Join the team, Grow your club

Become a Captain

Jump on board with the UK's fastest growing paddling charity by becoming an AquaPaddle Captain today.

Host your own timed paddle events

Organise, promote and run regular paddling events on a stretch of water near you. We provide the equipment, software, and everything (see below) you need to run a successful and enjoyable event for your local paddling community.

Build your paddling club membership

Already run a paddling club? Perfect! AquaPaddle is the ideal compliment to your exstiing club and is a great way to attract new members and retain existing ones.

Grow as a paddler and a leader

Develop new valuable skills both on and off the water including paddling techniques, communication, organisation, event management, safety, networking, plus many more.

Let's Get You Started

What is an AquaPaddle Captain?

The AquaPaddle Captain is the heartbeat of the AquaPaddle Crew and warmly welcomes all paddlers at the safety briefing, giving the lowdown on the route and reminding everyone that having fun and doing your best, is way more important than finishing first.

They're the go-to person, with a ton of water wisdom and experience. Usually, they've been paddling for a few years or more, cruising the waterways year-round, and they're all trained up in First Aid to keep everyone safe. When the AquaPaddle kicks off they'll be right there at the heart of the operation, making sure everything runs smoothly and ensuring everyone's safety.

The Captain is also responsible for setting the route and getting the permissions from the waterway, organising the Crew (Volunteers) and running the event from start to finish. You need to be calm under pressure and be responsible for all in your care.

Sound like you? Then read on...


Why become a Captain?

Ultimately, being a Captain isn't just about steering the boat; it's about steering the community towards a shared love for paddling, fostering friendships, and creating memorable experiences on the water. From community leadership to building friendships and networks within the local paddling community. You will have the ability to help grow a club, group or business you belong to, by welcoming paddlers who wouldn’t otherwise have found you.

Community Leadership

As a Captain, you become a key figure in the local paddling community. You're not just leading paddling sessions; you're fostering a community spirit. Your role helps strengthen bonds among members, creating a welcoming and inclusive environment for everyone who loves being out on the water.

Friendships and Networking

Being at the helm means you get to meet a wide array of people, from seasoned paddlers to newcomers eager to learn. You'll forge new friendships and connections with fellow paddlers, sharing experiences and building a network of like-minded individuals passionate about water adventures. These connections can extend beyond the club and enrich your social circle.

Club Growth and Impact

Your leadership can significantly impact your paddling club's growth. By creating enjoyable and safe paddling experiences, you'll attract more enthusiasts to join the club. People are drawn to communities where they feel welcomed and supported, and your role as Captain contributes to this positive atmosphere, encouraging others to join in the fun.

Skill Enhancement

Taking on the responsibility of a Captain, allows you to continually improve your personal and paddling skills. Through guiding and encouraging others, you'll reinforce your knowledge and techniques. Explaining routes, offering tips, and sharing experiences all contribute to your growth as a paddler. You'll enhance your communication, decision-making, and organisational skills. You'll also learn to adapt to different situations and manage diverse personalities, all valuable in various aspects of life beyond the paddling world, bring you a sense of fulfilment.

Personal Development

Leadership roles bring opportunities for personal growth. You'll enhance your communication, decision-making, and organizational skills. You'll also learn to adapt to different situations and manage diverse personalities, all of which are valuable in various aspects of life beyond the paddling club.

Sense of Fulfillment

There's a unique satisfaction in seeing the paddling club flourish under your guidance. Witnessing new members develop their skills and passion for paddling, and knowing you played a part in creating that environment, is incredibly rewarding.

Who can become a Captain?

Becoming an AquaPaddle Captain requires the right set of skills and the right personality to run events successfully. As a minimum, we ask that all our Captains are:

Have what it takes? If so, we'd love to hear from you so please get in touch today for more info on becoming an AquaPaddle Captain and hosting your own 5km paddling events.

You will need...

  1. A Qualified paddle Instructor or paddle leader with at least one year’s experience in the role
  2. Three years or more of all-year-round experience on your waterway
  3. Qualified First Aider
  4. Willing to run regular AquaPaddle events – at least once a month, year-round

AquaPaddle Software

As a captain you have access to all the tools you need to organise and run a successfull paddling event.

Check in your paddlers

Everyone who registers to take part in your event will appear on the check in screen. Tap everyone who has turned up and is ready to paddle.

Record finishing times

Use our built in timer system to record everyone's finishing time. Simply tap each paddler as they cross the line and their time is recorded.

See the results

Once the event has finished you can check the finishing times, make edits if required, and finally save the results for the world to see.

Plus more...

Alongside the timing system shown above we have systems and tools that help you manage your events and location. We continue to build new features based on our Captain's feedback to improve our systems and make running AquaPaddle events easy and enjoyable for everyone involved.

How much does it cost?

While attending an AquaPaddle event as a paddler is free of charge, some costs are involved when setting up and running these events (eg radios, defibrillator, crew t-shirts). We've done our best to keep these costs as affordable as possible so that AquaPaddle can continue to grow organically.

AquaPaddle for Not-for-profit organisations

Thanks to our good friends over at PaddleUK we are now in the position to offer grants to suitable not-for-profit organisations that will cover the costs of the equipment and training required to launch a new AquaPaddle location.

For a full breakdown of costs involved in starting an AquaPaddle for your not-for-profit organisation, including details of the grants provided by Paddle UK, please complete the form at the bottom of this page.

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AquaPaddle for Businesses

Commercial businesses can benefit greatly from running a regular AquaPaddle as it will provide a source of new customers, many of whom will be new to the sport and will return each week to take part.

For a full breakdown of costs involved in starting an AquaPaddle for your commercial business, including all necessary equipment required, please complete the form at the bottom of this page.

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Next steps

For more information on becoming an AquaPaddle Captain complete this form. You will receive an email containing more details and info about how to apply.

Costs & pricing

Full breakdown of all costs involved with starting a new AquaPaddle for your business or not-for-profit organisation.

Equipment checklist

List of all the equipment you'll need in order to run your AquaPaddle safely and efficiently.

Further information

We'll go into more depth about being a Captain so you can decide if it's right for you.

Request More Info Here