Huge day on the Upper Swale

Another 5am start to get to the Upper Swale ASAP to catch the water, and boy did we. Getting to the put in at 10:15am we got changed and I ran the shuttle.
On the way back I checked the gauge just off the bridge, it was already reading between 1.6 and 1.65 and still raining. This had already beaten our first run down at 1.41. 

Rainchasers Gauge Reading

After a little warm up shooting over Wain Wath Force we broke out above Rainby Force to inspect. We decided to try the far river left line first. Jumping back in the boat as I paddled to the edge I got a good last boof stroke, flying through the air ready for a nice flat landing in the foam pile. Dan then followed the same line, with a nice boof he also landed in the foam pile but had to put in a roll after his edge got caught by a boil.

Rainby Force still

We decided to jump back out and run the drop again but this time hitting the middle line. I had also put the GoPro on the front of the boat pointing back to me. Heading to the drop I was hoping not to take a roll damaging the GoPro, with this on my mind I was a bit late with the boof stroke which left me nose diving a bit too much and on landing and I needed a few support strokes to get away. Dan had another flat flight and landing, firing straight out of the pool.
Not happy with that attempt we went back up and ran it again. This time we both nailed it.



However after getting out to take the GoPro off Dan was half in his boat when it caught an edge. Before he knew it the boat was full of water and he had to let it go. Seeing this I quickly took the GoPro off the front of the boat as I knew what was coming might force me to roll.

The next rapid, taken Nov-12 at 1.41. "Richie's" rapid.

Getting to the start of the rapid it looked a lot worse than the photo above. The ledge was a lot lower, but a massive stopper was at the exit of the slide. Starting river right I dropped off the ledge and then powered hard left to skirt round it. I think I'd just managed to miss it although I was thrown backwards and stern stalling for a moment. After this rapid I could just about see Dan's boat. Powering hard down to it before the next double drop I luckily managed to get it into an eddy and recover it.

With Dan and boat reunited we headed down to Catrake Force. Taking both drops river left we were through with no problems.
Through the gorge section, a few large waves/stoppers had formed and we broke out above Upper Kisdon Falls. After having a quick look we took the river left line and both dropped it nicely.
Lower Kisdon was the final drop on this section. We got out river right to look at the drop and pick our line. Dan jumped back in his boat and ran the drop. Getting a sweet line he bounced off the ledge and landed on top of the foam pile. I then followed, but was a little too far to the left, which put me more into the stopper on landing but I managed to paddle out without any issues. Now just the monster of a walk back out to the car park!

Upper Dart Video

River Tavy, Hill Bridge to Harford Bridge Video

Dartmoor Weekend

So after a few years of low water conditions it finally looked like we were going to hit Dartmoor with some water!

Driving down on the Friday night the met office app was showing rain coming across from 11pm till 4am, at times being heavy. We arrived at the Powder Mills Bunkhouse just before 8pm, quickly unpacking and headed to the pub in Princetown.

SATURDAY

Rainchasers notifications, the
following morning doing there job.

Waking up on Saturday all the Dartmoor rivers were huge or high so we made the call to head over to the Tavy to paddle the Hill Bridge to Harford Bridge section. According to the gauge this was still at huge (1.2m) but as it was a grade 3 (4) we hoped that it would still be runnable. This section is also supposed to rise and fall very fast therefore not easy to catch at a good level.
When we got to the river it looked fast moving but not unmanageable, there were also a few other paddlers who had just got off saying that it was OK to run. With that in mind we headed to the get in and kitted up.
The river was very much like the Washburn, narrow, fast and with trees lining the bank all the way down, this made for very few eddies.

Unfortunately Conor had a little swim after one of the drops, but managed to recover all his kit and jump back on. Just round the corner the river picked up speed and in the distance you could see that a tree was down. With this in mind I made slow progress down to the tree. 

