Wey Kayak Club

Alex,Lucy & Oliver finish the H&H's season well !

2012-02-20T21:09:00.004Z

Well done to Alex for winning the clubs H&H's junior trophy !

Congrates also go to Lucy for winning the U12 award.

Great paddling from Oliver too who has gone from strength to strength .....

Well done !

P.S sorry the pics are a bit old - but Dan yours were a bit blurry !!

Dash Hounders end on a high !

2012-02-20T16:36:00.006Z

The Dash Hound winter series ended with the much anticipated awards & goodie bags ! Sadly Rachel Cawthorn was not able to make the prize giving this time but Jim stepped in to do the honours & Rachel very kindly signed 40 + photos so all had one to go with their medals!

Holly Hellyer & Jordon Martyn took away the U10's most improved awards, with Kuba Cranmer taking the u12 C1 most improved.

Special merit awards also went out to Ella Banks for being the youngest paddler to complete the series along with merit awards going to Oliver Ben Said, Henry Fieldus, Jasper & Felix Morgan. Oli Etheridge & Jack Roadly picked up awards for their determined efforts in a K2. Kuba was also awarded the special merit award on behalf of Eric for his true grit & determination in completing the series in C1.

(On later inspection of the times Josh Davenport u10,Samantha Martyn u12 & Tom Goldsack U12 have also been give awards, although Richmond paddlers won the most improved over all it was felt that Josh, Samantha & Tom should be awarded for there great gains over the series.)

A MASSIVE well done to all who took part you ALL did really well !

Fun on the slopes !

2012-02-20T15:59:00.011Z

The u14's had loads of thrills & spills on their half term skiing & donutting day.

The group of 30 were split into two & enjoyed an hour of donutting & then an hour of skiing !

2012-02-09T10:50:00.002Z

WATERSIDE & DW PADDLERS
Waterside A (12th Feb) is cancelled due to the canal being iced up.
Please refer to the Waterside website for latest info.

2012-02-05T20:21:00.001Z

February Marathons

12th Feb Waterside A 14 miles 21 portages. This race is run as a time trial and is a must if your proposing doing the DW this year. The race is only open to pre-entered crews, starting at Great Bedwyn and finishing at Newbury. The event this year is already over-subscribled There are changing facilities, with basic refreshments available at Newbury. The club does a great job running this series of races, and if you are competing I wish you well, and please ensure that your support crews observe the race officials instructions and park their cars considerately at portages.

18th Feb Marathon Training day at Norwich, specifically aimed at paddlers looking to represent GB in International races,

19th Feb Hare & Hounds and Dash hounds. Great winter series and preparation of the season 6 miles and 2 portages or 3 miles with no portages. These races suit all ages and ability of paddlers.

19th Feb Thameside 1. This is a 12mile race with 8 portages. Starts at Aldermaston and finishes at Reading Canoe Club. A good race like the waterside series this is run as a time trial, and is a good race to do if your doing DW. Reading Canoe Club. The portages generally are not to difficult however care is needed getting in at County Lock due to the high walls and there is a long run at the last portage. Support crews need to get to the finish early as the parking there is a bit limited. There are good changing facilities and refreshments available at the finish.

24th Feb Waterside B 19 miles 14 portages. This is hard race starting and finishing at Newbury, and often requires extended running on the return to Newbury. There are very low bridges and the canal can get very bumpy as you approach the turn, watch out for the returning crews. Parking at Newbury is a bit limited so get there early. This race is really for dedicated DW crews and experienced paddlers.

Have fun

Peter Gorman

U14's New Year's Eve Fancy Dress Paddle !

2012-01-09T10:51:00.005Z

The U14's braved the cold to dress up on New Year's Eve & go for a paddle - the costumes were all fantastic !
Special mention should go to Roy Fieldus who brought a touch of class to the occasion wearing black tie & serving drinks - yup they were attached to the front of his kayak !

But everyone agreed that the outright winner should be MIKI for his fabulous ensemble & throwing himself into the spirit of things - your my kinda guy - um girl Miki !

Harry Potter looking rather glum as we had told him he had to ditch his broomstick !

U14's Christmas Party went with a BASH !

2012-01-09T10:23:00.016Z

The u14's had a 'bashing'time at their Christmas Party -

lots of fun & games along with a giant 'Pillow Bash' which always goes down well !

Not sure if the head gear is going to catch on though !

Looks like lots of 'E' numbers have been consumed !!

Alex & Ella show what happens when you eat too much junk food !!!!!!

Record Number of Canoeists at Wey !

2011-12-05T10:05:00.020Z

There was a record number of 20 canoeists at Wey competing in the Dash Hound & H&H's this weekend!

All three canoe coaches Eric, Gabor & John joined by Andy Bonham jumped in to crew with our junior canoiests Kuba,Miki,Saira & Katie in the Dash.

All did incredibly well, with no swimmers - although the 'Drednought' that Miki & Eric were paddling has now been re-named the 'Titanic'!

The turn was obviously the most challenging for all & carnage could have prevailed but all managed admirably!

WELL DONE to all we think you are super stars!

The Hare & Hounds saw 'Big Joe' storming through with Max & Joe C2 in hot pursuit - well done guys !

The Hound Grows in Size !

2011-11-08T08:46:00.018Z

The u14's Dash Hound race series only in it's 2nd year boasts 51 young paddlers on the start line !

Twenty four of them were Wey kayaker's - all paddled incredibly well,

especially as there was an added element to the race this year called 'fishing line challenge', if fact 'little'Ella actually got hooked & reeled in !

We were also incredibly lucky to have no less than 7 junior canoeists take part in the race , with Kuba,Miki, Katie & Saira being the Wey contingent with their very proud coaches John & Eric paddling along side to give encouragement.

Special mention should go to Miki who I'm sure is the first ever Wey paddler to take part in a C1 race & then jump straight out & into a kayak to do the Hare & Hounds !

Start line mayhem !

Massive WELL DONE to all that took part !

Must not forget Holly, Alex,Lucy,Oliver & Gabi who did the Hare & Hounds - Wey to Go !

Matt The Motivator !

2011-11-04T09:37:00.004Z

Matt Welch one of our elite senior paddlers very kindly took time out of his busy training regime with the GB squad (& dare I say filming schedule - watch out for him on a bill board near you in the near future !) to come & do a workshop with the U14's.

He concentrated on some key core stability exercises that they could use through the winter months when doing circuits . Then got them all on the 'ergo' & gave lots of useful tips & advice on technique.

Unfortunately I forgot to take a picture of Matt in action on the ergo with the kids sitting all around watching him rack the speed up - you'll have to take my word for it they looked very motivated to me !

Matt a big THANK YOU from Pam & all the kids, we think you're great !

Mum's the word !!!

2011-11-01T09:20:00.004Z

The U14's had their last Thursday water based paddle for the winter & managed to combine it with some Halloween mayhem when off the water !

Guess who's under the loo roll ????

Elmbridge Marathon 2011

2011-11-01T09:06:00.013Z

A great turn out from the younger members of the club at Elmbridge Marathon .....here are pics. of just a few

Well done to all who took part !

VIP Visit !

2011-10-14T12:13:00.004+01:00

The U14's had a VIP join them on their session this Thursday, Rachel Cawthorn - so special in fact she brought with her, her own film & radio crew - (the BBC are making a documentary that will go out in January about Olympic hopefuls & the kids were lucky enough to be filmed in action with her!)

