On the 3rd of July Antonia and I have been kayaking for a year. It's been the quickest year of my life . . . I say that every year but this one was ridiculously quick.
This weekend we are competing in the National Championships in Nottingham yes the lovely Holme Pierrepont where it all began, the same regatta in fact we watched last year with the chosen 12 who started the fast track programme. I remember watching all the kayak races thinking . . . yeah a couple of months and I will be able to do that!!! I can safely say this project Antonia and I took on has been harder than I ever imagined.
The hardest thing has to be, to enjoy a sport I have never done before. The normal way to get into a sport is either as a child where you naturally have more fun what ever it is you do or you have a go at something new and if you like it, build up gradually. We were thrown into the sport to which we were thrown out of every day for most of the year in my case, and then asked constantly if I am having fun??? Well no not really but I can’t give up till I have cracked it! The point is without out the deep foundations of canoe and kayaking usually built over years, the love of it is a bit false. I love water sports, training hard and competing but the actual love of Sprint Kayking has to come through over time. It's hard to do when there is so much pressure on us to get good quickly. A whole year later and I am only just starting to feel the love and that has come through meeting inspiring people, experiencing different disciplines of kayaking, actually racing and for not being rejected by my kayak for 3 weeks now! A year on I realize I have only just scratched the surface of an amazing sport, I couldn’t possibly give up now, I will see how things are looking in another year.
As for the Nationals, yes I am nervous but I am going to race for the love of racing. We have nothing to loose and everything to gain.
p.s. I missed rowing enormously over the weekend of Henley. The Bristol girls (and guy coxes) did the best the club has ever done and I am very proud of them.
Wednesday, 2 July 2008
A Kayaking Adventure!
Over my Birthday Antonia and I were invited to go Sea and Surf Kayaking in beautiful St. Davids in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Matt Brown thought it would be great for us to broaden our kayaking knowledge and most importantly to ‘have fun’ - something I find hard to do when my life consists of training, working, training, working, training, bed.
We met Olivia ex British junior Wild water racer and Matt at lunchtime, got kitted up and headed down with the play boats. We had to paddle over to the next bay to get to the good surf. Now these boats don’t go in a straight line as they have to be able to maneuver easily in waves, so this was very hard work and as the sea was very choppy I started to feel very sea sick. My goal became to paddle as quickly as possible to the other bay and get out onto lovely flat none-moving land. I got half way across and turned to check where the others were, to my surprise they were further away than I expected. I waited for Olivia to paddle over and she informed me Antonia was also feeling sea sick and finding the paddle over almost impossible. I waited for a bit but really need to get to land. I got to the surf and a big wave came . . . ok 2ft but I was side ways on and capsized. I was in shock, Matt had told us what to do in the event but after all the talk of them being so stable I seriously hadn’t thought it was going to happen. While under water with the tight neoprene deck around my waist which firmly attached to the cockpit I actually thought, ‘oh my god I am going to die on my birthday’! Then I found the pull thing at the front of the deck, pulled it and tumble-turned out of the boat. I had an emotional few seconds and walked to the shore with my boat. Antonia padded over to join me with an anxious look on her face after seeing me under water for what felt like a long time. Olivia came to the rescue with some Brioch - chocolate bread. The three of us sat on the beach eating, Antonia and I wondering if this was a weekend of torture!
We got back in the boats with the sea sickness and shockness subsided and actually had brilliant fun. As I find with surfing there is nothing better than being out with the raw elements. Matt came to join us as he had gone back to let his dog the soppy rockwieller Boffy out. We fell out loads of times but it really didn’t matter.
For our second session we went sea kayaking. These are different types of boats again. Long, like our sprint kayaks but very stable and able to carry enough equipment if you became stranded for at least a week. Antonia and I were actually amazed at how much safety equipment we had to take. A spare tent, a flair each, a gas cooker, spare paddles are just an example of what measures we had to take. This made me slightly worried about how dangerous sea kayaking was.
So we set off, the sea was so clear, we paddled round the cliff edges and saw lots of different bird life. We then paddled across to Ramsey Island. It was a bit choppy and Matt was explaining about the tides and eddies but nothing too threatening had made me think we might be firing up the gas stove in the luminous orange tent while firing off flares!