Rob enjoying his new Burn MkIII LARGE

Getting closer I could see that it wasn't blocking the river but you had to be on a good line to go round it. Dan followed me down and I got out to show the others where to go. Conor was next down but got flipped by a hole just above the crux of the line and came out. I quickly got a line to him which he grabbed before heading into the tree. However his boat was heading down the river with Dan chasing it. I jumped back in my boat and gave chase. We managed to catch it up, Dan pushed it into an eddy and I jumped out and dragged it onto the bank. The boat had been re-split on the front, putting an end to Conor's days. Fortunately the main road isn't too far away from the river so we decided that we'd carry on down, run the shuttle and pick him up from the road. This worked well as by the time we had run the shuttle he had just got to the river.

All loaded up and changed by 12pm we decided to head to Dartmeet to see if the river had dropped. Getting there it looked higher than I had ever seen it, but with a solid run behind us we decided to get on.

Within the first 200m you could tell that the river was high as we didn't hit any rocks and were going through waves and holes.

Within the first 200m....

First "Boulder Garden" section

Before we knew it we were at the first Boulder Garden section, however due to the river level all the rocks were covered. This turned the section into a hole boofing paradise, picking the line was relatively easy as most ways were going!

The first ledge drop.

The last ledge drop and channel.

With the river charging we were at the Island split, where the gun barrel is. Normally I take the river right line and drop back into the main flow. But due to the level being high the stopper above this might have been a bit sticky so we decided to stick river left and power straight through. With the river joining halfway down it made a tricky little side wave which you had to negotiate.

Breaking out at the bottom of the gun barrel.

After breaking out at the bottom of the gun barrel I looked back up stream and could see that Molly had taken a roll, unfortunately she had three attempts before coming out after the last wave. I managed to get her on the back of my boat, but by this time we were heading down the start of the Mad Mile. Paddling as hard as I could I got dragged into a hole which Molly still on the back, she let go but by this time Danny had caught up and chased after her. I got out of the whole and picked up her paddle putting it on the river bank to then start chasing them back down. By the time I had got to her again she had swam nearly all the Mad Mile, but just before the Slides we managed to get her out. Fortunately her boat was forced into an eddy and Dan managed to get out and recover it.

Dan finishing the Mad Mile.

Slides just after the Mad Mile.

Molly decided to walk round the slides but got back on just after. The rest of us headed river left down the slides making it through the stoppers and tow back. Next stop was Euthanasia Falls, but before that where a couple of ledges and drops to negotiate. Everyone had made it down until Dan got caught in the last stopper river right. A nasty recirculating boil had got a hold of him. After numerous attempts at rolling he bailed, straight after this he flushed out but we were all in our boats. I jumped out to try and get a line to him but by the time I had he had shot past. I run down the side of the bank to find that he'd managed to get himself to the side but had lost his boat and paddle. I kept running after the boat and by the time I'd caught it up it was pinned at Euthanasia Falls, but with no sign of his paddle and GoPro which was attached to the front of the boat.
I left Dan down at Euthanasia Falls to do safety whilst I ran the rapid to get onto the centre Island where his boat was. The others got out above the falls and walked round. Lucky enough another Kayaking was recovering a boat in almost the same place. We managed to rope the boat off and I walked it down to the bottom of Euthanasia to reunite it with Dan. In the meantime Danny had built up his pair of splits for Dan to use for the rest of the run. 

The group was all back together and heading towards Pandora's Box. Rob, Molly and Dan decided to portage the rapid, leaving me and Danny to run it. At this level the whole rapid was washed out. I could see the rock you normally head for, but instead of it being a rock it was forming a small pour over. Shooting past this you could see the letter box drop, taking a boof stroke just above saw me landing on the foam pile but being pushed slightly to the left wall. Danny had a similar line but didn't get pushed left, instead his Tuna launched him upwards and out of the rapid.

After Pandora's Box it was a straight forward run to the get out, although it was fast moving all the way. Getting off the river just after 4pm we had just started to loose the light, any longer and things might have become even more interesting. The level was just short of reaching the first step.

Fortunately for Dan, another kayaker had seen his paddles coming down the river at the get out and had managed to rescue them!

Spot the difference....

When we got back to the bunkbarn we looked on Rainchasers to see what the level had been like.

Rainchasers level, Saturday night.

We had got on at about 1:15pm, which shows approx 1.48 and were off at 4pm when it was about 1.00.

