Origins
In 2001–2002 there was a convergence of ideas and events ignited by Greenland and sparking across the US from coast to coast.
TC Founder and Mentor
On the East Coast, the Delmarva Paddlers Retreat was becoming an all-Greenland forum, on the West Coast, SSTIKS (South Sound Traditional Inuit Kayaking Symposium) was forming, and in the Midwest, Dave was creating Qajaq TC. Excitement was generated by an unofficial Web site based on Qaannat Kattufiat, the Greenland kayak club formed in 1983 to keep traditional kayak skills alive. Plans were underway to create Qajaq USA, which would become an official chapter of Qaannat Kattuffiat.
So, wishing to promote the new Qajaq USA by bringing Greg to Michigan, and wanting to share kayak skills, Dave saw that there was one thing to do — create a training camp. He knew that the key to a strong Qajaq USA would be local events where people came together to train, share skills, and build boats and paddles — a mentoring system. He chose the name “Qajaq Training Camp” because of the training camps in Greenland (see video “Qajaq Klubben”), where small groups of competitors in the Greenland National Kayaking Championships would travel to an isolated location and practice. Also, he lived and kayaked in Traverse City, a few miles north of his planned camp.
With this kind of energy, Qajaq TC fell naturally into place. While talking to kayak guide Michael Gray, Dave learned about the ideal camp location, a camp bordering a small lake as well as Lake Michigan, and Michael offered to serve his gourmet cooking. Perfect!
Dave and Father Christmas - Turner
After six years, the same founding spirit exists — a system, led by highly skilled mentors, that encourages sharing of traditional kayak skills in a beautiful, isolated setting with good food. Training is fun! The hope is that participants go home to their communities and create their own local training camps, and this is happening everywhere, both in small groups and organized gatherings.
–by Diane Carr, as published in the Winter 2008 edition of Qajaq USA MASIK