Call us: +393202362896

ABOUT US

The Team and the history of Scuola Kayak & Rafting Friuli

OUR TEAM

IN THE WATER WITH MAXIMUM SAFETY

Constant training is our prerogative

The guides and instructors of Scuola Kayak & Rafting Friuli will accompany you along the crystalline rapids of the rivers of Friuli Venezia Giulia in extreme safety thanks to the constant training and training program created by Scuola Kayak Friuli and CUS Udine in 20 years of activity in the water!

READY TO ACCOMPANY YOU IN MAXIMUM SAFETY

OUR GUIDES AND INSTRUCTORS

Let's meet the Scuola Kayak & Rafting Friuli team!

Alessandro Merci

Always passionate about paddle sports, he is the founder and manager of Scuola Kayak & Rafting Friuli.

He coordinates and manages the River Canoe section of CUS Udine.

He lives on the Tagliamento, for which he is always ready to take the field with Laura and little Nicola. When he's not on the river he's probably tending the bees in the family business or wandering around the Friulian mountains.

II level FICK instructor for kayak and canoe polo.

UISP technician for rafting, packraft and Canadian canoeing.

Sport Guide at Assoguide.

Sirio Cividino

"The Canoe Man".

Sirio is probably one of the people who made the world of canoeing discoverable to more neophytes throughout Friuli Venezia Giulia.

An authentic volcano of ideas, we owe him the arrival of the packraft on the Tagliamento and, again thanks to him, various canoeing realities and canoe polo teams were born.

II level FICK instructor for kayak and canoe polo.

UISP technician for rafting, packraft and Canadian canoeing.

Sport Guide at Assoguide.

Dario de Caneva

Dario is one of our most empathetic guides and most capable of animating and entertaining the groups.

Very scrupulous about safety, he has experience of many rafting descents on the Tagliamento river and is also passionate about kayaking and river SUP.

A maths & computer science teacher during the winter months, he turns into a fantastic guide in the summer, especially for the kids.

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

Andrea Zamolo

Andrea is our private slalom champion!

From the successes in the 90s with the Canoa Club Udine to the construction of a reference reality for sport fishing in Friuli Venezia Giulia, Andrea has always been a man of the river.

In 2020 he meets SKF and starts the first Kayak Slalom project of CUS Udine, participating in various regional and national competitions.

Chantal Fresco

Chantal is a woman literally in love with the Tagliamento River, the Arzino and the area that is home to SKF.

Her life path has taken her from the shores of the sea of Genoa to the banks of the river in Pinzano al Tagliamento.

Drummer, activist, nature and cat lover, our "Cha" is always at the forefront of any project that can help defend territory and is a very empathetic guide capable of motivating... especially the little ones.

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

Cristian Merluzzi

True sportsman, lover of the mountains and life in the open air with his faithful caravan, Cristian is one of our reference instructors for Carnia.

He discovered the world of kayaking by taking a basic course with SKF and hasn't stopped since.

Enthusiasm, sharing and desire to lend a hand on all occasions are his main characteristics, every group that relies on him knows that fun is guaranteed!

UISP technician for kayak and packraft.

Alberto Sartori

Alberto_outdoor: this is the name that Alberto chose for his Instagram profile.

Alberto is by far our most experienced whitewater instructor, in love with kayaking, the river and the outdoors he can be found near the most spectacular rivers with his signature yellow van.

He has attended courses with some of the most important exponents of the European white water scene, also in the field of river safety.

His presence in our team is a guarantee of professionalism and constant improvement for the whole group.

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

Cristiano Perin

Cristiano is a guide who manages to combine river techniques with the skills of everyday life, transmitting a lot of security to the groups he follows.

A talented musician, he has fallen in love with the rivers of Friuli Venezia Giulia since his first descents in a Canadian canoe.

Cristiano is also always at the forefront of initiatives to protect the Tagliamento River

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

Mattia Tomasino

Mattia is "the guide" par excellence.

Aware of the realization that comes from life in the open air, he has directed his studies towards outdoor activities since his university days.

Founder of the "Wild Routes" collective of nature guides, he is also a geography teacher and guide for the Julian Pre-Alps Park.

CSEN technician for rafting.

AIGAE Environmental Excursion Guide

Leonardo Cerno

Leonardo is a "born" guide for life in the open air.

Passionate about hiking, mountaineering and "bushcraft" he has always managed and organized outdoor activities for children.

Leonardo is one of the founders of the collective of nature guides "Wild Routes", he is a guide for the Julian Pre-Alps Natural Park and since 2022 he has been the youth representative of EUROPARC.

