The Paddler Issue 54 summer 2020

PADDLER The International magazine for recreational paddlers Issue 54 Summer 2020

Coaching on canoeing, kayaking and SUP from…

RAY GOODWIN MIKE SHAW ELAINE FARQUHARSON JAMIE GREENHALGH CHRIS BRAIN MIKE ORNSTEIN

ezine The Grand Canyon, USA

By Steve Childs Spending time in Austria

By Steve Brooks Sea kayaking Baja, Mexico

By Michael Powers Learning outdoors

By Richard Harpham FreeStyle vs Canadian Style

By Charles Burchill Sea kayaking Holy Island

By Richard Janes

Interviews with…

CAL MAJOR PAUL HYMAN ALICE BEETLESTONE

24-page summer issue of

CANOE FOCUS

Bill Bailey – comedian and paddleboarder The 2020 #ShePaddles ambassadors Chris Brain tips to getting started IN PARTNERSHIP WITH BRITISH CANOEING

CONTENTS

The Grand Canyon. Photo: Steve Childs Editor

Advertising sales

Peter Tranter peter@thepaddlerezine.com Tel: (01480) 465081 Mob: 07411 005824 www.thepaddlerezine.com

Anne Egan Tel: (01480) 465081 advertising@thepaddlerezine.com

Design 2b Graphic Design Limited

Cover: Ute Heppke and Ramona kayaking on the River Lech in Austria Photo: Steve Brooks Additional thanks to: James Appleton, Active360, Danatu Wdziekonska, Tom Clare, Rob Crowe, Harry Price, Jen Leal, Beth Kirby, Zoltan Erdelyi Zeworks, Steven King, Debrah Volturno, Bruce Kemp, Paul Klonowski, Adam Mott, Dale Mears, Geth Roberts and Chris Taylor

Not all contributors are professional writers and photographers, so don’t be put off writing because you have no experience! The Paddler magazine is all about paddler to paddler dialogue: a paddler’s magazine written by paddlers. Next issue is Late Summer 2020, with a deadline of submissions on August 20th 2020. Technical Information: Contributions preferably as a Microsoft Word file with 1200-2000 words, emailed to submissions@thepaddler.ezine.com. Images should be hi-resolution and emailed with the Word file or if preferred, a Dropbox folder will be created for you. The Paddler ezine encourages contributions of any nature but reserves the right to edit to the space available. Opinions expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of the publishing parent company, 2b Graphic Design Limited. The publishing of an advertisement in the Paddler ezine does not necessarily mean that the parent company, 2b Graphic Design Limited, endorse the company, item or service advertised. All material in the Paddler magazine is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved.

Reproduction without prior permission from the editor is forbidden.

Issue 54

Summer 2020

004 Surfing river waves in a canoe Thanks to:

By Ray Goodwin

010 Interviews with…

Pollution campaigners Cal Major and Paul Hyman

028 Head over heels Aspects of freestyle by Mike Shaw

036 RNLI water safety Interview with Alice Beetlestone

040 The Grand Canyon, USA

By Steve Childs

050 Spending time in Austria

By Steve Brooks

060 Outtasight Clinic

for your life on the water

Visual impaired paddle - Chris Farris & Carlisle Landel

066 Are you SUP ready?

By Elaine Farquharson

073 Canoe Focus British Canoeing’s 24-page magazine

098 Sea kayaking Baja, Mexico

By Michael Powers

108 Finding feedback on the river

By Jamie Greenhalgh and Chris Brain

114 Learning outdoors

tootega.com

By Richard Harpham

122 A pitch for heeling2

By Mike Ornstein

126 FreeStyle vs Canadian Style

By Charles Burchill

132 Testing, testing Palm drybag plus Scottish SUP guide

134 Sea kayaking Holy Island

By Richard Janes

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R AY

G O O D W I N ’ S

SURFING R I V E R W A V E S A C A N O E Words and photos: Ray Goodwin It’s fun, it ups the skill level and allows you to move across the river more efficiently. Many of the skills transfer directly to running down a lake in a strong tail wind.

It is hard learning the skills on anything but the smallest wave. On bigger stuff it will feel so quick, so hectic to the novice learner, that it is difficult to apply technique. As an alternative we can use any solid flow and get a friend to hold the canoe in place on a rope: therefore we don’t need a wave.

Here we can begin to master the necessary paddle strokes. The canoeist is at a disadvantage over the kayaker. The kayak can quickly and efficiently switch sides, so for the most part only uses the ‘push away’ part of the stern rudder. On a fast wave the canoeist will only steer on one side of the boat and must use the ‘push away’ and ‘draw’ elements of the stern rudder. It can even be practised standing in the water.

Held on rope

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Outside face on the rope ON THE WAVE Here the water is hitting the outside face of the blade and the stern of the canoe is being pushed to the left, which turns the bow to the right. In some situations, I will rest my wrist or the shaft of the paddle on the gunwale to get generate more power. On a wave, it may be necessary to lean towards or away from the stroke according to the move, so it is worth practising on the rope.

Outside face on the wave

The water is hitting the inside face (the face nearest the canoe) and so drawing the stern of the canoe towards the paddle and turning the bow away to the left. This is a lot less powerful than using the outside face but can be used quickly unlike a, often, forlorn attempt to switch sides. To achieve any power in this, it needs a lot of rotation in the chest, to the paddling

Inside face on the wave

side, as well as protecting the shoulder joints from hyperextension. This is such an important stroke, it is often referred to as a stern hanging draw.

Safety note: If there is excess rope up at the person standing in the water, it should not be wrapped around the hand. Instead it is lapped across the palm and not around it. Easily ditched if it all goes wrong.

Inside face on the rope

Low hand

High hand

The hand positions for the inside and outside (stern hanging draw) versions of the stern rudder differ. In the push away version the forward hand is quite low and more importantly, the rear arm is not extended but flexed to remain strong. In the stern hanging draw, the chest is rotated more and the forward hand is brought up and pushed outside of the canoe, the rear arm remains flexed to maintain a strong position.

ENTRY POINT 2 Here the wave and the point we can surf (marked) is much further out. Speed is built up in the eddy and a fast ferry glide is used to get out to the useful wave.

Entry point 1

Above: Entry point 2

Below: Strong diagonal

GETTING ON THE WAVE Generally, entry onto a wave will be directly from an eddy. It is important to be on the wave before getting out into the full power of the current.

ENTRY POINT 1

STRONG DIAGONAL

Here there is a patch of slower water just a little way out from the eddy and that is my target. Entering the wave further left, in this case, in not useful as the wave is too small for the length of canoe. Speed is built up in the eddy but has to be carefully managed as the boat slides over onto the face of the wave and this is where the expert takes the power off. It needs enough speed to get on the wave but no more.Too much speed and the canoe goes through the trough and starts climbing the oncoming water: in that case it then accelerates backwards and over and off the wave.

Now on the wave the canoe is running on a strong diagonal. The water is not flowing directly at the bow but rather strongly onto the canoes right side. To counter that, the canoe must be leant away to the left so that the flow goes under the hull rather than building and capsizing the canoe to the right. Any steering at this stage must be done carefully whilst maintaining that leftward lean. Often only part of the blade is used in steering, so the canoe is not tripped with the blade being pushed under the hull.

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Standing STANDING Some waves have a sweet spot allowing for a bit of showmanship from bow or stern. Paddles helicoptered above the head or one or other standing are favourites.

Dropping onto the wave Edging away

DROPPING ONTO THE WAVE Dropping onto the wave. Here the canoe has left the eddy, nearest the camera, slid across the pile of the white wave and is now dropping onto the face. No speed is needed anymore and if anything a braking stroke may be needed if the canoe is dropping on too quickly.

EDGING AWAY Here the canoe is running diagonally across the face of a steep, fast wave. It has to be leant strongly away to its left or the current will whip the hull away into a capsize.

Any touch with the paddle would quicken the capsize. It takes a lot of balance and confidence to lean away in this situation and inherently it feels unstable.

This is all based on the video so you get to see it in action: https://youtu.be/CyA_-Ifn5ws Left: Crossing a wave

CROSSING THE RIVER We don’t just use waves because they are fun but because they can become an integral part of our river running skills. We can use waves to cross from eddy to eddy.

CROSSING A WAVE Here a strong lean to the right, of the canoe, is coupled with a low brace at the stern for stability.

INTO A FERRY Here we have a well placed wave at the top of a eddy.

The wave is used to ride out and across the river. As the wave ends then the move with a ferry glide is used to finish the crossing.

Into a ferry

Thanks to: Venture Canoes, NRS for pfd and gear and of course Freebird Paddles: Maya is using the WW Dipper and myself the WW Big Dipper Ray Goodwin’s website: www.RayGoodwin.com Ray’s YouTube Channel is: www.youtube.com/c/ RayGoodwinCanoe

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Interviews with two of the best known plastic pollution campaigners…

The Covid-19 crisis has outlined the problems we have with plastic pollution in our waters both in the ocean and on our rivers. It was highlighted many times how the lockdown had drastically reduced pollution, certainly on the rivers, and now how the reduction in lockdown restrictions is having the opposite effect, as single-use plastics are once again increasing in our waterways and oceans and we’ve become uncomfortably familiar with images of masks and gloves in water courses, plus mountains of littler on public beaches. We asked Cal Major, known for her work on keeping our oceans free from plastic, whom we interviewed two years ago on her career and paddling highlights (https://paddlerezine.com/an-interview-withcal-major/), and Paul Hyman, of Active360, equally well known for keeping our rivers clean, to find their views on how we can get back on track for the future…

Interview: Peter Tranter Photos: James Appleton Cal is a veterinary surgeon turned ocean advocate and stand up paddleboarder, campaigning to stop plastic pollution at source, and reconnect people to nature. Cal became the first person in history to SUP the length of the UK, a distance of 1,000 miles, from Land’s End to John O’Groats, and the first woman to solo circumnavigate the Isle of Skye, Scotland. These expeditions were used to raise awareness of plastic pollution in the ocean. Cal got into SUP in 2014 as a result of an injury and it’s fair to say she has never looked back.

An interview with…

CAL

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THE FIRST QUESTION IS INEVITABLE WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING TO KEEP YOURSELF SANE DURING THE CURRENT CRISIS? I’m not sure the term ‘sane’ can be applied! I’ve been very up and down throughout lockdown, but this has led me to some pretty profound discoveries as to what does and doesn’t serve my mental health. Just an aside here – we all have mental health, and I feel that during lockdown a lot of us have become more aware of our need to support our mental health, just as we might support our physical health by going to the gym and eating well (and of course mental and physical health are so often linked)!

I very quickly became aware of how different I felt on the days I spent indoors, compared to the days I was out in the garden. Being outdoors filled me with so much more happiness, and even though I couldn’t get to the ocean, I was really lucky to have fields and birds and wildflowers to engage with. I would try every morning to take my cup of tea into the garden and just walk barefoot and really observe the plants, listen to the birds – being as mindful and purposeful as possible. I also made sure I went out every day if I could on my road or mountain bike, or for a walk to get my daily dose of endorphins, and was surprised to find some pretty amazing places within walking or cycling distance of home.

It was really obvious when I didn’t do either of these things, as I’d feel anxiety and irritability creeping back in almost instantly. I also did a lot of online fitness classes with friends, which was cool, and tried really hard to cut sugar out of my diet. I was finding that the news, the uncertainty and not being able to get in the sea was anxiety-inducing enough without adding to it, so my main goal was just to keep that at bay for the first few months. Now that things have opened up, I’m really valuing being able to get back onto and into the water! The first time I went for a swim in the sea I sobbed, I’ve never been more enthralled by jellyfish out SUPing, and the grin I have from a surf session now lasts a week.

YOU CAME TO SUP LATER IN LIFE AFTER SURFING AND SCUBA DIVING. INYOUR LAST INTERVIEWYOU DESCRIBEDYOURSELF AS NAIVE.WHAT HAS EXPERIENCE TAUGHTYOU? Interestingly I wouldn’t describe myself as quite so naive anymore! My time in and on the sea has taught me so much – both about the way the ocean works, respect for its unpredictability, but also about my own strengths and vulnerabilities. It’s a very humbling experience being put in your place by the ocean, and that’s happened to me more than once! I have a very deep respect for her now, and have spent days on end learning how to read forecasts, read the water and the clouds, so that when I put myself at the mercy of mother nature I’m a little bit more in tune with what the signals around are telling me.

That feels incredibly freeing – no longer do I feel I need to fight against her immense power, but I can appreciate when that will assist me, when I’ll be strong enough to overcome a situation, or when I need to gracefully accept that she’s more powerful than I am. I’ve been in some pretty sticky situations on the ocean without support, phone signal or assistance, and learning how to deal with them has been so empowering, and so humbling, and I think that’s transferred into my campaigning and life. Some days you can weather the storm if you just believe you have the capability; other days you just need to take a step back and wait for it to blow through.

I moved to Devon to be close to the sea, and was finding plastic on every beach I surfed or paddled.

It started to enter my consciousness, but it was really on the remote island of Tiree in Scotland, which is absolutely tiny, where I found myself wading knee deep along a remote beach in plastic waste. It struck me how ubiquitous the problem was. I was outraged by it, upset at the idea that the animals I’d sworn to protect (I’m a vet) were being killed by our obsession with convenience and a throwaway lifestyle.

Half the plastic we find on beaches is single-use, so much of which is avoidable, and I was finding items like plastic water bottles which are so unnecessary. I just felt that if we connected the dots a bit more between our decisions on land and their implications in the ocean, we might stand a chance of tackling this at source. There was a lot of negativity surrounding plastic pollution when I began the ‘Paddle Against Plastic’ campaign, but I really wanted to deliver a positive, empowering message of how we can also be a part of the solution.

HAVE YOU ALWAYS FELT STRONGLY ABOUT PROTECTING OUR OCEANS AND RIVERS OR IS IT MORE RECENT? I’ve always been obsessed with animals – that’s why I wanted to be a vet from an early age. I think I was always mesmerised by the sea as a child, but it was learning to scuba dive in Australia, aged 18, that really hooked me on the indescribable beauty of the underwater world. I was head over heels in love with the peace, the colours, the creatures… I knew from that moment onwards that I wanted to dedicate my life to protecting these places and the animals in them. I took up every watersport I possibly could: surfing, wake boarding, scuba diving, free diving, and later paddle boarding and kitesurfing - anything to allow me time in and on the ocean. It became the place I felt most happy, joyful, at home, and the place I wanted to do everything in my power to protect.

www.calmajor.com

SO WHEN AND WHY DID THE IDEA OF TACKLING PLASTIC POLLUTION FIRST COME TO MIND?

It’s only been in the last few years that I’ve consciously been able to describe my need to be near water as my body’s craving for my mental health, and that it’s that deep emotional connection that drives me to the lengths I go to protect it. I battled with depression after finishing my Land’s End to John O’Groats expedition, and that’s what’s alerted me to water’s power to help that. Until then, my time on the water was still protecting my mental health by providing fun and joy and laughter, and it does that for, I’d say, most of the people who make their daily, weekly or holiday-time pilgrimages to the ocean, but I didn't have the context of mental illness to relate it to until recently.

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ThePADDLER 14 WHAT EFFECT DO YOU THINK THE COVID-19 CRISIS HAS HAD REGARDING POLLUTION? I think this has unfortunately been a double-edged sword. On the one hand, we’ve seen incredible photographs of cities in China with a skyline for the first time in decades as air pollution decreased, life in the canals of Venice, and the sardine run in South Africa coming close to shore without all the noise pollution from recreational watercraft. It’s been incredible to see how quickly nature has been able to recover from decades of abuse, and how immediately our actions can alter when a personal threat knocks at the door.

I just wish we could see that the climate, pollution, ecological and ocean emergencies threaten human life too, and our action towards those needs to be seen as urgent and important as well. For example the World Health Organisation estimates that 4.6 million people die each year from air pollution. This isn’t to say Covid-19 is any more or less pressing, it’s to say that we need to be taking much more immediate action to minimise our negative impact on nature as well, and now we’ve seen we can do it.

We’ve also seen a huge increase in single-use PPE – mostly masks and gloves. The images of these washing up on beaches around the world is pretty harrowing. Plastic companies, who are also oil companies since plastic is made from fossil fuels, have jumped on this as an opportunity to profit in a world that was starting to decrease its reliance on single-use plastic by spreading misinformation about the necessity of single-use in this era.

Single-use definitely has its place in medical settings to protect workers who are already risking their health, but in everyday situations, reusables are often still the best option for our wallet and our planet.

There are many companies making reusable masks, and they're perfectly sufficient to wear on the bus and to the shops.

WE HAVE ALL SEEN THE RECENT IMAGES OF OVER CROWDED BEACHES DURING THE CRISIS AND THE MOUNTAINS OF LITTER LEFT BEHIND.WHAT MORE CAN BE DONE TO DRIVE THE MESSAGE HOME? Education and reconnection to nature is key. By this I mean helping everyone to appreciate how inextricably linked our lives and actions are to nature, and how important a thriving natural world is for our own health. I think as a society we’ve become disconnected from nature, valuing convenience, financial success and material wealth over community, health and the planet. Forming a personal, meaningful and emotional connection with nature is so crucial if we’re going to get people to appreciate the importance of protecting it. As Jacques Cousteau said, “People protect what they love,” but they can only love what they know. This is where I think mental health and environmentalism intersect, and is the basis of the charity I’m currently setting up.

As paddlers we’re in a unique position in that we are regularly in the thick of it! We generally are appreciative of the environments that bring us so much joy, and are able to see first-hand the impacts of our throwaway culture. We can therefore all be advocates for the ocean and waterways, be sentinels for issues that crop up such as sewage outflows, plastic pollution or building plans, help to educate and inspire others to care and limit our own impacts on the places we play.

AS AN AVID PROTECTOR OF THE OCEANS, I IMAGINE THAT YOU MUST HAVE STRONG VIEWS ON WHERE FOOD AND GOODS ARE SOURCED? Yes I do; I think it’s important to be aware of the impact of all aspects of our life. I don't however think the onus should solely fall on the individual.

Businesses need to do more to limit their impacts, and the government needs to create legislation to ensure this happens. However, unfortunately most businesses operate to generate profit, and only a minority of politicians operate with their main agenda to respect the environment. So the systemic shift we need in values that drive our economy and way of life has to come from a mixture of responsible business and government, but often is driven by consumers’ awareness and desires.

The more people that support businesses that are doing the right thing, source food from farming practices that don’t destroy our planet, and vote for governments that put the environment at the forefront of their agenda, the more pressure there is on change going in the right direction. I strongly believe in the power of community and individual voices, and of our individual choice. Choosing organic food, eating less meat and dairy, reducing our own carbon footprint, using less single-use plastic – it all has a role, and we humans need to know other humans are also doing it to take action, so there’s so much power in individuals making green choices in every day life.

www.calmajor.com

HOW CAN WE AS PADDLERS GET MORE INVOLVED?

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That’s a tough one! I think I’ve come to terms with not necessarily needing to surpass it in terms of distance or time on the water… each of my expeditions has had a different focus, and this year’s focus is different again – it involves setting up the charity to help reconnect people to the ocean, and creating a documentary series about our amazing seas and waterways.

I really miss adventuring and the escapism it brings, and have certainly missed it during lockdown, but my challenges have always been for the opportunity to deliver a message about our environment, and this year that has to take a different form. I’m excited about that. However, I do have some expedition plans on hold for once we’re no longer in the throws of a global pandemic!

WHAT PIECE OF TECH KIT DO YOU RELY UPON THE MOST? I get really cold, so I think that would have to be a tie between my Palm Equipment Atom pants, which have revolutionised paddling for me by meaning I can stay completely dry when I’m paddling, and hugely increase my ability to recover after a long paddle by keeping me warm, or my dryrobe, without which I don't think I’d be plunging into cold water in the winter!

www.calmajor.com

LAND’S END TO JOHN O’GROATS MUST BE YOUR GREATEST ACHIEVEMENT – HOW DO YOU SURPASS THAT?

WE ALL KNOW YOU AS A SOLO PADDLER - BUT JUST HOW BIG AND IMPORTANT ARE THE TEAM BEHIND THOSE EXPEDITIONS? Great question! My Isle of Skye expedition was just me out on the water and on the island, and that was pretty empowering having to get myself through those situations alone. That expedition was pretty transformative for me, and I think I wanted to recreate it when I paddled from Land’s End to John O’Groats.

