GB Freestyle Team Selections Weekend - October 2010

23rd - 24th October held host to the GB Freestyle kayak team selections weekend for the 2011 Worlds in Plattling. Competitions were held on two different features at the HPP course; "Twin Waves" and the "Tardis.

Saturday started off with a briefing for all competittiors and then onto the competition at Twin Waves; the feature had been recently changed back to its stickier level as it was in summer. I was in the fourth heat along with Bren and Bliff. I had three rides of 45 seconds, I certainly wasn't used to the stricter scoring format used in the GB competitions compared to the YF events. My results were: 43.33, 0 and 60 giving a total of 103.3 and leaving me in 13th for Junior Men. The Mens event was won by James Weight and the Junior Men won by Bren Orton.

Sunday's competition was in the same format as Saturday apart from a change of feature; to the Tardis which overnight seemed to have become rather flushy and unstable. I did even worse on the Sunday than I had on Saturday with a score of 20 and two 0's leaving me in 12th place. The Men's event was won by James 'Pringle' Bebbington and the Junior's by James Benns.

It was a great weekend at HPP and overall in the 2010 selections prior to Hurley I was in 12th place which I am not particuarly pleased with and would like to improve for next year :) This year is my first and last year as a Junior and next year am moving up into Seniors. Thanks to all of the UK freestyle comitte for organising a great selections weekend.

For full results and the 2010/11 Team see: RESULTS

HPP Summer 2010

Finally got round to making the video from HPP during the summer :) Enjoy :D
"This is Freestyle Kayaking and this is our sport"

Paddlers:
James Benns,
Bren Orton,
James Weight,
Jack Gunter,
Charles Blyth,
George Younger,
Rhys Roberts,
Josh Wedgewood,
Craig Ayres

HPP Youth Freestyle

Went up to Nottingham from the 9-12th September which included visiting Nottingham uni on the Thursday. Managed to paddle Friday evening for a bit. Seemed the course had changed quite a bit, the inlet gate had been set up for the WWR on the Saturday so nothing was sticking! The 2nd Hole had been changed significantly and was back to the twin-waves it used to be; I much preferred the sticky beatdown we had for all of summer. Tardis however was nicer and slightly stickier. Unfortunately the course was closed all day Saturday for WWR which me and Rhys were safety boating for. Managed to paddle once the centre had closed but it started to get busy with everyone arriving for Youth Freestyle on the Sunday. The YF organisers had arranged a BBQ for the Saturday night on the campsite but off we went to the carvery where Benn's managed to get free pudding for chatting to the manager :) Saturday's antic's include my tent being put up a tree, Bren getting soaked in the car wash and Benn's chucking ice cream at people :)

Youth Freestyle on the Sunday was the last in the series so lots of youngens arrived early morning to get paddling. The day consisted various paddling workshops and the ball race in the morning which was won by myself and Sam who decided that the Duo was the best way to get the quickest time. Then onto the competitions in the afternoon with everyone doing a run on: Inlet Gate, 2nd Hole and Muncher.

After the freestyle comps it was time for the fun event whilst all the results were being compiled for the final results. This consisted of the unsponsored paddlers floating down the course to collect balls (more balls=more prizes), sponsored paddlers had to swim!! This was a great fun event!

This led to more jumping in, swimming and everyones boats being thrown down the course. Much to the un-amusement of the organisers although most loved it!

After all this it was time for prize giving with lots of prizes being given out from all of the events sponsors!!

I didn't do too well coming in at 18th in the Under 18's with 115 points but it was a great few days! And I can't wait till next year's events where I hope to be able to compete in more events!

