TVFreestylers

The first Ever Thames Valley Weir League took place at Hurley Weir at 8am on Saturday 15th November 2008.

What an exciting prospect that has been floating around the forum for the last couple of years, infact I think it first came up in the Pub (there’s a surprise)

Thanks to Jacko for the kick in the right direction to get it actually started.

The first event was a great laugh and it was really good to see not only different skill levels but a good spectrum of ages. The only disapointment was only one Lady. Come on girls its all about fun.

Also don’t forget you dont have to be the best paddlers to win!!

So heres the first results.

1st: Sam Anderson & Lee Pyke 4 points each

The rest

Kenny 1 point
Goc 1 point
Craig 1 point
Ben Aldred 1 point

The rest with zero points

Me
You
Lucille
The Tangoman (Andy)
Brandon
Peteri

Scout also got zero, but that is because he had a lie in, and didnt make it onto the water for the competition.

Pikey and Wylie didnt even make it to the Car park.

I have to point out that this weeks winners happen to also be the best paddlers but as people get used it and more adventurous in why people should win we will find the Fun increase and the chances to win open to every age, sex and ability.

Here’s to the next one, that is being run and organised by Lee and Sam

So as you may have seen we at TVF wanted to put on a party for you all to celebrate the end of excellent boating year.

Unfortunately these things cost money to run there’s the marquee, the site, the licenses etc etc, you get the picture.

Now with huge thanks to KJO for their generous donation and southern electric. We can bring you the same party for only £10 per person

Squarerock have even offered to supply some food.

Its all looking good. Now all you have to do is raid the charity shops for seventies clothing, purchase a big wig, and most importantly purchase your £10 ticket today ( the ticket form is on the website )

For all who have already purchased a ticket to the Boaters Ball - seventies heaven there will be free drinks waiting for you at the bar when you arrive.

We hope to see you all at the party

lots of love team TVF

Freestyle is back at Hurley – 
Hurley has been running since the birth of freestyle and this years event goes back to our early beginnings with the emphasis on FUN.
Access is from the SAS side – for directions Click_here NOTE – Please do not park on the Hurley side unless you are camping at The Hurley Riverside Park.

The Main Event
The main competition this year will be run in bib order so you’ll be up against whoever has the next bib. From your initial scores we will progress into a final category with the top 20 of the total value of the linked moves.

Once we have run all the heats we will run a super final with the top paddlers competing to the international freestyle knockout final rules.
 
Please bring all your own equipment. There may be a limited number of freestyle demo boats on the day.

Classes:
Ladies and Mens
Ladies and Mens (U18 on 1 January 2008)
Open C1
C1
Squirt
Master blasters – over 35’s

IF IT Floats
If it floats is all about any craft that floats showing us some freestyle. We are imagining sit on tops and inflatable craft but to be honest anything we don’t normally see will score highly. The more unusual the more likely of winning. The other way to win is to be unusual and able to pull a few moves.
One rule - your not allowed to use anything that may pollute the river
Saturday
KJO Coaching session 1000 - 1430
IF IT FLOATS     3pm – to finish

Sunday
Registration from 0800
Hurley Classic from 0900
Super Final - 1500
Prizes – Kudos is the first but we will also have some prizes donated by supporting companies.
.
Entry – entry_form_here
Please return entries by 3 December 2008 to Kayakojacko, Hurley Classic Events Desk, c/o Kayakojacko, Unit Z1, Rose Business Estate, Marlow Bottom, Buckinghamshire, SL7 3ND

We will have limited time on the day. If your U18 your guardians or parents will need to take a look at this.

Camping is available through event friends Longridge and can be booked on 01628 483252 (remember that these guys are still fund raising for there existence, so donate www.longridge.org.uk)
Other accommodation
Check out - http://www.windsor.gov.uk/
Local Travel Lodges – www.travelodge.co.uk
Premier Travel Inn http://www.premiertravelinn.com

On site – On site we will have caterers, and a small marquee. Toilets are on the adjacent island.

If you would like to help or have any questions call 01628 478787.

Plans through at last!
A better future for Nottingham’s HPP whitewater course?Hi there! At last - I’ve been sent the plans for the changes to the whitewater course. And they’re not looking too shabby…Click here to see the new plans (470kb PDF)So, what’s changed from the earlier proposals?Well, the main thing is that we’ve had useful input from the user group, which includes representatives of all the different user groups with in interest in the course. A day-and-night contrast with the start of this process, we’ve all had a say in the designs. You can find out more about the consultation process and the changes here (420kb PDF). So, what’s actually proposed?

• The course will go back to full flow. It’s flowing at 17 cubic metres a second (cumecs) at the moment. These changes will put it back to the 24 cumecs it used to flow at. That means the rapids will get their power back.
• The muncher and plughole section will stay as they are. That means 24 cumecs going through the section, which should deepen up the muncher and plughole themselves, and bring back the power and definition they used to have.
• The pools will stay deep. The Pyramid and Looping pools will stay deep, to retain their playboating potential - though the changes will make the deep sections shorter. Modelling shows this won’t change the energy in the features, but it will speed up the water on exit which will suit racers. The deep pool downstream of the muncher will be filled in, though.
• Specific features for beginners, intermediates and whitewater safety and rescue. The back-channels and the section below the muncher will make training grounds for improving paddlers and rescue technicians.
• Variable features. We’ve looked closely at the Omniflot system. In theory, it should give us the potential to fine-tune features outside the muncher/plughole section to make the most of them.