But I very quickly realised that to paddle day after day, and eat, and raise money for charity, and raise awareness around plastic pollution, and make it through my own mental health and grief challenges at the time, I was going to have to rely on all the absolutely wonderful people who generously assigned themselves as my support crew.

My boyfriend, James, is also a photographer and film maker and spent hours running along the coast path with his drone in the air or paddling out to meet me to get the footage he needed for the film we made, ‘Vitamin Sea’. He also took on the roles of logistical and emotional support plus chief van driver. My Mum and Dad, brother and friends, all helped out with logistics at some point too, and my Mum was chief feeder. I had so much support from the amazing Glyn Brackenbury who kayaked LEJOG a few years previously, and who talked me through a lot of decisions; I had fantastic psychological support from my amazing coach Penny Barker, physical support from my physio Lucy Wright, PR help from my agents at Speakerbuzz and the lovely Lesley Quinn, and then so many strangers I either met along the way or who supported from afar via Facebook or Instagram.

This really did make all the difference, and was very humbling to think just how different, or even impossible, it might have been without them. I did a talk with Water Skills Academy about it recently, which is online to watch: https://youtu.be/c5l327sre6c

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OK – SO PLEASE LEAVE US WITH JUST ONE LAST THOUGHT ON WHAT WE COULD DO BETTER TO KEEP OUR OCEANS AND RIVERS CLEAN…

ANY FINAL SHOUT OUTS?

Find your tribe! The most impactful campaigns are those conducted by local communities, protecting their local environment. Check out Save Our Rivers, the Rivers Trust, the Surfers Against Sewage Plastic Free Coastlines campaign, 2-Minute Beach Clean, City to Sea and find like-minded people near you to engage with. Equally, I think it’s really important that we don’t become bogged down with anxiety over our individual actions, or indeed feel guilt for the things we cannot currently avoid, but rather feel really proud of what we can do.

Palm Equipment, dryrobe, Starboard SUP, KEEN Footwear, Klean Kanteen, Ocean Ambassadors and the amazing companies I work with including the Midcounties Co-operative.

Keep in mind that those individual actions that might seem small and insignificant do form part of a much bigger picture of systemic change that’s desperately needed to change policy, the way businesses work, and the status quo that is currently allowing environmental atrocities to occur. Put pressure on your MP, talk to businesses and let them know their customers want change. I think behind all of this is a desperate need to reconnect to nature, so if you paddle, you likely have it, but who else can you take out onto the water and get stoked about protecting it?

Thanks as always to my online supporters and my wonderful community and team. Thanks to my amazing sponsors who share my vision:

My films are online to watch for a few quid, which is going towards the charity set up costs: https://vimeo.com/ondemand/vitaminsea https://vimeo.com/ondemand/skyesthelimitfilm https://vimeo.com/411397956

THANK YOU SO MUCH CAL FOR YOUR TIME. My pleasure – thanks for reading!

01479 861 256 www.glenmorelodge.org.uk

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Interview: Peter Tranter Photos: Active360 Paul is to say the least, a very recognisable face along the Thames River. An avid stand up paddleboarder, Paul’s role has been pivotal to the opening of the Thames River for paddlers through central London with his work and negotiations with the Port of London Authority (PLA). Alongside this, Paul has tirelessly campaigned against plastic pollution on the Thames and further afield, including his ‘In the Drink’ campaign, to encourage riverside pubs and restaurants to think about alternatives to single-use plastics that can have such detrimental consequences to the river environment. His other love is Active360, which he founded and has driven forward to be one of the largest and most active paddle sport clubs in the UK.

An interview with…

PAUL

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THE FIRST QUESTION IS INEVITABLE WHAT HAVE YOU BEEN DOING TO KEEP YOURSELF SANE DURING THE CURRENT CRISIS? I had maybe six weeks off the river during which time we re-thought and re-launched our Thames Skills and Knowledge courses with theory parts now delivered online via Zoom – so people don’t need to travel and can take them from the comfort of their sofa. All in line with Covid-19 social distancing measures and at the same time preparing people for the Thames Tideway conditions when they are ready to paddle.

Lockdown was a strange time but it gave me time to think about our business and how it could work in the post-Covid world where people need to stay away from big gatherings and avoid unnecessary close contact. For Active360 this means no big events and large groups on the river for some time and that’s exactly what we were doing over the last few years.

Instead, we restarted with one to one lessons, small family/same household groups. It was like going back to where we started nine years ago and in a way quite refreshing. I can remember thinking in early June how without Covid we would have been getting ready for ‘Get on Board’ – the SUP river clean-up, which last year attracted 250 participants. Instead of planning for that, we were out on the river introducing enthusiastic individuals to SUP and helping them to progress – which was actually quite rewarding and much less stressful.

It was good to take a step back, slow down and rethink. We wouldn’t have been able to do that without the lockdown.

SO WHEN AND MORE IMPORTANTLY, WHY DID THE IDEA OF TACKLING PLASTIC POLLUTION FIRST COME TO MIND? In 2011 when we started up in London – one or our bases on the canal was beautiful but quite plastic polluted, so we got some friends and people from local community to clean it up. We did more plastic clean ups but I always knew it was not a real solution – just a quick fix. It gives people first-hand experience and gets them thinking but what’s needed is a long term change in human behaviour and this needs to be followed by businesses and government. Without this, the problem will persist and we will keep cleaning up plastic that will keep coming back.

We scaled up with picking up plastic and we now run bigger ‘Paddle and Pick’ events (www.paddleandpick.com) engaging businesses in understanding the need to protect the marine environment and reduce their plastic footprints.

WHAT EFFECT DO YOU THINK THE COVID-19 CRISIS HAS HAD REGARDING POLLUTION? Throughout lockdown, the Thames was relatively plastic free. I haven’t seen it that clean and for so long for quite a while. With few people out on the riverside drinking and eating and very few powered boats out there, the main sources of plastic trash were removed. Also all the big junk food chains were closed for many weeks, so we stopped seeing the evidence of mindless consumerism. It was very refreshing and gave me hope that change can happen and when it does we can see evidence very quickly.

www.active360.co.uk

WITH THE EASING OF LOCKDOWN RESTRICTIONS – HAVE YOU NOTICED AN INCREASE AGAIN IN RIVER POLLUTION AND IF SO,WHAT TYPE OF POLLUTION? Sadly, as soon as lockdown started easing – almost immediately human trash started to return. Riverside bins overflowed as people picnicked and drank in groups. Added to the usual fizzy drink plastic bottles, Covid masks and plastic gloves started appearing in large numbers as well as lots of single-use plastic cups. Reusables were banned when lockdown eased, so you can no longer be served coffee in your reusable cup. Single-use plastic cups were being dished out by riverside pubs as their outdoor service resumed.

There appears to be no place for thinking of the impact on the environment in the attempt to minimise contact i.e. handling cups, washing, etc. If it isn’t looked into, it will become the norm again and all the hard work environmentalists were trying to do to change people’s behaviour will have been wasted.We are actively involved in the ‘In The Drink’ – a scheme to encourage bars and pubs, particularly those on the riverside, to switch from single-use plastic cups to reusable ones. Sadly, all that work was put to a stop for the moment but once the busy summer season is over, I plan to do more work on that.

PEOPLE MAY BE FORGIVEN TO THINK YOU ONLY CONCENTRATE ON THE THAMES RIVER. PLEASE EXPAND ON YOUR TRAVELS ACROSS THE WORLD WITH YOUR ETHOS OF FIGHTING POLLUTION I’m based in London but have been over to Odisha, India, a few times to see how they are struggling with plastic there. Chilika Lake in India is a vast (1,1652 mile) and mostly unspoilt lagoon flowing into to the Bay of Bengal and home to 160 species of birds and rare Irrawady Dolphins. We completed a few trips around sections of the lake on SUPs and found that while large areas are still unspoilt, others are plastic polluted. This comes from many visitors to an island pilgrimage and also Indian tourists going to see the dolphins from local fishing boats.

My last visit was to the south – Chennai and Kerala, where again parts are free of plastic and others are polluted. I’ve also been out to Myanmar to see the Mangroves, in the Thor Heyerdahl Climate Park a few times but it was shocking to see how in a remote coastal village plastic was everywhere – on the stunning beach and around the houses. When we first visited in early 2017 they were just setting up their first landfill and organizing the first plastic clean up. We were pleased to be invited to take part in this with the village primary school kids.

We also have a growing partnership with Starboard, who have for years led the SUP industry in single use plastic reduction and who help fund the Thor Heyerdahl Climate Park. I've been out to Thailand a few times to better understand their pioneering environmental work.

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ThePADDLER 24 HOW CAN WE AS STAND UP PADDLERS, CANOEISTS AND KAYAKERS ALL GET MORE INVOLVED IN TACKLING POLLUTION? I come from a kayaking background, having been a white water paddler when I was younger and I set up three canoe clubs on the Thames.

Kayakers/canoeists are generally quite good with environmental awareness as individual paddlers but perhaps canoe clubs could be a bit more proactive and involved in environmental activism and advocacy. Perhaps some clubs are very involved but we don’t just hear about it, which is a shame.

There are a few things we can all do to reduce our own plastic footprint. Investing in good quality equipment that will last years is a good start – our boats/boards are made out of plastic, we use neoprene, etc. Let’s be mindful what we buy and how we use it to minimise the chance of it getting into landfill. We could try to support brands with environmental ethos and try to influence the ones that don’t appear to have much consideration for the environment. We looked at our suppliers and stopped buying overpackaged goods. There is no need for a plastic boat/board to be wrapped in even more plastic. Every time we buy something wrapped in plastic we are financially supporting the companies who produce it and reduce their urgency to make changes.

If you have bought over-packaged stuff you can do something about it – the power of social media is incredible! You can post images on social media, tagging in manufacturers and campaigning organizations.You will be surprised how much response you can sometimes get. Often manufacturers will engage, make them respond to you and explain. Customer feedback can be a powerful tool in longterm change.

AS AN AVID PROTECTOR OF RIVERS, I IMAGINE THAT YOU MUST HAVE STRONG VIEWS ON WHERE FOOD AND GOODS ARE SOURCED? I try to avoid the obvious and enjoy a mainly plantbased diet but I don’t like telling others what to do. It’s complex and without lots of research it’s easy to make mistakes. Where there are opportunities to buy locally produced food or goods then I take them, as transporting goods around the world is rarely a good thing. However, in the SUP world, most of the equipment and clothing we use is manufactured in the Far East and so generally the best we can do is to support brands trying hardest to reduce packaging and use recycled materials. I love Starboard’s initiative to replant mangroves and use paper and cardboard packaging instead of polystyrene and bubble wrap.

WHAT KEEPS YOU GOING WITH YOUR ENTHUSIASM FOR RIVERS AND IN PARTICULAR,THE THAMES? I’ve lived close to the Thames since the 1980s and now live on it (on a boat) so I can't get any closer. I love the way rivers change constantly in different light and weather conditions and the Tidal Thames (my back garden) with its huge tidal range and greatly varied riverbanks, is particularly interesting to me.

It can also be really challenging in changing conditions so I can’t say I ever get bored with it. A seal joined us on the river today and stayed with us for a while enjoying a fish dinner in front of us. The couple I was coaching got an unexpected birthday treat – what else can you ask for on a day out on a river?

ARE THERE TIMES WHEN YOU FEEL REALLY DEFLATED AND FIGHTING A LOSING BATTLE OR DO YOU SEE REAL SIGNS OF PROGRESS? I do feel deflated when I see how we abuse nature and spoil our environment. The way traffic levels, air pollution, road noise and plastic in the river have returned so quickly shows that not much has really changed. The cars queuing at drive-through fast food outlets with engines running is mindless. But there are good signs, like the increase in cycling and the new pop-up segregated bike lanes appearing.

Also working from home is reducing the need to travel and gives many of us, a better work life balance and more time to think.

I don’t think the battle is lost. To say that would mean to give in. I don’t give in.

YOU AND ACTIVE360 ORGANISE SO MANY EVENTS ON THE THAMES – ARE THEY ALL SET TO RETURN IN 2021?

There are signs of things coming back. A few enquiries about river clean ups from businesses for late summer and events for next year. It may take a couple of years for the really big events to build up again with the economy damaged and some companies tightening up their spending.

AS WELL AS ENDEAVOURING TO KEEP THE THAMES CLEAN,YOU ARE ALSO HEAVILY INVOLVED WITH KEEPING PADDLERS SAFE ON THIS WORLDFAMOUS STRETCH OF WATER – HOW DO YOU INTEND TO KEEP THAT MOMENTUM? We are running the sixth series of online TSK courses since the end of the Thames lockdown and we are running as many on-water TSK sessions as we can fit in.

Work on bringing TSK2 theory online is underway.We have just contributed to a PLA safety bulletin on ‘Use of Leashes for Stand Up Paddleboards’.This follows a recent incident, which nearly resulted in two people

www.active360.co.uk

Posting images of trash in the environment and on riverbanks can induce producers and their customers to think about who is responsible. Is it the soft drink manufacturers for packaging in plastic, or their irresponsible customers for mindlessly disposing of it?

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drowning because they were wearing ankle leashes and their boards were dragged under a pontoon by the powerful Thames current.

We have been anticipating this type of drowning for years while advocating quick-release leashes and buoyancy aids on the Tideway. It’s good that these unaware paddlers survived and everyone can learn from the incident. We want to offer training to as many people as possible, so we will keep running courses and promoting them, while making the most effective equipment readily available locally.

OK – SO PLEASE LEAVE US WITH JUST ONE LAST THOUGHT ON WHAT WE COULD DO BETTER TO KEEP OUR RIVERS CLEAN… Buy a reusable bottle and use it. Tap water tastes fine and you will be much healthier skipping the fizzy carbonated stuff full of sugar or chemical substitutes.

Discarded plastic bottles and cups are the main offenders of plastic pollution in the rivers. Pack your lunch in boxes, avoid plastic bags and wrappers. It’s all quite simple really if a little less convenient.

Pre-Covid, I would also strongly advise to refuse beer served in a single use plastic cup. Unfortunately, this is no longer possible as all pubs/bars are serving in single-use plastic. Hope we can soon return to that and demand again that pubs and bars invest in reusables.

IN YOUR TIME AT ACTIVE360,WHAT IS GOOD ABOUT THE CLUB,AND WHAT IS YOUR PROUDEST ACHIEVEMENT PERSONALLY? Some would say against the odds I’ve set up an organisation on the Tidal Thames when SUP was still very niche and hardly known in London. We have introduced thousands of people to SUP on a beautiful but challenging stretch of a very powerful urban river.

This was done with an excellent safety record despite some thinking we were cowboys.

I’m also proud to be using SUP as a vehicle for environmental change, sticking to my principles and making the business not only about earning a living but some higher values like environmental awareness, community inclusion and sharing love of the rivers with city dwellers who sometimes don't see the beauty on their doorstep.

ANY FINAL SHOUT OUTS? Don't buy cheap rubbish boards!

LET'S TALK ABOUT SUSTAINABILITY WE CAN'T FIX EVERYTHING, BUT WE CAN: - Make gear that lasts for years The longer it lasts, the less the waste - Plant trees and rewild the Scottish Highlands To offset some of the carbon (and guilt) - Work with instructors and charities to connect more people with the water environment The more people who care, the more who will value it, and want to protect it - Use organic, fearwear and recycled wherever possible From our rashvests made from reclaimed ocean waste, to our dry bags made from waste PVC

To find out why, and how McConks are different, visit www.mcconks.com

When an inflatable paddleboard dies, it cannot be recycled

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HEAD HEELS over

Aspects of freestyle by Mike Shaw.

Number one: the cartwheel In this series of articles we shall explore the fundamental techniques, individual moves and tricks that make up the sport of freestyle kayaking, with technical knowledge and top tips from the world’s best freestyle paddlers.

In this, the first of the series, we will be looking in depth at the cartwheel with the wise words of GB team members Rob Crowe and Harry Price, as well as techniques you can use to improve your sessions so you can optimise your practice time each session. So no matter where you are on your freestyle journey, you should find some useful nuggets of information and tools to use within this article.

WHAT IS A CARTWHEEL? The cartwheel, one of the oldest moves now considered ‘playboating’ or ‘freestyle’, with its roots in 1970s slalom paddling, is beautiful in its simplicity. If you have seen a cartwheel in gymnastics chances are you can already picture a cartwheel in a kayak. It is a sideways rotational movement of the boat, where the boat is moved from vertical on the bow to vertical on the stern in a fluid motion.You can keep switching from each end of the kayak for as long as you want to.

The ICF (International Canoe Federation) have technical descriptions for each move. For them to score during competition they must meet the criteria within that definition. Judges are very strict. so it is worth paying attention to, and becoming familiar with, each move’s specific criteria.

ICF DEFINITION “At least two consecutive ends in the same rotational direction, and both ends at vertical angle between 45° and 100°.”

Mike Shaw started paddling at the age of 12 with his local Scout group. Turning it into his full time career, passing on his skills to groups of all ages and abilities.

Mike is most at home in his Jackson Rockstar. Turning his hand to freestyle, nothing is more satisfying that getting huge air!

He is supported by Jackson Kayaks, Mitchell Blades and Square Rock.

Harry’s cartwheel. Photo:Tom Clare

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Cartwheel sequence photos: Jen Leal

HOW TO CARTWHEEL The first and arguably most challenging step to getting a cartwheel is the double pump. This is where you lift the bow and push it back down under the water to bring the boat to the vertical position.

There are a ton of YouTube videos on the cartwheel and double pump technique so I recommend spending some time watching them to get your head around the move.

Step 1. Put the boat on edge Step 2. Lift the bow by pulling on the blade: at the same, time lift your knees and engage your core.

Step 3. Rotate your body down towards the water as you rotate the paddle onto the back of the blade.

Step 4. Push on the blade and push down on your feet as you unwind your body.

Once you’ve had success with the double pump and have begun getting the bow down consistently we can easily turn this into a cartwheel by adding on a few extra steps.

Step 5. Release the paddle by feathering it out of the water.

Step 6. Look over the shoulder on the same side you are pushing the bow down then rotate your body around as you do a quick pull stroke with the opposite blade.

Step 7. Engage your core and your knees, as you pull the boat up to vertical with the bow now in the air.

Step 8. Follow the rotation and allow the boat to come down to flat.

SOME COMMON MISTAKES WITH THE DOUBLE PUMP Not committing to the move! You will fall over! You will get wet! This is part of the process. Commit to the move and accept that you are going to get a lot of rolling practice at this stage.

Accept that you will fail at first. Like the ollie in skateboarding, this is something that needs to be tried hundreds of time before it works and it’s just as important to your future development as a freestyle paddler. Just because it didn’t work the previous 30 times, does not mean that it will automatically fail on the 31st attempt.

Not lifting the bow and not engaging the core.

Getting to a point of resistance on the paddle blade and not pushing through. Keep pushing and don’t stop!

Body position! Don’t lean back, The key to learning is to keep trying different tactics until you find one that works. Experiment with your body trim and position.

As a general rule you don’t want to be leaning too far forwards or back.

CARTWHEELING ON WHITE WATER Once you have had some success with cartwheelbased moves on flat water, you’ll want to take it to white water and onto a feature. There are plenty of places you can throw cartwheels, but we are going to look specifically at holes. Unlike great waves, these can be found in abundance on almost any river or whitewater course. DO not be afraid to try

Harry’s top tips for the double pump and cartwheel are:

cartwheels in holes and over waves before you’ve learned how to do the move on flat water. You can learn both simultaneously if you have access to white water. Learning both at the same time will help you and it is often easier to cartwheel on whitewater than on flat water.

Step 1. Read the feature. Every feature is different.

Some may be shallow and slow, others bouncy and fast and anywhere in between.

Some features allow you to throw moves much more easily in one direction than the other. An easy way to read a feature is to watch it and ask other paddlers about it.

Another joy of the cartwheel is that you can do it in a huge variety of features: small, big, deep or shallow.

1. Don’t be afraid to fall over, most people when learning do not put on enough edge throughout the entire move. Falling over on your face is a good sign!

2. Look where you want to go, this is essential for the double pump and cartwheel. Look up as you bring the bow up, then look down at the blade you are pushing off.

3. Practise, practise, practise.The movement will feel weird at first.To overcome this, practice Is key. Keep doing it, trust the process, work hard and it will come.

