Newsletter
Frome Canoe Club
Volume 41 Issue 2: February 2017
Messing about on the Exe at Walronds. See p8 for Hazel’s report of the trip.
ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING 22nd February, 7.30pm at the Clubhouse But come at 7pm for a complimentary drink The AGM is your opportunity to hear what the committee did for the club in 2016 and how we spent the money. We also elect the new committee. Do come! The business part of the meeting takes about 45 minutes and then we mingle, chat, polish off the drinks and nibbles. Agenda and last year’s minutes are here. Nomination sheet for exec committee is here. Frome Canoe Club is affiliated to British Canoeing and is a Registered Charity (Number 1104728) 1
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THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE President Graham Warnecke Vice Presidents Richard and Jane Arney Jim and Catharine Croft Chairman Andy Vowell Vice Chairman Gareth McGiveron Treasurer John Kent Secretary Pam Dixon 16 Blagdon Walk, Frome, BA11 2YH Committee Members Rich Carter Richard Heal Jonathan Howell Tracey Lemon Stuart Miles Jack Smiles Kit Officer Jack Smiles
SmokefreeSports
In this issue CALENDAR 3 Calendar in brief 4 Middle Ogmore trip Grade 3 river + Lower Dart 5 River Frome trip Coaches and Volunteers meeting Winter Saturday sessions at the club 6 Pool sessions 7 Canoe Polo Stability talk by Andy V Week night river sessions SLALOM 5 Wednesday training with Chris W REPORTS 8-10 River Exe trip by Hazel Cottle 11 Awards night OTHER THINGS 1 AGM 10 Copper noseclip points
Send articles for the next issue to th pam@dixon.org.uk by 27 February Please help us to promote a smokefree club by refraining from smoking publicly at all our events.
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Calendar 2017 Date
Event
Who for
Contact
5
Middle Ogmore
G3 paddlers
Andy V
8
Stability - a talk by Andy
All
Andy V
10
Polo at the pool: contact game Experienced paddlers Jack S
19
Grade 3 trip
Experienced paddlers Andy V
19
Lower Dart trip
Passport/One Star+
John K
22
Annual General Meeting
All
Pam D
24
Polo at the pool: non-contact
All
Jack S
25
Afternoon club session
All
Rich C
5
River Frome trip
Passport/One Star+
Rich C
10
Polo at the pool: contact game Experienced paddlers Jack S
11/12
Dulverton slalom
Slalomists
John K
15
Coaches + volunteers meeting
All
Rich C
19
Symonds Yat trip
Passport/One Star+
Rich C
24
Polo at the pool: non-contact
All
Jack S
25
Afternoon club session
All
Rich C
31
LAST pool session
All
Pam
February
March
Frome Canoe Club: Affiliated to British Canoeing and Registered Charity 1104728 3
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Calendar in detail TWO RIVERS ON THE SAME DAY SO CHOOSE THE ONE FOR YOU!
MIDDLE OGMORE 5th February Meet Market Yard: 8am Cost £15 Organiser: Andy Vowell
GRADE 3 RIVER 19th February Meet Market Yard: 8am Cost £15 Organiser: Andy Vowell
A friendly weir fest of grade 2-3, which is an ideal introduction to white water with plenty of little ledge drops, waves, chances to play and hone river skills.
We’ll choose a river nearer the time depending on water levels.
Less than 2 hours away with the option to paddle all the way to the sea (conditions permitting).
LOWER DART
I've not managed to get a recce run in yet so the Ogmore (Ogwr Fawr) could be an adventure for all of us.
19th February Meet Market Yard: 8am Cost £15 Organiser: John Kent
Full details are here. Wales is cold in February, so warm clothing is required as well as a packed lunch and at least a couple of thermal layers plus a fleece under cags, please.
This is an easy river in a lovely part of the country. You need to be Passport/One star standard or above, be able to wear a spray deck and be over 10 years. You also need to be able to cope with cold conditions - so good thermal layers and a packed lunch.
Any questions please give me a call or email me. Cheers - Andy.