Rachel found time in her busy schedule to come & give the kids a few tips on technique & then joined them on the water for a series of sprint races . She had a 'race off' with the girl's & boy's K4's which proved to be great fun & then couldn't resist having a go in a K4 herself!

The kids LOVED having her at the club & we would all like to say a big THANK YOU to Rachel for spending time with us & being such a good sport.

Don't Ask !!!

2011-10-05T08:51:00.004+01:00

I'm not sure if those are the traditional rituals that go with Sumo .......................... !

Sweaty Sumo !

2011-10-05T08:44:00.003+01:00

Lots of fun to be had for the U14's to help Ella celebrate her 11th birthday ! Started off very wild & wet with lots of games on the river & finished (on one of the hottest days of the year !!) with Sumo wrestling... or should I say Sweaty Wrestling !

Canoe Boys Shine Again !

2011-09-16T09:20:00.004+01:00

The squad of four junior canoeist brought home a large haul of medals from the last National Regatta up at Nottingham :

Joe - 3 golds in c2 200m,500m & 1000m (fantastic results especially after a long illness)

Luke - Gold U18 C1 200m

Bronze U16 C1 200m

Bronze U16C1 500m

Max/Elliot - Bronze C2 200m

Elliot/Luke -Bronze C2500m

Silver for all in the C4 1000m - well done boys !

They are now having a well earn't rest for a couple of weeks & planning a friendly paintball match Wey v Richmond - no injury's please !!!

Olympic Test Event at Dorney Lake,Eton

2011-09-05T18:25:00.003+01:00

Rachel Cawthorn ,Johnny Schofield & Liam Heath pictured here with some of our U14's who had gone along to cheer them on at the Olympic Test Event held at Dorney Lake on Saturday.

Lets hope that their great performances will not only inspire the U14's to keep canoeing but also be replicated next year at the real thing!

BREAKING NEWS ! Katie & Saira Beat Joe & Luke in their First Ever C2 Race !

2011-08-26T11:33:00.007+01:00

The photo proves it & they do say the camera never lies.......... well this one might just a little bit (Joe tells me that they were giving coaching tips to the girls during their final mixed C2 race - yeah right Joe !) .

Now for the serious stuff .......

Katie & Saira joined Max, Joe & Luke by competing at the first ever C1/C2 Sprint Regatta at Wokingham Canoe Club & came away with an amazing 1st place in the C2 500m & 2nd in the C2 200m with prize money to boot !!

Well done girls you were FANTASTIC ! I know I've said it before but boys you better watch out !

Eric Dust's Off His First (1984!) Olympic Blazer to Attend Chinese Mini Olympic Event at Spectrum

2011-08-26T08:39:00.012+01:00

Eric our 'Tri- Olympian' was asked by Boxgrove School to be the guest of honour at the Mini Chinese Olympics held at the Guildford Spectrum. Both he & Anne Milton our local MP kicked the event off with motivational speeches.

650 children from 4 Guildford schools attended the event & all participated in fun physical activities. The day had a Chinese influence as all the schools had been forging links with schools in Shanghai over the last year.

The main aim of the event was to motivate & encourage children to be inspired by the up and coming Olympics & to participate in sport.

Eric & Anne spent the morning mingling with the kids & teachers & Eric even managed to get the Head Teacher's Paul Bull from Boxgrove & John Abbott from Bushy Hill to agree to come down the club in September & see which one could go the maximum distance in a sprint canoe .....so watch this space ??

P.S. & the blazer still fits !!!!! (if you don't button it up that is !)

All In A Day

2011-08-23T15:01:00.005+01:00

Bacon butties all round ...... except for Clare, well Eric says "if you snooze you loose" but maybe she had a little sleep to catch up on !

The crew taking a morning stroll along the river & waking up all the house boats along the way !

All ready for the journey back home, this time in the sun ............

Pam & Eric would like to say a BIG 'thank you' to all the mum's & dad's who helped put up/take down tents,Roy for lending us his tent, Caroline for bringing along the picnic lunch, Ade, Ewan & Dave for paddling with the kids & Clare for putting up with not getting much sleep ! x

The Tardis Tent !

2011-08-23T14:47:00.003+01:00

Eric looking like he needs a lie down !

Note the precaution of leaving the stinky trainers OUTSIDE the tent !

And So to Bed ..........eventually !!!

2011-08-23T13:19:00.011+01:00

Anja leading the campsite sing along after all devoured a MOUNTAIN of mash-mellows !

..............and who's stupid idea was that (Pam) coz this is the result !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Anja I think you needed ear muffs as-well !

Jack you're not kidding any one & Alex the bag suits you !

And these girl's look just soooooo tired... ......

next time we're defiantly going to paddle longer !

U14's First Canoe Camping Trip 2011

2011-08-23T13:01:00.005+01:00

Fifteen of our U14's braved the initial down-pore on Saturday 20th August & set off on their first 'Canoe Camping Trip' from Addlestone Canoe Club.

Even in torrential rain there was much fun & laughter to be had & when they paddled around the bend near Chertsey Bridge the sky miraculously cleared to a beautiful blue sky ready for the tents to be put up !

Pictured here celebrating Eimhear's 12th Birthday (yummy cake Eimhear!) are Jack,Matt,Livie,Anja,Hannah,Eimhear,Samantha,Ella,Holly,Alex,Henry,Oliver,Adam,Jordan & Josh .

Promotion for Miki !

2011-07-07T13:35:00.005+01:00

Big WELL DONE to Miki for being promoted to Lightening A on his first outing !

Wey to go !

Welcome Time Out

2011-07-07T13:32:00.004+01:00

After all that racing at least we got a bit of time out - thanks to all those who made the BBQ possible x

Watch out Miki !

2011-07-07T13:29:00.004+01:00

Eric, Gabor & John might try to poach you !

Somebody tell coach Marcus that the paddle goes the other way round though !!

Forget U14's We've got an U2's !!!

2011-07-07T13:25:00.004+01:00

Miki's little sis shows that you are never too young to take up kayaking !

Lucy,Gabi,Miki & Kuba Rocket into First place !

2011-07-07T13:14:00.006+01:00

Lucy, Gabi, Miki & Kuba storm through in 1st place in the rocket K4 with Olivia & Isla joining force with a pair from Worcester nearly pipping them at the post, Isla in her début Nottingham Regatta aswell !!

Alex, Ella, Holly & Ophelia hot on their heels coming in 4th place - Well done all.

Fantastic Four - We've got a Fantastic Eight !

2011-07-07T13:03:00.007+01:00

We saw all 8 mini K1 paddlers in a final - F1 saw Miki come storming through in 3rd place with kuba coming 7th

F2 saw Lucy 1st, Gabi 2nd,Holly 3rd,Alex 4th,Ella 6th & Ophelia 7th !!

Wey to go !!

Timing is Everything !!

2011-07-07T12:50:00.008+01:00

Alex, Ella, Holly & Ophelia who came 4th in the K4 (& support crew Sam the birthday boy !)

showing that they got the timing right - eventually !!

Great race - well done !

Bring on the Old (sorry guys) & the New !!

2011-07-07T12:41:00.005+01:00

Pictured here our budding new athletes Ella & Holly, Alex & Ophelia with a couple of old masters in the background (who paddled rather well for a couple of oldies !!)

Boys D Do Good !

2011-07-07T12:21:00.004+01:00

Dan, Jack & Oliver competed in Boys D under the watchful eye of Marthe.

The competition was tough but the boys coped brilliantly, especially since this time last year they had only just come off the beginners courses !

Pictured here in the K4 with Miki coming in 8th place in the final.