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Step 2. Use the blade as little as possible and try it without using the initial stroke to lift the bow. The ‘pick up’ stroke is not always required so experiment and see if you can initiate on edge by pushing down without the initial ‘pick up’ stroke. Experiment with the use of the blade. The size and power of the feature you are surfing will determine the amount of force you will have to transfer through the blade. Play with exaggerating or removing different strokes that make up the double pump.

This gives smoother more controlled cartwheels and means you stay where you want to be in the feature as the pick-up stroke tends to put you further up the green.

Step 3. Go with the speed of the feature. Different features will allow you to cartwheel at different speeds. So to get the smoothest cartwheels possible go at the speed of the feature.

You’ll know you are too fast because you’ll start feeling out of control and it will be a lot of effort. If you are too slow then you’ll lose fluidity from end to end.

SOME COMMON MISTAKES WITH THE CARTWHEEL ON WHITE WATER: One thing that I often still have to remind myself to do is to keep focusing on something in the distance upstream. I find I forget this, especially as I am learning new links, and as soon as I remember everything always gets smoother and easier.

Some common errors I’ve noticed is that some paddlers

stand up too much on the bow end, meaning they’re pushing too hard on the first blade and then

standing up too much Very rarely now do I use a paddle stroke on the stern end, by this point I’m reaching around to the bow, or preparing for the next linked move.

Some common errors I’ve noticed is that some paddlers stand up too much on the bow end, meaning they’re pushing too hard on the first blade and then standing up too much. This stalls the rotation. If they come through onto the stern end the boat tends to be over vertical which makes it almost impossible to recover.

ROUND-UP Don't give up, do it forever! It might feel like you’re getting nowhere, but the breakthrough will come.

Visualise yourself doing the cartwheel, practice, practise, practise, go over the steps, top tips and techniques in this article, refocus if you ever get frustrated with it and with a bit of effort you will be cartwheeling!

Photo: Beth Kirby

Rob’s top tips for linking ends and cartwheeling in holes: One of the joys of cartwheels is that they flow nicely into a ton of other tricks: split wheels, tricky woos, McNasties and loops just to name a few. I’m going to run you through three of my top tips for linking cartwheels to other moves.

1: Spot your landing. I can’t exaggerate enough how important head movement is for cartwheels and pretty much all freestyle tricks. A ballerina moving his/her head while doing a pirouette is very similar to how a kayaker should move their head when cartwheeling. From the start you want to be looking at a point until the boat has rotated to a position where it is impossible to look at that point anymore, then you quickly rotate your head in the direction of rotation until you find that point again.When linking in a hole you may need to stay on a specific spot in the hole, I recommend trying to spot where you want the nose of the boat to go.

2: Don’t go angle crazy. Cartwheels at a high angle look ridiculously cool.

However, if you want to become a linking master it might be time to turn it down a notch. Reducing the vertical angle will make your cartwheels far easier to control resulting in it being much easier to link to the next trick.To achieve this, try varying the amount of edge you have on your double pump.This tip also applies for people trying to get more than the first two ends of the cartwheel.

Remember once you are flowing nicely and feel you have control you can start to build the angle back up again.

3: Vary your starting position.

Learning new freestyle tricks is nearly always a process of trial and error. One of the variables you can change between cartwheel attempts is where you start your double pump in the hole.

Do you want to be slamming the nose down above the seam line or a foot downstream of it? The answer to this is different for every person and every feature. In holes with a strong tow back, starting further back will give you more time to rotate your body and spot your landing before you get sucked into the feature. In less retentive and smaller features it often makes sense to start on the seam line so you don’t flush out the back. It’s up to you to get experimenting and work out what works best for you and your local play spot!

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Harry’s fun challenges Maybe you are getting cartwheel ends consistently and are now looking for an extra challenge. Here are a few of my favourite ideas to make the cartwheel a little more difficult: 1: Lose the paddle! Cartwheeling without your paddle is extremely fun and is great way to fine tune your boat control.

2: Spin your paddle. Take some inspiration from squirt boating, where they do some really cool tricks with their paddles while performing complex moves.

3: Learn on both sides.

I recommend that from the start of your cartwheeling journey you practice on both sides. However, if you have got the point where ends feel easy of one side but you haven’t considered trying the other side. It is definitely time to learn that other side. Falling over is fun!

You won't believe a recycled jacket could feel this good

Harry’s cartwheel. Photo:Tom Clare

TEREK Supple, soft and quiet, the three-layer breathable waterproof fabric of this jacket is made from 100% recycled nylon from post-industrial waste (Global Recycled Standard certificate CU818073). Tread lightly in the Terek jacket.

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A natter with

RNLI Water Safety team member Alice Beetlestone

Alice Beetlestone has been boating for more than 20 years and got involved in paddling at college, where she cut her teeth on the rivers of south Wales first in white water before branching out and also taking up stand up paddle boarding. She is a volunteer crew member at Aberdovey Lifeboat Station and works for the RNLI’s Water Safety team. We caught up with Alice over a virtual cup of tea, to chat about the RNLI’s safety advice for paddlers.

WHAT IS YOUR ROLE WITH PADDLING SAFETY? The Water Safety team lead on prevention activities for the RNLI. As a part of this work I am also on the British Canoeing’s Safety Advisory Panel (SAP).

WHAT DOES SAP DO? We meet several times a year to discuss all things safety related in the world of paddling. This could be anything from producing or updating guidance and safety standards of throw bags to discussing incident reports and producing safety bulletins.

2019 STATS PANEL 213 lifeboat launches to kayakers and canoeists 22

lives saved from kayaking or canoeing incidents

203 number of kayakers or canoeists rescued by RNLI crews 319 number of kayakers or canoeists assisted by RNLI lifeguards 968 hours spent at sea by lifeboat crews on service to kayakers or canoeists *Source – RNLI service data 2019

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ThePADDLER 38 YOU SOUND SO PASSIONATE ABOUT KEEPING PEOPLE SAFE? WHERE DOES YOUR MOTIVATION FOR PADDLING SAFETY COME FROM? Yes, it’s close to my heart. Primarily, I guess it comes from my love of paddling and I want others to enjoy it as much as I do. During my time as an outdoor instructor I must have introduced thousands of kids to their first experience in a boat and I knew that for them to enjoy the experience, they needed to be and feel safe.

As a lifeboat helm, I’ve also seen first-hand when things don’t go to plan and have dealt with mishaps and unfortunately, on rare occasions, tragedy. I think it’s so important that we all play our part in helping each other to stay safe on and around the water.

WHAT ARE THE CURRENT HOT SAFETY TOPICS FOR PADDLERS? My top five would have to be: • To get all paddlers to carry a suitable means of calling for help and keep it on their person.

• The importance of planning.

• Encouraging everyone to use British Canoeing’s incident reporting system, which helps us to help you.

• Our joint ID scheme – label those boats up folks.

• The massive increase in people new to paddling.

TELL US MORE… From the RNLI perspective, the number one across the board is to have a suitable means of calling for help and, just as importantly, keeping it on you. You can plan as much as you like but we all know that things can still go wrong and if it does and your VHF radio,

personal locator beacon (PLB), or mobile phone is not on you and you get separated from your boat, or can’t reach into that hatch to get it, then things could suddenly get serious. It is one of our key messages to anyone going afloat and we don’t apologise for keeping on banging that drum.

In a recent British Canoeing safety bulletin, we have been able to share several successful rescue stories where PLBs have been used by paddlers with great effect, leading to a happy ending for all involved with nothing more serious than a bit of embarrassment, or Mickey taking from their friends and family.

IS THAT MESSAGE HAVING AN IMPACT? I believe it is and the success stories would attest to that as well as the statistics. It’s sometimes hard to prove that prevention education is working but, when I started in water safety, we would see an average of seven fatalities a year in UK coastal waters. It has come down to less than half of that over the last few years. That’s still not where we want to be though, and we will always keep striving to achieve that perfect 0.

WHAT ABOUT THE OTHER THINGS ON YOUR LIST? When it comes to planning, we could go on about it all day. I’m sure it’s not a surprise to any paddler worth their salt that good planning can prevent most misadventures. We recently published an article with Holyhead Lifeboat volunteer coxswain and sea kayaking legend, Nigel Dennis, on the subject. There is also, of course, a wealth of information on the various national governing body websites. I’ve seen some great online content being put out there during lockdown too, so thank you to all the coaches out there who have been sharing their wisdom.

When it comes to the reporting of incidents, I doubt there are many of us that will not be aware of the virtues of lessons learnt. Having a positive and open safety culture benefits us all and it is better to learn from other people’s mistakes than find out the hard way yourself.

The boat ID scheme is simple, by labelling up your craft this serves two main purposes. Firstly, you stand a much better chance of getting it back if it goes missing, remembering all rivers lead to the sea. And secondly, if a boat is found adrift, we can much more easily contact the owner which potentially saves an unnecessary search by the RNLI and Coastguard.

And last but not least, sales of paddle craft, in particularly SUPs, have increased massively. There are more people taking to the water than ever, especially on places like the River Thames, which is a busy and complex piece of water – just ask any of our station crew on the river. Please help us get advice to any friends who are starting out. There is some great advice at rnli.org/safety/choose-your-activity and for places like the Thames, there’s specific guidance for anyone venturing out onto the tidal part of the river on the Port of London’s recreational user’s website www.boatingonthe thames.co.uk and the Tideway Code.

ANY FINAL TIPS? After lockdown, we might all be a little bit rusty so please ease back in and practice those self-rescue skills. Check your safety kit is all still up to date and batteries in equipment like VHFs are fully charged and always wear a PFD. Check the up-to-date local information and forecasts then stay safe and have fun!

Universally

Charged Your safety in your hands

Additional reading: https://britishcanoeing.org.uk/news/2019/ safety-alert-personal-locator-beacons-plbs https://britishcanoeing.org.uk/gocanoeing/access-and-environment/ access-to-water/incident-reporting https://britishcanoeing.org.uk/news/2020/ identify-your-boat

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C GRAND N Y O N T H E

Word and photos: Steve Childs

Hang around paddling for long enough and you’ll hear hushed stories about the, “Greatest trip in the world,” “always being above Lava,” “boating the big ditch” and a myriad of other clichés – all describing the Grand Canyon of the Colorado River. Its 280 miles of canyon, desert wilderness and white water make up what’s possibly the most famous river trip in the paddlesport world.

I’ve spent more than three months trying to start this article now, which is odd, because I’m never usually short of things to say…

The truth is – I don’t think I can do the place, people, or experience justice and I’m beginning to understand why so many people proclaim to be in love with the canyon, and yet have so little to say about it.

The 278 miles from Lee’s Ferry to Pierce Ferry may contain some of the most fabled rapids in North America, but its true strength is the mind-blowing beauty. A majestic and virtually unspoilt wilderness, which slowly consumes you with its rugged simplicity, shielding you from the outside world until it almost becomes irrelevant.

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There are already endless superlatives about the place – that was my best attempt on the 10-hour flight home from Vegas, and progressively since, I’ve found it harder to say little more than, “It was awesome, go do it, it’ll change your life.”

Until I stood at Lee’s Ferry, the get-in for the canyon, I couldn’t have ever begun to understand the magnitude of the place, the sheer mind blowing beauty of the desert, and the sheer logistical siege, which is more than three weeks gear for a trip that could see all four seasons (and would) in the same day! Put simply, everything about the canyon quietly overloads you, you don’t have a trip on the Grand, you become part of one – it’s not about you, it’s about the experience, and in the most simplistic terms, perhaps that explains everything.

For most, the canyon isn’t a trip you just stumble into.

A private canyon trip relies on a huge amount of planning, and an even bigger amount of luck. Obtaining a permit is now literally a lottery, and to be honest, one I had given up on attempting to win!

I’ve dreamt of paddling the Grand for as long as I can remember.

ENTIRE LIFE You see, the canyon, indirectly, has dictated my entire life – It all started when my headteacher at school decided to show a video with kayaking in it – the location wasn’t important, but the huge crashing waves between towering cliffs immediately captivated me, and I joined my local canoe club a few days later.

Of course, eventually I realised the location ‘was’ important, where it was, and added it to my ‘trip-list’ But the real urge to paddle it only came when I saw photos of the ‘white water warriors’ trip back in 1993.

These guys were only a few years older than me, and there they were paddling an almost 300-mile long section of white water – I had to do it!

Year after year went by. I was adamant I neither wanted to, nor could afford to go on a commercial trip and so blindly carried on applying for permits – after a while the annual cycle of disappointment began to erode the dream, and at some point I stopped entering the lottery.

The dreams never stopped though… The idea of riding massive, glassy surf waves under mile-high cliffs never left my thoughts and so when life threw me a curveball a few years ago, I decided to have one last

Canyon highlights Part of the problem with the canyon is the virtually endless points of interest. it’s very hard to know where to start when describing the canyon to anyone.

Here are a few of my personal highlights…

The archaeology The canyon has a deep history of human travel and inhabitancy. Much of which is easily accessible to river trips.

Personal highlights included the Nankoweap Granaries, which look over one of the most impressive canyon vistas I saw. The Deer Creek Patio – the handprints on the rock walls are incredible, as is the geology, and the view… and the desert view watch tower, which looms ominously over the river for what seems like days.

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go at getting a permit – mostly as a distraction from illness. The idea was I would lose again, then finally give in and book a commercial trip as a recovery treat.

Back in 2017, a sudden bout of sepsis led to emergency surgery, a colostomy bag and the abrupt end of life as I had known it. Paddling, the one constant in my life instantly became a banned activity, which courtesy of complications and additional surgery was my new reality for several years.

Of course, unable to paddle I finally won a permit – thankfully for me it was virtually as late into 2019 as was possible giving me the most time humanly possible to recover from the surgery I already had and the reconnection surgery (I hoped) was yet to happen.

Distraction (more than) achieved.

FOOD AND LOGISTICS I’ve been fortunate enough to paddle many rivers around the world, but nothing, not even 30 years of waiting, will prepare you for the sheer logistics of a multi-week trip on the Grand.

It’s certainly not fast and light! Everything is super-sized.

From the 300-mile+ shuttles, the 18ft oar-rigs, to the tons of food, and the novel concept of taking everything – literally including the kitchen sink(s) with you.

Our set up included 5 x 18ft rafts – necessary to get the 25 days of food and additional winter gear safely down the canyon and 13 people’s waste – back out!

We had a huge amount of help with our food and logistics from Moenkopi Riverworks and Emily was an utter saint as she helped juggle numerous (conflicting) allergies and food dislikes. We got there in the end and for the most part ate like kings! Thanks to the huge coolers we were still eating fresh vegetables, meat, and dairy over three weeks into the trip. For me, the food highlight was eating massive rib-eye steaks under the huge overhang at Panchos Kitchen on my birthday! But honestly, the food was the best I’ve ever had on a paddling trip.

THE TRIP I spent a week in Las Vegas before heading out to Flagstaff to meet up with others. After a day of driving across the desert, the last thing I expected to see when we arrived in Flagstaff was snow – but there it was, in all its freezing glory! We spent the evening preparing personal gear and charging batteries and suddenly, after years of planning everything felt real!

If it had felt real the night before, the morning was a rude awakening! We drove across town from our motel to Moenkopi Riverworks, where they had almost completed loading up the trucks with our gear.

I’m not sure who looked more startled – them or us!

The geology…

It might be an obvious one, but the canyon is a unique opportunity to go on a geological road trip.

From some of the newest rocks on the planet to some of the oldest. If the rock itself doesn’t interest you, the changing views, fauna, and flora will! Personal favourites included Vulcan’s Anvil – a huge volcanic boulder which sits mid-river, just above Lava falls, and Redwall Cavern, which no end of pictures will prepare you for!

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It turns out our ambitious piles of toys, drinks, and warm things had tipped their careful planning over the edge – we were immediately presented with a decision – less beer, less toys, or an extra raft. I’m pretty sure they knew what the answer would be, as they had already started loading a fifth raft before we’d decided!

The long drive from Flagstaff up to Lee’s Ferry was a quiet one – everyone was beginning to absorb the vast landscape. I for one was beginning to wonder about the surprising amount of snow on the plateau – was it going to make things unbearably cold? Was it going to fill the Colorado with sand making it murky?

Would we get a spike in river levels if the snowpack suddenly melted?

LEE’S FERRY Arrival at Lee’s Ferry answered these things fairly quickly, where we were greeted at the launch ramp by Ranger Peggy in a short-sleeved shirt and sunglasses. It must have been 25 degrees (Celsius) and the water was crystal clear, at least for now!

Standing at Lee’s Ferry after almost 30 years of waiting, 30 years of owing almost everything to a section of river I’d never even seen, let alone paddled, I think I was beginning to realise quite how profound the next 26 days would be. I started to worry about my total lack of fitness, my weak core, how easily I got tired and whether I had enough pain relief to see me to the bottom.

Ranger Peggy is very perceptive – she picked up on this almost immediately and simultaneously assessed and reassured me, whilst going through all of our group’s paperwork with me. Before going to the canyon I had heard horror stories about US park rangers – my experience is that they are some of the most helpful, professional, and supportive people I have ever met.

Once we had finished rigging our rafts, we made the short float to the Lee’s Ferry camping area, where we pitched up camp for the evening and dealt with minor issues like forgotten gear (FRENCHIE FORGOT HIS DRYSUIT, FRENCHIE FORGOT HIS DRYSUIT, FRENCHIE FORGOT HIS DRYSUIT:-).

The morning dawned cold! There was a hard frost on all our tents and it definitely wasn’t tee-shirt weather.

We loaded up camp and awaited the arrival of Peggy to go through our river orientation. Before we knew it we were breaking out into the Colorado and heading towards Lake Mead and after just a few miles we had been swept under the Navajo bridges with the rapidly rising walls of marble canyon all around us.

I’ll never forget the feeling I got as I passed under the bridges – it was the first moment it felt like we were truly in the canyon, and as if on cue, two condors took to flight, cruising over the river above us like a

The rapids Weirdly, the white water takes a backseat to the experience (I never thought I’d say that), there are still some pretty special rapids and features though!

Highlights for me: Hermit and its super fun wave train, plugging the big hole in crystal (and not flipping the raft) and the last day of rapids (below Diamond Creek), which seemed to have more fun waves than the rest of the river put together.

welcoming party. We knew bad weather was on the way, but for now the sky was deep blue, the afternoon sunshine was warm and everyone was relaxing into this very special place.

DUTIES That evening we made camp at Soap Creek. We split into three groups and set up a schedule to alternate between groover and campfire duty, kitchen duty, washing up duty and a day off!

It took about a week to get used to the daily routine of unloading all the gear from the rafts, pitching tents, setting up kitchen, and doing our daily chores – but it worked well, and I think it’s testament to the awesome group of people I went with that it went without many issues or drama!

By the time we reached Phantom Ranch on the 30th December, most of us had got used to the isolation – we’d only seen a handful of people since launch. We’d

all been looking forward to stepping back into the ‘realworld’ but the reality (for me at least) was slightly overwhelming. Dozens of people milling about, a small shop and the opportunity to send postcards to friends and family were welcome, but I was glad to get back to the river and leave the crowds behind once again.

Phantom Ranch also marked an important point for me personally – it was my contingency point in terms of my health.The place I would walk out if the reality of paddling the canyon was too much. It probably would have been too, apart from the incredible people I went with – everyone on the trip had helped bridge the gap left by my lack of strength and stamina by this point, but especially Jerrod who led the lion share of the organisation, and Sam who had piloted the raft we shared through almost every rapid up to this point.

Their support gave me the confidence to carry on, to realise a life-long dream and the opportunity to remember why I love boating so much.

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A BLUR The next 14 days are a bit of a blur to be honest, they seemed to pass by quicker than the first week did. We settled into a steady routine, learned to just go with the flow, and to absorb the incredible views, wildlife, and rapids!

Before we knew it we were at Tequila Beach, below Lava! With the bulk of the big rapids behind us every last wave counted – we played our way to Diamond Creek and just beyond this had our last unique canyon challenge – a night float to Pierce Ferry.

The night float was a surreal experience – sub-zero temps, fog and mist, and constantly crumbling sand cliffs kept you on your toes and made sleep hard. The threat of beaching on sandbars and the thought of missing the take out and getting swept into the Pierce Ferry Rapid added to this and ensured most stayed awake for a good portion of the night, which thankfully allowed us to see an incredible view of the Starlink satellites over the canyon. Of course, not knowing what they were made it way more interesting!