SUNDAY

Sunday night there was a little more rain. We were hoping that the rivers might have been topped up but unfortunately not. We finally decided to run the Upper Dart again, this time it was medium to low on the gauge. Due to Conor not paddling we didn't have to run shuttles so we got straight on and paddled almost non-stop to the get out. No incidents just good fun paddling. Down in around an hour and fifteen we packed up and headed home.

Video of the weekends fun to follow.....

Kayak Ergometer Build - Part 1

So with the cold darks nights set in for the foreseeable future, to keep paddle fitness up over the winter I've decided to attempt to build a Kayak Ergometer. Weight lifting and cardio fitness in the gym is OK, but nothing can substitute actual paddle fitness.

After looking around I found a previous homemade attempt on YouTube which had been cannibalised from a Cross Country Ski Fitness machine. It utilises the flywheel and resistant webbing arrangement. Connecting a broken paddle shaft via a series of ropes and pulleys will give you the feel of paddling. Changing the tension in the webbing over the flywheel will affect the resistance experienced whilst paddling. Therefore allowing you to easily change between cardio sessions to intense sprint sessions.

Breaking the Ski Machine
After watching a few machines on eBay I finally found a descent looker, only problem was it was in Stockton-On-Tees, a 370 mile round trip. Never the less I won the item and collected after work one night.

Cross Country Ski Machine

Flywheel Assembly

Flywheel removed from Ski Machine

Bearings used to grip and release flywheel shaft

Next step creating the new frame which will house the flywheel assembly and the user will sit on. 

 More to follow.....

Mid-Wales Kayaking.....

"Spotted...."

So after having booked the weekend months in advance it was soon upon us, unfortunately the weeks of rain dancing didn't come off though!

PACKERS had booked the bunk barn at Welshpool for a peer paddling trip with the hope of paddling some of Mid-Wales's best WW, however due to the distinct lack of rain everyone cancelled their plans leaving just Me, Dan G and Rob A heading to Welshpool on Friday afternoon.

Lucky the three of us had planned for the lack of rain and were taking MTB's for the weekend, with the view of heading to Coed y Brenin on Saturday and Cannock Chase on the way home on Sunday.

An early start on Saturday saw us on the trails by 10:30am. The first half an hour was a bit colder than we would have liked, but once the sun had got a little higher the conditions were near perfect. The "very" little rain made some of the rocks a little slippery, but binded the loose stuff together.

Just under halfway round we stopped of tea and a selection of homemade cakes.

Can't do this when kayak!

After our pit stop we were back on the trails and heading to the best part of the Dragons Back, The Adams Family.

Rob on Lurch

Gone in a blur!

Dan dropping into Lurch

Alan at the bottom of Lurch

After a good days ride we heading back to the bunk barn to get ready for dinner and an evening of Rob's movie collection......

3 two seater sofas all to ourselves.

Sunday we were away in good time and at Cannock by 9:30am and on the trails by 10am. Rob hadn't been to Cannock since the far part of the monkey trail had been reopened and it didn't fail to impress. The weather was again ideal. However the small stones which make up a lot of the trails were very slippery, my front wheel on numerous occasions slipped out. The good weather had brought people out and the trails were a lot busier than at Coed y Brenin.

All in all it was a good weekend despite the lack of boating!

Lee Valley's First Boater X

So after returning from the Sickline and hitting the gym to get ready for May's Moriston River Race a Boater X Event was on the cards at Lee Valley. This was the first Boater X Event put on at LV by Dan Daley.

Race Format

Qualifying

1. Set the fastest individual time down the legacy loop.
2. Two kayakers go head to head but must touch one of the two yellow signs on the course.
3. Two kayakers go head to head but must make two downstream and two upstream gates.

Final B/Final A

Split into two races, the fastest 5 and fastest loosing 5 from qualification. In both races you had to run down the course touch one of the two yellow signs and make a mandatory downstream and upstream gate then sprint to the bottom of the course.