Blaze of Yellow & Blue at the Inter Club Regatta 2/3July

2011-07-07T11:55:00.005+01:00

Thirteen of the U14's came to compete at the Inter Club Regatta in Nottingham - and what a difference they made, even if the sun had not been shining we would have needed sunglasses as they blazed their way down the regatta course in our club colours !

A huge WELL DONE to them all!

Pictured here five K2's in the Mini Kayak races !

K2 final saw Miki & Kuba coming through in 3rd place with Gabi & Lucy hot on their heels in 8th !

Fantastic Four !

2011-06-21T12:37:00.004+01:00

The Wey girls K4 looking good as usual with Gabi , Holly, Ella & new recruit Anja in her début

race !

They raced 200m & then turned straight around & did the 500m !

Well done girl's.......

C1 Race Report Reading/Wokingham Sprint Regatta

2011-06-21T11:05:00.004+01:00

Great sprinting from a rather depleted C1 squad ! Elliot up a mountain for DofE (now got the blisters to prove it & Max getting over yet another cold).

In the 200m TT Joe was very fast off the block in 52.00 & Luke not far behind with a 55.00. The 500 TT luke got the upper hand with a 2.31 this time Joe not far behind with a 2.33.

In the 200m race the boys did not race together Joe came 4th 52.00 with Luke 3rd in his race with a 55.00.

Separate races again 500m saw Joe 3rd with 2.33 Luke 4th 2.31.

They jumped in a c4 with paddlers from Wokingham - all good experience for the up and coming Nottingham Inter Club Regatta 2/3 July - lets hope the squad will be firing with all four cylinders for that one !

Well done guys ......

Eric, Gabor & John

Fish for Supper ?

2011-06-21T10:11:00.002+01:00

Matt really looking like he's going to 'spear that fish' !!

Dan the Man !

2011-06-21T10:08:00.003+01:00

Now girl's this is 'race reparation' Dan looking very thoughtful coming up to the line !

Ready Steady GO !

2011-06-21T10:00:00.003+01:00

It's all action on the start line for Oliver (no.18) , Holly (no. oops!) & Ella (no.30) .. way to go !

Lots of Fun to be Had !

2011-06-21T09:53:00.004+01:00

The u14's show it's not all work and no play when racing at the Reading Sprint Regatta - where's your 'race preparation guys ' I here Eric say !!!!!

U14 Race Report from Reading/Wokingham Sprint Regatta

2011-06-21T09:17:00.008+01:00

Some fantastic results from our u14's .........

Full race results found on :http://www.reading-canoe.org.uk/

big WELL DONE to:

Dan James 3rd 200m 2nd 500m

Oliver Banks 1st & 1st

Kuba Cranmer 3rd & 3rd

Alex Bicknell 2nd & 2nd

Jack Oliver 1st & 1st

Gabi de Ferrer 4th & 4th

Ella Jamieson 2nd & 3rd

Holly Hellyer 3rd &2nd

Anja Cox 4th & 4th

Matt Patto 2nd & 2nd

Isla Ward 4th & 3rd

Rebekha Morley 3rd & 2nd

A special mention to Anja (no.32) , Rebekha (no.27) & Isla (no.34) who were racing for the first time, they all paddled exceptionally well & tried their hardest !

Personal Bests All Round From the Wey C1 Squad !

2011-06-14T17:31:00.006+01:00

In the C2 1000m with the Joe / Luke crew came threw in a PB of 4.39 from Max and Elliot in second in 4.51 .

C1 200m followed with all the Wey squad getting through the heats to the finals. Joe came second getting a PB in 55.6 pushing the older Ryan Hunt all the way .Luke came 4^th in 58.6 with Elliot 7^th and Max 9^th, all doing very well considering conditions. Elliots performance was very noteworthy as he overcame some problems prior to the start to produce a great race.

C2 200m followed next, normally the Elliot / Max crew are fastest out the blocks but failed to line the boat up well enough prior to the start, so there start was not up to usual standards. This did not deter them and they came in ¾ length down on the well deserved winners Joe and Luke. Both crews produced PB’s in 52.3 and 54.3 respectively. End of day one and including heats Joe was on fire and produced 4 PB’s.

The following day started off with C4 500m, after a difficult start the squad came through to achieve a Wey Junior best time of 2.09 !

The C1 race followed & was a straight final, Luke again showed his mastery of the conditions to come in second place behind Ryan Hunt of RLS. Joe lost a bit of form from the previous day and came 4th with Max 6^th and Elliot 7^th. Both Max and Elliot produced PB’s in 2.56 and 3.02 which considering the difficult conditions, and that Max’s boat was turned by a tsunami wave at the start to restart and overtake some other competitors and nearly catch Sam Rippington on the line was very impressive.

Last race of the day was the C2 500m where Max and Elliot took the C2 Wey junior record with a time of 2.21 coming in second just behind the Rippington /Suttle crew in conditions where I was personally pleased to be on the bank !

All in all the C1 squad showed some great boatman-ship to prevail over the conditions and came away with many PB’S .

Well done to all - and bring on the club champs where we expect further improvements in their times.

Eric, John & Gabor

Ella & Livies Pre-Race Tension !

2011-06-14T11:24:00.004+01:00

Obviously Ella & Livie were struggling here with their pre-race tension at the June Notts Regatta - this was taken just before they did their début K2 500m race !

Way to go girls ........

Quackers !!!

2011-06-13T09:45:00.004+01:00

Watch out Rag's you might be upstaged by a DUCK !!

Lana Steps into the Frame !

2011-06-13T09:39:00.004+01:00

Looks like Rag's may have to step up his game as there is some competition on the 'cutest' club mascot front from 'Lana' !!

Lightening Lovelies at Nottingham !

2011-06-09T11:47:00.004+01:00

Gabi, Lucy & Ella rafted up waiting for their first race of the day - and they are still smiling !

The Boys are Back !

2011-06-09T11:43:00.002+01:00

Is that a 'Race Face 'Joe - or is it just that nasty whiff in the air !!

Our Wey Girl's 'Rocket' Off the Start Line ! !

2011-06-09T11:36:00.005+01:00

Gabi, Lucy, Ella & Livie certainly 'rocketed' out the blocks in their K4 race up at the June Regatta !

Way to go girls !

Rag's to Riches ??

2011-06-09T11:32:00.003+01:00

Could this be Rag's our loyal Wey mascot's big break into TV & advertising or will TESCO snub the pooches best efforts at 'bagging' some sponsorship ...... Watch this space ?????

K2 Race :Gabi, Lucy, Ella & Livie Go Sea Kayaking !

2011-06-09T11:19:00.005+01:00

Well that's what it looked like up at the Nottingham June Regatta ! The girls did a fantastic job of getting to the start line in one piece. Both crews paddled really well & seemed totally undeterred by the odd wave coming over the boats ! Should also mention that it was Ella & Livie's début Regatta - well done girls!

Livie Braves the Waves !!!

2011-06-08T17:04:00.004+01:00

My first regatta up at Nottingham!

I paddled K2 with Ella and K4 with Gabby, Lucy and Ella.

I was rather nervous and the conditions were quite rough, but I felt very excited and it was a great adventure. We didn’t win, but there’s always next time!

Livie Croucher aged 9

Girl's C4 in the Making ?

2011-06-07T11:32:00.006+01:00

While up at the June Regatta in Nottingham Gabi De Ferrer, Lucy Tozer,Olivia Croucher & Ella Jamieson all managed in-between races to have a go in the new 'Ludock' beginner canoe.