By Dawn we were derigging at the boat ramp, and it didn’t seem like long before we were back on the road to Flagstaff – back to the hustle and bustle of the real world, utter sensory overload, and the harsh reality that those alien spaceship thingies we saw, were actually broadband satellites, meaning the next time many of us step foot in the canyon, it’ll be with wifi…

https://goo.gl/maps/xRLBDVEr9F87NLom8 The wildlife… You are definitely not on your own! From the ever-present canyon mice, to the bighorn sheep, ringtailed cats, mule deer, condors, eagles, and herons. For me the first day Condor viewing was a standout, but the whole experience was incredible nature-wise.

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Ute Heppke running the slide on the Upper Lech

Time to spend in…

AUSTRIA Words and photos: Steve Brooks

Well, where to start? I was asked if I could put some words and photos together from my trip to the Indian Himalayas. I wanted to go and kayak the Lohit River in Arunachal Pradesh on the far north eastern side of India. I have heard so many great things about this river and it has been on my plans to kayak it for the past decade. A friend of mine said it was the Futaleufu of the Himalayas, so it must be pretty good to say the least!

The plan was to drive from Shivanandi River Lodge with Stanzin and Chotak for five days straight to Arunachal Pradesh, however the day before we were supposed to depart, Chotak saw that the state of Arunachal Pradesh closed their borders to anyone not from the state. So though we could not kayak the river, we saved ourselves a 10-day mega road trip driving across India and back!

Celebrating Holi the Festival of Colour

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I decided to stay in Shivanandi and ended up spending Holi, the festival of colour, up at Pawan’s village and what a festival it was! I have spent quite a few Holis in the Himalayas in both India and Nepal and for me this years was one of the best experiences I have had celebrating this manic festival. Pawan was explaining that they do not see many foreigners in the village in the foothills of the Himalayas and of course with the festival in full swing I was made so welcome!

It was not long before I received a message that Austria was going into lockdown and my ski resort was one of the main epicentres! So the following week was spent trying to organise my flights and make a plan to get home!

EPIC After an epic 41-hour journey, which included walking across the German/Austrian border with all my bags and camera equipment, I made it back home. I then spent six weeks in quarantine, including celebrating my 50th birthday. The ski season was over and as restrictions started to relax we were finally allowed to go kayaking!

Steve walking to the put-in of the Madaubach in Lechtal

We are usually in Slovenia over April to mid-May, coaching and guiding on the stunning Soca River. However, with bookings postponed and with the rest Europe still in lockdown, I dedicated my time to getting paddle fit, enjoying our home rivers and also looking at a few new ones that I had never had the chance to paddle before.

I was kayaking laps of the Sanna, one of the gems of the Alps. A sweet river that has changed over the 23 years since I have lived here and though it has dropped down a grade (caused by horrendous flooding in 2005), it has come back to life over the years because of the landslides from various streams that brought in some huge rocks and boulders. Added to that, the local government also spent time and money on the river making new eddies and trying to keep the river looking as natural as possible.

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Right: Steve kayaking on the River Sanna in Austria just after lockdown in Spring Below: Steve Brooks - Austria Bottom: Steve kayaking on the River Hornbach in Lechtal, Tirol

We also have a small but very dedicated bunch of ‘local’ white water kayakers here in the upper reaches of Tirol. I say local as the majority of us were born elsewhere but we have all decided to make this part of Austria home!

Ramona was back on the river after having a child and it looked as though she had never been out of her kayak. Steve has been wanting to push his skills to the next level and we have been working with him on our local river - the Rosanna. Connie came on a cruise down the Lech River before heading up to Denmark with Jacob. It was great to see Connie develop so quickly, her roll is still solid and though she was super nervous at the put-in she completely styled it!

ARGENTINE SPANISH Finally, Lu decided to stay here in Austria rather than trying to escape back home to Argentina. She has been

super keen wanting to spend as much time as possible in her kayak. So the deal has been that I work on her technique and river skills while she tries to teach me Spanish. Again, I say Spanish, actually it is Argentine that she is teaching me. Lu is tirelessly trying to improve my Spanish.The only thing is I am not too sure if my Chilean friends will be happy with my improved Argentinian dialect, though Lu has given me a few phrases to respond to los Chilenos just in case that happens – all of which are unrepeatable in this article!

We also met up with Bastian Striebel on the Loisach in Bavaria. We have known Basti for years, he always comes over to the Peak UK stand at the Kanu Messe looking for t-shirts and beer and or we catch up with each other when we are both in Pucon, Chile. It was great kayaking with Basti, especially since he brought my brand new Striebel Designs carbon paddle! We have been testing Basti’s paddles for the past year or

Top: Looking deep down into the tightest gorge of the Madaubach in Lechtal Above: Steve kayaking on the River Hornbach in Lechtal Left: Ute and Ramona kayaking on the River Lech with the Steeg church in the background

so and absolutely love them. Not only do they perform really well but that look so cool, there is not a single paddle that looks as good as a Striebel Designs paddle! If you don’t believe me, go and try one for yourself, you will love it! Our clients in the kayak school were also testing them and were blown away just how good they are!

BEAUTIFUL ALPINE MEADOWS Apart from kayaking and coaching on the classic rivers and sections this part of Austria has to offer such as the Rosanna, Sanna, Imst Gorge and Toesens Gorge, we spent a lot of time in the Lech Valley. The scenery is incredible with snowcapped mountains, the stunning colour of the river and of course those beautiful Alpine meadows along its banks. However, the side streams that come into the Lech have long been on my list of rivers to paddle.

After plenty of walking and checking out some of the rivers I managed to paddle the Hornbach and Madaubach. I was told not to bother with the Hornbach but since I had plenty of free time I thought it would be worth it, but to be quite honest, I doubt I will be rushing back to kayak it again for a while!

The Madaubach, however, was different. It takes 50 minutes to walk in, followed by a 60-metre abseil down to the belly of the canyon and the put-in. Unlike the Hornbach, it is a lot mellower and with nowhere near as much wood in it. The gorge is incredible and once you drop in, you are literary going to have to kayak to get out of the deep gorge.

We also managed to get to the upper reaches of the Lech, which we had not kayaked for nine years or so.

Ute was with me and we also took Lu with us as well in what proved to be a great and unforgettable paddle

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all the way down through the village of Lech. The rock slide close to Zug provided some great entertainment and it certainly tested Lu’s nerves!

and internet gets knocked out! It also means the rivers are constantly getting topped up from the evening storms.

FANTASTIC EVENING ENTERTAINMENT

Our first courses start this July and we are looking forward to taking people on the river, coaching, guiding as well as showing people just why this part of the Austrian Alps is so good for spending holidays kayaking on the rivers around Base Arlberg. It’s going to be a lot quieter this season regarding work but the positives are that we get more chances to kayak for ourselves.

Now summer is finally beginning to arrive here and it has been sunny and hot throughout the day before the big thunder and electrical storms arrive late in the afternoon. We live in a very tight valley where the rumbling sounds of thunder vibrate throughout from village to village and over the mountains and topped with the big forks and cracks of lightning. This provides some fantastic evening entertainment, especially when the communications antennas take a direct hit up on the summit of the Valluga Mountain and our tv

I’m hoping we can fly to Pucon, Chile in October.

It will be great to kayak, catch up with friends and of course spend time in our brand new house up in the mountains with amazing views of the snowcapped volcanoes!

STEVE BROOKS

Steve leading Lu kayaking on the Upper Lech River

Steve has lived in Austria now for over 20 years and from being a place to come and work seasonally on the river, to a base camp and finally making Austria his home! Steve’s love for kayaking and adventure is infectious and this can especially be seen in the kayak school he set up 11 years ago. Based out of the Arlberg region in western Austria, the school runs courses for beginners plus coaching and instructing kayakers through all the white water grades, including creeking and river running.

In-between the kayaking season in Austria, Steve can be found kayaking and leading courses, adventure trips and expeditions in the So a Valley, Indian Himalayas, Peru and Chile in South America. He speaks Austrian German like a local and is trying to work out if he speaks Peruvian, Chilean or Argentine Spanish. Along with his wife, Ute, they have now bought some land on a mountainside in Pucon, Chile. With stunning views and some 10,000m², their dream project is now becoming a reality.

When Steve is not kayaking, he searches for that perfect powder run in the off-piste in his home mountains of St Anton am Arlberg or riding his Royal Enfield Bullet in search of undiscovered rivers in the Himalayas.

For more information check out: www.gokayaking.at and www.gokayaking.at/blog

LE

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RODUC T S P O

AWARDS

2020

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PA D D

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55% RECYCLED YARN

L JURY PRIZE SPECIA

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Ute Heppke running the slide on the Upper Lech

First Annual Western

O U T T A S I G H T Clinic Lake Berryessa, California Words: Chris Farris & Carlisle Landel Photos: Carlisle Landel

Picture this: A 70-foot luxury houseboat moored in a secluded cove on beautiful Lake Berryessa in California with 79-degree temperatures and crystal clear conditions. This was the base of operations for the first Western Outtasight Clinic, organized to introduce veterans with visual impairments to kayaking skills with the assistance of volunteers who were invited to learn how to guide the visually impaired and assist them in their paddling during the clinic. It was a perfect plan at a perfect place with perfect conditions.

However, no plan is perfect, of course.The first to arrive discovered that a fallen tree had blocked the road into our initial stop, Pleasure Cove Marina, where we were to camp overnight then transfer to our houseboat. It took 2.5 hours for the fire and utility crews to make the road passable.

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INTRODUCTIONS Once camp was set up, we gathered for dinner, introductions and orientation. Then, after a good night’s sleep and a hearty breakfast, we transferred people, food and gear to our houseboat. Once aboard, we motored out to our instruction site in Haines Cove, where we moored the boat to an island and set up for three days of instruction and fun.

The clinic was initially inspired by the June 2017 TRR Adaptive Paddling Conference, where Carlisle Landel and I were both certified. We joined forces with Jennifer Eaton from Kids are Outtasight and Team River Runner National to bring it all together.

Attendees included experienced white water and sea kayak instructors interested in learning techniques for teaching and guiding visually impaired paddlers.

Participants came from Arizona, Nevada, Idaho and California, and included both visually impaired paddlers and their accompanying (but as-of-yet) untrained family members.

We started with the basics, progressing to a doublecircumnavigation of our island (two miles total) and culminating in a five-mile paddle back to the marina from our mooring site on the last day. When paddling

with vision impaired persons the basics include paddle indexing: a visually impaired person has no way of knowing if the paddle is held correctly or not.

PADDLER TECHNIQUES To remedy this, we tape wire on the right side of paddle on or near the middle finger. If the paddle is dropped, the correct hold can be restored by feeling for the wire. This insures the power face of paddle is correctly positioned. Another technique when instructing visually impaired paddlers is to use voice commands such as, "On me.” The voice commands function as place guides and are used in a triangle configuration 50 yards apart in order to build the skill of following sound. In white water, some guides use a blue tooth speaker on the back of their life jacket.

These building blocks lie the foundation for amazing feats. In 2018 Team River Runner took five blind veterans 226 miles down the Grand Canyon. All trained for a year, each had to complete 1,000 rolls to qualify. YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WH9xGn5cIkQ

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HISTORY OF THE LAKE But paddling and instruction were not the only things on the schedule by a long shot – not when you have a luxury houseboat complete with water slide and a hot tub. In addition, we prepared and enjoyed excellent meals, new boats were dedicated, and a raffle was held.

As a special bonus, Park Ranger Jennifer Onufer came to the boat and gave a presentation on the natural history of the lake and its locale. She brought her collection of fossils, plants, pelts and other specimens to pass around and share, which was a fantastic tactile experience.

Additionally, a member of the Bureau of Reclamation public relations staff shot documentary photographs and interviewed the participants.

Saturday morning, we had a leisurely trip back in the morning sun. Everyone had advanced their skills to the point where the paddle back to the marina on the final morning was well within their capability. We unloaded the boat and returned to our camp for a huge catered meal and our final closing ceremonies.

Special thanks are due to: l

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Melissa Farris for organizing the food and menu and for holding down the campsite while we were on the boat.

The staff of Pleasure Cove Marina, who towed our string of sea kayaks to the mooring site and provided water taxi service between the marina and our mooring.

Guy Cables, owner, and operator of Sierra Outdoor Center of Auburn, for the donation of raffle items and his continued support of TRR American River.

TRR National, both for its support of the clinic and for its OJT program, which provided the training that made organizing this event possible.

Team River Runner

Team River Runner believes that every wounded and disabled veteran deserves the opportunity to embrace new challenges, invoke leadership, and promote camaraderie. Team River Runner provides an outlet to fulfill these beliefs – inviting wounded and disabled war veterans and their families to participate in adaptive paddling programs. https://www.teamriverrunner.org

2019

WINNER

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A R E

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SUP

READY?

Words: Elaine Farquharson Dorset Sports Physio and Dorset SUP Coach and Guiding Photos: Zoltan Erdelyi Zeworks SUP is one of the fastest growing paddlesports in the world with a post lockdown boom that has seen celebrities taking up the paddle and making it the new vogue.

It’s a full body work out that combines the power of the legs like a cross country skier, core of a gymnast, balance of a surfer and the agility of a tightrope walker. An average male SUP racer can paddle at speeds of 11km per hour, foil boarders can down wind from Portland to Ringstead Bay in 36 minutes and SUP surfers can reach the heights of Nazaire. Our SUP bodies and minds can achieve amazing feats. So whether you have just bought a board, have come out of post lockdown lethargy, or have decided you fancy standing up rather than sitting down – is your body ready for the complexity of SUP?

Leg drive and lift

Catch Drives body forward

Pushes board back

Push Pull

Trunk rotation A-frame

Lower limb centre of gravity

Technique To paddle efficiently we need to control our power in the frontal plane of motion, lifting and propelling the board forward. A weak core loses energy, poor balance causes us to be inefficient and weak, plus a poor posture can create aches and strains. To paddle well we need to keep an S-shaped spinal curve and knees inline with our feet.

Spinal mobility needs to allow body rotation, whilst controlling side bend and our spinal posture.

Shoulders need to stay open and strong with a good awareness of neutral to avoid overload and impingement.

We need to be able to use the big muscle groups of our legs to help the core with the propulsion and drive phase of the paddling stroke. Therefore we need an efficient squat and strong gluteal and oblique muscles. Every stroke we take at the catch we are off balance, which requires flexible ankles and stability, so that we can propel our centre of gravity forward to improve our reach. This accompanied with trunk rotation and knee bend, allows for a long paddle stroke which is more powerful.

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The first thing you should work on is your overall spinal flexibility The neck rotates, side bends, flexes and extends. Whilst the thoracic spine flexes, extends and rotates.

It’s important to try to maintain a good breast bone alignment, allowing yourself to round your shoulder when paddling puts strain on the neck and makes the shoulder alignment inefficient.

Try to imagine a piece of string is lifting up the breastbone and keep the back of the neck long as if you are wearing a crown.

Whilst in this position regularly practice twisting the spine as shown in the picture above.

Try to control other movements so you isolate rotation only, this will improve your posture better.

The lower back flexes, extends and sidebends. Keeping this area flexible ensures you keep your back healthy. If you find you have discomfort doing these basic ranges of motion, you make need to improve your core stability as structures might be getting overloaded.

Try to improve your everyday posture and keep yourself lightly moving. If that doesn’t improve then seek out some treatment and avoid paddling until you feel more comfortable.

We already discussed rounding the thoracic spine but we can also be weak in the back of the shoulders causing winging and altered shoulder alignment for healthy movement. Try to think about keeping your shoulders open across the chest during every day activities and try not to slouch if you can.

With strongly aligned shoulder girdles, you should be able to move them pain free through six ranges of motion. As a warm up before you paddle, try these movements to ensure you have prevented stiffness and have happy flexible shoulders.

Place hands behind your back.

Rotate your arms out to the side.

Raise the arms up overhead keeping the ribs and neck still.

So we have touched on the posture and as I have mentioned, we have a shaped spinal curve. However, let’s explore the core in more detail.

The pelvis should sit horizontally when lying down on your back so that the two pelvic bones are level with the pubis making a triangle. When we sit or stand then we try to maintain this alignment vertically at rest but move dynamically through this posture. The ribs should be softened into the ground, so that the muscle length of the obliques are in a strong position.

Our legs actually line up with the centre of the hip so that if we had a plump line the centre of the knee shin and second toe would all line up. The feet make a tripod of three arches between the heel, great toe and little toe. We should try not to collapse the arch and can avoid this if we keep good ankle flexibility and balance.

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Try to challenge this core alignment lying on your board or on a pilates matt with these four basic pilates exercises.

Hip extension with a straight leg keep your back still and core in neutral. Hip abduction.

Slide the leg to the side but do not allow the pelvis to rotate of lift up towards the rib cage. Keep your core.

Drop the knee to the side avoiding the other leg wobbling and pelvis following the leg.

Raise up the knee towards the chest but do not loose the spinal curve imagine you have a small grape in your lower back and you need to dissociate the hip and spinal movements to avoid squashing it.

For folk who need more power during their paddling, for example white water, racing and surf you also need strength in the global stabilisers particularly the gluteals and obliques. Two exercises that are advanced are demonstrated.

Table top position. Raise up one knee and hold.

Drop the ribs very gently to prepare for lifting up the second leg. Don’t allow the tummy muscles to dome or the pelvis to hinge forward as the leg is raised. Hold again and then reverse one leg at a time. Ideally if you can time the movement with an exhalation and hold with an inhalation you will find it will be more of a challenge. An easier version is to just move one leg only.

Shoulder bridge, we discussed already how important our bottom muscles are so roll up through the tail gently raising the bottom try not to over arch the back we want to try to isolate the gluteals. If you want to make this harder try popping your feet on a wobble cushion or foam roller, but beware this is difficult and you want to avoid hamstring cramp so practice on a steady mat first.

Once we have the basics of core we then have to bring it up into a more challenging position that is relevant so SUP. Adding in core with balance is hard. Start on a rolled towel or imagine you are on a tightrope. Try some gentle squats or walking forward and backwards maintaining the plumb line to the legs and controlling posture as you go. Use your paddle for balance but try to use good technique and a low brace support stroke.

Another good drill is to try to break the paddle stroke down into isolated movements, whilst trying to keep your spinal control and leg posture. You can practice arm movement, whilst keeping in a squat, or trying to forward bend maintaining the S-shape. You can see what happens to your posture using trunk rotation. See what happens to your shoulder alignment when you reach and rotate forward. Do you collapse and round, or can you maintain the shoulder width? Most importantly play with your movement control and balance but stay sensible and within a gentle level of challenge to avoid injury.

HEALTHY MOVEMENT PRECISION I hope that has given you some ideas about technique, posture, flexibility and health for happy paddling. Have fun with your technique and play with the concepts in a way that your body will be grateful for. Healthy movement precision will help you enjoy your paddling so much more, so make your dry land time useful so your paddling will be super fun.

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CANOE

FOCUS

Bill Bailey: Actor. Comedian.

Paddleboarder.

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Chris Brain shares his top tips to help you get started.

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Contents

3

WELCOME

CLEAR ACCESS, CLEAR WATERS

Welcome note from the Chair Professor John Coyne CBE

4

Our places to paddle

12

FEATURE NEWS

New to paddling?

Some useful advice to help you get started

Catch up on the latest news from British Canoeing

16

5

Your return to the water

6

Paddling through the menopause

7

Bill Bailey: Actor.

Comedian. Paddleboarder.

8

COACHING & LEADERSHIP British Canoeing announces the new leadership awards suite

18

Digital Corner

19

SHE PADDLES 2020 #ShePaddles ambassadors announced

20

FEATURE Open a gateway to paddling Return to paddling fitness

10

What your British Canoeing membership includes

22

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

WELCOME

FEATURE

4

Welcome

WELCOME www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

These are unusual times that we have been living through. The global impact of the Coronavirus pandemic has been devastating to so many families and we have all had to play our part in keeping ourselves and our community safe. Restricting our activities in the paddling community in the crucial early stages was a small price to pay to get on top of the growth in cases and sadly deaths. Many in our own community have been affected and we want to send to all of them our best wishes - not least Bradley Forbes-Cryans’ father as he recovers after contracting COVID-19 in hospital.

packaging waste is a national disgrace and our beautiful waterways have been once again polluted to a disproportionate extent. I am hugely grateful for the extent to which our paddling community act as the responsible and environmentally aware custodians of the water. I want to say ‘Thank You’ to all the clean-up teams - so many of whom had their first return to paddling accompanied by a bin bag! We are continuing to press for greater access to more of our waterways (Clear Access, Clear Waters) so showing that we care about them is vital in that task.