So what do I think?Well… I think it should be an improvement on what we’ve got now for almost all course users. The main benefit is a full 24 cumec flow again. It should give the features more depth, which can only be a good thing. Given the process the user group have been through, and the information we’ve been given, I think it’ll give the course a new lease of life over its current configuration.So I’m actually quite excited about the potential. But what do you think? You can come along to the public meeting this Wednesday to have your say. If you can’t make it and you’ve got questions you want answered, do let me know and I’ll ask them on your behalf…Cheers,Pete Cornes.

Impression of the Cardiff Whitewater Centre

Cardiff hopes to host Olympic Canoeists

Jul 4 2008 by David James, South Wales Echo 

SOUTH Wales’ hopes of hosting Olympic competitors before the London Games in 2012 have been boosted by the news work on a canoeing course will begin this August.
Cardiff council and the Welsh Assembly Government have finalised the funding for an Olympic standard canoeing and white-water rafting centre at the International Sports Village, Cardiff Bay. The centre will be the UK’s first Olympic-standard artificial course using pumped water and is expected to cost £13.3m, some £8.7m of which is being provided by the Assembly.
Richard Harvey, chief executive of the Welsh Canoeing Association, said: “This is wonderful news for Welsh sport. This centre will be of national importance to canoeing in the UK. The centre will cater for a number of canoeing and kayaking disciplines on both the recreational and competitive sides.”
It is hoped that the centre could help attract competitors for the 2012 Olympics considering using South Wales as a training base.
The centre has been designed by French firm Hydrostadium, which has designed courses for the last three Olympic games in Sydney, Athens and Beijing. A spokeswoman for the city council said the centre would be built in concrete with moveable plastic barriers to alter the difficulty of the course. It is expected to be completed in late 2009 and meet all requirements for white-water rafting and canoeing.
Councillor Nigel Howells, the city’s executive member for leisure, said: “This venue will offer-state-of-the-art facilities and will further enhance Cardiff’s reputation as a city of genuine world-class sporting excellence – a real capital for sport.
“The fact that it will be of Olympic standard means that the centre will hopefully play an important role in the run-up to and during the 2012 games.”
Welsh Canoeing’s Mr Harvey said the course would also help train the next generation of Olympic athletes.
He said: “The adjustable nature of the course means that a wide range of users can be catered for, ranging from novices to elite performance athletes. The production of this much-needed facility will lead to enhancements in the development of grass-roots participation and yield greater success in international competition.”

Impression of the Cardiff Whitewater Centre

(Above) Course Plan  (Below) Development Modelling

Sydney 2000 Olympic Course

Athens 2004 Olympic Course

Have you heard about what could happen to the HPP whitewater course in

Nottingham?

Plans are nearly finalised for a £1.2m investment into the whitewater course at Holme Pierrepont in

Nottingham. They’re shutting the course for three months from November this year to get started. Major changes to the river channel will change the face of the course forever. It’s a fantastic opportunity, but there’s a problem.

No-one’s asked for our input.

Have a look at the most recent plans we’ve seen, developed by the World Class team:

The back channels and pools have been filled in completely with concrete, and the gradient and depth of the course levelled out to make way for more plastic rocks that only create eddies. This means…  

• No waves or holes for groups of whitewater improvers
• Not enough depth to get your playboat vertical
• No power to the features for dipping raft tubes
• Shallow ledges to slam the stern of your wild water racer.
• And a shallow, narrow river channel to punish the shins of anyone practicing safety and rescue.

We’re seriously concerned. Without asking the people who use the course day-in day-out, who work there and who travel the length and breadth of the country to visit it, this could be £1.2m cast to the wind. It could turn the high-volume, deep-pool HPP into a shallow-channel like the Teesside white water course.

Even worse, it could leave HPP a costly white elephant. When the Broxbourne course opens in 2010, the World Class slalom paddlers will desert

Nottingham. And if the changes mean less people paying to raft, canoe and kayak, Nottingham City Council will face a stark decision. Do they keep the course open and lose money with every day of operation? Or do they just shut it?

Ill communication

The prospect of huge investment in the course has been rumbling on for a while now. At the HPP users’ forum on 27th May, the World Class team assured us they’d consider the broader needs and interest of the course’s users. They told us we’d be part of the next stage of the feasibility process. We hadn’t been involved in the process up to that point, but this newfound openness boded well for the future.

Then, last week, a casual conversation with one of the slalom paddlers shot down these hopes. They told us the course is shutting in November for three months. And they’re unveiling finished plans on August 11th. That’s a week’s time!

A course for all

All course users NEED to have their say on major changes like this. We want to be involved. And we need to make it clear that changes on this scale can’t happen without everyone’s input.

