Paddle Report
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Canoeing Down Under
I always love the WA Wild Water Championships. It has a serious title but it's a fun event enjoyed by top paddlers as well as paddlers with less skill or determination to become the best in the west. . For some the event starts a day or two before when they descend on Bridgetown and find a nice cosy chalet to bed down in and spend their days paddling the course and taking it easy, though most like me go down on the Friday night and share a chalet with a group of friends. After closing the shop at 6.00pm and leaving town by 7.15pm it was into the vehicle for a three and a half hour drive to Bridgetown to my warm chalet and where friends were waiting. Apparently word was out from previous chalet companions, that I snore, which I don't believe but, if it is true it's a big responsibility sharing a room, I didn't want to keep them awake. Although saying that, I have been known to use unconventional tactics to ensure my competition are not in the best mood for racing the following day! After a hearty and nutritious breakfast of 'Iron Man' Nutrigrain, positively the best breakfast cereal to have after reading the label, it was time to get on the water and use some of the energy built up overnight. The day starts below the town bridge, where paddlers join together in groups for a practice run down the course. My group was the smallest I've had for years with Alaine, Andrew and Steve being the only ones wanting to be shown the way. I was happy, not such a big responsibility and less people to rescue. Alaine was a little concerned about the high water as she hadn't really paddled whitewater for two years and has done very little flatwater paddling either. Though I believe when you grow old you have a short memory, but as two years isn't long ago, she shouldn't have forgotten her whitewater skills. So in theory she should be okay!! Then just as we were launching I noticed she had her helmet on backwards, hmm maybe I was wrong! So with Alaine, Andrew and Steve in tow we left the comfort of the shoreline and took to the water. The first two bits of whitewater weren't a problem, but then we came to the big haystack rapid. I didn't quite know what was going through Alaine's mind, she had capsized here two years ago and was swept under the trees, but I was hoping for the best. Andrew and Steve didn't really know what was coming up so their fear factor was probably not as great as Alaine's. The rapid was pumping and that big haystack was clearly a threat. Alaine had said she had butterflies in her stomach the day before so only knows how she was feeling at this time. I lead the way and eddied out in good time to see Alaine bounce around and eventually get thrown in the water. Oops, this was not a good confidence builder! I retrieved her boat and within minutes she was back in the seat and we were away to tackle more rapids. Through the next 3 big rapids she paddled very well, still a little nervous perhaps but she looked as if she was enjoying it. Then another rapid with more big waves, whoops she was over again. The high water had covered most of the rocks so she crawled out of the water free of bruises. After that little mishap, although complaining about how unfit and how unskilled she was, she paddled very well to the end. Andrew and Steve were over the moon with their performance but Alaine was now wishing she had done more white water paddling and less work in the shop. I was happy to take the blame for that. Andrew became the third member of our team and over lunch all we could get from Alaine was "I don't think I want to paddle in the team's event any more, I'll only slow you down". This didn't wash with us, there was no copping out now, and you just can't let your members down. She finished lunch and the butterflies in her stomach were getting flightier and flightier. It's not pleasant watching someone sweat it out knowing they had this horrible churning feeling inside their stomach and a heart full of fear but we all know when you fall off a horse you should get back on, in this case when you start paddling down the rapids your fears, your apprehensions, just go away…….Don't they? By the teams briefing Alaine had conceded that she was about to paddle and to calm her nerves I told her that it didn't matter if we didn't do well, as long as we didn't come last. I don't know why but that bit of encouragement didn't seem to inspire her confidence. Anyway we took off following another team that left a minute ahead and paddled the first two small rapids with great skill and tenacity and as we approached the big hay stack rapid we did what every other team was doing and took a short cut down a rockier but safer passage to the right. This passage is really called the chicken chute and I don't know why they don't make the main rapid compulsory, instead of bypassing it, I mean this is the WA Championships, and surely it should be run on the best rapids. But I suppose that in Wild water racing, you are after the most direct route. As we all safely cleared this rapid I'm sure Alaine was saying to herself "thank god we took the easy route and didn't have to tackle that big wave where I capsized last time". At this point I could see her confidence build, the power in her stroke get stronger and her face get pink from the physical exertion that she was putting in. The team in front of Neil Hannet, Jo Turnbull and David Tupling appeared to be getting closer to us, which really meant that we were gaining on them, which in turn meant that if none of our team capsized we would beat them and not come last. That thought excited me. Here we have Alaine who hasn't paddled in white water for two years and has hardly paddled flatwater, catching up with three keen paddlers who are paddling all the time. It was great. Just before the half way mark we could hear Neil Long behind shouting "Terry we are catching up". "Terry we are coming" "Terry, Terry". These tactics of Neil's didn't faze me and I could see Alaine was working her backside off to ensure he didn't overtake, Andrew was in tight formation and we were all focussed on catching up with others in front.
