Coaching

Kayak Mentorships and Coaching

OUR PHILOSOPHY
We think of ourselves as kayaking mentors. We approach kayak instruction like a music teacher would teach weekly music lessons. We don't like to overload you with too much at once. We will identify narrowly focus on the blocks, both the mental and skill components that are limiting your progression, We generally like working and focusing on class IV-V skillsets as well as wave freestyle for individuals who are focused and interested in improving and mastering their skills rather than just running harder runs.

OUR AVAILABILITY

Our time is limited, we are parents full on in young kid mode, so if you want to us to help you, you gotta be pro-active.  In the past we have done remote feedback from videos and mentorship paddles on the river.

OUR CURRENT OFFERINGS

• The Warp Speed Race Team- Online offering. Think graduate seminar crossed with a sports team.
• Intentional Paddle Group- Informal Group meet-up in White Salmon led by Natalie. Free or by donation. Coordinated via a facebook group. Reach out to Natalie if interested.
• Mentorships on the Slave River- We can mentor up to three people at a time on the Slave River July and August for a minimum of one week each person. Inquire if interested. 
• Mentorships in the White Salmon region - Personalized paddling mentorship with Leif to progress on runs and have some extra support on the river.
• Online, remote feedback and analysis- On an as available as demanded basis. Race Analysis, roll or technique troubleshooting. 

RIVER CLINICS
We occasionally co-coach for live it love it, Cali Collective and other groups when we feel like it. And once in a while we offer our own clinic. 

PRICING

We operate off the idea that if we don’t hoard our abundance and wealth, but instead give what we can, the spirit of the gift shall live on and our coaching can be available to all who have the drive and commitment to seriously improve their kayaking. In return for our time and knowledge, we simply ask you to honestly look at your own financial situation and give back what you feel is appropriate given your own financial circumstances and what you receive from us. Check, cash or venmo.

Here is some general guidance for market rates for private instruction.

Full Day $250 (Sundance Beginner Kayak Instruction) - $1200 (https://www.realwatersports.com/pages/kiteboarding-lessons -skilled high level instruction in similar industry, I also think we paid Benn Mar about 400/day USD to co-coach me and my husband for a week at skook. I'm pretty sure he gave us a friend rate.) Hourly $30 (some random person teaching you rolling) - $150 (Ben Marr, 1 hr online coaching)

These guidelines are provided to simply to give you a benchmark. Of course, it can be quite variable. After all, $50 to one person can feel like a lot more money than $50 to another. You are welcome to scale up if you are living from a place of abundance or scale down if you are experiencing scarcity. For example, if you feel outpriced by the market rates, please scale down what you give. We also sometimes do some trades. Things we like are: assistance building boats in Leif's shop, help with childcare, dinners (food), massage (Natalie but not Leif), camera equipment. etc.

There is also a psychological aspect to pricing, if you make it more expensive for yourself (what is cheap versus expensive versus outrageous varies from person to person), you will tend to value your experience in a different way and it could help you take it more seriously and put more effort into your own improvement. Basically, make it hurt a little bit and you will be more invested. We will have no judgement about what you decide to give and the caliber of our services will remain the same regardless of what you pay.

We know this isn't the usual way of doing business in our culture, but by doing it this way, we feel like we can make our instruction more available to everyone regardless of their finances.

We trust that you are doing what feels right in your heart to you.

All the best,
Natalie
Leif