It has been pleasing to see the easing of restriction lately and that so many have returned to paddling – safely and responsibly – plus the many new paddlers that have joined our community. The great weather and the recognition that paddling is an activity that boosts wellbeing and has such natural social distancing associated with it has given us a real boost. You get a real sense of this from the stories of returners’ first paddles back featured in this edition. We have also seen many new paddlers and this has translated into a huge uplift in membership – so to our new members I want to say a particular welcome and invite you to engage fully with British Canoeing so that we can do all we can to make your paddling experience more enjoyable and uplifting.

You will find some useful tips and advice in this edition from Chris Brain to help you make the most of your new membership.

As we have had to enjoy our passion at a distance we have been fortunate in having a volume of information, stories and engagement on social media, in print and through streaming. Etienne Stott has been doing a great job with his weekly Paddlecast – combining his inimitable style with a series of engaging guests. His discussion with Bill Bailey on his passion for SUP was a delight and can be relived in print in this edition on page eight.

As people return it is important to do so safely: safe from Coronavirus and also respecting your body and personal wellbeing. The fitness tips and drills are a good place to start as you get back on the water. In our house we have tried the online yoga classes by Olympic qualifier Adam Burgess. As my body refused to obey my brain I was in awe at the ease with which Adam demonstrated the most challenging of moves. Keeping fit to ensure you paddle safely is important.

As we reflect on the need to be inclusive it is important that we reach out to all communities and ensure that no-one is denied the opportunity to paddle and enjoy our stunning waterways. The #BlackLivesMatter movement invites us to ask ourselves how we can ensure that our community of paddlers fully reflects and respects the diversity of the population of which we are a part and makes everyone welcome.

As people have returned to activity after ‘lockdown’ it has also unfortunately brought out some of the more irresponsible behaviours that characterise contemporary life. We probably all saw the press reports of rubbish left after the ‘raves’ in Manchester. The casual discarding of plastic and

Our new #ShePaddles ambassadors are also introduced in this issue and you cannot help but be struck by the variety of backgrounds, life experiences, ages and characteristics they represent – all united by a passion to paddle. That passion can continue for life and need not be disrupted by life’s natural phases – as our article on paddling through the menopause illustrates.

Professor John Coyne CBE

Chair British Canoeing

N E WS

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Jaffa to extend relationship with British Canoeing as Official Partner British Canoeing is delighted that Jaffa have extended their support of the sport and will become the Official Fruit Partner for the organisation until 31st December 2021.

Help identify your boat

Find out more

Black Lives Matter - we want to hear from you

Got a great paddling story you would like to be featured in the next edition of Canoe Focus?

Get in touch with us at mediaenquiries@britishcanoeing.org.uk

British Canoeing has achieved the highest rating of ‘very good’ from the Child Protection in Sport Unit (CPSU) in the annual review of the organisation’s safeguarding framework.

Find out what changes have been made in the organisation here British Canoeing agree long-term deal with Energy Generator Hire as Official Partner British Canoeing has announced that Energy Generator Hire has become an Official Partner for the organisation on a long-term deal until 31 December 2023 and will support the ICF Canoe Freestyle World Championships in 2021 and the ICF Canoe Slalom World Championships in 2023.

Click here

View from the riverbank Richard Atkinson explains our involvement and support for the Blueprint For Water policy document; ‘Changing Course’ to improve our freshwater environment in the future.

The Blueprint for Water consists of 14 organisations working to develop solutionswww.britishcanoeingawarding. to the water issues facing England to ensure a vibrant future for org.uk/resource/britishwater, people and nature. canoeing-coaching-podcast/ Click here to find out more

CanoeFocus Focus Summer Early Spring 2020 Canoe 2020

British Canoeing stands against racism within society, sport and the paddlesport community.

We will be reviewing our equality and diversity plan to explore how we can improve diversity throughout our community and the organisation.

Help shape our future plans to ensure we are more inclusive and representative of society, by sharing your experiences of paddlesports here.

British Canoeing maintains top rating in framework for safeguarding standards

NEWS

Approximately one third of all emergency call outs to canoes, kayaks and paddleboards are to craft that appear abandoned or have come adrift, yet the paddler is perfectly safe. We’re supporting the RNLI and Coast Guards in asking all craft owners to put their name and telephone number with a sticker or permanent marker pen inside their craft.

Find out more here

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Your Return to the Water

With lockdown restrictions easing, it’s been a welcome relief to get back outdoors spending time with nature and paddling on the water.

Here are just a few of your experiences returning to paddling...

Damian and Jake Smith I’ve paddled for nearly 40 years, but as a family, have only owned our own canoes for the last five years. Being able to get on the river again was a relief especially for my son Jake, who is autistic.

Nature, combined with exercise, really calms him down. He’s had a lot of anxieties regarding going outside with the ‘germs’.

RETURN TO WATER

We enjoyed a short trip from Shepperton lock to Abbey river at Chertsey and saw plenty of ducklings and other wildlife on the Thames.

Graham Patterson I got the bug having been in an open canoe with a friend and I’ve been paddling for a year now. I treated myself to a touring kayak and regularly paddle on the Thames in Berkshire and Oxfordshire.

For my first venture out since the pandemic, I paddled between Hambleden Lock and Hurley Lock on the Thames - it was great to be back on the water again! I’d forgotten how quiet and peaceful the river is, the bird life this time of the year is amazing.

Paul Darnell I was thrilled to get back on the water after two months of waiting.

In the spirit of the restrictions I went to my local launch point on the River Nene at Wellingborough Embankment in Northamptonshire. I had a very relaxing paddle from one lock to another and saw nobody apart from a single fisherman.

Kate Warwick I took my daughter Romy (12) and son Jackson (10) on our first paddle of the season. I have been paddling for over 10 years, and Romy and Jackson for about the past five years.

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

We couldn’t wait to get paddling and were really excited when the news came that we could get out on the water again. We chose to launch from Wroxham Broad and experience this section of the River Bure at its quietest. It was incredibly quiet and tranquil! Romy likened it to cycling on a dual carriageway with no cars. We all felt so calm and peaceful, there wasn’t a breath of wind and all we could hear was the sound of water and the birds.

We felt so lucky to be able to experience the water so peaceful, and to enjoy being outside after so long cooped up at home!

‘Paddler from the Southwest’ Being on the water helps my mood, and gives me much needed exercise. I’d been getting withdrawal symptoms during lockdown, having missed several trips with The Arthur Ransome Society during the spring, so being able to get out on my local river was amazing, I felt a cloud lift. The kayak, called Toy Buoy, is in the van permanently now and better still the local Club have allowed launching, so I can get in more safely.

Paddling through the menopause

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EY

OSEL M O J y b

Paddling through the menopause is not only absolutely possible, it should be encouraged for both physical and mental wellbeing! So we’ve enlisted the help of 2019 #ShePaddles Ambassador Jo Moseley, aged 55, to share her experience of paddling through the menopause.

Jo, take it away...

Photo: Frit

Research has shown that exercise has so many benefits for menopausal symptoms, and not having exercised regularly since my late 20’s, being active soon became a key element of my selfcare.

Here are my top tips for paddling through the menopause...

me.”

Put yourself on the priority list

Find a purpose Picking up plastic on the canal or sea has played a big part in my paddleboarding, providing a sense of purpose, hope and gratitude for the chance to make a difference.

If I’m feeling anxious or haven’t slept well, the last thing I feel like doing is exercise. However, knowing I’ve booked a day with a friend is just what I need. Having someone to talk to out on the water can help me feel less alone and put problems in perspective. The British Canoeing Facebook page provides a great community of like minded people.

Bend so you don’t break Many women find their muscles and joints ache during menopause. Yoga, Pilates or stretching can really help this. I also found yoga helped me get on and off the board at locks or when I needed to lie down and swoosh under a swing bridge. If you can’t make it to a local class, there are some great videos online, and British Canoeing’s #ShePaddles Ambassador India Pearson (@with_india) has some great tips on her Instagram page.

Try something new One aspect of the menopause is feeling like you’ve lost your mojo, your energy levels may be depleted or anxiety increasing. Take the pressure off being accomplished at your sport and be a beginner again. Rekindle the simple joy of being on the water and sense of discovery.

For more tips click here

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

Looking after your own wellbeing during menopause is very important and absolutely not selfish. Give yourself time and space to manage your symptoms. If you must, set an appointment in your diary for a paddling and self-care routine and bring your wellbeing to the fore. Remember to include good nutrition as part of your wellbeing time - especially when you’re planning to be out paddling for a while. I carry nuts and dried fruit in a tin or beeswax wrap on my board as I want my snacks to be as plastic free as possible.

Build friendships

FEATURE

In September 2016 I took my first stand up paddleboard lesson in the Lakes and was immediately hooked. I felt confident, calm and uplifted.

Fast forward three years and in August 2019, I paddled 162 “I can’t change miles coast to coast along the the world, but I Leeds-Liverpool Canal on my can change the stand up paddleboard, litter little bit around picking and fundraising.

The goal of litter picking and fundraising kept me going during my expedition from Leeds to Liverpool. Could finding a purpose; coaching, fundraising or bringing other paddlers together, bring you a boost of energy?

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Bill Bailey:

Actor. Comedian. Paddleboarder.

Many will recognise Bill Bailey from the comedy shows; Never Mind the Buzzcocks and QI, whilst others will know him through his work as an author and musician. What many may not know, however, is that Bill is a keen paddler.

As part of British Canoeing’s successful Paddlecast series, Bill took some time out to discuss and reflect on his experiences on the water with host Etienne Stott. Together the pair discussed their love of nature, passion for paddling and the simplicity of being out on the water.

FEATURE

“I really sort of fell for it in a massive way. I just thought this is something that I can do...on any water. I can go on the rivers and lakes, canals and estuaries and it’s the simplicity of it that really appealed to me.”

Bill was introduced to paddling as a child on school trips and he continued this love of kayaking with his children. His first foray into SUP, however, began on a holiday in Bali. Whilst his son took part in a surf lesson, Bill picked up a paddleboard.

“It was the most inappropriate board for a complete beginner - a sort of racing board that you had to grip with your feet! I really struggled on it and I thought I don’t think this is for me. But someone suggested I tried an explorer type board instead. One go on that, and I thought; hell yeah I can get into this!”

That was eight or so years ago now and since then SUPing has become a big part of life for Bill and his son.

“Very soon after I got back (from Indonesia) I investigated a bit more and got to meet Paul Hyman who runs Active 360. Through him, I got to know more about boards and bought a couple for my son and I, and we just went out on the Thames every weekend, in all winds and weather.

We just learnt the ups and downs of paddling, the gear to wear, the tides, things to look out for and hazards.”

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk Photos: Twitter @BillBailey

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“One of the other aspects of the paddleboarding [is] that you get to see a bit of old London from the river and remember that the river was here before anything else...When you get down to a water level you can see all of this old London in a way that you’re just not aware of. You might be oblivious to it driving, or even walking through the city, but from the river you can explore little tributaries and find...remnants of industrial Britain”.

Whilst doing a show in Tasmania, Bill visited Melaleuca Lagoon where he was shown a preserved Aboriginal bark canoe. “I thought; wait a minute, this is the same size and shape as a paddleboard. So when people say ‘when did paddleboarding start?’ it was 40,000 years ago that’s why it feels natural, like something that we as a species [have] been doing for thousands of years.”

FEATURE

Nature and wildlife are also keen interests of Bill’s, and the preservation of the environment is close to his heart. Bill has used paddling to play his part in the fight against plastic getting involved in an initiative to persuade all the riverside pubs and cafes near by to stop using single-use plastic cups.

“It’s down to us, we have to be the ones who demand it,” he explained, stating the need for us to reject the plastic cups provided by catering outlets.

“I’ve been on a few of these ‘paddle and pick’ days which are great fun,” he says. “Getting my son involved at a young age was brilliant to watch...he found all this stuff; old tennis balls and somebody’s old school report summary! It’s really positive encouraging people to be more responsible about their river use and to enjoy the river.”

So what is next for Bill?

“I’ve actually pitched an idea about paddling down the major rivers of Britain and then possibly around the world, talking about the history of a city from the perspective of the board...so who knows, I’d love that to happen.”

Find your next paddling adventure here

You can hear all about Bill’s life on the water by catching up with this Paddlecast episode plus our other guest features here.

Photos: Twitter @BillBailey

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

“One of my great ambitions..is paddling the length of England, starting up on the Scottish Border and then using the canals and connecting waterways to paddle all the way down and end up at Tower Bridge. That would be my ultimate dream.

You can watch Bill’s Paddlecast episode here

Returning to

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paddling fitness Like many, we’re sure you’ve been making the most of being back on the water, soaking up the sunshine and breathing in the fresh air. But making sure your body is well conditioned for life on the water is important. Follow our simple, paddle specific exercises to build strength and condition for paddling, so you can go further for longer and reduce your risk of injury.

With all these exercises try doing as many reps as you can reasonably manage to get your base number, before adding one or two more reps to your number each week. Over time you will build both endurance and strength.

RETURN TO PADDLING FITNESS

Single Leg Squat (press focus)

Variations:

Legs are incredibly underrated within the paddling world. In nearly all canoeing and kayaking vessels, they are one of only a few body parts that act as a connector between the limited points of contact with the boat.

• Non weighted with nonsupport of the back leg • Weighted with nonsupport of the back leg • Non weighted with support of the back leg • Weighted with support of the back leg • Fluidly executing movement • Power speed drive ups.

The single leg squat is a perfect one-sided isolated movement very similar to the pressure you need to apply to your footrest, or to find balance in the canoe. It can be executed in multiple ways depending on levels and strength. Whether you use your body weight, dumbbells, a chair or remain unsupported, do these slowly and controlled.

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

Variations:

Chin Up (Pull focus)

• Supported chins (with a resistance band) • Varied grip chins (allowing you to target all the needed physical components) • Chin holds (focusing on the “lat” engagement and endurance) • Rings (forcing you to increase core engagement at the same time to eliminate movement)

Chins use the Latissimus Dorsi (lats), which in turn helps to grip the water at the far-reaching front of the stroke. Strengthening these will help from the catch of the blade in the water to the speed of the exit of the blade from the water at the end of the stroke cycle.

Side Crunches (Oblique Focus) We have probably hit our yearly quota of sit ups and crunches during lockdown! But side crunches have the greatest impact for canoeing and kayaking. The obliques are often the forgotten core muscle and a connection through these provides strength to hold the body posture in an extended range for a lot longer, as well as linking in the positive driving movements in the boat. A common technical mistake, especially in sprint kayaking, is allowing your hips to roll up, however improved connection through the obliques, will easily prevent this.

Slower controlled movements will mean you are working the full strength of the muscle.

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range lifestyle

for men, women and children

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

As worn by our 2020 #ShePaddles Ambassadors

COACHING & LEADERSHIP

Organic, vegan, ethically produced and sustainable lifestyle clothing for paddlers

AVAILABLE ONLINE AT shop.britishcanoeing.org.uk

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Clear Access, Clear Waters Our Places To Paddle British Canoeing is extremely proud to be the custodian of ‘Places to Paddle Sites’ on behalf of the paddlesport community, providing paddlers with fantastic places to get on the water.

From an arable field on the Wye to a small haven of woodland on the Dart, the portfolio of assets British Canoeing maintains today has grown in number over a couple of decades.

CLEAR ACCESS, FEATURE CLEAR WATERS

The management of these sites, however, is a significant challenge and one which could not be met without the amazing local volunteers on the ground. In the last edition of Canoe Focus we provided you with an update on the state of play for a number of places open to our members to enjoy, with so many to mention, here is a round up of a few more.

Symonds Yat This iconic site has been owned by British Canoeing since 2003. Local paddlers raised money to purchase the rapid and have helped repair and maintain the site for the many tens of thousands of people who pass by it each year.

At one point, the island at Symonds Yat was in danger of disappearing all together. Major repair work to secure the island and build the ‘groynes’ was undertaken a decade ago, proving a huge success.

In Summer 2019, volunteers again raised funds to carry out urgent repair work on the groynes, taking the opportunity while the river was unusually low to move giant boulders back into place, that had been moved by the power of the River Wye. Unfortunately in February and March 2020, the Wye saw record breaking water levels for a prolonged period. Volunteers are currently assessing the impact the water has had on Symonds Yat Rapid to understand what work may be required to repair the damage.

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

Cardington This flood release channel near Bedford is one of the best beginner friendly white water courses in the country.

The course has to be built and taken apart each time it is used, requiring a significant amount of effort to make operational. Each year Cardington hosts ‘Interclubs’, attracting paddlers from all over the country for an event with a real ‘festival’ feel about it.

As of spring 2020, British Canoeing staff and volunteers are working closely with the Environment Agency to look at reducing the time required to set up the course, so it might be available for use more often.

Toll Paddock, Hoarwithy In 2010, British Canoeing purchased a piece of land on the banks of the River Ure at Ripon. As a result, canoeists have enjoyed a guaranteed access and egress point, plus wild camping by arrangement. The site also plays host to a local piece of unique World War One art, installed as part of the centenary commemorations.

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In Spring 2019, British Canoeing received a significant number of reports of access issues on the Ure around Ripon, largely from organised groups complaining of receiving threatening letters by the Piscatorial Association. Paddlers using the Ripon site are always reminded to be mindful and respectful of other users along the banks and to always maintain good environmental practice by avoiding gravel banks, where fish may be spawning.

The Marlin Site, Yalding A hidden gem of a location! Tucked away on the River Medway, this tiny site is leased from the Environment Agency and is available for paddlers journeying along the Medway for camping.

It is managed by members of WAM (White Water Action Medway), who take responsibility for the upkeep and management of use.

British Canoeing is currently renewing the lease with the Environment Agency and seeking a longer tenure to protect access to this location for many years to come.

WATERWAYS WE LOVE

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

HELP PROTECT THE

FEATURE

You can check out some of these waterways and much more on the Paddlepoints website https://gopaddling.info/paddlepoints/

britishcanoeing.org.uk/join

01.

Perfect for summer

Summer adventures call for quick-drying fabrics and versatile layers to adapt to the unpredictable weather. Think technical tees and shirts designed for moisture management, air flow and a soft feel for ultimate comfort, and a lightweight mid-layer so you’re prepared for unexpected temperature drops – especially if you’re not moving fast (or at all). For bottoms, zip-off trousers are a summer staple for pure versatility, or opt for gym leggings for sweat wicking and freedom of movement wherever your adventures take you.

LET’S RECONNECT,

STEP BY STEP A fresh look at the Great British summer Summer is here, but just because it doesn’t look quite how we expected, doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy being outdoors. Whether it’s a family campout in your back garden or an escape to the woods a little closer to home, you’ll need the right kit for the job, selected by our experts from the very best brands. Let’s rediscover the great outdoors, reconnect with each other and make the most of a great British summer.

We’ve been where you’re going cotswoldoutdoor.com

02.

Best foot forward

Your footwear can make or break your adventure, whether big or small, and all walking footwear is made with a specific environment in mind. If you’re sticking to well-trodden and predictable paths, you can go for a lightweight boot or shoe with a reasonable amount of flexibility.

On less challenging terrain, and in the warm summer months, flexibility is good as it helps your foot move naturally and is more comfortable on longer journeys.

However, if you’re going to be moving over uneven or very steep ground then you will need a more rigid boot with good ankle support. Remember, most people will be somewhere in the middle, so err on the side of caution if you’re not sure.

Effective layering and fabrics designed for the outdoors will make sure you’re comfortable and prepared for any weather, whether it’s your local park or a woodland path.

03.

Pack like an expert

Your pack is as unique as your adventures, and even on short outings in your local area, you need to have your essentials with you. For day hikes, it’s all about a pack that can carry everything you need without weighing you down – and in summer, look for features like hydration compatibility and a ventilated back system to help you beat the heat.

04.

Take care of it

Taking good care of your kit now will make sure it’s ready to go when the outdoors is ready for us again. Footwear care is all about keeping it clean, so make sure you’re removing any dirt from your walking footwear after every walk and giving them a deep clean and reproof regularly to keep them performing at their best. Now is also the perfect time to make sure your waterproofs are washed and reproofed with a specialist wash-in product, so they’re up to scratch for when you’re back on the water.

In partnership with

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

Walking trousers, leggings or shorts offer ultimate comfort in the outdoors, as they are usually made from a water-resistant stretch fabric which adapts to your body as you move.

