Go west young men! Bow Valley Rugby Club’s U13 and U16 boys teams are set to embark on the trip of a lifetime as they head to Vancouver Island for a April 7 to 10 tour.

Go west young men!

Bow Valley Rugby Club’s U13 and U16 boys teams are set to embark on the trip of a lifetime as they head to Vancouver Island for a April 7 to 10 tour.

Thirty-four boys will be heading to Shawnigan Lake, where they will see what the top rugby facilities in the country have to offer.

“This is the second time we’ve done this trip,” said U16 coach Adrian Turner. “Shawnigan Lake is the premier rugby school in Canada, and some of our alumni players have gone to the school for rugby opportunities.”

While the trip is viewed as a learning opportunity for developing rugby enthusiasts, Turner says the trip is part of a bigger plan to expand rugby’s base here at home.

When Bow Valley was formed five years ago, rugby was virtually a non-entity in Cochrane, but since then, the club has steadily grown and now boasts 200 members in all age groups.

“We’re trying to grow a rugby culture within Cochrane and the surrounding areas,” he revealed. “We’re supportive of all other sports, but we want to showcase what rugby is and what it can be.

“Going to a place like Shawnigan – where Rugby Canada trains – is going to show our kids what the sport is all about.”

While out on the island, the club will be playing competitive matches against Shawnigan, as well as against two local sides. Last season, a girls team was involved in the trip, but this time around that is unfortunately not the case.

“It’s simply down to the fact that although we have enough girls interested, we don’t have enough coaches to make the journey,” Turner admitted.

Nonetheless, Turner believes there will be a lot for his boys to take in on the experience, as they will be facing some of the toughest competition they’ve come across yet.

“Playing against Shawnigan is purely a learning experience,” he said. “Against the other clubs at U16 level we feel we can compete. We did that on our first tour. Even though we didn’t come back with any wins we gave a very good account of ourselves.

“What we’re finding out now is even though we’ve only been in existence for five years a lot of our junior players started with us at U11 level and have progressed. As a result our U16s are very competitive, and we’re expecting some good performances.”

As for the U13s, Turner believes the experience will be a steep learning curve, which can do nothing but help them improve.

“That’s ultimately what our mindset is,” he said. “All we want to try and do is expose our junior players to what the best rugby looks like.

“Eventually, we want to improve to a high enough standard, and start operating facilities that will give teams from other provinces a chance to come here for an Albertan experience, much like the one we’re going to on the island.”