This isn’t a slight on slalom or slalomists. HPP is fundamental to

UK slalom and to GB slalom’s global success. It’s great to see enormous groups of juniors out training on weekday evenings. We don’t want to lose that. And we’re supporting every paddle stroke our team make out in

Beijing right now.

But as soon as these changes are made to Holme Pierrepont, our World Class athletes will have the Broxbourne 2012 site, built just for them. All we ask is that before making any changes, the course designers take into account all river users – just like the developments at Teesside, the Washburn,

Cardiff and on the Wye. We need to look outside the BCU World Class slalom office if we’re going to find inspiration for a course to last another 30 years – so we can’t make any hasty changes until we know they’ll work for everyone.

We need your help

I’m helping out with communications for a loose group of water users with real concerns about the course’s future. If you want to help us put forward views to represent water users outside the BCU World Class slalom office, there’s one single thing you can do to help. And it’ll take under a minute.

Send us an email

It’s the single most powerful thing you can do to help. We’ve been talking to a million different organisations – the BCU, World Class, Sport England, Nottinghamshire County Council, Leisure Connection and more – and we need to be able to show broad support with a stack of emails. Then we might need to get back to you and ask for further support. From what I’ve been told, we need 280 BCU member pledges – but I’ll confirm that number during the week when I’ve checked my facts.

Send your mail to hpp.concern@googlemail.com. And, if you’re an individual member (basic or comprehensive) of the ECA/BCU, WCA, SCA or CANI, please, please include your full name and BCU number:

I am very Happy to announce that Whitewater the Canoe Centre and tvfreestylers have joined forces to help provide the greatest service to the Thames Valley Kayakers as physically possible. We are both keen to promote the sport and give any advice with kit, technique and places to paddle in the local area. Watch this space for joint projects to provide information and news.

Please visit http://wwtccnews.blogspot.com/2008/07/old-friends-new-new-initiative.html to see the article written by Whitewater the Canoe Centre  

Whitewater the Canoe Centre   is stocked to the rafters with canoeing and kayaking gear and expert staff where else would you want to go? Apart from paddling of course!

Established in 1947, Whitewater the Canoe Centre has grown from a pioneer of glass kayak manufacturer, and become an instantly recognizable retail institution.  Winning retailer of the year in 2000, and winning retailer of the decade 2004 (1994-2004).  Throughout our many years in business our mission statement has stayed the same.  A paddle store for paddlers, run by Paddlers!  The shop moved to its present location in Shepperton marina in 1984, and we have never looked back since. 

Passion for paddling is what motivates us: Flat water, White water, Recreation, Competition, whatever, just as long as we are paddling, rain or shine, Kayaks & Canoes are our life!

Expert advice: All Canoe & Kayaks are good. Our aim is to make sure that you have the best possible boat that most suits your needs and paddling style.

Demo Centre for London & South East:  If you need to make a comparison you can try a Canoe or Kayak to be sure that it is right, on our very own lake!

Service: Skilled staff are on hand all the time, to serve, help, tinker, repair, and fine tune boats and equipment.  

Here at White Water the Canoe Centre we dedicate our lives to the world of paddling, be it open canoes or, kayaks, inflatable kayaks, sit on top’s or specialist boats and equipment, we are here to make your leisure time the best it can be.

We welcome people from all abilities from novice paddler to extreme sports junkie, we can help you get the best.

Because we are situated in Shepperton Marina, we have a demo lake so you can try before you buy, and one of our experts will be on hand to help…

I am very glad of this new partnership and look forward to working with them over the coming years.

Meet the Staff

The Names Behind The Faces.

George Woods: Shop owner since 1987, George first started paddling C1 in the early 80’s competing in slalom events around the UK. He finally made the premier devision in 1992.  Since then George has stopped slalom paddling and turned his attentions to freestyle (Team GB 1995 Pre worlds, 4th place)and River Running. (First C1 descents of many Himalayan rivers)

Mark Gees: The Man behind the paddles, Mark was shop owner back in the early days when the store was formerly called Twickenham Canoe Centre. After many years away from the retail industry, Mark was press ganged into running our very efficient Accounts Department. Mark’s forte is speed, coming from a marathon and sprint background. A former British Team Worlds K2 paddler, Mark is now the senior British Coach and a jolly nice man!

Mike Scutt: The man who can repair your broken bits, and if he can’t, he’ll sell you new stuff.  Mike is a squirt paddler(1st place Hurley weir squirt 2003), river run,expedition paddler.

Pete Scutt: Mikes YOUNGER brother!,  20+ years of paddling experience, and no results to show….(never Mind). Pete has paddled all around the globe leaving his mark, impressing people with his skill and exprience, theres not much Pete can’t do for you!

Chloe Hunter:  Brings a feminine touch to our team! An experienced slalom & Polo paddler. Chloe has the competion edge…  Chloe’s experience is well beyond her young years, having worked with the team since work experience,both on the shop floor and at exibitions. A valuable team member.

pics and text from Whitewater the Canoe Centre

Thanks

Gareth