I raced down the big rapid that Alaine had her second capsize earlier in the day in the hope that the speed we were doing would blow her mind and she would forget that this was the other tricky one where she came to grief. With her being so close behind me this seemed to work, there was no wobble just that determined look or was it a look of fright? It didn't matter, by the time she could say "I want to go home", she was down the rapid and paddling hard to the next one. It was here that I knew we had a good chance of beating the team in front. The real big rapids were behind and I knew that she could manage all the others and in the hope that none of us would make a silly mistake we were in for a big win or should I say, at least a chance of not coming in last. All along the way were play-boaters hiding in the trees and eddies like ants waiting to help any capsized paddler, luckily they didn't have to help us.
I looked behind to see how far away Neil's team was and noticed that he was stopped at the bottom of the last rapid. Needless to say I never heard any more of, "Terry we're coming". It was a great boost to see another team mess up, especially Neil's, who had been taunting us. Then within minutes, three of the faster teams in light down river boats or long skis were passing us. This created a great spectacle but some congestion as 12 paddlers were now sharing the same part of the river, and I was wondering how the timers would cope if we all crossed the line at the same time
By now Alaine was bright red, I'm not sure if her neoprene pants were too tight or if the pace that I had increased was too much for her. I kept looking behind and shouting words of encouragement, "you are going great" and "you can step up the pace now", and "it's not far now you can start paddling harder". For some reason Alaine said she was paddling hard, "I can't go any faster, I'm exhausted". I thought to myself, just because she is red in the face, the sweat is running down her forehead like Niagara Falls making her mascara run and blackening the river, surely she must have one more burst of energy left to lift our team? We had now caught up with Neil, David and Jo but we couldn't quite pass them due to Alaine overheating (probably menopause) but as Neil decided to go backwards down the rapid opposite the Riverside Chalets, we at least passed one of their team members. Unfortunately he was so embarrassed he powered on to pass us again. The next couple of kilometres we just kept the pressure up and never allowed them to get far away from us. The rapids were now busy with a constant line of paddlers searching to get to the front. Andrew by now was in front and chewing at the bit, eager to pass our opposition but he knew that we were a team and he had to wait, we all had to cross the finish line within 15 seconds or be disqualified. I too was eager to get to the line, so once more I encouraged Alaine, "we are nearly there now, and you can stop looking at scenery and put one last big effort in". "But I can't go any faster", she said. As I lifted the pace once more and started chanting, I knew she was lying, her pace did quicken, and she could go faster. That's the spirit, what's that slogan, go hard or go home. With another glance behind, I could see Alaine was going hard and probably about to curl over with exhaustion. But that didn't really matter, as long as we got over the line before then and didn't come last. Well what a race, or should I say what a race Alaine had and how pleased and proud she must be feeling after such a gutsy effort. I was equally as proud of her, it was an amazing feat she had done, and she had underestimated her own ability. She just needs to get on the water a little more!! It was then time to relax back at the chalet before going out on the town at 6.00pm. The wildwater clan all met at the 1896 restaurant for a big slap up meal. Steak, fish or chicken and all the pasta and salad you could eat. With a little local wine, several spot prizes donated by local businesses and CDU and lots of people to chat to, it turned out being a great finish to a great day. I lay in bed on Sunday morning thinking that I didn't have to paddle until 11.30 a.m. (the time that the individual event takes place). But as I left my room Tony and Leonie asked if I was going to do another practise run, they were doing one at 9.00am. Do I really need one I thought? The river level was going down pretty fast, probably I should. With little time to get ready I soon had breakfast and rushed down to the river. So much for my relaxed morning!