YFS 2010 Series Results


Girls
1st - Gabby Bates
2nd - Rachel Bovill
3rd - Kim Aldred

12 & Under
1st - Jonathon Williams
2nd - James Cooper

15 & Under
1st - Bren Orton
2nd - James Benns
3rd - Josh Wedgewood

18 & Under
1st - James Weight
2nd - Rhys Roberts
3rd - Matt Rodgers

North Avon Canoe Club were crowned as the Club Champions 2010

HPP

Went down to HPP with the Bro's (and Callie) for a week and a half from the 24th July - 2nd August. I was doing one of Sam Ward's Freestyle Development Camps (http://www.loveitliveit.co.uk/trips/freestyle_development_camps.html). I learnt a lot during this week of coaching. The main moves I worked on with Sam were Front Loop, Back Loop, Space Godzilla, Helix and Cartwheels. I also did some work on my Right hand side roll getting this more efficient and making it easier to retain the feature. Also spent quite a bit of time working on competition rides and planning these in order to maximise points and making each relevant to the feature. My main moves for competition were Air Loop and Helix; for a Youth Freestyle competition we also worked on maximising non ICF scored moves such as enders, side surfs, roll in a hole etc.

The week's antics involved getting started on in Maccy D's, nearly exploding a gas cooker, getting evicted from the campsite, inappropriate phone calls and paddling the Regatta lake at 1 in the morning =)

It was a great fun week and I hope to be back up at HPP soon to practice these moves and learn some new ones! Will hopefully be there for the HPP Youth Freestyle competition if I can get a lift :)

Here is a quick preview of my paddling up at HPP:

Boulters Youth Freestyle

The Boulters weekend kicked off with the second British league event on the Saturday, 10th July. I was unable to attend as it was my 17th and wasn't really fit to be competing :) I did however go for the Youth Freestyle series on the Sunday. This was my first time at a Youth Freestyle event and also at Boulters. In the morning there were sessions run by the Junior GB team and Sam Ward working on both flatwater skills and moves in the feature preparing for the afternoons competitions. After lunch it was time for the competitions, James Weight came first in the under 18s and Brendan Orton in first for the under 15s. Full results will be posted once they have been released.

After competitions it was time for the special event organised by Rhys. It was a freestyle event with no boats allowed hucking yourself off the pourover in weird and wonderful ways.  Front and backflips soon got boring with new ideas such as human chains, synchronised moves and downtime being the main attraction.

All in all it was a great day!! Next Youth Freestyle event is the 15th August at the new whitewater course at Cardiff. I won't be at this event as I will be in sunny California at that time :) I should be around for the HPP event on the 12th September.

I am off on Saturday for a weeks coaching with Love It Live It's Sam Ward on one of his Freestyle Development Camps!!

Thanks to Kayakojacko, Pyranha and Squarerock for the organising of this event :D

Chertsey 10-06-10

Went down to a rather flushy Chertsey yesterday afternoon after my last 2010 exam with Mark.
Here's a quick vid:

Chertsey Video

Here is a quick flick from Chertsey weir last Wednesday. Made with my new Mac on iMovie :)

Paddlers:
Jack Gunter
Sam Crompton Brook
Mark Thornton
Richard Evans
Ed Vos
Matt Linley
Mike Scutt

Chertsey Weir 24/04/10

Went down to Chertsey Weir yesterday with Jonny. Had a really great session mucking around in the pourover. No big moves thrown from me apart from a few wonky loops and the starting of learning to cartwheel; was getting the 2nd end quite easily and then just struggling with the 3rd and beyond. Was quite a nice warm day in the sunshine with only us two in the eddy. Looking forward to more summer sessions there when the level improves. Haven't had an opportunity to try out the new H2O Audio gear yet as want to try it out for a bit on flatwater first before I try it out in the weir.

Heres a quick video of the day:

Chertsey Weir 18/04/10

Went down to Chertsey Weir on Sunday for the first Chertsey session of the Season. Had a good session with Harry and a few other people from BCC. First time of trying out the new Jackson Happy Seat/Thruster Combo; really impressed with the Happy Seat part of it as it really holds your legs into the boat and stops the sliding around I was having before. Also put some more foam into my hip pads after discovering mine were empty. Level was still very high as Hurley is on 2 gates.