All did exceptionally well, managing to paddle comfortably up on both knees - next time one knee girls !

For those U14's who are coming up to the July Regatta keep an eye out for the participation lists (main foyer) & have a go too!

Reading Marathon 29/05/11

2011-06-03T08:54:00.002+01:00

Wey C1 boys promoted

A great race between Joe and Luke saw their positions alter during the race with Joe ultimately beating Luke by 30 seconds. If Joe was 5 seconds quicker he would have had a double promotion to division 7. Max did not have his best race, but this was all good experience for the future. All the C1 squad are capable of being promoted to division 7 this year if they train hard .The next marathon is at Royal Kingston on the 12th june which the club have to do well in to ensure they qualify for the Hassler finals later on the year.

Well done boys !
Eric,Gabor & John

Reading Marathon 29/05/11

2011-06-03T08:30:00.003+01:00

Massive well done to Ophelia Hansen- Hamilton, Alex Bicknell, Oliver Banks & Miki Marciniak .

Ophelia paddled well in the Lightening event coming 4th place.

Miki, Oliver & Alex all paddled well, Miki storming in at 48.02 23rd place, Oliver not far behind in 49.36 26th place & Alex who is only 10 ! coming in 30th with a time of 54.21 !

Well done to you all,

Pam, kathryn & Eric

Fantastic Effort from Kuba at Elmbridge Half Marathon !

2011-05-22T15:46:00.002+01:00

I did the Elmbridge Half-Marathon at Easter. The race was really fun! Unfortunately I fell in at one of the portages (my Dad's fault although he did the others reasonably OK) and at one point I had an entire tree on my rudder! Despite that I finished at 2:29:59 and met my target of £500 for the NSPCC.

Kuba Cranmer.

Well done Kuba !

From Jack Warner about his first Elmbridge Sprints !

2011-05-18T15:03:00.001+01:00

I had a brilliant time and it was awesome. My favourite bit was the time
trials. Cannot wait until the next time!!!!

Jack Warner

2011-05-17T18:00:00.000+01:00

Wey C1 squad proves themselves again !
Although the squad was depleted due to forth coming exams Max and Elliot performed exceptionally well.

The event commenced with the time trials over 200m and 500m .Max came second out of all the 15 and under C1's in both trials even though he is 2 years younger than the winner Richard Buckley of Richmond. Elliot came 3rd in the 200m and 4th in the 500m.
Max did 1.05 and 2.43 respectively and Elliot did 1.09 and.2.48
In the head to head races saw a race of 6 C1's start the C1 500m event. Many watched in anticipation of carnage but all the athletes showed great skill and the out come was a very clean and close race .Max came out of the blocks fastest , but was overhauled by Richard of Richmond who just beat Max by less than a length with Elliot less than a length behind Max in 3rd place.
200m head to head races were set with the fasted 3 racing each other followed by the next fastest in the following race.
This meant a head to head with Richard , Max and Elliot. The race started with Max again fastest out the blocks but Elliot showed again what a great racer he is by over coming all with a fantastic win with Max just behind Richard.

Well done to the boys !
Eric, Gabor & John

Elmbridge Sprints 14th May 2011 U14 Report

2011-05-17T13:20:00.005+01:00

We had 16 of our U14's (inc. Eilis from Allan's group !) & 2 C1 paddlers all attend the Elmbridge Sprints !

It was a very hectic start loading all the boats - but all arrived in tact at Elmbridge thanks to Mike C !

The guys did time trials for 500m & 200m which enabled them to be seeded into races. All did incredibly well-with special mentions to Jack Oliver who came 1st in both his races along with Alex Bicknell & Eilis Byrne doing the same !

We also managed to christen both our brand new Rocket K4's by racing the 3000m with a girls crew of Alice Fellows, Holly Hellyer, Lucy Tozer & Ella Jamieson AND a boys crew of Oliver Banks, Alex Bicknell, Adam Raven & Jack Oliver. All paddled incredibly well & were exhausted at the end BUT not as exhausted as Pam who (tried) to follow them all the way round & failed miserably only just managing to keep them in sight- next purchase should be an outboard motor for the coaches !!

Also very special mention to Jack Warner for competing so well especially as he has only been paddling with the group for a few weeks !

WELL DONE TO YOU ALL

Elmbridge Sprints 14th May 2011 C1 Results

2011-05-17T13:05:00.003+01:00

Wey C1 squad proves themselves again !

Although the squad was depleted due to forth coming exams Max and Elliot performed exceptionally well.
The event commenced with the time trials over 200m and 500m . Max came second out of all the 15 and under C1's in both trials even though he is 2 years younger than the winner Richard Buckley of Richmond. Elliot came 3rd in the 200m and 4th in the 500m.
Max did 1.05 and 2.43 respectively and Elliot did 1.09 and.2.48
In the head to head races saw a race of 6 C1's start the C1 500m event. Many watched in anticipation of carnage but all the athletes showed great skill and the out come was a very clean and close race . Max came out of the blocks fastest , but was overhauled by Richard of Richmond who just beat Max by less than a length with Elliot less than a length behind Max in 3rd place.
200m head to head races were set with the fasted 3 racing each other followed by the next fastest in the following race.
This meant a head to head with Richard , Max and Elliot. The race started with Max again fastest out the blocks but Elliot showed again what a great racer he is by over coming all with a fantastic win with Max just behind Richard.

Well done to the boys !
Eric, Gabor & John

Photos kindly being allowed to be publish by Antony Edmonds at aephotos.co.uk

2011-05-11T09:38:00.003+01:00

Watch Out Boys !

Lucy Tozer , Ella Jamieson & Katie-Hayman Joyce all took part in a taster session for C1 while up at the May Nottingham Regatta and they looked pretty good boys - so watch out !!

Lucy Tozer did really well as our lone Lightening paddler (here's hoping she will have a lot more Wey youngsters paddling at the July regatta to keep her company !) She came 8th in the 500m final & bravely jumped in a K2 for the 500m coming 3rd with a paddler from another club - well done Lucy !

Great Results from the Wey C1 Squad at Nottingham May Regatta

2011-05-11T09:05:00.007+01:00

Well Done !

C1 200m all 4 athletes get personal bests Luke coming 4^thin 57.3, Joe 6^th in 59.18 , Max 7th in 1.01,9 and Elliot 8th in 1.02.7

C2 200msaw the Luke / Joe crew come 2^nd in 54.1 beating the Max / Elliot crew in 3^rd 54.3 only coming past them in the last few strokes , all with personal bests

C2 1000m Luke and Joe came2^nd in 4.51 and Max and Elliot 3^rd in 5.04.

C4 500m saw the Wey crew controlling the race, coming home 1^st in 2.20 dominating the Richmond boat all the way.

Sunday saw conditions considerably worsen but all the boys did fantastically well

C1 500m Luke winning a 2^nd place in 2.52 just behind the winner and Joe 3^rd in 3.01.Elliot came a very commendable 8^th in the worst lane in3.46.

C2 500m saw the power of the older crew from Wokingham winning , but Joe and Luke came 2^nd while Max and Elliot in their first regatta together come 4^th in 3.00 minutes.

In total we had 7 new personal bests and conquered some very challenging conditions on Sunday .

John , Gabor and myself realise that as long as the guys keep up the training it will only be a matter of time until we are beaten by the boys!

Marcus and his Richmond crew will trying to reverse the results in the coming races especially the nationals in July and September Macgregor paddle events so let’s disappoint him again

Congratulations to all the boys- keep up the training !