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Calendar in detail RIVER FROME
WEDNESDAY SLALOM TRAINING
5th March Meet Market Yard: 9am Cost £3 Organiser: Rich Carter
Every week now 4pm-5pm At the Clubhouse Coach: Chris Wilde Cost £2.50
A local river so no long journey today.
Everyone is welcome.
The River Frome is mostly flat with some weirs thrown in. So it is a good river trip for everyone!
WINTER SATURDAY SESSIONS
We usually choose the section we will paddle nearer the time.
25th February At the Clubhouse: 2-4pm £2.50
One section (from Creamery to Langham) has seven weirs and is good if we have a lot of paddlers. The other section (from Langham Farm to Iford) has fewer weirs but does have the Zoom Flume, so something very different.
A chance to paddle at the club on a Saturday afternoon - last Saturday of the month during the winter season. The session will be informal and you get to paddle gently up and down the river or you can blast up and down the river. You choose!
It can still be cold in March, so warm thermals will be needed, a packed lunch and warm drink. You can pick up paddling stuff from the clubhouse on the morning.
Remember there is parking to pay on a Saturday afternoon. The March one (25th) will one be the last Saturday session before the normal river sessions start.
COACHES + VOLUNTEERS MEETING 15th March at the Clubhouse 5
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Calendar in detail FRIDAY POOL SESSIONS 8-9PM. At Frome Sports and Fitness Centre, BA11 2SA
Every Friday, right through to 31st March.
Sessions are for capsize drill. practising other strokes, learning to roll or you can mess about and have some fun. Come at 7.45pm to get signed in and to choose your paddling slot. We either have two half hour slots or three 20miniute ones, depending on how busy we are. So we respond on the night and make sure everyone gets to paddle. £3 youth, £3.50 adults. And if you are a regular, why not buy an Upfront card where you pay for 5 sessions and get the sixth free!
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Calendar in detail CANOE POLO
STABILITY – A TALK Hull Forms and Hydrodynamics
On Fridays in the pool sessions
8th February 7pm at the Clubhouse A talk given by Andy V How does my kayak float? What makes it stay upright? What are the effects of a leak on my boat (besides sinking)? Why do some boats roll more easily than others?
We fit a game of canoe polo into the pool session every other week. Some games are for experienced paddlers where the action is fast and furious, so a good roll is helpful. Other games are non-contact, so there is no pushing in when tackling.
All these questions answered, and more, by your friendly neighbourhood boat builder at the Hull Forms and Hydrodynamics interactive talk on the 8th Feb.
February: Contact game - 10th Feb Non contact game - 24th Feb
WEEK-NIGHT RIVER SESSIONS START W/B 17th APRIL
March: Contact game - 10th Mar Non Contact game - 24th Mar
Mondays - slalom training Tuesdays - Adults only Wednesdays - all the groups (slalom/polo/fun and games/open boats)
The canoe polo games are usually played in the Blue band session, so people not wanting to play polo are able to have a ‘normal’ pool session in the Red band paddling slot (or the White bands if we are running three session that night).
More details coming next month.
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River Exe instead of the Barle 22nd January By Hazel Cottle Expectations were not high for what water we may or may not find on the substitute, the River Exe. The Barle had been rightly relegated due to the likelihood of it being a near constant rock scrape. The five vehicle convoy, plus trailer, headed from an icy and cloudy Market Yard down to an increasingly sunny Devon where we met up with Graham, Sue and Kieran at Bolham. The larger-than-expected group surveyed the slightly higher-than-expected water level and after completing the shuttle to Walronds, and a little bit of 'kit swapping' by Sarah and Binkie, who decided to try out each others drysuits before swapping paddles on the water, we were off. Bolham weir was straightforward for nearly everyone but managed to grab Kenny in the open boat and topple him into a knee high swim. We bounced on down the rapid and had a play at the bottom before moving on to enjoy the leisurely pace of the river. Uneventful until Worthhouse bridge which had two arches blocked by trees, forcing a river left route which seemed innocuous 8