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New to Paddling?

is by chr

b rain

Some Useful Advice to Help You Get Started We’re seeing a huge increase in people taking advantage of the good weather and opportunities to get outside as lockdown eases. It is great to see so many new faces joining us on the water and giving paddling a go. If you are someone taking to the water for the first time or have returned after some time out, we hope you’re enjoying exploring the waterways as much as we do! With this in mind, we asked fellow paddler and paddle coach expert, Chris Brain for his advice to help you get to grips with, and progress your paddling whilst enjoying being out on the water.

What is happening on your doorstep?

Go to a specialist paddlesport shop

Exploring and adventuring from the water is fantastic, but knowing where to go can be difficult. The paddle trails section of the Go Paddling website has so many great ideas for planning your paddles and a great resource to broaden your routes.

Try not to get too focused on the distance you cover or how fast you’re going, instead, take your time. You get a different perspective from the water and if you have some binoculars and a bird book, you’ll be surprised what you see along the way. Spot wildlife, learn about the history of our waterways and even develop map reading and navigation skills too.

It is well worth visiting or contacting a specialist paddlesport shop for some advice and help with equipment. Even if you’re not planning on buying your own kit just yet, time spent speaking with the shop will be worth it in the long run. Not only will you be able to see the broad range of equipment available, you will also be able to gain advice, ask questions and speak to people who will be glad to help as much as you need.

Specialist paddlesport shops are always run by people who love to get out on the water, they often have equipment to hire or try out and will be able to advise you where to go paddling. Getting the right kit from the start can actually save you money in the long run, instead of buying the wrong thing and having to make multiple purchases later on.

Do your homework

Join a club

Take some binoculars

FEATURE www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

You will have a much better adventure on the water if you do a little bit of homework before heading out. Consider where you’ll get in (access) and get out (egress), how far your journey is and also how long it might take. If you are unsure about the answers to these questions, the Paddlepoints section of the Go Paddling website has all this information ready for you.

Above all, you must ensure that the journey you want to take matches your skills and experience. Be sure to check the weather forecast, so that you know what to wear and which way the wind will be blowing, plus think about what you might take with you such as a spare layer, something to eat and drink and have your phone available should you need assistance.

A great way to gather some of the help that you need and potentially gain access to equipment, could be to join a paddlesport club. You will meet a huge range of people, from paddlers starting out just like yourself to veterans who have paddled the world and back! Clubs can also be a great opportunity to access coaching too as there will always be someone willing to help develop your skills on the water. Head over to the ‘find paddling clubs’ section of the Go Paddling website to locate your local group.

Get some help Following the guidance of a professional coach can develop your skills more quickly. By engaging with a coach in this formal way you can make sure that you begin on the right path and understand how to develop the foundation skills of paddlesport. A coach will also be able to signpost you towards other opportunities and steer you in the right direction to be more self-sufficient.

Go paddling regularly It goes without saying that the best way to get better at paddling is to go paddling! Committing to going out regularly will really help develop the skills you need and start to build your experience quickly. Even if you only get on the water for half an hour, there’s lots that can be done in a short space of time.

Immerse yourself

Try it all out!

There are so many options when it comes to paddling; different types of water and all sorts of different craft to match. Whilst you might be focused on one type of paddling initially, once you get going your motivations and aspirations may change. Don’t limit yourself by only trying one discipline - try and have a go at as many different types of paddling as you can. A canoe club, activity centre or a specialist paddlesport provider. will help you explore different disciplines you might surprise yourself!

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Finally, this is probably the most important bit of advice that I can give. Going paddling and enjoying it, is much more important than actually being technically good at it! You can spend so much time focusing on your paddling skills and worrying whether you’re doing it right, that you forget to actually go on adventures on the water. Remember if you have limited experience choose a very sheltered environment such as a canal, small pond or flat section of river and see if someone more experienced can go along with you. Learning as you go is the best way.

Happy Paddling!

Chris has been kayaking, canoeing, SUPing and coaching for over 20 years and runs his own business; Chris Brain Coaching, delivering paddlesport coaching, safety and rescue courses and REC First Aid training.

Chris would like to thank Pyranha kayaks, Palm Equipment, Red Paddle Co and Go Kayaking Northwest for making fantastic kit and their continued support

FEATURE

It is inevitable that at some point you will end up capsizing your boat or falling off your board! It is really important to learn some rescue skills early on so when that happens for real, you’ll feel calm and confident about the situation. Remember everyone falls in at some point, it’s totally normal and it’s possible you might even enjoy it!

Great adventures are more important than great paddle strokes

chris@chrisbraincoaching.com www.chrisbraincoaching.com Check out the Go Paddling website to sign up for our Paddle Awards to help you Start and Discover paddling skills!

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

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British Canoeing announces the NEW Leadership Awards suite British Canoeing is pleased to announce the launch of the new Leadership Awards which aims to create more opportunities for people to paddle by increasing the number of qualified leaders.

The new Leadership Awards suite will align to the British Canoeing educational philosophy and support leaders to run safe, quality, enjoyable trips, based on their group’s needs and aspirations.

The awards are ideal for clubs, centres and activity providers looking to lead groups on single or mixed craft journeys; from sheltered water to advanced water.

COACHING & LEADERSHIP

Key features of the new awards suite include:

Key changes to the disciplines:

• Direct access to the environment you want to lead • No formal British Canoeing Leadership training requirements • Direct entry to assessments available • Single day assessments, allowing more agility, reducing time and expenditure • NEW eLearning package to support those leading in an unfamiliar environment • Downloadable logbook to support the recording of activity • Digital self-analysis tool to support leaders in their development and preparation for assessment.

• NEW disciplines: Paddlesport Touring Leader, SUP Inland Open Water Leader, SUP Coastal Leader and Stadium White Water Leader • Canoe Leadership will be split into Open Water and White Water • Sea Leadership will have tidal and non-tidal assessment pathways

Further updates will be promoted via the British Canoeing Awarding Body website, Delivery Centre websites and the ‘Catch up with Coaching’ newsletter.

More information on the new Awards can be found here

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

“

“British Canoeing is delighted and very proud to launch the new leadership qualification suite, being part of the wider four year review of all Coaching and Leadership Awards. This project has included three years of feedback from candidates, providers, national associations, technical groups and wider consultation.

“Although much of the content has remained the same, the ethos and accessibility has changed significantly, providing direct access opportunities, single day assessments and no mandatory training, which could reduce both time and expense, as well as recognising and celebrating individual experience.

“Such shift and alignment with our educational philosophy better supports an individualised journey.

Lee Pooley - Head of Coaching and Qualifications at British Canoeing

British Canoeing Digital Corner

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Join British Canoeing’s Lee Pooley, Sid Sinfield and Pete Catterall for monthly episodes of the British Canoeing Coaching Podcast. Listen in as they talk about all things coaching and even include some tips to help you develop your coaching practice. The team explore a range of topics and invite guests to join them across the series.

Earlier this series Pete Catterall was joined by Dan Goddard, British Canoeing Talent Coach, who recently joined the ICF as a course designer. Together they explore the importance of course planning and the intricacies involved when coaching slalom. Listen back here.

More recently, Sid Sinfield spoke to Ed Christian from Chichester University about what ‘constraints led coaching’ is all about. Ed is a coach and academic and uses this combination of experience to explain what it is and why it is important as a coach. Click here to listen.

To join the conversation and explore the series in full click here or head to: https://www.britishcanoeingawarding.org.uk/ resource/british-canoeing-coaching-podcast/

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

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2020 #SHEPADDLES Ambassadors Announced We are excited to announce the British Canoeing #ShePaddles Ambassadors for 2020. This year we’ve teamed up with the Scottish Canoe Association (SCA) and Canoe Wales to choose ten inspirational women from the world of paddlesport who will be pivotal in promoting paddlesport to more women and girls, encouraging them to get on the water.

Emma Love

At 5ft tall and coming up to 50-years-old, Emma admits she’s not your typical image of a white water (WW) SUPer. But she is excited about bringing more women into the amazing sport and the WW SUP community.

From initially trying to work out how to stay on a paddleboard on moving water, to becoming one of the driving forces behind Notts WW SUP, Emma recently became qualified as a British Canoeing WW SUP Coach.

SHE PADDLES

At 13-years-old, Kirstie spent a rainy March day in the Lake District, in an uncomfortable wetsuit, struggling to help carry cumbersome boats. Kirstie hated canoeing. “Never again”, she said.

Fast forward 16 years and she couldn’t imagine being without her paddles.

Canoeing has been her antidote to stress, anxiety and depression. Time on the water has taken her to incredible places and allowed her to meet some equally amazing people. Her passion for paddling even extends into her career; as an outdoor education instructor

India Pearson

Kirstie MacMillan

After what India refers to as a ‘mid 20’s crisis’ she changed her mindset, completely stopped doing what she felt was expected of her and started doing what fuelled her soul. She left her office job in London, moved to the Kent coast, trained as a yoga teacher and learned how to surf, skateboard and most importantly SUP! Her time on the water has also brought her closer to caring for the planet and she regularly organises beach cleans in the local community.

Follow India on Instagram (@with_india)

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

Julie began paddling aged 40 and her sea kayaking experience is widespread, from a self-supported Greenland trip to expedition paddling in Norway, France, Jersey and across the UK. In her 13 years of experience paddling, Julie has done a lot and is the first female Club Chair at Totnes Canoe Club.

Alongside this, she has grown as a professional coach and is initiator and co-organiser, of the Women’s Sea Kayak Festival, South Devon alongside Natalie Maderova.

Julie Perren

#ShePaddles Ambassador for the Scottish Canoe Association, Jessica works as an outdoor instructor and has come across many people who have enjoyed and benefitted from paddling. Jessica feels very lucky but knows this isn’t the case for everyone.

In her role as a #ShePaddles Ambassador, she is looking forward to connecting with more female paddlers online to help them.

Jessica Philip

Follow Jessica on Instagram (@jessphip)

When asked why she liked kayaking, Del responded; ‘it was my lifeline’.

Kayaking is her stress relief from the long hours she works as a teacher, the way she looks after her mental health and has introduced her to her closest friends. It is both her social and alone time.

Del recently completed her advanced White Water Safety and Rescue course.

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Follow Del on Instagram (@del_likes_kayaking)

Del Read

Clare is the #ShePaddles Ambassador for Canoe Wales.

In 2017, Clare sustained a life changing traumatic brain injury. It didn’t dampen or dent her determination but it did knock her confidence. She has had to re-learn knowledge and skills to enable her to reclaim her life and returning to paddlesport post-injury has been a great vehicle for her to do just that.

Clare is committed to challenging the perceptions of things women can, can’t, should and should not do by standing strong, being enthusiastic, a supporter, promoter, motivator and opinion shifter.

Follow Clare on Instagram (@clare_rutter.ba.hons)

Clare Rutter

Julie Vigor

Julie doesn’t believe there is a more enjoyable, diverse and all-inclusive sport than paddling. There is something for everyone, whether it’s on a SUP, in a kayak or an open canoe, on a lake, river, a canal or the sea.

SHE PADDLES

Julie rediscovered paddling two and a half years ago, at the age of 53.

Having joined a local club she found she loved it and since then has completed multiple qualifications and a number of paddling trips.

Julie now confidently paddles Grade 2 rivers and started paddling and competing in C1 and K1 slalom.

Hannah has been paddling all her life in some form, whether that was being towed along by her Dad aged just five-years-old, or more recently completing her Canoe Leader award.

Hannah wants to showcase canoeing as a fantastic, dynamic discipline where everyone can belong, contribute and thrive, especially young females like herself. She hopes that one day British Canoeing courses will get to the stage that female paddlers don’t have to expect to be the only female attending.

Hannah Wicks

Paddling has bought many wonderful experiences and friendships into Eleanor’s life and has shaped her for the better.

We hope you will join us in welcoming our fantastic ambassadors! Over the coming weeks and months we’ll be bringing you lots more on their paddling stories, so keep an eye on the British Canoeing social media channels.

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

Eleanor Wong

Since university, she has become an active member of four clubs. An athlete in the GB Women’s Canoe Polo squad, she juggles her time between paddling and work demands as a junior doctor.

Eleanor wants to be an ambassador to promote kayaking for women, especially minority ethnic women who are less likely to participate in sport generally and keen to promote the discipline of Canoe Polo.

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Open a gateway to paddling Open a gateway to paddling

A British Canoeing membership opens a gateway to thousands of kilometres of precious rivers and canals in England for you to paddle. It is also vital in helping British Canoeing champion the case to create more places for you to paddle.

For just £45 a year an annual British Canoeing ‘On the Water’ membership includes a waterways licence, insurance and discounts for a range of fantastic retailers. All this and more for less than the price of one take-away coffee per month!

OPEN A GATEWAY TO PADDLING

Carrying a licence is a legal requirement for around 4,500km of navigations/waterways in England. Plus, whether you live in the North, South, East or West; near a navigation or not, the contribution made through a waterways licence goes directly back into supporting a much wider network of rivers, canals, streams and lakes right across England. Helping to keep our waterways clean, safe and protected for future generations of paddlers to enjoy.

For many people, the lack of clarity around the right to paddle on rivers in England and Wales presents a major challenge. By becoming a member of British Canoeing you are supporting our organisation to be your voice in championing open access and pushing for clean, healthy

www.britishcanoeing.org.uk

Find out more about British Canoeing membership here

waterways. With your help, we will continue to take our Clear Access, Clear Waters message to Government and push for change. #ClearAccessClearWaters

Everything you need to know about the waterway licence…

Who needs a waterway licence?

If you’re kayaking, canoeing or stand up Paddleboarding in England or Wales a waterway licence is required to paddle on approximately 4,500km of navigations that are managed by the Canal and Rivers Trust, the Environmental Agency, the Broads Authority and a number of other waterway authorities.

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How do I get a waterways licence?

By having a waterway licence you’re paddling responsibly. You are contributing to the sustainability of waterways, protecting not only the wildlife, but also the heritage of many historic navigations that built Britain! From the historic industrial heritage of the Black Country to the wide open expanses of the Broads, these spaces have to be maintained to support a wide range of users.

A British Canoeing membership (if you live in England) or the Canoe Wales membership gives paddlers a licence to paddle on a large number of managed waterways, and is the most comprehensive waterways licence on the market.

Alongside this, membership provides paddlers with civil liability insurance and a range of exclusive benefits, making it the best value option for paddlers.

The money generated from licences enables the authorities to carry out a wide range of work that often goes unseen. This includes the upkeep of the banks, ensuring launch points and get outs are maintained, the removal of flood debris, the stocking of rivers with fish and aquatic species, inspecting towpaths, community outreach and much, much more.

For a full list of waterways covered by the British Canoeing membership click here or visit our interactive Paddlepoints map - a great resource to help find new trip ideas and local launch spots!

Our blue corridors simply wouldn’t be the same without the dazzling array of wildlife we see while out paddling. From the birds, to fish, amphibians to insects, the waterways agencies and many of their dedicated volunteers carry out vital ecological work helping keep rivers healthy and improving those that are struggling.

Alongside the beauty of nature, wildlife and views paddling provides, the highlight of being on the water, for many, is the tranquility. Your contribution helps to protect and maintain such natural beauty.

Income generated by membership is reinvested back into the organisation to develop and manage projects that support the paddling community and future development of paddlesport as a whole!

Our community is massively passionate about securing greater freedoms to paddle on English rivers and protecting the environment. Through our Clear Access, Clear Waters campaign we are putting forward our case to Government for changes in the law. Your membership is vital in enabling us to be your voice on river access and environment issues.

We exist to serve the paddling community and they are the heart of everything we do. We’re continually working hard to widen opportunities and benefits for our members as well as helping to protect the natural environment. Click here to take a look at some of British Canoeing’s most recent projects.

#SupportingPaddlers #ClearAccessClearWaters #StrongerTogether

Canoe Focus Summer 2020

One of the major roles waterway authorities play, is in the removal of invasive non-native species (INNS). If left unchecked INNS can clog up entire waterways in just a few days, costing the UK economy billions of pounds each year. This work carried out by the likes of the Environment Agency, CRT and Broads Authority goes well beyond those waters that require a licence.

What else does British Canoeing do for paddlers?

OPEN A GATEWAY TO PADDLING

Why do you need a licence?

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Words: Michael Powers Photos: Michael Powers unless noted otherwise The storm struck our camp sometime after midnight. I was awakened when El Norte, the fierce winter wind so much feared by the Mexican pescadores, started making my sturdy fourseason mountaineering tent shudder violently.The wind rose to a roar and rain began to pour down. I burrowed deeper into the warm, dry comfort of my sleeping bag, hoping this was just a passing squall. But when shouts of alarm started coming from the other Ranger’s tents, I sat up and groped around frantically in the darkness for my headlamp.

The clouds that filled the sky that evening at sunset had been spectacular – an ominous prelude perhaps of the massive storm front bearing down from the north that the weather service transmissions from Loreto had been warning about.

Tsunami Ranger team member Nancy Soares began to question if we would remain safe here on the little micro-beach where we were camped if powerful wind and waves started to drive the rising tide even higher. But no one else seemed especially concerned – the school of dolphins just offshore were in a feeding frenzy and the Rangers were in a celebratory mood. Yet I remember whispering to myself as I headed back towards my tent, “Hopefully, El Norte will be kind to us tonight…”

Now I clambered back out of my tent and into the full force of the storm. The feeble light of my headlamp revealed just what I had feared. The Sea of Cortez had become a witch’s brew of white water breaking over offshore reefs, and hungry waves were swirling up towards the high ground where we had moved our heavily loaded kayaks with great effort yesterday. Worst of all, the beach surrounding our tents was fast disappearing.

Photo: The expedition team pass beneath a solitary giant cardon cactus as they begin their circumnavigation of Isla Carmen. Isla Danzante and the Baja Peninsula lie beyond them on the western horizon. Photo by Ginni Callahan

“You have to go on and be crazy.

Craziness is like heaven.”

Jimi Hendrix

A sea kayaking adventure in…

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Whenever we could, we hiked up in the hills before starting to paddle in the morning to check out the shoreline ahead.

Photo by Steven King

Debrah and Paula paddle their Tsunami Trident double kayak on the crossing from the Baja Peninsula towards Isla Carmen. Isla Danzante and the Baja Peninsula stretch out beyond them on the western horizon.

Photo by Steven King

As everyone raced to stuff

wet gear back

A female frigate bird

into their boats, I thought about the ancient Aleuts who liked to camp on a narrow strip of land between two bodies of open water where they could quickly escape if another tribe’s baidarkas were spotted charging down on them from the sea. Ironically, the storm-driven sea itself was the enemy attacking us now… and yet it was also our only refuge.

In record time all hatches were secured and the boats hauled down to a now turbulent shoreline. Captain Debrah Volturno, a senior officer of the Tsunami Rangers and the de facto leader of our expedition, spoke loudly to be heard above the wind, “Let’s all try to stay within sight of each other… and por favor, try not to capsize!”

It had long been a Ranger tradition, especially when launching in stormy conditions, to stand for a moment before the ocean and ask the sea gods for permission to enter their realm. But there was no time for that now. One by one, we slid our open-deck kayaks down into the dark, wind-lashed water and leapt aboard. The Rangers had paddled many times into breaking surf, but never before at night in the midst of a violent storm. Yet Neptune was kind to us that night – everyone made it through the menacing offshore reefs without capsizing, and then raced madly for the relative safety of deep water.

TSUNAMI RANGERS For many years the Tsunami Rangers had come together in autumn for a multi-day sea journey along some remote stretch of the Pacific seacoast. Cape Flattery up on the westernmost point of the Strait of Juan de Fuca had been an epic paddling adventure.

The lush southern Oregon coast had mystical sea caves and waterfalls that cascaded directly into the

ocean. A still wild stretch of the Mendocino Coast in northern California held secluded coves that were accessible only to highly skilled kayakers – and filled with succulent abalone. But in 2019 the California Fish and Game closed the entire state to diving for abalone… and about the same time, a clarion call began among the Rangers for a warm water paddling destination. There was a sea kayaking trip in Baja, Mexico that we had all long dreamed about – a 100kilometre ten-day circumnavigation of the uninhabited Isla Carmen in the Sea of Cortez.

Kayaking around that desert island would prove however, to be a challenge to the Tsunami Ranger’s improvisational, ancient sea warrior style of kayaking.