Eric, Gabor & John

Weyside 2011

2011-04-03T23:07:00.005+01:00

A select troupe of paddlers turned up on 3^rd
April to take up the 2011 Weyside Challenge. The challenge
is a 28 mile course starting from the Waterside Centre,
to paddle downstream over five locks to Pyrford Lock and back
to continue on upstream over a further three locks to
Farncombe finally to return to the Waterside Centre.

One K2 crew chose to paddle the 17 mile downstream leg (to
Pyrford), three K1s and three K2 crews chose to paddle the 11
mile upstream leg (to Farncombe) and one lone paddlers
decided to take on the whole 28 mile distance. This might
not have been a wise move and in retrospect Malcolm probably
wishes he had called it a day on passing the Waterside Centre
the first time!

Name	Class	Pyrford & back (11 miles)	Farncombe & back (17 miles)	Weyside (28 miles
Malcolm Blowers (MER)	K1	3:31:33	2:54:25	6:25:58
John Lea/David Waterfield (WEY)	Vet K2	3:59:49
James Cordery (WEY)	K1		1:33:28
Shane Houting (WEY)	K1		1:40:01
Chris Simpson / Emily Gillmer (WEY)	K1		1:47:28
Kim Hollman / Adrian Hollman (MER)	Jnr/Vet K2		1:55:40
James Halliwell (WEY)	Jnr K1		1:55:59
Dave Halliwell / Charlie Halliwell (WEY)	Jnr/Vet K2		1:58:32

2011 Racing Calendar

2010-12-03T11:11:00.001Z

The Racing Calendar is now up on the marathon canoeing website.

Hare and Hounds 2 (28 December)

2010-11-29T10:57:00.006Z

While much of the country was either snowed in or iced up the second Hare and Hounds ran as normal on the river Wey in Guildford. A handicap start from outside the clubhouse, portage over Millmead lock, turn at St Katherine's Lock (where the ice was just beginning to form) and all the way back to a hot shower, coffee and a bacon butty. 10 km in all, or 9.6 km if you have a GPS and want to be pedantic.

There is a link to the results here while our WebMaster has something better to do than sit in front of a keyboard.

Results

U14's Dash-Hound & H&H's

2010-11-09T10:06:00.002Z

Well done to all the U14's who raced our new Dash-Hound Race Series along with the Hare & Hounds.

We had 15 kids taking part, all doing incredibly well. (There were a couple of 'old girls' who the kids had taken along for the ride, but I reckon they need to ditch those two a.s.a.p. !)

We got really positive feed back from the other two clubs who took part & all the kids seemed to thoroughly enjoy the friendly competition !( Matt & Charlie I thought you were supposed to be mates !!)

Huge well done to Kuba Cranmer for getting the u10 race record on his first attempt ! Well done to Dan James who also did the full H&H's & still had a smile on his face when he finished !

Other U14's who got records where Joe Hayman-Joyce C1 U14 (Max J said he enjoyed getting the record for 60 seconds ! & watch out next time Joe Boy !!)

Gabi De Ferrer u10 also got the record with impressive style !

See you all next time !

Pam, Kathryn & Alison

2010-11-08T09:57:00.001Z

First Dash-hound race:

'Kayak races are really good fun because you are racing with all your friends and just competing against yourself. When I did my race it was really good because when I got into town people were there looking and cheering and shouting nice things!'

Isla Ward (aged 9 soon to be 10 !!)

2010-10-31T20:54:00.001Z

Today I took part in the first Wey U14’s Biathlon, a 3km paddle to Seven Arches and a 2km run around the ‘big block’. This was my first home race after taking part at Richmond last week.

I paddled well and I had got ahead by a couple of places when I came off the water for the start of the run. The run was tiring but managed to find some energy for the finish.

I came 1^st in the U10 boys’ race and 6^th overall. It was great being presented my trophy by Rachel Cawthorne.

I enjoyed taking part, although it would have been nice if the sun was shining!

BY ALEX BICKNELL

Richmond Hasler 23/10/10

2010-10-28T08:49:00.002+01:00

Kuba Cranmer's Post on the Richmond Race

I was a little more confident because it was my second race so I knew more what i was doing, but I still felt a little nevous.

At first i thought that I woudn't be able to keep up with them, but I managed it more or less by conserving my strength till i got round the second island and past the bridge.

I now see what they mean by river conjestion.

I really appreciate the support I was given - thanks to all the people cheering me on I managed it.

I would recommend racing to everybody out there, it's incredible fun.

thank you all,

kub(a)

Richmond Hasler 24/10/10

2010-10-28T07:45:00.002+01:00

Ten of our U14's (plus Max J) bravely competed in the Richmond Hasler last Sunday. They all took it very much in their stride- I was far more nervous than they were! Kuba Cranmer & Alex Bignell raced the U10 lightening Race coming 3rd & 4th ! Josh snell, Jack Oliver & Rian Butler raced the u12 all doing incredibly well, Rian getting 2nd place.

Matt Esselens & Charlie Singlton raced the U12, K2 & looked like they had been paddling together for years rather than weeks ! Alice Fellows & Ella Jamieson paddled U10, K2 & looked very comfortable together, coming 3rd. Max J did really well in Div 9 coming in 1st placed Canoe. Well done guys! They are all now looking forward to competing in the H& H's over the winter.

Helen Weston & myself also raced at Richmond together only for the second time, with much trepidation, as virtually everyone we spoke to had a bad word to say about the conditions there!

We started well- well we didn't fall in, & quickly saw off a couple of mad teenagers from Richmond. We paddled on in our own unique style 'grannies on a day out' & finished in 2nd place.

Meanwhile we understand that although we had got away from the mad,bad teenagers Amanda & Alison hadn't & they ended up being paddle battered - drawing blood ! & pushed into the trees! Sorry girls- but as Eric says "A win's a win!" well almost- the K2 in front of us was so far in front it felt like one to me! Oh & according to Dave Halliwell & son their race was greatly impinged by a hole in the boat - yes Dave it's called a cockpit ! (Only joking Dave !) Happy paddling - sort of , Pam

2010-04-13T19:54:00.007+01:00

In addition to Isobel and Naomi’s achievements in the K2 and Phil’s heroic effort in doing over 1000 200m races in a row, credit is also due to a couple of other Wey paddlers.

James Dunlop was aiming to do the Senior Doubles but his training partner had to pull out injured (a dislocated shoulder which apparently plays havoc with the technique) a few weeks before the race. Undeterred, James climbed into one of the club’s K1s and finished the K1 Senior event in under 24 hours in 35^th place, with no capsizes, which given the fact that he’s only got a few months kayaking experience and was repeatedly attacked by a swan on the pound is some achievement.

Shane Thomas was also aiming to compete in the Senior Doubles but his paddling partner was sent off to Saudi Arabia or somewhere not renowned for its kayaking so he press-ganged a mate with no paddling experience whatsoever into joining him. Waterside B was one of their first outings and the DW was a mere 6 weeks later. Shane and Simon set off from Devizes just after 7am on Easter Saturday, had a bit of a “rest” at Old Windsor when they realised that they weren’t going to make the morning tide at Teddington, finally finishing at Westminster at 22.48 Sunday evening, having paddled the tideway in the dark. That’s over 39 hours. Hats off to them for sticking with it and not giving up.

By all accounts they’ll all be back next year for more when hopefully we'll be able to enter an armada of senior doubles....