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River continued River Exe andExe Exeter Ship Canal enough but concealed a pointed rock which created a surprise kick for a number of paddlers. Sarah caught her back edge here and took a dip but was none the worse for wear. A quick photocall for the ladies of the group (note to Pam, Graham may not be best choice of photographer for these occasions in the future, as the combined grace and elegant demeanour of FCC ladies seems to get him all of a dither!) and we pressed on to the salmon steps. All members accomplished this section well and special mention to Kenny who held his nerve and got down in style. An impromptu snack stop here, a little playboating and an unfortunate couple of swims for Jacob and Finn before continuing on towards a winter sun with enough warmth to cheer those with chilly extremities for the latter half of the paddle. The pace was relaxed as we headed through town, being checked out by a couple of swans, down two more weirs with a play stop at the last before getting out at Walronds. Everyone warmed up pretty quickly, especially Finn who got to try out Gareth’s new 9
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River Exe River andExe Exeter continued Ship Canal van modification: an 'in-van sauna system'. Toasty!! Everyone agreed that it was a lovely winter’s day paddle and it was a bonus to be heading home for an earlier finish in the January sunshine. For me, it was the ideal return trip after a spell away and I'm looking forward to booking in my next one. Hazel. 21 Paddlers and 12 points Boys: Bartek H, Finn J (3), Jacob L (3) and Otto J. Ladies: Binkie H, Emma S, Hazel C, Pam D , Sarah RB (3) and Su F. Men: Christian J, Gareth M, Graham W, Kenny M (3), Kieran F, Mark B, Nik P, Paul S, Phil L, Rich C and Steve T Ed: It was a brilliant trip, agreed, and the next one is the Middle Ogmore, 5 th February. Andy says it’s going to be good too!
Points are awarded when things don’t quite go according to plan! 3 points for an unintentional swim. 2 points when needing a rescue. 1 point for a roll.
T H A N K Y O U J O H N
You can see it? Yes! No muddy walls. No marks on the door. In fact, no marks anywhere! All-in-all, a brilliant job done. Thank you John for re-vitalising the male changing room!
Kenny McDonald Sarah Rowland-B Steve Taylor Finn Johnson Jacob Lines Otto Johnson
Clevedon Canoe Club is running a Level 2 coaching course on the 1/2 and 8/9 April. http://www.clevedoncanoeclub.org.uk/course-booking/ 10
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AWARDS NIGHT - who won what! Our STARS, awarded at the Social for their successes in 2016
Jacob Lines Bayman Trophy
Finn Johnson Langham Farm Trophy
Sarah Rowland-B Best Adult Newcomer
Chris Wilde + Su Fewell Ivor Morgan Trophy for coaching And Nik has put the photos of the awards presentations in the gallery (website) now. Thank you Nik.!
Otto Johnson
Phil Lines Volunteers’ Cup
Jane Thomas Editor’s Trophy
A massive £113 collected at the club social from the raffle. Thank you everyone who bought tickets and a big thank you to Christine for helping people to part with their money!
Over the last few Wednesday evenings, Mark has been sorting out the broken clubhouse lights for us, and has now taken on the broken window shutter. Thank you, Mark.
Store for 2 kayaks for sale: Purpose built quality kayak store. Cost £400 new. Asking £100. Can send photos. Lockable. Very heavy. Collect from Devizes. Will need a large van and three strong people to move. Dimensions: L 3.72 m, W 1.1 m, H 1.06 m Christine Douglas, 07833 907839 11
CONTACTS Chairman: Andy Vowell 07584 069432 Vice Chair: Gareth McGiveron Treasurer: John Kent 01225 765168 jfkent@blueyonder.co.uk Secretary: Pam Dixon 07740 472982 pam@dixon.org.uk Head Coach: Rich Carter 01373 864623 Youth Rep: Tracey Lemon Volunteer Rep: Jonathan Howell Kit: Jack Smiles smiles93@googlemail.com Safety Officer: Rich Carter Welfare Officer: Pam Dixon
www.frome-canoeclub.org.uk
Pondering the advantages that a pulley gives, in Jack’s workshop on rescues. Jack covered a whole host of rescue strategies which will make many of us a bit more aware on river trips. Thank you, Jack. New Years Day Paddle A grand turnout of 36 paddlers made this a really good trip.
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Canoeing and kayaking are “Assumed risk” – “Water contact sports” that may carry attendant risks. Participants should be aware of and accept these risks, and be responsible for their own action and involvement. 12