Am I Good Enough to Kayak with the New River Academy?
Intermediates may be intimidated when they first join New River Academy. We spend the first several days team building. Additionally, teachers meet individually with each student regarding their goals both academically and athletically. Our team is a support group that encourages everyone to progress and try new things. The confidence provided by this strong support group reaps remarkable results in self-confidence.
The New Kid at New River Academy
By: Sean Johnson
Being the new student at any school can be tough. I am a new student at New River Academy. I was a bit scared when I was first coming to meet up with the school on the way to Chile,
but I was also very excited.
I did not know anyone that attends the school, nor did I know if the students were nice. The first day I found out that they were, in fact, all nice.
The first few days were tough; I had never traveled with my kayak before and I was all disorganized. When we first arrived in Santiago, I was so excited to go boating, but unfortunately we had a 12-hour lay over for our flight to southern Chile. We finally reached Pucon, got a good night of sleep, and went boating the next day.
The school days with a traveling high school are much better than at a public school. We sleep in a little later, workout as a group, eat breakfast together, go to class until about 3 p.m., and then go boating until dinner. Life is good here at New River Academy; the water is great and the friendships are wonderful.
Being the new kid at this school does not even compare to being the new kid at a normal high school. Most people think they will be judged and rejected before getting to know the other students. Not here. Everyone greeted me with a smile from the start, and I felt like I was not the new kid, but a friend of theirs for a lifetime.
Sean Johnson is from Davis, California and is currently attending classes next to the Futaleufu River in Chilean Patagonia.
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“Huge Experiences creates a learning environment for pushing the limits of what’s possible in kayaking, by surrounding athletes with others who are passionate about kayaking and want to discover new moves.”
- Jimmy Blakeney, Professional Freestyle Kayaker
“My skills progressed more in the three weeks that I was in Canada, than in all my kayaking experiences. I enjoyed meeting all of the new people who are all incredibly knowledgeable, and outwardly helpful about kayaking.”
-Ali “Danger” Wade- National Champion, Runner-up World Champion, and International Championships Champion
"As parents, we appreciated the personalization of his curriculum, and the dedication of your staff in ensuring that all of the needed material was taught. The quarterly reports, and emails, also helped us gauge his progress, and provide encouragement and advice when needed. Our son's AP scores provide some solid proof that your holistic approach to education gives equal weight to academic training."
- Linda Anderson on her son Eric’s time spent at NRA.