According to the Reading website, the league table looks like this:
1. Reading 38 points
2. Banbury 36
3. Basingstoke 34
4. Southampton 25
Wokingham 23
6. Pangbourne 21
7. Falcon 19
8. Bourne End 12
9. Cokethorpe 6
10. Eyot 2
11. Marlow 1
Longridge 1
Important - the swan on the canal has become very aggressive and attacked Mike Palfrey today, injuring his arm. Please treat this stupid bird with extreme caution and portage round it if necessary.
10.05.08
The latest club news has been e-mailed to all mmbers... or has it? If you are a paid up member and you aren't receiving club e-mails, please contact Dom with your e-mail address. dompmurphy (at) hotmail.com
Thank you to everybody who helped with the Avon WWR today - I won't name names in case I miss anybody out - I'm very grateful for all you did.
We had a lovely warm sunny day, and some good performances, especially from those who hadn't done WWR before. Plenty of medals for Banbury paddlers, too.
Results
Not content with taking part in the DW, Kelly took part in a charity indoor rowing event at the weekend. Not only did she complete 100km solo in under 24 hours, she was part of a relay team which broke the world record for 100km. Wow!
More DW aftermath - as well as a broken arm, poor Sharon ended up with frostbite in a couple of toes. Not good. Get well soon, Sharon.
Chris & Dom's latest ditch crawl on the Cherwell.
The club was packed out tonight, despite the windy weather. Lovely to see it so busy. Bumper crop of swimmers, too: Paul, Matthew, Ian Mc, Gary, Seb and Dawn.
Congratulations to Grunt who got round the London Marathon in 4:38:05, placing 16535th overall and 3119th in his age group.
Good luck to Grunt who's running in the London Marathon on Sunday. Can't be many people who've done the DW and London Marathon in the same year. I hope everyone saw the picture of him in the Banbury Guardian.He's trying to raise lots of dosh for charity. To sponsor him, go to
http://www.justgiving.com/michaelpunter
Our own Wildwater Race at Stratford is coming up on April 26th. Let me know if you want to enter. I also need volunteers to help on the day. See "Our Races" page for more details.
From The BCU website:
New EDM (Early Day Motion) launched by John Grogan MP (Selby) 1331 - RIVER ACCESS FOR NON-POWERED CRAFT
EDM That this House urges the Government to extend legislation on access to the countryside in England and Wales to allow canoeists and users of non-powered craft similar access rights to water as walkers have to the land; notes that in Scotland such access, accompanied by a code of rights and responsibilities for all concerned, has been successfully implemented; and believes that increased access to waterways would lead to greater participation in canoeing, resulting both in obvious health benefits to the nation and in increased chances of future Olympic success.
Needless to say, none of our local MPs have signed it. It's up to us to stir them up by writing to them, e-mailing them or even visiting them. BCU say "Please do so as they need to know how much the lack of access affects our sport and in fact all members of the public!"
If you want a letter to help or more facts and figures please contact River Access Campaign info@riversaccess.org and they can send you some supporting material.Interesting article about the Molokai surf-ski race in Hawai'i. If you think you've paddled big water in a skinny wobbly boat, read this and think again.
Article from the Times about the DW. Shame about the reference to rowing, though...
30.03.08.
Congratulations to Rosie Mole for passing her driving test. Look
out roads: here she comes.
I've been told that it should be Katie and Grunt's DW diary. Apologies for the error. No offence intended.
28.03.08.
Grunt's DW diary, and some new photos.
A message from Gary.
At the risk of sounding like an oscar winning acceptance speech, Seb & I would like to thank the club for helping us to complete this year’s DW race.
Had it not have been for the training, coaching, advice, use of the club resources and general support we simply could not have achieved our goal.
It is only down to the experience & knowledge of some of the members that we didn’t, as we were planning to right up to the day before, take the wrong boat. Had we have done so, with the river conditions on the latter part of the tidal Thames section as they were and given our skill levels, the Toucan would have been a disastrous choice. I am quite certain we would not have been able to remain in the boat. As well as having received the advice that we needed a more stable boat, again, being a member of the club gave us the opportunity to select something more suitable.
We have thanked the club as opposed to any individuals because so many of you have helped us train, mend boats, offered advice, lent equipment, supported us on the day, fed us on the day as well as having communicated our progress on the web site, that I dare not mention anyone in particular for the risk of accidentally omitting someone.
