Riverside Hockey Academy athletes working hard on and off the ice

The Riverside Hockey Academy has been working up a sweat weeks into their fall season. The group of athletes attended their first tournament of their 2015 season on November 6 at Eight Rinks in Burnaby. The tournament went well. “It’s a lot of fun to see the athletes come together in more of a team setting,” said teacher sponsor Mr. Mario Luongo. The team played other secondary schools offering the Hockey Academy program, such as Terry Fox, Pitt Medows Secondary and Centennial Secondary. The Athletes in the program are training five days out of the week and are spending three of those days on ice, working on skills and drills at the Wilson Recreation Center in Port Coquitlam. The other two days are spent doing dry-land training at Riverside; the class takes place either in the gym or in the classroom, learning different concepts such as setting goals, planning healthy diets and preventing injury. The Academy also takes field trips out into the community, such as to the Hyde Creek swimming pool and the Grouse Grind hiking trail. The instructors of the class are Mr. Jamie Askew and Mr. Jeremy Neufeld along with the instructors at RPM Hockey Training. “Having a class that is all about playing the sport I love is a dream,” said grade 9 student Anthony Van Hulsen. Many of the student athletes also play on community club teams. “Spending up to eight hours a week on ice takes a large toll on your body” said grade 9 Academy student Trevor Thirsk. Talk about a workout! The academy will also be having an all-day tournament with all the members on the last week of Christmas break. Even on top of such a busy schedule, many of the student athletes will also be trying out for the Riverside Hockey Club.