The shuttlecocks and racquets have been packed up as another year of badminton comes to an end at schools in Humboldt.Shaun Gardiner and his wife Karla have been coaching badminton at Humboldt Collegiate for three years. Despite not having any athletes make it to regionals or provincials, Gardiner was pleased with how the year went. "We are building a culture and we hope to build up to higher level competitions," he said.There were between 30 and 35 students playing badminton at Humboldt Collegiate this year, both boys and girls from all grades. Gardiner said the kids were constantly looking to get in the gym during the short badminton season, which only runs from March to May. At St. Augustine School, Brenda Bay, who teaches Grade 3 and Grade 8 art, has been coaching the badminton team for the past six years. Two of her teams had strong showings at district meets but none were able to qualify for regionals or provincials. That didn't stop the kids from enjoying themselves. "They absolutely love badminton," Bay said. "They always want to get in there and practise." St. Augustine, St. Dominic and Humboldt Public schools play against each other in badminton rather than travel long distances to other schools. This format creates friendly rivalries among the local schools, though it doesn't do much to cut down on the time commitment.In addition to teaching, Bay estimated she put in between 60 and 90 hours of volunteer time with the badminton teams. Two Humboldt Collegiate students helped out and even took over coaching duties at one point, but there's no doubt that volunteering as a coach turns teaching into a 24/7 kind of job. There are always opportunities for kids to work on their badminton skills over the summer, but many are preparing to lace up their shoes for the track and field season.
