Event Support

Paula Hubbard is an ACA L4 Coastal Kayaking Instructor with a rolling endorsement, lives on the Maryland Eastern Shore and regularly teaches Sea Kayaking in a variety of venues. She regularly volunteers as an instructor for the local paddle club and has been an instructor at Kiptopeke Sea Kayaking Symposium, Fingerlakes Paddlefest, and regularly offers classes through Cross Currents Sea Kayaking. Paula focuses on effective paddling techniques with an emphasis on using efficient body mechanics to minimize injury and offers several classes designed especially for women.

Paula started kayaking in the waters of the San Francisco Bay area and was initially certified as an L3 Instructor by Roger Schumann in 2008.  She was an instructor for California Canoe and Kayak until moving to Maryland in 2010.  After moving east she completed an L3 update in with Ben Lawry in 2012.  In 2013 Paula received the BCU 3* award and ACA L4 assessment.  She completed the upgrade to L4 with Sea Kayak Carolina in 2017.  In addition to teaching, Paula regularly attends other events to work on both personal paddling skills and teaching skills.

Sylvain has been an avid paddler for over 25 years. It is his dedication and passion for the sport which led him to the UK in 2012 where he was awarded the highest recognition in sea kayaking: the BCU 5 Star Leader Sea Kayak. Being the first Quebecer (and among a handful of Canadians) to receive this distinction has not shaken his conviction that there is always more to learn … from others, from the sea, and from oneself.

In addition to frequently paddling abroad, Sylvain remains an active member in the Quebec sea kayaking community. He has been on the FQCK program development committee since 2007, and was called in 2011 to participate in the development of the Route Bleue du Grand Montreal (one of the last sections added to the St.Lawrence Seaway).

Sylvain has been a P&H Team Paddler since 2011 and can frequently be found playing in the tumultuous waters of Maine and the UK.

Kelly is a surf obsessed, rough water loving, paddling fanatic. Her positive energy and enthusiasm for kayaking encourages and inspires both elite and novice paddlers alike. As a coach, she strives to help paddlers of all levels set goals, push boundaries, and find joy on the water. Kelly works full time in the paddlesports industry and currently coaches through several outlets including California Canoe & Kayak and River & Ocean. Kelly is passionate in her pursuit to get more women on the water and offers women’s specific sea and surf kayak programs in collaboration with California Women’s Watersport Collective. She recently assumed the role of Event Director for Paddle Golden Gate, the West Coast’s premier paddlesports symposium, and is excited to bring paddlers from across the United States and abroad together to enjoy her home waters.

In 2017, Kelly began broadening her paddling horizons and embarked on Fearless Formosa a 6-week coaching and sea kayaking adventure in Taiwan. There she shared her love of kayaking with the local community through a series of clinics and month-long
expedition spanning the island’s eastern coast. Kelly crushed her first year in the competitive surf kayak circuit and represented the United States in the 2017 World Surf Kayak Championships. She holds the following certifications: ACA Level 4 Open Water
Coastal Kayak Instructor, Level 3 Surf Kayak Instructor, and a Level 2 SUP Instructor, and is trained in Wilderness First Aid.

Matt Kane