The Races
First flat out race went well, I managed to finish top of the table. The second race was a bit trickier as I had to contend with another person on the course going for the same line. I managed to break out into the eddy below the first yellow sign but as the other person came down it was going to be too much effort to get back up to it so I decided to break back in a go for the second one. This worked out well as it gave me some space to make the lines.
The third races was the hardest of them all due to having to make slalom gates against an ex-slalom paddler. Fighting for the best line from the start I was slightly ahead at the first upstream gate, however lost out after the gate due to him getting the inside line out of the gate. Trailing into the next upstream gate I did a similar trick to as what was done to me which recovered some time. It was then a flat out sprint to the bottom hole. At the top of the hole I managed to push him sideways, however this put me straight into the guts of the hole. I could see that my efforts to push the completion off line didn't work as I was high bracing out of the hole to finish second.

The scoring system, working on your first time -10 seconds for a win and -5 for second meant that I had managed to qualify for the final.

Rob A had also managed to qualify for the final in his Burn MkII.

The Final
With 5 kayakers on the water at the same point it was clear that getting ahead from the start was key. The main line had now become touching one of the signs on RR as you pass it. This would keep you in the flow but was risky as you could go through the following hole with only one hand on the paddle.
As the countdown hit zero we were off. I managed to stay RR and protect the main line to the first sign. Slapping the sign as I past, the other 4 had to go for the second sign in the eddy. This gave me lots of space for the downstream and upstream gates. However I was slightly pushed downriver on the upstream gate which let someone up the inside, he fortunately for me took a roll. After breaking back in it was a flat out sprint to the finish line.

All in all it was a great hours worth of fun on the Legacy Loop, finishing first and Rob forth was a bonus too.

Speaking to Dan afterwards there is hopefully going to be more races and a league table drawn up in the New Year, fingers crossed!

Alpine Sprint, Italy - Video

Short video of Alan and Dan running down the Alpine Sprint section of the Sesia in Italy earlier this year.

Italy 2013 Video

So finally after 5 months here it is the video from out trip to Italy.

Sickline 2013 Video

FMOcrew's footage of our first time out in Austria at the Sickline 2013, bring on 2014.....

Qualification Day!

The day started at 6am for porridge breakfast and black coffee. All geared up in dry suits and bibs we were ready to go at 9am. Getting to the river just before 9:30 we were able to see the Qualification Group 1 (76-200 bib numbers) take their first practice run and qualification run. There were a few incidents, which meant that the running order was 30 minutes behind, therefore our mandatory practice was pushed back till 11am. In order to get into the two qualification races you must complete the full course in your mandatory run.

Dan was up first, he sailed through Champions Killer -1 and cleanly through Champions Killer. I was next up and had a good line through Champions Killer -1 but was forced slightly left over Champions Killer scrubbing off my speed through the pool, thankfully this was only the practice so it didn't really matter. Rob was up next, dropping into Champions Killer -1 he got flipped backwards took two attempts at rolling but unfortunately bailed just above Champions Killer. His boat and paddle dropped into the pool below as the safety team was roping him out. From this point there was an epic walk back up the course and across the bridge at the top of the course. Due to not getting back to the boat in time he was timed out and didn’t complete his mandatory run, therefore not being able to race in the qualification races.

After our practice run it was back to the start and queuing up for our first qualification run. Dan was in first, dropping into Champions Killer -1 he went slightly too far right and got stuck in the hole for a few seconds. He was finally flushed out but was upside down. After two attempts of rolling he was back up but heading towards the right hand slot of Champions Killer. Going over the drop he then had to work extra hard to get back into the main flow to continue down to the finish line, finishing in 2:00.20.

Whilst Dan was fighting his way I was busy getting into the boat. I knew that Dan must have taken a bad line as the Race Official wouldn’t let me start for a while. Once I was given the “OK” to start I broke out into the main flow. Cutting across the top of Champions Killer -1 I had an almost perfect line between the rocks river left and right. Next up was Champions Killer, I got the boat pointing slightly to the right ready to pull it back straight just before landing. Just after landing I felt the boat jump up and skip across the pool heading towards the narrow slot before the main racecourse finish line. Unfortunately I got pushed a little to the left which meant I lost a bit of speed through the slot, but managed to recover on the flat section before continuing down the rest of the run. Finishing in 1:27.34 I was fairly happy with my run but knew I could shave a little bit of time off.