Out of no where a huge school of Porpoise were jumping in and out of the water just in front of the boats. They are a part of the whale/dolphin family. It was so amazing to see in such a natural environment. Going from being in heaven I was suddenly in my worse nightmare. The sea turned into conditions I have never witnessed in person. Huge un-breaking waves with eddies that took my small boat away at least 100m in the space of a few seconds. Matt was very calm and told me direct instructions to follow. I managed to get back to them but the whole time thought a huge wave would tip me up and I would be carried to a cliff side and thrown against it. Antonia however was very calm and took it all in her stride I was very impressed. We got through it and paddled back, it was dimpsy dark and I was still getting visions of being on the show 999 as we had been gone for a good 2,5 hours and felt very tired plus Antonia was singing the theme tune out load! But that night as we tucked into a huge well deserved dinner I felt we had just had the most incredible adventurous day. Also we now know we would NEVER attempt an Atlantic crossing in a rowing boat or kayak.
We met Olivia ex British junior Wild water racer and Matt at lunchtime, got kitted up and headed down with the play boats. We had to paddle over to the next bay to get to the good surf. Now these boats don’t go in a straight line as they have to be able to maneuver easily in waves, so this was very hard work and as the sea was very choppy I started to feel very sea sick. My goal became to paddle as quickly as possible to the other bay and get out onto lovely flat none-moving land. I got half way across and turned to check where the others were, to my surprise they were further away than I expected. I waited for Olivia to paddle over and she informed me Antonia was also feeling sea sick and finding the paddle over almost impossible. I waited for a bit but really need to get to land. I got to the surf and a big wave came . . . ok 2ft but I was side ways on and capsized. I was in shock, Matt had told us what to do in the event but after all the talk of them being so stable I seriously hadn’t thought it was going to happen. While under water with the tight neoprene deck around my waist which firmly attached to the cockpit I actually thought, ‘oh my god I am going to die on my birthday’! Then I found the pull thing at the front of the deck, pulled it and tumble-turned out of the boat. I had an emotional few seconds and walked to the shore with my boat. Antonia padded over to join me with an anxious look on her face after seeing me under water for what felt like a long time. Olivia came to the rescue with some Brioch - chocolate bread. The three of us sat on the beach eating, Antonia and I wondering if this was a weekend of torture!
We got back in the boats with the sea sickness and shockness subsided and actually had brilliant fun. As I find with surfing there is nothing better than being out with the raw elements. Matt came to join us as he had gone back to let his dog the soppy rockwieller Boffy out. We fell out loads of times but it really didn’t matter.
For our second session we went sea kayaking. These are different types of boats again. Long, like our sprint kayaks but very stable and able to carry enough equipment if you became stranded for at least a week. Antonia and I were actually amazed at how much safety equipment we had to take. A spare tent, a flair each, a gas cooker, spare paddles are just an example of what measures we had to take. This made me slightly worried about how dangerous sea kayaking was.
So we set off, the sea was so clear, we paddled round the cliff edges and saw lots of different bird life. We then paddled across to Ramsey Island. It was a bit choppy and Matt was explaining about the tides and eddies but nothing too threatening had made me think we might be firing up the gas stove in the luminous orange tent while firing off flares!
Out of no where a huge school of Porpoise were jumping in and out of the water just in front of the boats. They are a part of the whale/dolphin family. It was so amazing to see in such a natural environment. Going from being in heaven I was suddenly in my worse nightmare. The sea turned into conditions I have never witnessed in person. Huge un-breaking waves with eddies that took my small boat away at least 100m in the space of a few seconds. Matt was very calm and told me direct instructions to follow. I managed to get back to them but the whole time thought a huge wave would tip me up and I would be carried to a cliff side and thrown against it. Antonia however was very calm and took it all in her stride I was very impressed. We got through it and paddled back, it was dimpsy dark and I was still getting visions of being on the show 999 as we had been gone for a good 2,5 hours and felt very tired plus Antonia was singing the theme tune out load! But that night as we tucked into a huge well deserved dinner I felt we had just had the most incredible adventurous day. Also we now know we would NEVER attempt an Atlantic crossing in a rowing boat or kayak.
Monday, 26 May 2008
Wednesday, 30 April 2008
WINNERS TAKE CHANCES
Winners take chances.