It’s a shame that not all the club teams had the good luck that we did. (and most of it for us was luck!)
Should any of you want a partner for next year’s DW, please do not be offended when I say not a ******* chance. Although we are more than happy to support any other idiots, I mean brave souls who wish to have ago.
Thanks again, and I promise not to continue being over-emotionally gushing.
Gary Harper
Seb Raby
Congratulations to Julian Stone and Matthew McLean who represented GB at the Gent regatta in Belgium. Julian finished 18th, and Matthew finished 19th despite a swim off the start line when his paddle got tangled with the front of a team mate's boat.
2.03.08 11:40am.
E-mail message from Mr Hiley. Subsequent to his sending the message, Sharon's contacted him to say that she broke her left arm in the fall, and damaged her right wrist as well. Crofton to Boulter's with a broken arm! That's some going. She's looking for a partner for next year...
Seb & Gary placed 24th
overall. Only 61 boats finished the overnight race, with 58
boats retiring. Gary says that conditions after Teddington were
just like the sea - big waves coming from all angles.
Katie and Grunt have finished the four day race in an impressive 21 hrs 22
minutes, placing 5th out of 9 in their class.
Dan Golder's brother, Richard won the K1 in 15 hrs 51
minutes which is astounding, given the conditions.
23.03.08
8:58pm
The first
photos from this year's race. Thanks you to Alice for taking
these. More photos to come, I hope.
23.03.08
8:45pm.
Seb and Gary have finished! 23 hrs 29 minutes 45 seconds
- a phenomenal achievement. Well done, fellas.
23.03.08
8:25pm.
Awaiting news of Seb and Gary. They Should have finished by
now, but the DW website hasn't updated for over half an hour.
Hope they're OK.
23.03.08
5:45pm.
Melanie and Ray retired from the race at Kingston just
before 5:30pm after 22 hrs 32 minutes' paddling. They were both
cold and exhausted and making no headway against the strong
wind. Ray getting out and picking the boat up with Melanie still
in it sort of made up their minds for them.
Seb & Gary are still going and reached Teddington after 21
hrs 6 minutes. They've slowed a lot, but still have an outside
chance of going sub-24.
23.03.08
5:00pm.
Katie and Grunt have made it to Teddington, the end of the
the thrid stage of the four day race. Their total time so far
is19 hrs 18 minutes. This leaves them 5th of the 9 boats in
their class.
23.03.08
4:34pm.
Seb & Gary and Melanie & Ray reached Shepperton at the same
time, just after 3pm. Seb & Gary have totally lost touch with
their support crew, so Graham and Alice are feeding them as well
as Melanie & Ray.
Melanie and Gary are both looking good; Ray is tired and Seb is
shattered - keeping going on a combination of willpower and
nagging from Gary. If Gary can keep him going at their current
pace, they could - just- slip under the 24 hours. They'll be due
to finish about 8:00 this evening.
Melanie and Ray should now
be looking for something around 25 and a half hours.
23.03.08
2:17pm.
Our overnight crews have passed Old Windsor exactly an hour
apart on elapsed time, with Ray and Melanie going through at
1:15pm (18 hrs 22) and Seb & Gary following at 1:26pm (17
hrs 22). Seb & Gary are inching ever-closer to a 24 hour finish
- there's just that outside chance that they could duck under.
Melanie and Ray are still looking good for sub 26.
23.03.08
1:29pm.
Roger and Sharon retired at Bray (82 miles) after 16 hrs 44
minutes' paddling. No further information yet.
Seb and Gary had problems when they lost their support crew and had to paddle for a long way unsupported. They passed through Bray at midday after 15 hrs 55 minutes. Melanie & Ray are still ahead of them on the water, going through Bray at 11:41am, after 16 hrs 41 minutes. Both crews are still ahead of schedule, with Seb & Gary looking at 24hrs 30 mins for the finish, and Melanie & Ray now looking at under 26 hours.
In the 4 day race, Katie and Grunt have reached Old Windsor in 15 hrs 56 minutes.
23.03.08
11:55
am.Crew placings at Marsh. (Previous positions in brackets
R=Reading, N=Newbury).
75 overnight crews have
passed through Marsh Lock.
Seb and Gary were 26th (R25th, N19th) in 12hrs 39; Melanie & Ray
37th, (R33rd, N32nd) in 13 hrs32; Roger and Sharon 38th in 13
hrs 34. (R35th, N43rd)
.23.03.08
11.48am.
