Kayak (n): a canoe made of a light frame with a watertight covering having a small opening in the top to sit in. Water polo (n): a game played by swimmers in a pool, with a ball like a volleyball that is thrown into the opponents net. Each is a relatively simple concept, but as Chemistry Teacher Andrew Irvine knows, combining the two makes things a bit more complicated.

On January 22, Irvine and his Kayak polo team won first place in Bay Area Regional Tournament, hosted at Shoreline Park in Mountain View. Kayak polo is unlike other water sports. The game, played year round, contains two halves, ten minutes long, during which two teams of five players compete using a water polo ball. The aim of the game is to score more goals than the opponent. Nets are suspended above the water at each end of the pitch. The sport can be played in open water or a swimming pool.

For Irvine, this unique sport has become routine. He discovered kayak polo in June of 2010, when his girlfriend’s landlord suggested for him to join the team due to his experience in water polo in high school and his interest in kayaking.

“I like the uniqueness of [kayak polo], in that no one else does it,” Irvine said. “So I’m like Tigger [… ]I’m the only one.”

At first, Irvine had a difficult time adapting to the game.

“My nickname on the team was Ship Wreck because the first time I [played], I probably flipped over 12-15 times,” Irvine said.

However, after several practices in all weather conditions, Irvine began to develop skill in the sport. After a couple months, he managed to achieve a hand roll, a maneuver which allows the boater to recover from a turnover without using a paddle.

Kayak polo is played worldwide; New Zealand is currently the home of the world’s best team. In the United States, there are teams present in California, New York, and Georgia. According to Irvine, the United States is not ranked very highly in terms of world status, and he was invited to the national level in order to fulfill the team’s need for players.

Despite the early practices and toughness of the sport, Irvine is embracing his stint as a kayak polo player, and he hopes to attend Nationals in August.

Irvine said, “for me, my goal is to not drown, get a little better, and keep moving forward.”