Like everyone else they fear falling,
but they refuse to let fear control them.
Winners don't give up.
When life gets tough they hang in
until the going gets better
Winners are flexible.
They realise there is more than one way
and are willing to try others
Winners know they are not perfect,
They respect their weaknesses
while making the most of their strengths.
Winners fall, but they don't stay down.
They stubbornly refuse to let a fall
keep them from climbing.
Winners don't blame fate for their failures,
nor luck for their successes.
Winners accept responsibility for their lives.
Winners are positive thinkers
who see good in all things
From ordinary, they make the extraordinary.
Winners believe in the path they have chosen
even when it's hard
even when others can't see
where they are going.
Winners are patient.
They know a goal is only worthy as the
effort that's required to achieve it
Winners are people like you.
They make this world a better place
Nancye Sims
Like everyone else they fear falling,
but they refuse to let fear control them.
Winners don't give up.
When life gets tough they hang in
until the going gets better
Winners are flexible.
They realise there is more than one way
and are willing to try others
Winners know they are not perfect,
They respect their weaknesses
while making the most of their strengths.
Winners fall, but they don't stay down.
They stubbornly refuse to let a fall
keep them from climbing.
Winners don't blame fate for their failures,
nor luck for their successes.
Winners accept responsibility for their lives.
Winners are positive thinkers
who see good in all things
From ordinary, they make the extraordinary.
Winners believe in the path they have chosen
even when it's hard
even when others can't see
where they are going.
Winners are patient.
They know a goal is only worthy as the
effort that's required to achieve it
Winners are people like you.
They make this world a better place
Nancye Sims
Thursday, 17 April 2008
First race of the season!
Our first week back in the UK was awful, it was freezing and it was so windy we could only get out in our boats twice before the race at Nottingham. We were both thinking the same, why did we come back? But luckily we found this amazing coach in Worcester, Matt Brown. If it wasn’t for him I’m really not sure I could have carried on kayaking. Before Ant and I went to Australia we were actually at a very low point. Matt entered us in all the K1 races and all the K4 races too. I was so worried about racing in front of the British Canoe Union lot I really wasn’t sure I could compete yet. But you know you just have to think, no one cares about these races as much as you, so the only person you are really letting down is yourself. So basically just get out there and do it, as there will be just as much pressure built on the next race and it will be just as mentally hard!
So we did the first 500m and came middle of the pack but once that was over I felt ecstatic and enjoyed all the following races because I realised that it didn’t matter what my times were because as long as I put in 100% I know there is only room for improvement. Plus I did all my races in a much more stable boat which meant I could put on full pressure without the worry of falling in. Ant is doing really well in a sprint boat so yes she is still faster than me, but when I eventually do get in a fast boat we will see who REALLY is quicker!
Matt Brown has been an amazing support and I feel we are actually getting somewhere for the first time in a long time. Since then training has been the best we have had it since we left Nottingham! Now I feel like we can finally make a real difference and ever since competing I am highly motivated to train hard and get chunks of seconds off for the following regattas.
One thing I have learnt recently is every athlete is very complex and must be treated individually, it is easy to underestimate someone because they aren’t improving the text book way. If you look at the bigger picture there are always areas of improvement but each area progresses at different rates for each individual and it takes a good coach to recognise these and develop them with skill and enthusiasm - Matt does this.
So we did the first 500m and came middle of the pack but once that was over I felt ecstatic and enjoyed all the following races because I realised that it didn’t matter what my times were because as long as I put in 100% I know there is only room for improvement. Plus I did all my races in a much more stable boat which meant I could put on full pressure without the worry of falling in. Ant is doing really well in a sprint boat so yes she is still faster than me, but when I eventually do get in a fast boat we will see who REALLY is quicker!
Matt Brown has been an amazing support and I feel we are actually getting somewhere for the first time in a long time. Since then training has been the best we have had it since we left Nottingham! Now I feel like we can finally make a real difference and ever since competing I am highly motivated to train hard and get chunks of seconds off for the following regattas.
One thing I have learnt recently is every athlete is very complex and must be treated individually, it is easy to underestimate someone because they aren’t improving the text book way. If you look at the bigger picture there are always areas of improvement but each area progresses at different rates for each individual and it takes a good coach to recognise these and develop them with skill and enthusiasm - Matt does this.
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