2009 Hasler Final

2009-09-29T22:55:00.005+01:00

So the end of the 2009 marathon canoe season saw us revisiting Reading Canoe Club for the 2009 Hasler Final. The water was calm, the air was warm and sunny and the organisers presented us with a course that was simple enough, even for us Way paddlers to understand! For the 13km and 20km courses this entailed a top turn before Mapledurham weir followed very shortly by a new false portage in a cow field. And here I detected some trepidation from the organisers on how this would go down with some of their more awkward customers judging by the email,

"Before you start your blog on tomorrow’s race. You will not need hiking boots this time but … a grappling hook and rope would be advised, also a bucket and spade may be useful if you have time to spare. As you do not wear a red vest you should not attract attention from the bovine crowd.
Cheers, BG"

I was later assured that although the cows had been taken out of the field they may indeed have left something behind. Nevertheless, to be on the safe side, I resolved to follow the nearest Richmond crew into said portage.

As it turned out, the new get out couldn’t have been more welcome as my crew mate and I were running with a horrible lean all the way up to Mapledurham. Until then we were constantly veering left and were steadily getting dropped one-by-one down the field. And so to the portage, an easy sandy beach, a not-so-bad-earth bank to negotiate, 50 metres of soft (well fertilised) grass and no evidence of the bull, and after putting-in the wonderful realisation that we were sitting square in the boat. With no lean we were able to stretch out and even catch a few crews up again. But alas not enough to get us onto the points table. Get yourself a faster partner and one that looks where he's going next time Marthe!

Well done to all the Wey paddlers who got to stand on the podium. An outstanding performance from Jack and Charlie in Div 3 K2 saw them take silver. In the other races we had two more silvers from James (4K1) and Calvin (7K1), four bronze placings from Richard/Mike (4K2), Rebecca/Seb (7K2) and points for five positions in fourth place from Rob (1K1), Roy/Mike (2K2), and Oscar/Tom (6K2). But Oh dear, without any gold medals this steady performance was only good enough to place us fourth in the club points.

Congratulations to Norwich Canoe Club first time winners of the Hasler Final. With seven gold medals, four silver medals and Tim going home with a bronze won in the Division 1 race, they were only six points shy of the maximum possible.

Thanks to everyone at Reading CC for a really successful event. I love you all.

Tell Chad

2009-09-26T22:53:00.001+01:00

Races at Royal Wey, Tonbridge, Nottingham, Longridge not to mention Poznan, Ostroda, Gudenaa and Crestuma. Wot has everyone been doing all summer?!

Box End Quadrathlon - 2nd August

2009-08-20T18:42:00.003+01:00

This was an "off-road" Quad.

Starting with a 750m open water swim,
4.4km kayak with 2 portages,
15km (3x5km loops) mountain biking on a soft grassy and often rutted course
and finishing with a 5km run on the same track.

This was my first solo multi-sport event and was chuffed to finish 17th out of 42 competitors in a time of 1hr09, with the 12th fastest time in the paddle leg. Interestingly the top finishers were also by far the best paddlers! So if you can swim a bit, manage an hour + cycle and then still finish a 5-10k run, then forget the triathlon and take the next step up.

Next up the real deal in Pembroke on 12 Sept.

Guildford Lions Raft Race 2009

2009-07-06T18:16:00.003+01:00

The raft race ended at The Waterside centre on Saturday. Here are some pics of the event. Lots of fun! http://picasaweb.google.co.uk/calum.shaw/RaftRace2009?feat=directlink#

Post-script to Reading Hasler Marathon

2009-05-24T21:16:00.003+01:00

More to talk about? Clearly there are more ways to make a race less predictable than anyone bargained for.

Allow the home side to shoot the weirs
Allow home side to use different portages
randomise the results.

You couldn’t make it up.

Reading Assessment and Hasler Races

2009-05-24T17:00:00.001+01:00

According to some, the reason football is the most popular sport in the world is down to it being unpredictable. There's the offside rule to start with and then as only a few points (aka goals) decide the winner, the team that wins isn't always the best team. Really, it’s true; Games Theorists who think about these things say so.
Perhaps Reading Canoe Club has come to the same conclusion. Contrast Saturday's assessment race with Sunday's Hasler race.

The assessment race was run with the new international circuits. The competitors can be seen by a stationery spectator and maybe this has some merit as round and round they go. But come on, be honest, isn't it just a little boring to watch? And counting the number of DNF's perhaps too tedious for many of the competitors.

And so how to add the element of unpredictability? DSQ those that don't pay attention to the briefing! Good try but apparently the selectors weren't looking for an ability to recall minor details. I'm not sure whether teams are allowed to bring along a pacer to international events either but that is another story.

In complete contrast, Sunday's divisional races were held over a there-and-back course. From the club house to a big buoy 2km upstream for the short and middle distance races and somewhat further for the longer course. Back down past the club to turn around the island to finish for the 7,8,9 paddlers. And this is where it started to get interesting for the 13 and 19 km races.

Unpredictable element number one: the race went behind Caversham Lock across a recreation ground on a mega-long portage. Bare feet? I would have stuck a pair of hiking boots in the back of the boat had I known!

The paddle continued on down to Kennet Mouth and up to a portage at Blakes Lock where we have unpredictable element number two: a jetty there to taunt us (as it was reserved for the return leg) while some struggled, others patiently waited to put in on the tiny piece of water 3 or 4 foot below. There followed a short loop with lots of potential to get lost while absorbing Reading's industrial heritage along the way. Back over Blakes Lock, back over Caversham Lock (puff puff puff) to finish outside the club.

Now I'm sure the best paddlers did win through and it was only those at the back of the race (like me) who got held up at the portages but it was a thoroughly enjoyable Sunday outing nevertheless. I have no doubt that Sunday's paddlers will have a lot more to talk about that those that raced on Saturday. Vive la difference!

Hastings 1066 Marathon

2009-05-19T20:26:00.000+01:00

The 1066 Hastings Race was once again held at Tonbridge (does anyone remember the Rother?) After the usual daft start where there is only enough room for seven boats before funneling down after 100 metres or so to where there is only room for a group of four, the course continued with the usual long and short laps up and down the sides of the island. The long and middle distance races in the afternoon then visited the downstream leg on the Medway for the first time since 2005. Why can I remember this? Perhaps it’s because a young Mark and I beat Sage in 5/6 doubles! Since then I think the lock has been re-fitted and there is now a canoeist-friendly jetty rather than the long drop down over a metal walkway. So worth another visit Sage? Shame I got tipped in on the last leg of the island before the finish because (a) I wasn't doing too badly considering the poor start; (b) I was overtaken by none other than one of the Ealing Oiks. No for a change I'm not being rude, you just had to be at the Wey Regatta to understand and (c) I’ll get my revenge on Maidstone when they visit us on June 28!

Some results
Tom came 4^th in Div 9 on first outing in his lovely new boat. Oscar, bravely racing up two divisions in Div 7 came 8^th
Amanda in the pink Tor and now on the dizzy heights of Div 6 came 4^th
Hazel came 3^rd, Ed came 4^th and Mike 9^th in Div 5.
Jack on his first outing in div 4 came 3^rd. OK he was disappointed as there were only two others in the race, but while the veterans still think he's cute and will give him a wash, in this race the gloves were off and he was left inspecting the bankside flora on more than one occasion.
Dean seamlessly integrating his sprint training with a 20km paddle once a week came 1^st in Div 1.