It's started to snow.
Gary and Seb are ahead of schedule and going well. They reached
Marlow at 10.20 after 14 hrs 16 minutes' paddling. They will
have caught Melanie & Ray by now, as they passed through Marlow
a a quarter of an hour before beforehand after 15 hrs 13 mins
paddling. They are going well, too, and are ahead of their
schedule. Seb & Gary are on for a finish of under 25 hours
whilst Melanie and Ray should be looking at going sub 27 hours.
Roger and Sharon passed through Marsh Lock at 9:38am and reached Marlow at 11:22, ahead of schedule. They'll now be looking at a sub-27 hour finish.
In the 4 day race, Katie & Grunt reached Bray (82 miles) at half-past ten, with a total paddling time of 14hrs 32 minutes.
23.03.08
9:48am.
Kelly and Cathy have retired from the race at Reading which
they reached at 7:32 this morning.
Melanie and Ray are going well and have clawed back all of the time they lost in the evening. They passed through Marsh Lock (61 miles) at 8:25 this morning after thirteen and a half hours' paddling. Graham reports that they were in high spirits at their breakfast stop at Dreadnaught Reach (Wokingham Canoe Club). They arrived at 7:05 and left at 7:22. They're currently on for a 27 hour finish.
Seb and Gary are going like trains! After a sticky patch between Newbury and Aldermaston, they've really picked up. They've been on the water for just under 13 hours, and passed through Marsh Lock at 8:43am. They should be catching Melanie & Ray somewhere just after Marlow. If they keep this pace up, they could be looking at a finish in around 25 hours which would be phenomenal.
Roger and Sharon were last seen at Reading at 8:27am and have been on the go for twelve and a half hours. They have picked up time really well and are back on for a 28 hour finish.
70 overnight crews have
passed through Reading. Our crews are holding up well (positions
at Newbury are in brackets)
Seb and Gary were 25th (19th); Melanie & Ray 33rd (32nd); Roger and Sharon
35th (43rd).
23.03.08
5:30am.
Melanie and Ray passed through Aldermaston at 4:45am.
They've dropped behind schedule a bit, but are still looking
good for a 28-29 hour finish. The DW website gives them an ETA
of 10:52 this evening which will be about 28 hours.
Sharon and Roger reached Newbury at 4:10am and are now looking
at around 29 hours.
81 overnight crews have
passed through Newbury, with another 8 having retired.
Seb and Gary were 19th; Melanie & Ray 32nd; Roger and Sharon
43rd and Kelly and Cathy 54th.
23.03.08
4:32am.
The overnight crews are well on their way, and the weather
is being kind: it's very cold and frosty, but the biting wind
has dropped and it's calm and clear.
Kelly and Cathy started at 6:30pm and passed through Hungerford
just after midnight. They went through Newbury just before 3am
and should be hitting Aldermaston around quarter past five.
They're on schedule for about 36 hours.
Melanie and Ray set off
just before 7pm and paddle well to Pewsey. They hit a bad patch
after this and dropped a long way behind schedule at Hungerford.
Since then, they've picked up well and passed through Newbury at
2:35am. They should be hitting Aldermaston fairly soon. If they
keep this pace up, they'll be looking at a finish time of around
28 hours.
Seb & Gary started just after 8pm and made quick progress to
Hungerford, passing through at 1:25am. They've slowed up quite a
lot and went through Newbury at 3:21am. They'll probably
overtake Kelly and Cathy somewhere beyond Aldermaston. They're
on schedule for around 26 hours.
Roger and Sharon set off just after 8pm and were last spotted at Hungerford just before 2am, so they should reach Newbury within the next half-hour and are on schedule to finish in around 29 hours.
22.03.08
Chris and Irene retired from the race this afternoon having
reached Reading after 12 hrs 10 minutes of paddling. Irene's
shoulder injury recurred.
Katie and Grunt have reached the end of the second day, arriving
safely at Marlow just before pm, in a total time of 13 hrs
21:43.
21.03.08
End of day 1 of the 4 day race. Chris & Irene arrived in
Newbury just before half-past five this afternoon, in 7hrs
32.08. A good performance considering how poorly Irene has been
recently.
Grunt and Katie also arrived safely at Newbury. Grunt went
through a bit of a sticky patch, but pulled through it. They
finished around half-past four in a very respectable 6:36:45.