After completing our first run we had a two hour break before starting our second Qualification Race.
Dan was up first again for the second qualification run. He was pushed right across Champions Killer -1 but managed to get back on line for Champions Killer. Successfully boofing off the drop he just had the long slog to the finish line, finishing in 1:37.73 - a vast improvement on his first run!

Before I knew it the official gave me the “OK” to start. Dropping into Champions Killer -1 I headed far left again, however this time after the hole I was pushed a little too far left with my boat not quite pointing downstream, one extra left stroke saw me back on line for Champions Killer and setting up for the boof. Skimming across the pool I was heading towards the narrow slot. This time I set the boat up a lot better getting a straight line through the gap and not hitting the wall. Now the power was on till the finish line, finishing with a time of 1:26.60 - slightly faster than my previous run.

After both times had been added together Dan had a combined time of 3:37.93 finishing 115 out of 119. Two runs like his second run would have seen him inside the top 100. 
My combined time was 2:53.94 finishing 64th, missing the Qualification cut off by 6 seconds. For a first attempt at the Sickline with admittedly less training then most others this wasn’t a bad result. 

The target has been set for next year……

Day 3 (last day) of Training on the Wellerbrücke

Today was the last day of free practice on the Wellerbrücke. The levels had once again dropped slightly, reading 189cm on the gauge. The sun was coming over the mountain behind the course, setting the scene for a lovely days kayaking.

Rob decided to move up to the start of the Qualification course and run Champions Killer -1. On his first run he managed to get through Champions Killer -1 but took a quick roll between that and Champions Killer. Unfortunately he was then on the wrong line for Champions Killer, not getting the boof spot on got him flipped in the bottom. A few attempts at rolling in the aerated pool unfortunately saw him swim. A quick rescue and back in the boat to finish the qualification course off boosted his confidence returning to the start again.

Me and Dan had numerous runs down the qualification course, some better than others. We both know where we want to go its just getting the boat to it.

Dan dropping into Champions Killer -1.

Alan riding out of Champions Killer -1.

Rob's first drop into Champions Killer -1. 

Slightly too far right into the foam pile.

Rob dropping off Champions Killer.

Alan boofing off Champions Killer.

 

Through Champions killer and
accelerating towards the finish line.

With day 3 now over it was up to get registered and collect our goodie bags!

Day 2 of Training on the Wellerbrücke

After a cold night and no rain the levels continued to drop. At the start of the day it was at 199cm, by the end it was on 193cm. With the drop in level we decided to attack the full qualification course, starting above Champions Killer -1 and finishing at the Slalom Course get in.

 

Alan running Champions Killer

Dan's run of Champions Killer

Running into Champions Killer -1, slightly too far right saw me surfing the hole for a good 15 seconds.

Side surfing Champions Killer -1.....

Finally managed to dig deep and get out of the hole.

Dan's running through the middle of Champions Killer -1, Stomping it out!

Dan on the top of Champions Killer.

Rob's landing on Champions Killer
saw him looking into the sky.

The aerated landing makes it very hard to roll in.

Back in his boat Rob makes it through the tight gap
against the wall.

A fellow competitor snapped his paddle in Champions Killer -1
and still made it down into the pool of Champions Killer.

After lunch we continued to paddle the Qualification Course, dropping Champions Killer -1 5 times in total and paddling the lower section a further 4 times.
Tomorrow is the last day of free practice, so another early start is planned to get in as much paddle time as possible.

Day 1 of Training on the Wellerbrücke

After a long over due sleep we headed over to the course to start trying to learn the lines.

The level had slightly dropped since yesterday, 203cm when we got on. However it was still looking high. Today there were a lot more people on the course, and running its full length.

We decided to run from just above Champions Killer and practise the Qualification Course.

Looking back up the course from Champions Killer. 

Getting some practise in on the Qualification Course 

Alan's first attempt at Champions Killer

Dan's first attempt at Champions Killer

Unfortunately Rob's first drop down Champions Killer wasn't captured on film due to a rescue taking place just after the drop.

After lunch we met up with Laurence O'Riordan and Eddy Mead.

With levels still high (199cm late afternoon) we continued to drop in from above Champions Killer to the Qualification Course. Hopefully tomorrow the river should have dropped more and a full run might be on the cards!