Gent Sprints 2009

2009-05-19T17:53:00.006+01:00

Last Friday, myself and 10 other U15 paddlers met at Elmbridge Canoe club to set off to this year's Gent Regatta in Belgium. We arrived in Gent on Friday afternoon, and the wind was fairly strong. This was not enough to put us off however, and we were soon on the water testing our crew boats, as well paddling our K1s. By this time many of us were tired and hungry, so we drove over to the hotel where we were staying. After a few room changes and broken keys, we soon settled into our rooms and headed over to the restaurant for a nice dinner.

The next morning (although a few of us had forgotten to set our alarms to Belgian time), we had a good breakfast and travelled over to the racecourse , in time for the boys' first race - the K1 1000m heats. 5 of them made it through to the Semi-final, and Marton, Matt, Guy and Albert made it through to the final later in the day. Their next race was the K2 heats, again there was another fantastic result with all 3 crews making the final. But before the finals of the K1s and K2s, they had the K4. This was a straight final, but the British crew won second place, just behind the strong Neerpelt boat. Next was their K2 final, all the crews raced really well again - with a silver for Marton and Matt, 4th position for Peter and Albert, and not far behind was Charlie and Guy in 8th. Shortly after was the K1 1000m final. It was a hard fought race, and Marton ended up with a bronze, although was very close to silver. The other three raced really well and finished 4th, 5th and 6th.

The final two races of the day were the 5ks. For the boys this was the last race of a very long day, for the girls on the other hand, it was our first race of the weekend! The boys' race was very close - less than two seconds between the first boat and the 11th! After a tiring day, the 5k was no doubt very hard but they pulled through and ended up with: 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th, 9th and 11th. The girls, however were far less exhausted, instead we were dying to get out and race. When the start eventually came, and the familiar "start within ten seconds" was announced, one British paddler was shocked by the loud starting gun and capsized. However, Rebeka and Amy stormed the race coming 1st and 2nd, and Isobel and Naomi also did brilliantly in 4th and 5th place. After recovering from my swim, I finished the race in 11th place - not a brilliant result, but I wasn't too upset.

On Sunday it was a busy day for all of us. The racing started early again, with the boys' K1 500m, with 4 of them making it into the semi-final. The girls had their K1 500m shortly after. There were two heats, with the first 4 going through into the final. All 5 of us made it into the final - making it nearly an all British race! Directly after was the boys' semi-final. These were two really quick races, and all four raced well, however the competition was strong and only Marton made it through into the final.

Unlike Nottingham, in Gent there is a lunch-break of a couple of hours. This left us all with a welcome break of a few hours! However soon we were back on the water and it was the girls' K2 final. Amy and Rebeka won, with myself and Naomi coming in 2nd place. The boys' were also doing well, with another silver medal in the K4. A little later was the girls' K1 final. This was a fierce race, with all of the British girls fighting hard. Rebeka, was on unbeatable form, and won - 4 seconds ahead of her Belgian rival! Amy came 3rd, Naomi 4th, myself 5th and Isobel 6th. Straight after was the boys' K2 final. Peter and Albert were really strong and came in 3rd, shortly followed by Marton and Matt in 5th.

Only two races were left, first was Marton's final - where he gave an excellent performance and won bronze. The last race for the GB team was our K4. Unbeknown to us, we had merged with the U18 race, so when we came second we were initially a little dissapointed. However, when we pulled up to receive our medals - we were very confused to find a gold around our necks... It turned out that we had beaten the other U16 crews, and won!

Overall this year's Gent regatta was fantastic. Everyone on the team won at least one medal! On behalf of the team I would like to thank Dyson Pendle, Sarah Hannon and Vicky Swallow for taking us over there, supporting us and putting up our general weirdness! It was a great trip, and I couldn't ask for a better introduction into international racing.

Weyside Rovers take to the water!

2009-05-01T06:36:00.003+01:00

Yesterday saw the first paddle of the new Weyside Rovers group. And a very nice paddle it was too.

The idea is that the group (anyone who wants to come along) takes a gentle paddle in one direction or other and returns to the club in time for tea. No sprints, races, training plans or anysuch high drama.

Last night we had good weather, and decided to wander off to Bowers lock. Barely a ripple on the water (except when Mike C swept past ;). A perfect spring/summer evening. Nigel deserves an honorable mention for upping his "taking a swim" tally significantly during the evening. He reported that the water wasn't that warm!

There will be a paddle every Thursday evening at 6pm throughout the summer.

Chester Marathon

2009-04-23T17:32:00.006+01:00

Held on the River Dee: a nice wide river, with not very much flow after a period of good weather; natural banks (so no re-bounding waves); and nice warm and sunny to boot. Chester has to be one of the best venues for a marathon race and well worth the effort of getting there. Twelve Wey Racers entered the first Assessment Race of the season: Rob W, Roy F, Paul Y, (senior men); Claire G (senior ladies); Mark C, Michael L, Richard L (junior men); and Alice H, Hazel C, Marthe dF (junior ladies).

A new course was set up conforming to the international 4.3 km circuit, consisting of seven laps for the senior men, six laps senior ladies, five laps junior men and four laps junior ladies. If that wasn't hard enough, a "false" beach portage was added on each lap.

Some good results came the club's way. The selectors were looking for times that will be competitive in an international race, clearly working this out is made a lot easier by virtue of having a standard circuit. That being said, it should have been advertised as such as it was clear that some competitors were only looking for a good placing! I recorded the lap times and when I have found out how to upload a table here without the blogger stripping my html code I'll do so! But in the mean time you can find it here as well.

Like all good gigs, Chester threw on a support act to keep the fans quiet. The morning started with a regional hasler marathon. Why more people don't regularly race in the north-west I don't know but the decision to hold the assessment race on the same day ensured a larger field as the Hasler results show.

More Easter Action!

2009-04-14T13:24:00.003+01:00

Huge congratulations to all the Wey paddlers on their DW triumphs - all must feel very proud of their achievements.
Good Friday saw a number of Wey paddlers sprinting on Littleton Lake at the Richmond Sprints. Not too much wind this year and some excellent results (full details on the Richmond web link). Mike W and Alice showed great consistency with first places in both their head to head races. With several other top three placings, there was no shortage of chocolate comestible prizes for the journeys home.
After a senior/U18 paddle to Elmbridge from Wey on Saturday (just for fun!) the scene was set for the annual Elmbridge Junior (U16) half marathon. Well done to Oscar, Tom, Joe and John who gave it a go for the first time and all finished with limited support from the bank.
No fewer than four Wey paddlers completed the course under the previous age record times - Jack (who smashed the U13 record) and Ed. Also Alice and Hazel in the U16 girls. What do they have for breakfast in the Childerstone and Haws households?? Charlie won the U15 boys which had the largest field of the day. (Results on Elmbridge web)
More chocolate......still these guys have to keep up the calories!

DW 2009 - Last Day

2009-04-13T15:07:00.003+01:00

Hurrah, we've made it!

While most people would have been still asleep, preparations were in full swing for a very early start at Teddington. Shortly before 6 am we were ready to get on the water, Clive was set to follow us on his bike (as he had done in the previous days) and the other members of the support crew to cheer us on from various bridges en route to Westminster. The start was given at 6.30, and after a few initial wobbles Calum and I got into our usual rhythm, gliding past Richmond, Kew, Barnes, Putney on our way to the finish. The force of the outgoing tide led to some impressive speeds (around 9 mph), but also to a couple of rather shaky moments, which I admit to being terrified of, as it would have been a rather long swim for the bank! (There have in fact been a few capsizes, and Calum also recalls seeing a K1 which was sinking with the paddler still in it). The London Eye came into sight around Vauxhall, and the appearance of Westminster Bridge in the distance gave us the energy to cover that final stretch of the race. So after 1 hr 55 of hard paddling we were finally at the steps of the County Hall ready to receive our finishers' medals!