Only three boats have retired so far. One of them is the Army
Canoe Union team that was so obnoxious during the Watersides.
Karma gets you in the end.
As usual, I'll be following the progress of the straight-through race and updating the website every hour or so.
DW race numbers:
Straight through
301 Kelly & Cathy.
389 Seb & Gary
390 Melanie & Ray
393 Roger & Sharon
Four day
530 Chris & Irene
057 Grunt & Katie
For more information see the DW website here.
1. Muttering reft, right, reft, right will get you through the tunnel, even if it makes you look like an idiot. Also MAYBE shouting ‘woohoo, we beat the tunnel’ at the other end is not so great when you inadvertently wake a sleeping canal boat person.
2. Laughing at someone swimming in front of you, is like laughing at people stuck in the traffic queue on the other side of the motorway….
3. Salted cashew nuts embedded in malt loaf is wrong, but strangely tasty at the same time.
4. Laughing whilst drinking coffee WILL make it squirt out of your nose.
5. When it’s getting cold and you want to go home, you can trust that there will be a pub garden full of people to wave cheerily at you from behind their pints and Sunday lunches!
Congratulations
to Matthe
w
McLean and Julian Stone who have been selected to compete for
England in the Gent international marathon.
Brilliant!The Prime Minister's Office has now responded, and, not surprisingly, given the power of the fishing lobby led by the bumptious Martin Salter MP, the response is lacklustre and evasive. The spirit of Sir Humphrey lives on: http://www.pm.gov.uk/output/Page14435.asp
2) No circuit training tonight (Tuesday) as we can't find an available venue.
What Catherine learnt from Waterside B.
1. Laughing and going weeeeeee down the bumpy wavy bits of the flow is NOT appreciated by the ‘serious’ paddlers;
2. Trying to breathe whilst eating cake inevitably means at some point it will come out of your nose;
3. Remember, when you put your hand in the mud, don’t then scratch your nose: conclusion, mud everywhere, and your support crew in fits of laughter trying to take a photo;
4. Those last few portages, you will run like you need a wee, falling over your own legs as they struggle to do anything;
5. When all is done, at the end of the race you can guarantee there will always be at least a few Banbury paddlers to laugh at you (particularly when said legs from point # 4 don’t work).
I don't know all the race details, so sorry to those I've missed out: Matthew & Katie 2nd in Boys' K2; Melanie & Ray 7th in Vets K2; Seb & Gary just outside 2 hours; decent paddles from Julian and Sophie; technical problems and a run in with a scary fisherman for Laura. Don't know how Chris & Kathryn did - hope there'll be an article, Mr J.
An alternative take on Waterside A from Chris Jones.
Report on Waterside A as submitted to the Banbury Guardian.
A new addition to the website - an advertisements page. If you've got anything to flog or are desperate for new kit, then get an advert in.
The swimmers' page is starting to fill up nicely. Jolly good.
Thy were all pretty quick, but clearly not photogenic enough, as the pictures on the Teddington Lock website were of somewhat more senior folk.
We were lucky that the race went ahead: the river was high and flowing very fast - there were some interesting boils in places and the portages were washed out: a few hours after the race had finished flood warnings were issued and yellow boards went up. Close!
3rd Basingstoke 25
4th Southampton 20
5th Falcon 16
= Wokingham 16
10th Eyot 2
= Windsor 2
12th Marlow 1
A note on the Reading website says that they're not sure they like sharing the lead. Bless.
A few additions to the Jokes page.
that ginger drink into Melanie's camelback during the DW?
To inspire you for the year ahead,here's a video of Ian Wynne's world record channel crossing. Turn the music up loud and enjoy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cBtYj6uPo4Y&feature=related
Congratulations
to Rebecca Warren, National Under 12 Wildwater racing champion.
Provisional (and unofficial) team results:
1. Reading 235 10pts
2. Banbury 228 9
3. Basingstoke Canal 215 8
4. Falcon 155 7
5. Southampton 116 6
6. Wokingham 89 5
7. Pangbourne 73 4
8. Bourne End Junior 52 3
9. Cokethorpe School 50 2
There have been no official team scores from any of the three marathons so far this season, but taking scores from the published results would give an overall table thus:
3rd Basingstoke 24
4th Wokingham 18
6th Pangbourne 17
10th Eyot 2
11th Marlow 1