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

AIGAE Environmental and Excursion Guide

Davide Bressan

The "handsome" of the team!

Davide is a top level canoe polo athlete, he has participated with the Canoe Polo team of CUS Udine and with other realities in championships up to the Italian A1 series.

A true athlete, he demands a lot from himself and from his teammates, he manages to convey energy and enthusiasm even in his role as a kayak instructor.

UISP technician for kayak and packraft.

Taras Scarsini

Taras is one of our reference instructors for the Carnia area.

Competent and very conscientious about safety, he tackles the river in a serious but not serious way.

Taras also approached the world of kayaking with SKF courses and fell in love with river activities so much that he also involved his family.

He expresses his best as an instructor in kayak courses, where he often finds innovative solutions to facilitate learning for the students.

UISP technician for kayak and packraft.

Chiara Vit

If there is an instructor capable of entertaining students while explaining the techniques of kayaking to them, this is Chiara!

Chiara discovered the world of kayaking together with some colleagues by attending a course with SKF and from there the transition to apprenticeship and then to becoming an instructor was very short.

Empathetic, funny and very engaging she is one of our reference instructors for the basic courses and if you are her pupils you will surely hear her tell the adventures of Orso, her legendary big dog!

UISP technician for kayak and packraft.

Elisa Ronchi

Elisa is one of our "Women with bars".

She is one of our instructors who has made being able to carry kayaks and canoes on the car bars a point of honor and pride!

Elisa is a girl with clear ideas, aware of her means and an excellent motivator for her students.

Whether it's for a kayak course or a packraft descent, Elisa always gives her best for the groups entrusted to her.

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

Federico Lisetto

""Liso" is one of the latest and best arrivals in the Scuola Kayak and Rafting Friuli team.

A student of our courses in 2019, he wanted to continue his journey in the river world by participating in various initiatives organized by SKF.

Versatile sportsman, lover of outdoor life and expert manager in daily life, he is a guide who instills serenity and safety in the groups he accompanies.

UISP technician for rafting and packraft.

OUR HISTORY

The history of Scuola Kayak Friuli begins in 2012 when the athletes and instructors of Canoe Polo of CUS Udine Sirio Cividino and Alessandro Merci decide to expand the CUS proposal with the offer of teaching and introduction courses to kayak and canoe...

THE STEPS OF THE ROUTE

2012/13

  • the first kayak courses for beginners begin
  • The first students found the Canoe Polo team "Bordano Bulls"
  • The collaboration with Camping Lago 3 Comuni begins

2014

  • The training course on Canadian canoeing is perfected through the UISP
  • the School enters "Gemona city of Sport" (Today "Sportland")
  • Begin teaching ESKIMO in the pool in collaboration with the Atlantis Acqua Center in Gemona

2015/16

  • The Bordano Bulls team transforms from amateur to competitive
  • The company participates in "Montagna in Città" at the Castle of Udine
  • The SKF training proposal is perfected
  • Some instructors of the School participate in the training of new FICK technicians

2017/18

  • The collaboration with Volo Libero Friuli begins to bring the canoe to "Acromax"
  • The Bordano Bulls team joins forces with Canoa Polo Cervignano, touching the Serie A1
  • The company begins to offer the "Summer Camps" and "Bachelorette" service

2019

  • The operational headquarters of the school moved to Pinzano al Tagliamento
  • The collaboration with the Piero Pittini Foundation begins to spread the practice of Kayaking to the children of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Region

2020

  • The company introduces packraft into its offering
  • The "Bordano Bulls" (now CUS Udine Canoa Polo) win the Canoe Polo Serie B championship on equal points with CMM Trieste (championship later canceled due to Covid-19)
  • The school instructors join Assoguide

2021

  • The company begins to operate continuously at the headquarters of the "Risorgive del Pradulin" in Portis di Venzone
  • The Instructor Team exceeds 10 units
  • The rafting activity on the Tagliamento and on the Fella resumes

2022

  • SKF is the leader in the organization of the "Tagliamento Libero" event, a non-competitive river descent that sees over 120 participants in the first edition
  • The Instructor Team reaches 15 units
  • The game of Raftball is invented and deposited, which allows SKF to propose inclusive sport in the "SPONC" project of the Italian University Sports Center

SOME NUMBERS...

1000+
PEOPLE STARTED TO PADDLE SPORTS
30+
RIVER OR LAKE KAYAKS
20+
REGISTERED AGONIST ATHLETES
25
PACKRAFT
15
INSTRUCTORS AND TEAM MEMBERS
20+
COMPETITIVE KAYAKS AND CANOES
RAFTS
3
TOURIST CANADIAN CANOES