In 1996 Isla Carmen had become part of the nearly 800-square miles, five-island Parque Nacional Bahía de Loreto created by the Mexican government. Now we would need permits to paddle there, and only be allowed to camp at designated sites that we had selected in advance. Diving to spear fish and foraging for shellfish, long-time Tsunami passions, were prohibited there too.

All this regulation ran counter to the freedom and independence the Rangers had always taken for granted when kayaking along wild coastlines. Sadly the world had now become a more crowded place, and as Bob Dylan once famously sang, “The times, they are a changing.” Yet Isla Carmen had remained pristine, a ‘mega-diverse’ region with a phenomenal concentration and diversity of wildlife. So six of the Rangers, three men and three women paddlers, ultimately decided to head south for our next Tsunami retreat.

EXPEDITION-STYLE KAYAKS Four of our group of six chose to drive the long, winding road down the Baja Sur Peninsula. We would take two vehicles, which would allow us to bring along all our own boats for the trip. One of the founders of the Rangers and our most senior officer, Admiral Jim Kakuk, has been hand-crafting the expedition-style kayaks for many years. Large hatches made them easy to pack for long sea journeys, and we knew that the open-deck Tsunami boats would be a great pleasure to paddle in the warm water and desert environment of Baja.

Everyone rendezvoused in Loreto, about 1150 km south of the U. S. border. The old fishing town sat nestled on the long, narrow Gulf of California at the

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rmen along the Isla Ca us as we paddled m arrived. to or se st g clo bi d e ce urs before th dolphins surfa ho n st he ju w , l ite ril ps th t m always a grea by our final ca Above: It was dolphins passed ol of common ho sc is Th . ne shoreli King Photo by Steven

r par ture from ou e d n aw -d re p a After ng the eastern first campsite alo . the Tsunami n e m ar C la Is f o shoreline the e sun rising over th te lu sa rs ge an R Sea of Cortez.

to caves in the here trails led up w e, ed ng ra a nt Giga ith a sun-burnish ed Sierra de la to we met up w re ja Ba Lo r In . fo n gs base of the rugg io tin ss in bridled pa prehistoric pa ican ahan, whose un ex all M C a mountains with ni in ith G w e ed er triate nam company th g in ur to nal k tio ya American expa na ka a g in the create a local se rmits for paddlin pe d ire had led her to n qu io re at e th rm info lped us get ucopia of useful partner. She he be a vir tual corn for a couple to t ad ou le to ed s rn ur tu to park, and e had no sh ce sin en to the island. g Th . sin en en water cros about Isla Carm op al iti in r ou d to join m Loreto on days, she offere aded south fro he n va d ra ca tle ng our lit road that ende The next morni f on a dusty dirt of ed ly rn on tu d re an ay From he the paved highw aya Quemado. beach named Pl tle us and our lit n y ee ep tw sle be a d at water stoo en op of paddled from s re ha et than if we d nine-kilom ce an st di r e te or h sh tranquilo, and w objective, a muc day were muy at th s on iti nd Loreto. Sea co e afternoon. men early in th reached Isla Car

RACE AMAZINGngGat sunrise, Ginni climbed a rocky ition of

nd The next morni play a soulful re e our camp to ov ab ne ry yo to er on ev ds prom rwar on her flute. Afte ami Amazing Grace parture and Tsun de r he r fo h ac be little e a th ni in on G gathered present stepped forth to ng Ki e d ev ha St at er th offic pennant a faded Ranger before. parting regalo, ious expeditions ev pr y an m on , but us ed ed eyes cloud up accompani otional and her e em Th ty . et ne pr hi t ns go Ginni morning su ly in the warm yet, ick ld qu or w ain e ag th d to ie dr t come ndemic had no inni Coronavirus pa around. Then G all s zo ra ab m ar w e er th w so there d away with e yak and paddle ka r he We to in ed slipp soned paddler. kes of a well-sea ro lourful st co re r su he , all ng d ro st rior spirit, an ar w t ea gr r he would miss y. wisdom mightil Baja stories and to tr uly be in as totally stoked er But ever yone w at drinking wat w. We knew th no e take od ld m ou n w tio e expedi n days w l factor in the te ght ca iti ou cr br a ch be ea ld d wou en, so we ha m ar C a Isl nd e . This mad our to paddle arou rubber bladders e bl xi eat fle in s re preciated the gr about 35 lit ur se, but we ap co yle of st y nav tio he di ry pe boats ve volume, ex city of our high ew pa N ca a g pu rin Pa l ea ca -b load o in tropi learned long ag travelling sea kayaks. I had covered when gs le d se po ex y m ep cause of the Guinea to ke -deck kayak. Be en op an in ound the s ce long distan us to paddle ar ni had advised in G kayaking ds n in ga w be g e in prevail rection, so w di ise w ck lo r-c te kept island in a coun a Carmen. Deb east coast of Isl e r our th ito ng on alo m h rt to no on her deck ts ar eline. ch e in ar ed m convolut shor waterproof ng the rugged, alo ed ov m e w progress as

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m sp ng pole and so Since diving with d bought a fishi ha fish ng ja Ki Ba e e ev th St had sworn prohibited, h that ck in the states fis ba d sh en fre fri e s th hi lures that progressed ip tr r ou camp as So at . istible the dehydr ed would find irres change from all e a m in co h el ac w a be e e m ood on th King caught beca us ne day as we st O of . nt ng fro alo t in gh er ou ce of the wat rfa food we had br su e th ma d, fro de d to escape we had lan h frantically trie fis little cove where all , sm ng lo of ot ol a two-fo d as a scho A moment later . suddenly er upte em – th s w ng no ui in rs m the that was pu in the midst of larger predator burst into the air k. to ya ni ka bo s hi ed of ur t lo ou brilliantly co fishing pole s hi t ge to g in e of t rush and Steve wen hills behind som into the desert ck e w ba t d bu le s e, yo or pl ro filled ar triguing to ex in e er w t Narrow, br ushey igh Th m er s that re we camped. s and other critt ke na in es the beaches whe re ttl he ra r ng fo hi ly ever yt arp lookout emed that near se always kept a sh It . us to re r ju ou in m s, or ar otherwise ved thorns, fang bite, impale or sses ystem had evol os sandals, sun gla ec ja dy Ba ur st e r m ou ly on d the extre ha ho us humans, w survive – except sombreros. ed m and wide brim

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On day four of their Baja expedition, the Rangers emerge from a rock garden along the rugged and convoluted eastern shoreline of Isla Carmen.

Steven King paddling into the sea caves we encountered along the shoreline. They were always a mystical experience and a welcome respite from the desert sun. Photo by Michael Powers

UNSETTLED CONDITIONS Each time we approached a point of land thrusting out into the Sea of Cortez, the wind and the currents would always intensify. So on the sixth day as we drew near to long, narrow Punta Lobos at the far northeast corner of the island, everyone started to pay special attention. This is where Ginni had warned we might face unsettled conditions, as we became fully exposed to the strong El Norte winds for the first time.

Just as Ginni’s had warned, the sea changed dramatically as we paddled around Punta Lobos. Wind-driven waves were smashing into the rocky shoreline and ricocheting back to collide with the oncoming surf, sometimes sending explosions of whitewater high into the sky above our heads. Deb and her partner Paula from New Zealand were paddling together in the long, sleek Tsunami Trident double kayak. This was the fastest boat in our group in flat water, but now their heavily loaded craft would sometimes submerged entirely for a few hair-raising seconds when a big rebounding wave broke over them. Yet overall, it was the kind of exciting, high-adrenaline ocean play that the Tsunami Rangers loved dearly.

The next day brought some final white-knuckle moments as we kayaked around an unnamed point on the northwest tip of Isla Carmen. Then we turned and headed downwind along the east coast of the island, in more relaxed conditions that would remain with us until the big storm came on our last night on the island.

REGAIN OUR STRENGTH When dawn came after our night time escape from the flooding campsite, we arrived back on the beach where we had first landed on Isla Carmen with Ginni nine days before. We landed and Jim and Deb quickly erected a tarp overhead to shelter us from the rain. Huddling under the tarp we ate some trail mix to regain our strength and received the grim news from Loreto that a massive low pressure system still surrounded us. But maybe we were in the eye of the storm now, because the rain began to ease up and then stopped all together. We saw frigate birds circling peacefully in a clearing sky, and took that to be a good sign. So with a final prayer for calm conditions to continue, we pushed our boats back down into the sea and began paddling west towards the Baja Peninsula.

Muchas Gracias Dios, the wind and rain held off for our open water crossing – but returned with a vengeance soon after we landed at Playa Quemado. Back in Loreto that afternoon we were amazed to find the streets of this normally arid desert city filled with rushing water. Seeing this, everyone was so relieved that we had risked paddling back from Isla Carmen during of the brief interlude in the powerful storm.That evening we gathered at a little cantina and raised our glasses in a hearty toast to the sea gods, who once again had been very kind to us.

Sea kayak guide Ginni Callahan came along on the first day of our expedition as we paddled from the Baja Peninsula out to Isla Carmen. She got very emotional the next morning when the Rangers presented her with a parting gift, an old and faded Tsunami pennant. Photo

by Steven King

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At sunrise kayak guide Ginni hiked up the hill above camp to play Amazing Grace on her flute.

SHOUT OUTS

Our sincere gratitude too, for all the great outdoor gear and services that make expeditions like the Tsunami Rangers’ 2019 Baja adventure possible: Baja sea kayaking outfitter (seakayakbajamexico.com) Ginni Callahan has everything you need for a multi-day kayaking adventure on Isla Carmen and the surrounding coastal areas.

Keen sports sandals (keenfootwear.com) durable footwear that really works for warm water open-deck paddling and hiking through the rugged Baja terrain.

Leica X-U digital camera (us.leica-camera.com) brings legendary German optics and precision together in a waterproof sport camera.

Casio Pathfinder waterproof, multi-function sports watch (protek.casio.com), has a digital compass and barometric pressure sensor that indicates when a low pressure system is approaching.

Tsunami Rangers (tsunamirangers.com) edited by Nancy Soares, this always evolving website provides a tsunami of information, history and stories about the Rangers.

Debrah Volturno thought the wild goat skull she discovered while hiking up in an arroyo would make a nice talisman for our camp. Photo by Debrah Volturno

https://goo.gl/maps/3EXo5G6K3a1D7DQ76

TSUNAMI RANGERS The Tsunami Rangers are an ‘extreme condition’ sea kayaking team based in northern California. They employ highly specialized sea kayaks of their own design to explore remote coastal regions from Antarctica to Norway, and have been featured in numerous national television productions, including the National Geographic’s Wave Warriors series. Eric Soares and Michael Powers co-authored the book ‘Extreme Sea Kayaking’, published by McGraw-Hill. Michael Powers is a commander in the Tsunami Rangers.

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Finding feedback on the

RIVER

Words and photos: Jamie Greenhalgh and Chris Brain Paddling whitewater has to be one of the most holistically fulfilling hobbies out there.The simple act of putting on your gear, hopping in a boat, and using nothing but your own skill and power to navigate a section of running river, is one that ticks a million boxes. It is engaging, challenging and invigorating…

It can also be inspiring, empowering and even calming. There is very little that can match the feeling that sinks over you after having had an epic day of river exploration. If you have paddled with friends, you revel together in the enormity of where you’ve been and what you have done, and if you are alone you can sit quietly and feel a deep satisfaction.

A paddler can develop faster and more effectively if they can tune in to the feedback they are offered from a range of sources, some of this feedback can come from traditional sources such as a professional coach or someone else observing your paddling. However, some of the feedback may be found internally, from the personal reflections we can make about our own paddling, allowing us to effectively coach ourselves. Of course we can also gain feedback from the environment we paddle in and understand how to respond to the messages it is giving us constantly during our time on the water.

Over the course of this series we will be exploring these four key places a paddler may find feedback, giving a three-stage approach on how to find and use this information to help move your paddling forwards.

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THE PADDLER A growth mindset – see your successes as mountains and your failures as mole hills When a very young child tries out a new skill, such as riding a scooter, they will bound forward and go for it without thinking about it too much. If they don’t get the result they want, they might try again, or they might change their approach a little and repeat the cycle until they get it. When they do get it, they are really happy and that feeling is their take-away memory.They are then driven to keep learning and trying new things.This is how kids learn. When an adult tries out a new skill however, they are much more likely to take tentative steps, do some research or preparation, and then have a go... In the hope that their preparation will give them a better chance of success right away.

When trying new things, an adult will typically have a far better memory for the things that went badly than for the things that went well, and they can sometimes hold on to those memories of initial failures for long periods of time. This is dispiriting, and means they’re less likely to be able to keep a positive relationship with self-driven learning. Coaching yourself is a skill. You probably knew how to do it as a kid, without even knowing that’s what you were doing. The good news is it's still out there. You just need to work on it.

If you’ve fallen out of the self-teaching habit and want to get back into it, the first step to running your own one-person kayak academy is to become comfortable with the idea of failure. Failure is not a negative in and

of itself... It's what happens afterwards that is the important detail! Depending on your mindset you may have to make some adjustments to the way you see and respond to failure. Thomas Edison failed 1,000 times to make a lightbulb. UK whitewater kayaking golden-boy, Bren Orton, has doubtless fallen on his face attempting freestyle tricks well over 1,000 times.

Successful people are good at failing.

If you don’t believe me, go and watch the outtakes of one of Danny Macaskill’s biking videos. As Elizabeth Day says in her popular podcast ‘How To Fail’, “Learning how to fail is actually learning to succeed better.” Trying out new things and challenging yourself is the aim of the game, and when you play, you should embrace the inevitability of failure, just as you embrace the thrill of slow incremental progress. There is no magic wand.

Get to know your own paddling – if you know what you’re doing, you can improve what you’re doing!

How do you do the things you do? Where are your weak areas and where are your strengths? If you’ve been paddling for a while, you probably have a welldeveloped motor-memory for the action of paddling, which means you can now do certain skills without having to think about it. For this reason, identifying exactly what you are doing again can be tough! You may even take yourself by surprise and find that what you do now is really different from the way you were first shown. This doesn’t mean you’ve got into bad habits, just new ones! The trick is knowing what they are. If you know what they are, you can have a go at figuring out how well they’re working, and what you might be able to change to make them better.

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JAMIE GREENHALGH Jamie is a passionate river guide, kayaking coach and people person. He runs two kayaking businesses: Paddle365, for cutting edge white water skills coaching, and Dee River Kayaking, dedicated to giving the best possible introductions for regular people into the sport.

Jamie is lucky enough to be supported by Pyranha Kayaks and NRS Equipment, both of whom make brilliant gear to keep him and his customers looking and feeling cool. www.paddle365.co.uk www.deeriverkayaking.com

An example of this might be how you paddle through a wave or stopper in a rapid. Paddling well through a wave or stopper is a skill.That river feature is desperate to slow you down or send you somewhere else, and your aim is to bypass it without losing any of your control to the river. Getting to wherever you’ve got with this skill involved putting together a lot of different elements like timing, direction of travel, upper body movement, control of the boat’s edges, etc. to come up with your best version.Think about it, what elements have you put in there? How effective is what you’re doing? how many times out of 10 does it work as intended, and in how many different places? Once you separate a skill into all its ingredients, you can begin to have a play with making it better by changing something to see what happens.The worst that happens is the thing you’re trying doesn’t work... so you can always just move on!

Find the balance. Sometimes it’s good to coach yourself. At other times it’s better to just get in your groove When you’re focussing on a particular ingredient of your paddling it's easy to feel like everything else around it is falling apart. Suddenly, you’re trying to decide and give conscious thought to how to perform

moves that you would have done without thinking about before.That’s why it’s important to pick your moments for reflective practice, and to pick your moments just to go for it.Your best performances will usually come out when you’re in ‘flow state’. Flow state is a term given to that addictive mindset where you’re focussed completely on the challenge at hand, wholly immersed in what you’re doing.

One good way to induce a flow state is to move quickly, thinking only of where you’re going to next, and not how you’ll do it... like a runner with their headphones in. Just keep moving through the river, setting little targets on the move: catching eddies; surfing; flaring over rocks; leaving no time to plan or rest; getting into the groove of flowing around the river. Spending time ‘in your flow’ is good for your performance and for your mental wellbeing. It also builds up the very useful skills of high-speed decision making and intentional focus, which allow you to quickly zero in on your target and push for it, without questioning yourself or overthinking the what-ifs. When you’re really challenged, the words ‘don’t overthink it’, can sometimes be the best advice you could ever hear.

If you can find a balance between spending time in flow state and spending time coaching yourself, you’d be surprised how far the ceiling can rise.

CHRIS BRAIN Chris has been paddling and coaching for over 20 years and runs his own business Chris Brain Coaching, delivering coaching, safety and rescue courses and REC First Aid training.

Chris would like to thank Pyranha kayaks, Palm Equipment, Red Paddle Co and Go Kayaking Northwest for making fantastic kit and their continued support. www.chrisbrain coaching.com

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Learning

OUTDOORS Words: Richard Harpham Photos: Richard Harpham,Adam Mott and PeterTranter The benefits of introducing young people to the great outdoors is well known. In these strange and uncertain times with many schools still out, learning at home, restrictions and exiting lockdown following the pandemic, we thought it would be useful to share some of our outdoor learning ideas and resources.

Learning outside the classroom is a recognised ‘thing’ with multiple benefits for young people and families to learn together, have fun and enjoy a fresh air fix.The rise in the ‘forest school’ phenomenon and the long history and pedigree of programmes like CCF, Scouts and Duke of Edinburgh, means people understand the benefits.The easing of lockdown restrictions have been different for each of the home nations and opportunities (daily exercise provision) allow different ways to introduce new activities and challenges for your children.The ‘new normal’ of shielding, bubbles, social distancing, new cleaning regimes will likely exist for a while.We have to find you ways to adapt our learning processes and activities.

Young people bring a malleable innocence to the outdoors, seeing wonder in the wildlife, sport, textures and being in the present. Although Pablo Casals referenced music with his words, the principle equally applies to outdoor learning and enjoying flora, fauna and big spaces. “You are a marvel.You are unique. In all the years that have passed, there has never been another child like you.Your legs, your arms, your clever fingers, the way you move.You may become a Shakespeare, a Michelangelo, a Beethoven.You have the capacity for anything.”

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As a coach in paddlesport, many of us have worked with young people teaching various different disciplines from racing to slalom, polo to freestyle and watched our young people embrace our sport but also grow in confidence, life skills and blossom into rounded adults.

INSPIRATION We started inspirational programmes over a decade ago with our award winning social enterprise Inspired Life CIC, a London 2012 Inspire mark project, which has engaged over 35,000 young people to date. The key ethos of our programmes and resources are: • Strength based models (building strengths and weakening weaknesses).

• Experiential learning – learning by doing. something coaches will recognise • Goal setting and big dreams – part of performance pathways.

• Positive role models which have included Etienne Stott, James Bebbington, James Reeves and Helen Reeves.

• Raising self esteem and efficacy through personal and team challenges.

• Boosting life skills.

Inspired Life delivered a 23.8% improvement in adolescent well-being which proved more successful than counselling.

We have shared some of our experiential resources, challenges and emotional well-being tools here https://medium.com/@inspiredlifeCIC which are free to use and share.

ADVENTURE SCHOOL Adventure School is a programme created by Canoe Trail to blend life skills and the work of Inspired Life CIC and outdoor activities such as canoeing, kayaking, team challenges, SUP, and bushcraft. It offers young people a safe laboratory to learn in an outdoor environment practicing life skills and learning technical skills through adventure and challenges.

All programmes are built on three pillars of being safe, having fun and learning together.

We have shared a range of our challenges and resources in our Canoe Trail blog and YouTube Channel, which you can find here https://www.canoetrail.co.uk/youthactivities/educational-resources. It includes simple videos on cooking, knots and rope, as well as big expeditions, adventures, wildlife and skills.

AGE APPROPRIATE It is important to consider the age appropriateness of the material and challenges in relation to the learning objectives and pace for the young people involved.

Personalized learning is important as we all learn at different times, styles and pace. Primary school programmes focused on strong play, having fun and more learning by stealth. Older children and young people at secondary school age think more about life skills, vocational skills and things that help future employment. Paddling qualifications are a good thing to add to any CV. You can consider a learning ladder or progression with level of learning outcome desired for the participants: • Introductory • Intermediate • Advanced • Mastery and coaching of others This fits nicely into the new personal performance award structure of start, discover and explore from British Canoeing.

LEARNING STYLES We all have preferred learning styles captured by the model, VARK. V =Visual – demonstrations and videos A =Auditory – listening preference R =Reading/writing K = Kinaesthetic – learning by doing and feeling Consider how this fits with your family and young people you know.