With a total time of 20:06, we, according to provisional results, have come first in the Endeavour class!

Once again it must be said that the whole race would not have been possible without our incredible support team. Clive, cycling alongside us, provided us with a great amount of valuable information, dashed to locks to identify the best spots, and, crucially, very skillfuly and rapidly repaired our boat after it had been damaged on the second day. Lynsey, Richard, Hannah, Alexander, Maria and Tom kept us well fed and watered and in high morale on portages, and helped in numerous other ways. Thanks must also go to Dave, Pete and Mike and everyone else at the club who guided and supported us throughout our training. Thank you so much to all!

DW 2009 - Day 3

2009-04-13T14:43:00.003+01:00

Today was the longest day of the race: 38 miles from Marlow to Teddington. Everybody arrived at the start extra early, and after some work to reinforce the broken front of the boat, we were off the start around 8.15 am. With strong flow helping us along, Windsor Castle came into view well ahead of schedule. Encouraged by this, we pressed on towards Staines, taking extra care not to damage the boat further on portages. The middle section of the day seems to have gone exceptionally quickly, and by the time we arrived at Sunbury Lock, I was still convinced we hadn't reached Chertsey! The last 7-8 miles, however, proved to be rather hard and certainly very painful (Calum and I strongly regretted not padding out our seats). The final mile before Teddington dragged on forever! Once we had made over the lock though, everything suddenly seemed very easy and we were at the finish in no time. End result: 5 hrs 44, giving us a 14 minute lead over the next boat.

For the third day running, our support team - Richard, Hannah, Clive, Lynsey, Maria and Alexander - have excelled in providing us with food, moral support and valuable information. Thank you very much to all!

Coming up tomorrow is the final 17-mile leg which will take us through Richmond, Chiswick, Hammersmith, Putney, Chelsea and Vauxhall to Westminster Bridge!

DW 2009 - Day 2

2009-04-11T18:51:00.003+01:00

What a day! We're now leading our race by a minute after finishing 25 minutes ahead of schedule, so the pressure is on for tomorrow.

It was a fairly unremarkable paddle after the start until the front of our boat broke off at a portage. Thanks to large amounts of tape and a very skillful repair by Clive, however, it was swiftly re-attached and we were able to continue without much delay. Excitement grew as we approached Reading and we were starting to look forward to the Thames and some flow to aid our progress. After a quick compulsory portage at Dreadnought Reach, we pushed on for Marlow, passing the half-way point to Westminster along the way. We arrived at Marlow in a state close to total exhaustion, got changed, bypassing the showers (which were cold and only seemed to work one at a time!), and headed off home to recuperate in preparation for the longest day of the race tomorrow.

DW 2009 - Day 1

2009-04-10T16:45:00.006+01:00

It's Easter again - time for a paddling trip on the Kenett and Avon Canal and the Thames!

After an evening in Devizes last night and breakfast with a Basingtoke crew at the B&B this morning, the green boat, the support team and, indeed the paddlers, arrived at the start to find a remarkably empty car park (and no, the race is on!). Quick check in and wrist-tagging, and we (Calum and I) crossed the start line shortly after 7.15 am. We finished overtaking the five boats that had started ahead of us just before Pewsey and stayed in the "lead" until the end of the day! The tunnel was great - calm, empty, with no other boats in sight. The support team - Lynsey, Clive, Richard, Hannah, Alexander and Maria were great, offering plenty of food and encouragement along the way. The stretch from Great Bedwyn to Newbury was very familiar and rather painful, but the the effort has definitely paid off - 34 miles in 6:14 (14 minutes ahead of schedule) and, so far we're second, 6 minutes behind the leaders!

So 34 miles down, 91 to go...

Oh, and it still isn't too late to sponsor us online!

Gent Marathon

2009-04-01T21:02:00.002+01:00

After meeting early Friday morning three Wey paddlers, myself, Jack and Alice, and a large BCU team travelled to Gent in Belgium to take part in the Gent Marathon race. We arrived on the Friday afternoon to a windy, choppy regatta course, but despite these conditions we were all very keen to get out for a paddle and a practice on the race course after being on the bus for hours. After our paddle we changed and headed back to the youth hostel for a good dinner and a good nights sleep.

Raceday came and we rose early, enjoyed a big breakfast and headed to the racecourse. After plenty of preparation and warmup the races got underway. First off were the senior men and then Jack and I went off in the junior mens race then the vetran men and then the junior womens race went off. After a tough start the junior mens race separated into groups and raced round the canals. After a burn up out of the last portage I ended up paddling to the end of the race on my own and taking second place. Jack wasn't so lucky with his race. after a poor start he pulled his way right back through the field and then just as he looked like he was back up with the group he took an unfortunate swim. He then got back in and carried on to finish the race despite the freezing water and wind and still beat several other competitors. The junior womens race started soon after the mens and set off round the lake at a fast pace. After a breakaway at the first portage by the eventual winner, Alice paddled round the rest of the course in the front group and after a burn for the finish took second place.

The race was great expierience for all the paddlers who took part and it was great that Wey came away with excellent results.
Charlie

Waterside D

2009-04-01T18:27:00.003+01:00

The Green Boat goes forth again! I was slightly concerned about this race as I've never paddled for more than 3½ hours in my life. The thought of 34 miles was bad enough without the fact that the first 13 are without a portage and there's a great big tunnel half way through.

So the day started with snow. From that point, everything got better. George took the helm and we got a couple good rides on stern washes. The weather improved very quickly, and we got in to a good rhythm. Took a tactical toilet break after about 11 miles and was then actually looking forward to portages. Our three support teams were great. Plenty of encouragement, grapes, bananas, and nibbles.

When we got to Great Bedwyn it felt like we were nearly home as some of the scenery became familiar. But there was a way to go!

Stopped for a few minutes to pull a couple of lads out of the drink, and I took a brief unscheduled swim myself (George was just standing at the side watching me topple in).

Luckily there were no more "events", and we put in a respectable 6h38m.

We got changed (avoiding the very cold showers), grabbed our soup and "lunch" at the finish and toddled off home.

The apprehension of Day 1 of the Devizes to Westminster will be greatly reduced now.

Thanks to Richard, Hannah, Lynsey, Maria and Alexander for their enthusiastic and very professional support!

Wey AGM

2009-03-10T17:33:00.002Z

Well it's just over 48 hours to the red carpet event of the year....yes, the Wey AGM including the world premiere of the Wey 2008 Review featuring stunning titles and special effects (?) and maybe even you!!
Also featuring the canoeing world's equivalent of the Oscars, the annual awards ceremony: awards for the great and the good on and off the water....and including the prestigeous Fish award to go to the person or persons who considered, however briefly, switching their sport to open water swimming!
Oh, and there's also the business bit to be done. So come and have your say and join in the celebration of another great year in the life of Wey Kayak Club!!

Thameside II

2009-03-09T21:49:00.004Z

A breezy (and sometimes gusty), cool day greeted us for Thameside II in Reading. After a choppy start, George and I got into a bit of a rhythm. Henley straight seemed to go on for ever, and then the heavens opened and we got a bit damp... Did an OK 2h44m, and later found out that we would have gotten 3rd place if we'd entered Junior/Vet. Ah well.

Test of the brand new Wey Kayak Club Blog

2009-03-09T17:49:00.005Z

rather nice view of the club house