment plan for lifetime memberships!

Lifetime Memberships Payment Plan

Individual Lifetime Membership : $20.83 USD - monthly Family Lifetime Membership : $37.50 USD - monthly

ACA Quick Start Your Kayak Winter Youth Kayak Classes

Sioux Empire Paddlers have teamed up with the Sioux Falls Downtown Embe with kids winter kayak classes!

In our winter ACA Quick Start Your Kayak Class your children will learn the basics of paddling and safety. Get your children prepared for the upcoming season and provide them with skills that they can use for the rest of their lives. Our class will be a fun environment where you can watch your child grow as a paddler.

Classes are conducted by an ACA Certified Kayak instructor. Our instructors are up to date on their CPR/First Aid and have years of experience paddling. As ACA Certified Instructors they had to meet certain standards and skill level to become an instructor. They have been trained to teach paddling skills and safety to all age levels.

Our gear is specially made for the smaller paddler. Our kayaks are specifically built for kids, Paddles are short to accommodate shorter people and make it easier to control, and our life jackets come in 5 different sizes to make sure a perfect fit! With our gear, our students won’t have a tough time managing oversized gear and can get right to learning efficient skills to become a great paddler.

What we will cover in our winter course:
Life jacket fit
Hypothermia/hyperthermia
Wind, Waves, Weather, and Water
Strokes (forward and reverse)
Draws (Abeam/Sideways)
Sweeps (turns)
Wet exits
In water reentries (two styles)
Bulldozing
Launching kayak
River Signals

What equipment we provide:
Kayaks
Paddles
Life Jackets
Helmets
Games

Requirements:
Maximum 5 students per 1 instructor
Age: 7-13
Maximum Weight: 135lbs
Ability to swim
Dressed to be immersed
Ready to have fun paddling
Dry clothes to leave in (Embe has locker rooms and bathrooms for students to change in)
Parent/Guardian signing waiver at the beginning of the course

Cost: $35.00 Per Class/Per Student
Dates: 11/02/2016, 11/16/2016, 01/04/2017, and 01/18/2017
Time: 6:00PM-8:00PM
Location: Embe Pool Downtown Sioux Falls, 300 W 11th Street, Sioux Falls, SD 57104 (Enter at Main Entrance)
**more classes will be added if classes fill up**
**no refunds**

We will introduce skills through several games to make your child have fun while learning important skills for paddling. Sign up today or email about questions at info@siouxempirepaddlers.org

Sioux Empire Paddlers is a 501(c)3 education nonprofit. Our goal is to share our knowledge of paddling skills and safety to our community. We practice stewardship and getting more of the community on the water through paddling sports. Sioux Empire Paddlers offer kids kayak classes, teen kayak classes, adult kayak classes, fitness kayak classes, kayak racing classes, kayak fishing classes/tours and kayak tours. Kayak rentals will be available spring 2017.

Dates

11/02/2016 11/16/2016 01/04/2017 01/18/2017

Sioux Empire Paddlers Members Paddle and Potluck

It’s time to get together Sioux Empire Paddlers members! Two of our board members, William and Braxton, have put together an event for SEP Members and new members. We have reserved the picnic shelter area in Split Rock Park in Garretson South Dakota to host a potluck and paddling for our members.

Sioux Empire Paddlers will be supplying the pork loin, buns, BBQ sauce, plates, and silver wear. Members, you just need to bring your beverage of choice and some type of side dish to add to the potluck. We will also be bringing all the groups boats and board member boats for members to try out. We also encourage members to bring their personal fleet so we can paddle around and try out each other’s boats. This will be a great event to meet other members and celebrate a great season. This will also be a great place to try different boats if you were thinking of upgrading or changing style of boats.

Saturday, September 10, 2016
Garretson South Dakota
Split Rock Creek Park
Picnic Shelter by historic dam

10:00am – 12:30pm – Social and paddling time
12:30pm – 1:30pm – Potluck
1:00pm – 1:30pm – Members meeting
1:30pm – 4:00pm – Social and paddling time

We do have the shelter rented until 9:00pm if you chose to stay longer.

A few members will also be camping at the campsites in the park if you want to spend the whole evening camping and paddling.

This is for Sioux Empire Paddler Members. If you aren’t a member yet you can sign up at http://siouxempirepaddlers.org/membership/!