Tony was hoping to beat me in the race and I had been psyching him out by muttering things the night before like, "I don't think we will get over that log tomorrow morning due to the water going down", and any other little thing that would put doubt in his mind. Hence the reason I'm sure, why he wanted to do a practise run. Royd joined our party and we all paddled the course without problems. I tried the odd different route to see if they were quicker and I was pleased that I found that some rocks had been exposed overnight on one of my short cuts and now become a slower route. Everyone gathered for the main event of the day at the town bridge for registration and briefing. Our body numbers were given out and to my dismay Tony was placed one minute behind me so now he had the advantage. I was hoping it would be the other way around so I would have the pleasure of passing him. With Tony on my tail I knew I couldn't make any mistakes, on the flat water he has been known to be faster than me. The women left first, followed by the long plastics followed by me and the short plastics. The guys in the down river boats were slinging jibes at me for not being in a proper boat, but today I was hoping to show Tony and the guys in the short plastics that although I don't do much training and I'm pretty old, I still have a little life left in me. On countdown I was like a greyhound waiting to chase a rabbit and as soon as the buzzer sounded I was off and racing away, hoping that my jibes at Tony weren't going to backfire. Rapid after rapid, pool after pool and I made no mistakes, so it was only going to be my fitness level that would let me down. I blew out and took in air like a steam train, which I'm sure helped me to go fast. My facial expressions however spoilt my good looks but I wasn't here to win a beauty pageant, although I must admit I like to look my best in photos.
By halfway Tony had still not caught up, in fact I couldn't feel anyone breathing down my neck and I was gaining on Dave on his ski. Despite my lack of training I was feeling good and had lost no time so far, I was pretty pleased with my run. I was paddling a plastic Wavehopper and this was the first time I had paddled whitewater in it, but the boat felt so stable that I wasn't afraid to go through the biggest of waves. At the three quarter mark I had passed a ski that was two minutes ahead of me and still gaining on Dave.
It brought back memories of the Avon Descent race when I passed Steve Barnes on the rapid section about 18 times. After every rapid he would catch me up and say "you sly fox where did you come from" or "you must teach me how to paddle consistently". I can happily say that every time I race, I always have a pretty consistent run and I always finish dry. Fingers crossed for the future. With the end near and with no one catching up I was confident and cocky and as I paddled down the second last rapid. I saw Russell with his camera so I had to ensure that I did everything right. Apart from pulling faces, all went well keeping the pressure up until the end. It was such a satisfying feeling crossing the line but it was more satisfying when Tony was no where to be seen, the next paddler was Dave Tupling in his Finn kayak. Shit, where did Dave come from, had he caught up enough to beat me? As it turned out he hadn't but he had beat all the other guys in Wavehoppers and being even older than me, he must have been really pleased with his run, I was impressed. As we all waited for paddlers to come in there seemed to be two lost souls still out there. One was Tony Fry who some time later arrived with a grin from ear to ear. He looked so pleased, "I didn't capsize, I didn't capsize, this is the first time that I haven't capsized on this course and I helped rescue Dan who had his boat in a tree" he said. It was just as if he had won a gold medal and it showed us that the day doesn't just belong to the top guys, every paddler had their personal challenge. Ben Mercer blitz the men's downriver section, Barb Fitzgerald in the women's section and Josh Kippin in the junior section. Bevan Dashwood as usual was very consistent using a conventional paddle and won the 'really old veterans class', who says you need a wing blade to go fast?
When everyone had finished discussing their race they strayed away, but gathered again at the Cider Factory for the presentations. Just about everyone received a prize either from Canoeing Down Under or one of the local businesses. It had been a great weekend, a weekend that every paddler should experience and thanks goes to Robyn Harris and Barb Fitzgerald and the South West Canoe Club, Denise Burke for the timing, play boat rescuers and all other volunteers that help make it yet again one of the most successful and enjoyable canoeing events on the calendar. By Terry Bolland |
Copyright© Canoeing Down Under 2004