H2O Audio

Have ordered a waterproof iPod case and headphones from the lovely people at H2O Audio: http://www.h2oaudio.co.uk/

Will now be able to listen to tunes whilst on the water!! :D

Hurley 21/03/10

Went down to Hurley Weir today. It was on 2 gates had a good fun session and stayed for about 4 hours. Not too busy also which was a bonus and it was warm :D
Had a bit of an epic towards the end of the session. I SWAM!!!!!! I was having a lot of problems with the Happy Feet and while on the feature both of the cleats on the damn Jackon backrest released which meant my knees came out and I was unable to roll! Had about 6 attempts before finally pulling the deck!! Not good :( :( Went back in afterwards and everything was fine though so its all good :D

Shepperton Weir 28/02/10

Went down to Shepperton Weir today. It was on a holey 7 gates; wasn't a particularly good level but was fun all the same. Lots of time spent doing King of the Wave which was a  great laugh. No big moves really from anyone, no loops, mcnastys etc. Only moves I was getting were flat spins and crossovers. Seemed to be old-school boat day today, everyone bringing down their classic playboats.

See you on the water! :)

HPP February 10

Went down to HPP in Nottingham for the February half term for 4 days - Tuesday to Friday. Had a great time although was rather cold camping especially when the stove brought doesn't work in these cold temperatures!! Did very long sessions each day, perhaps too long and as a result was already knackered each day before even starting. Also didn't drink enough Coke which led to getting ill Thursday night and being unable to paddle Friday. Got quite a few moves wired in each of the holes with my favorite features being the Inlet Gate, 2nd Hole and the Tardis. Also managed to get my loops working pretty well in the Inlet Gate. Spent a fair amount of time in Jonny's 2010 All Star which I was getting much bigger pop from and therefore bigger loops, it was also easier to plug due to its shorter length.
Had a bit of an incident on the way home with a boat .....

All in all a great time and I look forward to more trips there, hopefully in warmer weather :D

Video should hopefully be up soon once I get round to editing it!!

Hurley Weir 07/02/10

Went down to Hurley weir on Sunday 7th February for the first Hurley session of the year. Had a great time, it was on a holey 3 and I had a lot of rides. Had a go in Jonny's 2010 All Star which I found a lot looser and easier to chuck around than the 07 model i currently have. Managed to get my flat spins working on my left hand side, want to work more on being able to sustain the wave for longer and be able to move around it better. Then after that start working on the Roundhouse/Blunt :D

Here's a quick video of the day :)

Shepperton Weir 30/01/10

Went down for a great session at Shepperton Weir today. It was on 6 gates forming a wave. It proved quite hard to get onto but once you were on there it was a big big wave; much bigger than Hurley. I had two good runs on the feature. First time I took a bit of a beating and struggled to get off the feature. 2nd time was a bit better and managed to pull off a back surf and a spin :)

Marsh 23/01/10

Went down to Marsh Weir in Henley for the first time!! Had a great session and pulled off a few moves. The Thames is very high at the moment so Hurley is washed out and Marsh is a nice change. I actually preffered it to Hurley.

Marsh Weir from Jack Gunter on Vimeo.

Shepperton 16/01/09

Went down for the first paddle of 2010 to Shepperton Weir with Joe and Phil. It was on a high 4 gates forming a wave although it wasn't particuarly retentive and proved quite hard to get onto. Managed to get some footage with the new camcorder although not alot of big moves were being thrown.

The weir quickly moved up to 5 gates just as we got off and then 7 in the evening and 9 the following morning.

Hopefully get down there next when it is on a higher level.

Camcorder

Have now got a new Camcorder:










It is a Panasonic SDR-SW20 and is waterproof. Should now be able get lots of footage playboating and river running with the use of the Gorillapod to mount it on the weir.

Hurley Weir 31/12/09

Went down to Hurley Weir for the last session of 2009 on New Years Eve. Had a good session with Brandon and Sam. Was a bit warmer than last weeks session of -4 in the snow. It was on a high 4 gates and all radials including the one above the slab which made it very hard work to get onto the feature. Only managed to get on a few times. Got a total trashing in the 3rd gate, was side surfing the 1st gate and managed to slip into 2nd and then 3rd. Really struggled to get out, tried looping and rolling in the hole but it didnt flush me. Finally managed to spin and get back across to the 2nd gate and hit the radial which flushed me. Was a rather scary thing cause haven't been stuck in a hole for any length of time before. Was in there a few minutes.

Bring on 2010 paddling!!