We want this to be a family fun event so bring your kids. We will have the kids boats and gear there to try out and paddle around.

Hope to you there.

Keep them paddles wet!

Kids and Kayaking

 

 Kids are the future. They're our offspring. We would do anything to protect them but also want them to be adventurous and find their own way. Sioux Empire Paddlers understand these facts. This is why we make our main focus on children. We want our youth to head outdoors and get off electronics. We want them to explore new places and be adventurous. WE also want to make sure they are safe about going on these adventures even if they are tiny or huge adventures.


In 2015 a few members of Sioux Empire Paddlers (then Sioux Falls Whitewater Park) noticed a lot more youth getting into paddling. One huge concern was that they weren’t wearing life jackets and they were in a large craft way too big for them to manage. On top of that their skill level was below normal to help them in dangerous situations. Now in South Dakota a youth 12 years or younger must wear a life jacket but we weren’t seeing this enforced by their current caregiver at the time. We were also seeing youth in weather situations that if a split second accident did happen they would have most likely drowned from cold shock or a bad case of hypothermia. Sioux Empire Paddlers members wanted to do something about it. So in the middle of 2015 they started coming up with a plan to get kids boats, kids gear, and certified instructors to help teach about water safety and paddling skills. By the end of 2015 the group raised enough funds to get a fleet of kids boats, kids life jackets, kids paddles, trailer, and safety gear. They were ready to start rounding up youth to start spreading the word of paddling safety and teach very essential paddling skills.

By the middle of 2016 the group accumulated 6 ACA Certified Instructors in their group to help spread the knowledge of paddling and safety. Classes for children also began around this time. Classes were held at Lake Alvin, Garretson South Dakota and Classes through Sioux Falls School District Community Education Program at Covell Lake. The classes go over life jacket safety, weather, water temperature, rescues, edging, strokes, draws, sweeps, and braces.

With our kids classes, having narrow boats made for kids, they are able to manage the kayak better so they are not trying to manage a big vessel they are actually learning essential skills. Our paddles are also shorter than normal at 180cm with a smaller shaft for easy grip. This helps children perform certain strokes, draws, braces, and sweeps with more ease. Our life jackets come in 5 different sizes so we can show a good fit life jacket. We wanted to stay away from the universal jackets because a life jacket not fitting well is like not wearing a life jacket at all.

Now looking into our winter classes at the Sioux Falls Embe and 2017 class with the Sioux Falls School district we are looking at adding five kids boats to our fleet so we can host more classes and reach out to other entities.  Several entities like the Boys Scouts, Boys and Girls Club, and Girl Scouts have reached out to us but they would like bigger classes than 5 students at a time to cover their large group of members.

We have enough life jackets and paddles so all we need is more boats to spread our knowledge of skills and safety.  Remember the children are the future. If we don’t teach them safety now when will they learn about it? Adventures are supposed to be fun not a tragedy. Please help us spread the knowledge of safety to our youth.

To get five more boats we only need to raise $1,400.00 more. We have set up a GoFundMe page to raise those funds. It has been a slow start but we are gaining momentum. Every dollar counts. We are even doing a few random giveaways to help entice you if you donate $15.00 or more. Below are what we will be giving away once we hit our $1,400.00 goal.

Once we hit our $1,400.00 goal we will do a random drawing for those that donated $15.00 or more. Below are the items we will randomly draw and winner gets to pick from whats available.
20 paddling class certificates. These certificates can be given to anyone in the Sioux Empire to get in a class from one of our instructors.
5 Sioux Empire Paddlers Memberships. The winner can chose from an individual or family 1 year membership with Sioux Empire Paddlers.
1 Lifetime Sioux Empire Paddlers Membership. This winner can chose from an individual or family lifetime membership with Sioux Empire Paddlers.

Please help as much as you can. Every dollar counts to get us to our goal.

GOFUNDME PAGE

SIOUX EMPIRE PADDLERS WEBSITE

Kayak Fishing Guided Tours

Have you ever wanted try your luck at fishing from a kayak?  You're in luck, Sioux Empire Paddlers are now offering kayak fishing classes. 

In our classes we will provide you with a fishing kayak, paddle, and life jackets (Fishing equipment needs to be negotiated with your guide)! Our fishing guide is familiar with our waterways on the east side of South Dakota and has a kayak equipped to help you find fish. 