GAMIFICATION Keeping it fun and making it into a game is one of the best ways to make learning fun and share new ideas.

Key elements of gamification include a level of competition, teams and team work, point scoring and rules. Many of the cross stream challenge resources from the British Canoeing and Paddle Power formats, focussed on this aspect of coaching young people. We often add in a time limit or competition for challenges and automatically people of all ages but especially kids get it. For example, the first one to light the fire and boil water for the instructor wins. Or building the best shelter? Sometimes we can use restrictions to level the playing field in learning such as blindfolding, or insisting on a planning phase that involves all team members. Leo Hoare of ‘Get A Fix’ always maintained that as coaches we are ‘ugly and boring’, therefore use games and funny warm ups to boost the enjoyment and memory storage of skills.

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COORDINATION AND THE KINESPHERE Our kinesphere is the bubble around us if we move our arms and legs to their maximum range without moving, which was introduced by Choreographer Rudolf Laban.

Children and young people have to learn what their bodies can do and how this relates to movement.

When we first learn we may lack coordination and have reduced motor skills. Good practice makes permanent (coaching) so we can improve hand-to-eye coordination and movement. Adding a giant paddle or paddling equipment that doesn’t fit compounds this problem. It is also worth remembering as the new ‘head teacher’ of home schooling and coach of paddling that growth spurts and loose tendons may result in a reduction in coordination.

GROWTH SPURTS AND GROWING PAINS Young people generally grow if they are fed and watered. It is important to remember that they will not grow uniformly and this can affect some of the activities. In particular during growth spurts, children can be less coordinated or clumsy as their limbs extend. Equally, growth plates can mean painful growing pains for some young people so stay tuned to how their body is feeling. Listening to our bodies is an important skill.

GROWING COMFORT ZONES One of the amazing things about Scouts and other uniform groups is their mission to share life skills and broaden horizons by providing experiences for young people. Local paddling clubs literally change lives and are the silent social workers of the sport. Think back to your first paddling session or night camping out.

Worries might have ranged from the capsize drill to darkness descending to where will I go to the toilet through to spiders or creepy crawlies. Surviving such perils expands the comfort zone which helps develop resilience, self-esteem and self-efficacy.

Local paddling clubs literally change lives and are the silent social workers of the sport

BOOSTING MOOD AND EMOTIONAL WELL-BEING The benefits and science behind spending time in the outdoors include the benefits of natural light, Serotonin from exercise or the happy hormone and also Vitamin D from sunlight, better air quality and of course an escape from digital overload and work stress.

Getting young people into the habit of learning outside the classroom and into outdoor activities is something that will stay with them for life. Many racing clubs offer early morning training sessions finding first light and usually the wildlife at that time of the day.

SPORT ENGLAND AND OUTDOOR INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION RESEARCH In 2015 Sport England and the Outdoor Industry Association commissioned the largest study of outdoor activities, motivation and participation called Getting Active Outdoors. It highlighted that outdoor activities had a huge latent demand. Also 75% of

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young people aged 11-15 experiencing outdoor activities would stick with them for life. Sports such as canoeing, SUP, mountaineering and mountain biking will capture hearts and imaginations.

STAY STRONG AND SEIZE THE DAY Life as lockdown eases further will offer a chance to spread our wings again. Embrace staycations and exploring Great Britain. In the meantime remember it has provided a time exercise your minds and bodies to make the most of the opportunities. Learn new skills, try different crafts as a family or household. It is the first step to adopting a positive mindset. Go for it.

FURTHER RESOURCES

There is a raft of resources available online.

Some useful resources I have found useful are: www.dofe.org/ No.1 rated life skills programme www.rspb.org.uk/ great wildlife tasks to get closer to nature. www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/ fantastic kids activities in their blog. www.woodland-ways.co.uk have just launched a new blog. www.canoetrail.co.uk wide range of adventure, paddling and guides in our blog and YouTube channel https://medium.com/@inspiredlifeCIC range of challenges, activities and emotional well-being resources www.scouts.org.uk/ a range of activities and challenges. www.nhm.ac.uk/visit/virtual-museum.html virtual tours including Sir David Attenborough as your tour guide! www.lotc.org.uk a summary of some of the best elements from members. https://www.britishcanoeing.org.uk/ lots of programmes, updates and resources.

creating lifetime memories

tootega.com

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A

P I T C H

F O R

HEELING Part two…

Words: Marc Ornstein Photos: Bruce Kemp, Paul Klonowski and Marc Ornstein Note: in the UK, the term ‘heel’ is known as ‘edge’ and ‘pitch’ as ‘trim’.

Canoes and most other boats turn much like wheelbarrows.The stern rotates around the bow, unlike a car where the steering takes place up front. When the canoe is travelling forward and one tweaks the paddle in one way or another to initiate a turn, what one really does is give the stern a bit of a nudge. Barring any other forces, such as wind, current or other paddle manipulations, the stern will continue in the direction that it was nudged until the canoe runs out of momentum and comes to a stop.

The greatest force resisting that turn is the water that must be pushed aside, by the stern of the boat, as it rotates. As I discussed in part one of this article, increasing rocker reduces the effort required to turn the canoe, but it does so evenly, reducing forces at both the bow and the stern. Pitching (or tipping the bow down) increases the forces on the bow but decreases the forces on the stern, where it counts most.

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If the pitch is mild, the effect is more subtle.The canoe may only appear to be a bit bow heavy.

If the pitch is more significant, the stern may actually rise out of the water.

Like rocker, this is something that you can control.

When sitting, it is even more difficult to control pitch than it is to control rocker. The paddler can lean a bit forward but not much. When kneeling, one can come up partially or fully off the seat, effectively moving their full body weight forward.

Heeling and pitching can be combined. While heeling is often used alone, pitching is almost always combined with heeling to effect a tighter turn. Various body positions can be used to take full advantage of these techniques. Occasionally, you’ll see a paddler lunge forward, putting his or her knee on the rail which causes the canoe to heel and pitch radically. Most often, simply coming off the seat and onto ones knees is sufficient to get the job done. Entire classes have been devoted to this art.

I almost always paddle from a kneeling position, as it gives me the most control. With time and practice it’s quite comfortable, even for long periods of time. When travelling a twisty stream, I rarely make a turn without heeling a bit, often combined with some pitch. I’m constantly adjusting my canoe to the conditions at hand.

Heeling and pitching are both techniques that with practice will improve your boat control and increase your enjoyment of canoeing. They are two important skills that all serious paddlers should learn and use in their everyday paddling.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HidISfnNPAw

When travelling a twisty stream,

down, that bow gets pressed deeper into the water, somewhat pinning it in place. At the same time the stern is raised, reducing the amount of water that it needs to push aside while turning.

I rarely make a turn without heeling a bit, often combined with some pitch

When one pitches the bow

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AB_MTz5ud3c The two videos above show an axle (a basic turn to the on side) using a modest heel, combined with some pitch to enhance the turn. The 1st video is at normal speed while the second is at ¼ speed.

This video on the left shows a group of paddlers travelling down a series of narrow, twisting streams using a variety of FreeStyle techniques, including heel and pitch.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drM58OgHxO0

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What’s in a name…

FREESTYLE CANADIAN STYLE Vs

Words & photos: Charles Burchill

I was asked to consider an article for Cross Post contrasting FreeStyle (or advanced quiet water technique) and Canadian Style canoeing.This got me thinking about my friends Daniel and Darryl, identical twins. I have known them for over 20 years, and although they still look the same, their lives have taken them along different paths. Daniel is quiet, married, has children, and is math-oriented; Darryl is outgoing, single, and has an artistic flair.

This is how I see FreeStyle and Canadian Style – although starting off together, the river of life has cut a different path for each of them. I am intentionally avoiding the progenitors of style paddling, suffice to say many of the techniques have been used for generations (probably millennia) by anyone that felt the connection between water and craft. To keep this discussion manageable, I will also restrict myself to solo paddling and leave the tandem discussion for an evening around the fire.

I was raised in the tradition of Canadian Style paddling, it is my blood [see: Style Canoeing; my story: http://freestylecanoeing.com/style-canoeing/). My first introduction to FreeStyle was at a workshop put on by Mark Molina and Doug Ingram. Since then others have chimed in with nuggets of wisdom and I have watched and learned by trial and error. The techniques entranced me, and I started to include some of the skills, although modified, into my style of paddling – it just made sense and added a bit of fun.

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PURITY OF CANADIAN STYLE I developed, or more correctly re-developed, the ‘style paddling’ programme for Paddle Canada in 2009. I included some components of FreeStyle in the programme because I felt it was important and provided an important array of skills and techniques.

My Canadian peers questioned this addition, they felt I would muddy the purity of Canadian Style, but I persevered. I often get asked – what is the difference?

I personally don’t see a clear distinction, but a continuum between skills. This sometimes gets me into some trouble with both my Canadian Style and

FreeStyle peers who see each as a completely different discipline. In truth, both focus on smooth efficient flat water paddling, with precision boat control. Both schools refer to their discipline as obedience training for canoes, or they will use the term canoe dance or ballet; my preference is canoe dressage.

The rest of this article is based on my interpretation of the styles at each end of the continuum. My thoughts are not gospel, I am sure some of you will dispute my thoughts (rigorously), and even go so far to think of me as heretical.

Characteristic FreeStyle

Canadian Style

Canoe

Short and narrow, setup for solo paddling with a seat near the middle.

Long and wide, setup for tandem paddling. Canoe has a centre thwart or carrying yoke.

Paddling station

Centrally located, with space to move forward.

High kneel or seating is the usual.

Behind centre thwart, often leaning against the bow seat (facing the stern). Low kneel, close to water.

Neutral, until manoeuvre (e.g. axle) requires a change (e.g. pitch forward).

Slightly or moderately weighted toward trailing stem.

Heel

Level until heeling into a turn. Heel may be on either side as required.

Heeled to paddling side, with some subtle adjustments.

Movement

Obvious movement - often forward to release the trailing stem.

Stationary, small adjustments in heel and pitch are used.

Paddle

Large (wide) blade, long shaft.

Long narrow blade, short shaft

Strokes

Forward catch, braces or running strokes common.

Continuous paddling, fewer running strokes.

Cross strokes

Cross strokes are common.

Cross strokes are rare.

Turns

Pinned leading stem, released trailing stem – trailing stem skids (sweeps) over the surface.

Trailing stem remains engaged, carving turns.

, Pitch

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In the simplest sense, the difference boils down to movement and weighting. FreeStyle paddlers visually move, adjusting pitch and heel; forward weighting in combination with heel to augment turns. The Canadian Style paddler is stationary, kneeling just back of the centre, the canoe is heeled continuously on the paddling side.

continuous heel. Similarly, cross strokes are not often used because canoe width; reaching across would require moving, or really long (gorilla) arms. My interpretation of Canadian Style canoeing also has a fair bit of side displacement and pivot variations (line pivots, bow or stern pivots, displaced circles, etc…) – this is not necessarily the norm.

STRUCTURED

I have not mentioned terminology in this article, both Canadian Style and FreeStyle devotees have their own lexicon of jargon. There are a lot of similarities to the styles, but learning the terms and translating between them takes some time and practice – just like any two dialects.

I find FreeStyle to be quite structured – axle, post, wedge, christie (with reverse and cross variations) – these all have well defined initiation, execution, and conclusion. The feeling is probably bias based on my exposure to people practicing FreeStyle for competition, rather than creeking (which is more functional and less formalized). Any skill that you use in FreeStyle (or Canadian Style) can be used at the other end of the continuum – although the size and setup of the boat may require some modification.

The need to have good access to the water, allowing for a vertical paddle shaft and more efficient strokes, means that Canadian Style is paddled with a

ON REFLECTION FreeStyle displays the paddler – the paddler is part of the dance. In Canadian Style, the boat is the focus.

Although Daniel and Darry have differing lives and opinions they still get together at family gatherings to share experiences, learn from and support each other.

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Testing, Palm Downstream 25 L drybag https://palmequipmenteurope.com Dale Mears

Now there are many dry bags on the market these days at varying costs for different needs.

Some people will want a bag for chucking cheap gear into on the water and others will want to carry more expensive items. In my opinion buying a cheap drybag is asking for trouble. Buy something you trust to hold your gear.

Having owned many dry bags over the years, both cheap and expensive, I’ve always had a Palm drybag in my range. Palm’s latest range is both stylish and more environmentally friendly.

I have the Palm Downstream 25L to test and review and I’m impressed. First impressions is the new materials looks incredible, rich colouring, with a real shine to the 420 Denier fabric means this bag is not only tough and durable but it looks great. A clear window in the front is also a nice touch, as I’ve spent many minutes on the water ferreting around looking for car keys or a particular item that’s somewhere in the bottom.

The Downstream is a roll top drybag, which isn’t huge if wanting to carry kit to and from the river, but a great size to take onboard a kayak, canoe or SUP. It’s

the perfect bag to throw some extra clothes, wallet, keys and a camera on the water. It’s also a perfect size to carry around when portaging or taking a well deserved trip to the pub after. If you want a larger bag check out the Downstream 35L. I’ve already mentioned the material however lets talk construction, rather than using the more commonly used PVC in drybag construction, Palm have opted to use Polyurethane to coat the 420D fabric and weld the bag rather than with traditional glueing methods to keep weight down and reduce the impact environmentally. Polyurethane is one of the better plastics to use and is starting to be replace PVC, which traditionally gives off toxins during manufacture, use and disposal.

The Downstream 25L features strong, good quality buckles and fixings, a sturdy, comfortable, good quality adjustable carry strap, which clips onto the top roll top and a D-ring towards the bottom of the bag. There’s also a separate anchor point on the base of the bag if you wanted to add another mounting point.

If you are after a new dry bag its certainly worth checking out Palm’s latest offerings as these not only look good but are good sized, built well and use materials with less environmental impact.

Available at https://palmequipmenteurope.com/product/ downstream-25-l for £34.95

g

testin Each location in the book gives you an insight into one of Matt’s paddles, or his knowledge of the location that you wouldn’t find anywhere else. You will find co-ordinates and car parking advice, information on the nearest place to visit and other off-the-water things to do. Let's face it, you will want to see the area too.

The book is available in both paperback or digitally as an ebook so easy to take with you.

The information is just enough not to ruin the adventure for you, but enough to give you a head start.

The book features black and white images to keep the print cost and price affordable,

dd lers - email us: review s@thep addle rez ine

m .co

This book starts off giving you an overview of Scotlands’ regions, a handy insight before choosing your travel destination.

nte of i

Matt is the owner of Surf Scotland, one of the largest Scottish SUP companies. He comes from 10 years paddle boarding experience and over 20 years in the paddlesports and adventure industry.

res t to pa

For anyone who knows Scotland, it is a beautiful country full of stunning lochs, waterways and rivers. However, to the non-local, it can be a bit of a minefield. Scotland is there for the taking if you know where to go and a little local knowledge always helps to enhance your experience. Matt Gambles has put the first Scottish SUP guide together to do just that and share his experience of some of Scotland’s finest waters.

e will b nd it ed a iew rev uct od

Dale Mears

ou want yo ion. If y u stat rp st r

Scottish SUP guide

By Matt Gambles

The Paddle r ez ine te

however, after a discussion with Matt he has included the images from the book in stunning colour on his website at: www.paddlesurfscotland.com/scottishsup-guide-the-photos. A great idea and compromise in my opinion.

The book is available now for £4.99 Kindle edition and £6.99 in paperback on Amazon at: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Scottish-SUPGuide-Paddleboard-Scotlandebook/dp/B088F5RRJK

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A wander aroundYnys Gybi or

HOLY Island Ynys Mon (Anglesey) Words: Richard Janes The article is based on a solo trip. The photographs are by Geth Roberts (Sea Kayaking Wales) of his circumnavigation a few days later with Chris Taylor.

From my notes: high water Liverpool (Gladstone): 0813 (8.1M).Wind: NW F3-4. Sunny (ish) Ynys (island) Gybi a saint’s name. Saint Cybi was a 6thcentury Cornish Bishop who worked in Wales.The island is called ‘Holy’ in English due to the numerous religious sites on the small island that are a source of much interest.

However, the island’s history has not only been one of religious tranquillity. The bustling port and town of Holyhead will have had it’s share of ‘sporting’ events with ‘home’ and ‘away’ games, an early event being played by Cadwallon Lawhir (‘Longhand’), a king of Gwynedd who defeated Irish pirates on Holy Island (c.500)

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The circumnavigation of Holy Island includes fast tidal streams, which ranges from shallow water over sand/mud banks to massive exposed cliffs. Great wildlife, busy harbour and port, two tunnels and a precise tidal ‘gate’. All in all, an interesting way to spend a Saturday morning!

The tidal gate for this trip is Stanley Embankment where the water rushes (floods) into the inland sea and then drains (ebbs) to the north east. After 30 minutes, the water is travelling much too fast to paddle against and forms a dangerous stopper if approached from Holyhead Bay. The plan is to be there just before the turn of the tide. My plan was to paddle anti-clockwise around the island to make best use of the tides.

PORTH DAFARCH My starting point was Porth Dafarch.The origin of the name Dafarch was probably from a persons name; 'Tafarch' but I prefer to believe the less likely origin, ‘Dau Farch’; two stallions. Especially when considering the tide races of Penrhyn Mawr and South Stack!

I set off at 0530. Probably 30 minutes too early but I'm like that.

Besides, it was a stunning morning and the temptation to launch with an early sun and oily smooth sea was simply too great.

Having the west coast to yourself is an extraordinary feeling but far from lonely. I enjoyed stunning displays from Shearwater and the occasional fly past from Fulmar with their silent, knowing stare. Paddling south towards Rhoscolyn Beacon was a joy. Whilst the flood was still running, I took a landward line and stayed in close down to the start of the Cwmyran Straits.

The paddle through the Cwmyran Straits to Four Mile Bridge is a peaceful delight. Heron, Egret and all sorts of wading birds within an environment, which ranges from salt marsh to rocky shore.

Getting lost is a real option here and another reason for my early start.The sea and air was mirror calm and the tunnel or what felt like a big drain to enter the Inland sea was surprisingly noisy. As my kayak took the drop, I seriously thought it might ‘ground’ but there was plenty of water followed by a wave train and tidal rapid.

Excitement over, it was a short paddle to Stanley and a long wait (over an hour) for the tide to turn and allow my exit from the inland sea. Stopping for a drink, I also felt hungry. Sadly, the soft sand of Porth Dafarch and a hungry seagull had earlier consumed

ThePADDLER 137

ThePADDLER 138

my lunch. So I waited… and waited for what seemed like ages. My phone said about an hour, my broken watch said longer. A few times I tried to take the flow by storm but uphill paddling never was my thing and some stray pieces of rope dangling down gave me the begeebies, with the thought of getting tangled in them.

Eventually, the flow gave up to my persistence and allowed me through.

The view now broadened to include the Skerries to the north east and my target, Holyhead Harbour to the north west. A little further and I was talking to port control on VHF channel14 – all very formal. I noticed he called me, “Sir,” not been called that since I was teaching when I was called many other things besides. I had a good time window until the fast ferry was due but crossing the harbour does make me feel strange.

This is the world of proper boats. Boats which don’t see you and with big propellers and stuff. So I paddled hard… stupid hard, breathing a sigh of relief as I passed the lighthouse on the end of the pier. Port control said they had been watching me on camera, so I waved. You can be a bit silly on your own. I'd already said, “Good morning” to several seals and I'm sure the pretty one answered?

SIMPLY MAGNIFICENT Phew! Back on more familiar water, North Stack was a bit white and feisty. I tried surfing a few waves but they were too broken for whoops of joy. South Stack race was smooth. Oily, sexy smooth but not big enough for my enthusiasm. The cliffs and birdlife hereabouts are simply magnificent. The sea was littered with rafts of Guillemot, Razor bill and a good number of Puffins. I stayed offshore using as much push from the ebb as possible. Penrhyn Mawr came and went. A sleeping Stallion before his stable door would be opened?

Very soon Porth Dafarch came into view along with some good friends on the water where I stopped for some of our usual intellectual discourse. And so back to the beach and a heavy, hot carry back to the van. I think it was about lunch time but my watch said the same time as when I left.

BIGGEST DECISION OF THE DAY? Sensible cup of tea or a cold beer? What would Cybi have done? What would Longhand have done… he did see off the Irish Pirates, after all!

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