Information about the classes

Classes can be held on rivers or lakes  of your choice!

Paddling equipment is provided!

We bring the paddling equipment, so you just need to show up and have fun!

Learn paddling techniques to make your fishing experience easier!

Can be small groups or if you want a parent and child day!

Flexible on dates!

2-8 hour tours!

Prices start at $50.00!

For a more information on kayak fishing trips and pricing for your unique trip please email braxton@siouxempirepaddlers.org
Website **HERE**

**Customers must have a valid fishing license for the state you are fishing in.  Fishing license is not included in guide pricing**

ACA Quick Start Your Kayak Kids Classes

Sioux Empire Paddlers will be hosting their first ever Kayaking for Kids Classes at Lake Alvin South Dakota. Your child will learn about water safety, life jacket safety, strokes, sweeps, draws, and anatomy of the kayak and paddle. We will have fun games to play while learning paddling skills and safety at the same time. Our class instructors are ACA (American Canoe Association) Level II Certified River Kayak Instructors with an up to date First Aid and CPR certification.

What: Kayak class for children. Life jackets, paddles, and kayaks will be provided

When: SEE BELOW FOR AVAILABLE DATES at Lake Alvin.
Time: 6pm to 8pm

Where: Lake Alvin public boat ramp on northwest side of lake.

Who: 5 students MAX, 7-13 year olds under 140lbs

Cost: $35.00 per student $25.00 if Sioux Empire Paddler Member

Students are recommend to have the following for class:

Parent or guardian along to sign insurance waiver

Students must be able to swim and feel comfortable getting wet

Clothes they feel comfortable getting in the water with

Extra clothes to change into after the class

Sun block

Plenty of Water

Please provide any allergies your child may have and if they require an Epipen to be close by


Click HERE to visit our website for scheduled classes!

Fitness Kayak Classes

Fitness Class:

Are you looking for  a way to stay active outside the gym during the warmer months? Do you have fitness goals you want to achieve and want to spend time on the water? Are you interested in building endurance to paddle longer distances, paddle faster, participate in a race or finish a race that you have been unable to finish? Sioux Empire Paddle Fitness classes are here to help meet your fitness goals AND have fun kayaking!

Kayaking is a great activity for recreation but it is also an excellent activity to use as a fitness activity whether one is trying to meet personal fitness goals or training for a kayak race. Our goal is to help individuals meet their fitness goals while promoting kayaking as an active lifestyle and having fun of course.

Courses can be scheduled as an individual or as a small group activity with friends, max of 5 individuals. Courses will be scheduled based on client availability so there is a great deal of flexibility for any schedule, weather permitting of course. If a course cannot occur as planned due to inclement weather, the course can be rescheduled. The length of a session is flexible from 1 hour or longer in duration.

Individual sessions will be focused on putting together a plan to meet individual goals whether it is improving fitness in general or learning how to train for long distance paddles or a race. Results and activities will be recorded for each session to measure progress and identify areas of growth and opportunity based on established goals. The first session will also consist of developing a personalized plan to assess current skills and establish goals.

Group sessions will be more activity based teaching fitness activities in a kayak suitable for any skill level and allow for friendly competition to help push one another. Groups can include up to 5 individuals.

Possible goals may include: Stability/balance training drills, interval training, speed and strength training, long distance/endurance training, cardio workouts, general nutrition options while kayaking, and/or learn new training techniques.

Cost:                      

Individual non-ACA: starting at $35 

Individual ACA member: starting at $30

Group: Groups of 3 or more save $5 per person off individual rate. Arrangements for larger groups can be made if necessary.

**** Multiple session discounts can be discussed ****

Where:  Location is flexible based on client needs. Area lakes that will be suitable for courses include: Lake Vermillion, Lake Alvin, Wall Lake. River training can be discussed and will primarily be available for weekend sessions only.

When:  Please contact Braxton at Braxton@siouxempirepaddlers.org to discuss availability to schedule  

What to Bring: Arrangements can be made for gear to be provided but clients should have their own equipment since part of the training will be to help individuals become more familiar with their own equipment including the following: kayak, PFD, paddle, water, GPS (not required but beneficial), food/fuel/water, proper paddling attire for conditions. If a boat, paddle and/or PFD need to be provided, please make such arrangements at time of scheduling session.

Sioux Empire Paddlers Tours/Guides

One of our ACA Certified Kayak Instructors is now offering tours and guide services. Would you like a guided tour down a local river or even a lake? Our instructor will build a personalized trip for you from anywhere between 3 hours and 4 day trips. Trips can be on the Big Sioux river or even the Missouri River. We plan trips to fit your needs and wants.

Do you want to learn how to kayak camp? These services will be provided in the trip. You can chose great hot meals or simple backpacking meals if you want to rough it.

We will provide equipment if needed and we have equipment for your kids to bring along on these adventures.

Tours start at $35.00 and go up based on you needs and wants for the trip. Discounts for Sioux Empire Paddlers Members available!

Please contact Will at will@siouxempirepaddlers.org for more information or to book your trip today.

EXAMPLE OF ONE OF OUR TRIPS:

2 Day Spooky Paddling Trip

Do you like getting spooked, want to know more about the surrounding history, learn paddling skill, or learn paddling camping skill? 

Well you are in luck! 

Our organization will be hosting an overnight paddling trips on the Big Sioux River past the Good Earth State Park, Gitchie Manitou Preservation, Klondike and other famous landmarks. On this trip you will hear about the history of the area and some spooky tails from several spots along the Big Sioux River.  Some stories might be real and some stories might be pushing the truth. You let us know!

Our guide will go over details of several stories while you paddle down the soothing Big Sioux River. You will then spend the night on the sandy river bank right in Gitchie Manitou Preservation. You will have the option to go hiking to check out the area and learn more about the history of the park. We will even provide you with an EMF Meter to help see if you can find any paranormal activity. Now if you make it through the night you will continue to paddle down the easy going Big Sioux River down to the old Klondike Dam. 

This trip we hope you learn some history about the area, hear some spooky stories (true or not, we will let you decide), learn paddling skills, and learn how to plan and do your own paddling camping trip.



We supply the following:
Haunting History Lesson
Guided Tour
Paddling education and safety
Three Meals
Cooking Gear and utensils
Transportation
Kayaks and gear (limited availability)
Tents
Entertainment
Water 

Dry bags
Education on packing your kayak with overnight gear and planning trips

What you will need to bring:
Extra underwear (It is scary there at night!!)
Hygeine products
Sleeping bag
Extra clothes
Bug Spray
SunBlock
Snacks
Hat (to help block the sun)
Other beverages other than water
Camera
Personal Belongings


Price:

$75 we provide kayak, paddle and lifejacket

$60 you provide kayak, paddle and lifejacket

$60 for current Sioux Empire Paddlers members 

For more information or to plan your trip today please email us at will@siouxempirepaddlers.org

Sioux Falls South Dakota Kayak Rental

*Shop from the link below to help donate a percentage to Sioux Empire Paddlers*

VISIT OUR WEBSITE

The question of where to rent a kayak, SUP or canoe seems to be an ongoing question. So we have decided to give you an answer.

We have browsed the web, contacted "our people", and searched local classified ads. What we came up with is a list of three locations in Sioux Falls and two locations right outside of Sioux Falls at our nearby State Parks. Unfortunately, a lot of you have the question if the rental companies transport or deliver the kayaks. We only found one company that offers pick up delivery for an extra fee depending where the location is.

Here is a list of Kayak, SUP and Canoe rentals in town.

Sioux Falls Kayak Rental

The only rental in Sioux Falls that is willing to drop the kayaks off at your local starting point and pick up the boats when you are done.

Sioux Falls SD

Phone: 605-310-2070

Email: InfoInfo@SIOUXEMPIREPADDLERS.ORG

$55.00 (Kayak drop off and pick up included)

Boat, Paddle, Life Jacket and drop off and pick up (Restrictions apply)

NO DEPOSIT NEEDED
Like Sioux Falls Kayak Rental Facebook Page

Locations:
Nyberg’s Ace
12^th Street
Sioux Falls, SD 57104

Nyberg’s Ace

41^st Street
Sioux Falls, SD 57105
Hours:
Monday-Friday 7:30am-9:00pm
Saturday 7:30am-7:00pm
Sunday 10:00am-6:00pm

Kayak and Canoes Rental:

$300.00 deposit (per boat)(checks or credit cards accepted for deposit)
$5.00 non-refundable Damage waiver fee
Boat, oars/paddles, and life jackets
$35.00 per 6 hours
$50.00 per 24 hours
Nyberg's Ace does not provide tie downs or transportation for boats 

Private Sector - Valerie Quade

No available Hours

Kayak and Stand Up Paddle Board Rentals:
No deposit for rental. You will need to provide a valid drivers license and sign a waiver.
Boat/SUP, PFD, and paddle
$45.00 per 24 hours
$80.00 per 48 hours


State Parks

Locations:

Newton Hills State Park
28767 482^nd Avenue
Canton, SD 57013
605-987-2263

Lake Vermillion Rec Area

26140 451^st Avenue
Canistota, SD 57012
605-296-3643

Nebraska 
North Fork Outfitting
613 S. 9th Street
Norfolk, NE 68701
http://nforkoutfitting.wix.com/nfork

VISIT OUR WEBSITE

*Shop from the link below to help donate a percentage to Sioux Empire Paddlers*

Sioux Falls Whitewater Park Survey

We would appreciate if you took a few minutes to take our survey in regards to the proposed Sioux Falls Whitewater Park. Our goal from the survey is to see how much interest there is for a whitewater park in our community and beyond our local community. We also need data to support the parks non-kayaking interest to demonstrate how it is a multipurpose development and its economic potential for the community as a whole.

By taking a couple of minutes to provide feedback, you will be able to help us move forward demonstrating that there is a great deal of interest in the project and it has great potential for the community and tourism.

3 part survey with a total of 10 questions.

SFWP Survey

Survey also on our website:

Link to our Website

What can you do to help our Kayaking Programs

Do you want different ways you can help our organization and establish kayaking classes and education? Below are a few ways you can help our organization raise funds for our Kayaking for Kids, Kayaking for Teens, Kayaking for Adults, Fishing Kayaking, and Fitness programs.

Email Us

1.       Become a member!  HERE

a.       You will get updates on the park and club before the general public

b.      You get a Sioux falls Whitewater Park t shirt

c.       You get a Club decal

d.      Discounts on upcoming events 

e.      Free pool sessions (3-6 a year)($30-$60 value)

f.        Discounts at local stores with membership card (Coming June 2016!!)(endless value)

g.       A group to go out and paddle with or ask paddling questions

h.      Discounts on education

i.         River Clean ups

j.        $10 discount on single ACA membership and $20 off ACA family membership

k.       $25 for individual, $45 for family, $250.00 individual lifetime and $450.00 family lifetime

l.         Knowing you support the Whitewater Park!!

2.       Make regular purchases on Amazon

a.       Go to our website 

b.      Select Amazon Banner

c.       Shop for your items

d.      Add to Cart

e.      Complete Order

f.        Our organization receives 6-8% of your purchase when you go through our link. No extra cost to you and gives a better percentage then Amazon Smile ( .5%)

3.       Donate sporting goods or other rummage sale items

a.       Long as they are working order we will accept

b.      Our volunteers will sell those items to raise funds for our paddling programs

c.       We will provide you with a donation receipt for taxes (we are a nonprofit 501(c)3 with the federal government)

d.      Give you a chance to get rid of your old stuff that has been piling up in the garage or storage

4.       Donate funds

a.       Donations in monetary value can be written as a tax deduction

b.      We will provide you with a letter if over $250.00 or receipt if under $250.00

5.       Attend our events and outings

a.       Poker Paddler 6-11-16

b.      Bean Bag Tournament (coming soon)

c.       Regular paddle outings (bring a friend and get them signed up as a member)

d.      River Clean Ups (help us clean up the river

6.       Paddling Classes

a.       Sign up for paddling classes through us or Sioux Falls School District Community Education

b.      Tell friends and family about our classes

c.       Kids 8-13 classes currently offered (we supply all equipment. Recreational kayaks are sized for children)

d.      Fishing classes currently offered (groups of two or family time (parent fishing with child))

e.      Teens 13-18 and Adult classes (Coming Soon)

f.        Fitness/Ready for Racing classes (Coming Soon)

g.       Private classes

h.      We will have 6 certified instructors to help you achieve your skill goals

7.       Word of Mouth

a.       Like our Facebook Page and Twitter

b.      Share our pages on your profiles

c.       Join our Sioux Empire Paddlers group page

d.      Tell paddlers, friends and family about our group

We will add more as the list grows to help raise funds for our paddling classes and education programs. We are getting closer and closer. Please take the time to help us make this a reality.

Email US

Again, Thank you for all that have supported Sioux Empire Paddlers. I hope this encourages you to help us make our paddling classes and education come true.
Visit our Website

Email US

1st Annual Poker Paddle – Hosted by Sioux Empire Paddlers

Who wants to have some fun this summer? Sioux Empire Paddlers supporters of Sioux Falls Whitewater Park (formerly Sioux Falls Whitewater Park) is hosting a great event for paddlers and their families. We hope this is an annual event to help raise funds for our Kayaking for Kids and our Kayaking for Teens Program.

1^st Annual Sioux Empire Paddlers Poker Paddle Rules:

1.       June 11, 2016

2.       Event will start at Holly Blvd Canoe/Kayak launch on the Big Sioux River (north of Big Sioux Recreation Area State Park – No park sticker needed).

3.       Registration, shuttling, signing of the waivers and picking up your first card will be from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm (participants under 18 will need a parent/guardian signature and be accompanied by an adult at all times).

4.       NOTICE: Every participant must sign a waiver in order to participate in event.

5.       All paddlers must wear a life jacket at all times on the water.

6.       Participants must supply their own watercraft.

7.       Participants may use kayaks, canoes, and stand up paddle boards

8.       Paddlers will get in the water at 1:00 pm to start the poker paddle.

9.       Each paddler will start with one card at the beginning. From there you will pick up 3 other cards at random checkpoints along the Big Sioux River, and at the end you will receive your last card. The night before we will randomly draw two cards as the winning cards. We will open the envelope at the end (Grandview Kayak Launch) to announce the two winning cards. The two people with those cards in hand will be announced winners and can accept their grand prize for winning our 1^st annual poker paddle.

10.   Event will end at Grandview Canoe/Kayak Launch (272^nd street – 140^th Street Northeast of Lake Alvin).

11.   Event should take about 3-4 hours.

12.   We will also draw random participant’s names for our prizes we have accumulated from local business. Prizes will be listed randomly on our Facebook Event Page.

13.   Cost is $25.00 for nonmembers and $15.00 for members of Sioux Empire Paddlers (Formerly known as Sioux Falls Whitewater Park).

14.   RAIN OUT DATE: June 18, 2016

15.   HAVE FUN

This will be a fun family event to try something new on the river, meet new people, and just enjoy the outdoors.

Please bring plenty of water to stay hydrated and snacks if you have young ones along.

Click option below to sign up for the paddle.

1st Annual Poker Paddle

Non-Member $25.00 USD Member $15.00 USD

 Or sign up on our website:
Poker Paddle

Want to become a member? You can visit our website to become a member - Memberships

Want to help donate funds for the our kayaking programs simply by purchasing on Amazon? Go to our  Webpage, select any Amazon banner, start shopping, and checkout. Amazon will give a percentage of the sale to our organization with any purchase made on Amazon through our website!

Sioux Falls Whitewater Park name changed to Sioux Empire Paddlers

Hello All,

Our organization Sioux Empire Paddlers formerly known as Sioux Falls Whitewater Park has gone through a few changes. Our main focus is still on the whitewater park but we also provide paddling classes and membership outings/events.

We have changed our name to Sioux Empire Paddlers so we can cover the Sioux Falls South Dakota and surrounding towns for paddlers. We want to focus on all paddling not just whitewater paddling. We want our members to be paddlers from all different paddling genres.

The biggest reason for the name change was our Kayaking for Kids Program. We were receiving a lot of feedback from parents that didn’t want their kids learning in whitewater (which was not the case). To increase our Kayaking for Kids Program we wanted a name to attract everyone in the community.

Our board first voted on changing our name change and picked from several other name ideas. Once the name was picked, we reached out to our members for a majority vote. Obviously the majority vote was received.

If you have any questions about the changes please let us know but we are trying to make the transition smooth as possible.

We will also announce when our new website will be live at http://siouxempirepaddlers.org/. We hope the new site will have a more professional look give better updates on classes and updates on the whitewater park.

Want to become a member? You can visit our website to become a member - http://siouxempirepaddlers.org/membership/

Want to help donate funds for our paddling classes and education simply by purchasing on Amazon? Go to our web page http://siouxempirepaddlers.org/, select any Amazon banner, start shopping, and checkout. Amazon will give a percentage of the sale to our organization with any purchase made on Amazon through our website!