The bottle is half full and spoilt brats

Paddled 7 km in 52 minutes- conditions delightful. Paddling in the dark has its moments, I find it quite exhilarating, its certainly peaceful. I have had some surprises, last week for instance I was paddling over a stretch of seemingly calm water, when it suddenly erupted. I had chanced on a large number of large birds (possibly ducks or geese) who must have been slumbering. The combined wash that resulted from the sudden and instantaneous take off was challenging. At other times the surprises are a little more mundane. Like when you hit a fixed object and fall in.

Graeme, birthday boy that was, yesterday, is drowning in gifts. Not only has he received a new carbon fibre wing paddle, he has also been given a spray deck cover and buoyancy aid. The ungrateful fellow is turning up his nose at my gift of a pair of home hand crafted Pogies….

The Aldi, pre cooked, frozen lobster at £4.99 was a bit of a disappointment. I found it very rubbery, despite the lemon and garlic, butter sauce I served it with. On opening the fridge this morning I was pleased to find a bottle of wine that had not been finished from last night- clearly I am positively embracing Graeme’s new approach.

Another area of disappointment is my weight.. I appear to have put on a couple of pounds over the last few days. This is having a negative impact on boat speed. Tomorrow I shall give up coffee and start on the green tea.

In search of the frozen lobster

Tonights Supper

Since Sundays time trial, I have been wondering how long would I have taken in the K1 over the 6.8 km course. Additionally I have for some time now been intrigued by the Aldi offer of whole lobster for £4.99. Since there is an Aldi in Linlithgow, close to the canal, it was perhaps inevitable that I found myself drawn to Linlithgow this morning.

I arrived at Linlithgow to find that every parking space close to the canal was taken and therefore found myself parking in a residential road some way away. As Linlithgow Rail Station is right next the canal this point, my lesson learnt today is to arrive before 7:00 a.m. on a week day if I intend boating on the canal and beating the commuters. However having read Owen Peake’s blog, and of his long portages in South Africa, I decided to carry the boat to the canal. It was a pleasant walk of approximately 1/2 a mile, with many good-natured pedestrians taking the trouble to ask me if I was lost, and after some assistance from a very nice Lolly Pop lady, I crossed the final busy road and boated successfully.

After yesterdays outing, I was concerned by the state of my hands at the end of an outing in the cold. I therefore last night manufactured my very own brand of Pogies, in best Blue Peter style, using some old thick plastic sheeting and duck tape. In order to adequately test these Pogies, I was pleased to see sections of the canal had iced up. I paddled the course, to warm up and break the ice. It was a little surprising to see how thick the ice was in places- as much as 4 mm at points. It was also a little disconcerting when the blade entered the ice easily, yet chose not to exit the ice quite so easily- there were a couple of anxious moments.

£10 a pair plus P+P

Once the course was clear- I raced it, completing the 6.8 km in 46 minutes 26 seconds. The hands were as warm as toast throughout the outing- the Pogies are a success. If you wish to order yours send me your details, and at £10 a pair plus P+P I am sure I will be able to accommodate you.

On the way back I popped into the Aldi, and now am the proud owner of two lobsters. I just need to sell one pair of Pogies now in order to fund this purchase and a couple of decent bottles of wine.

Serious Lessons: Fitness has been seriously compromised by the last 6 weeks of inactivity as a result of the back injury. The time was slower than I was hoping, and I was surprised by how I struggled with boat fitness over the distance.

Tonight one last blast until Christmas, I am looking forward to a Lobster Supper.

The New (Model Army) Approach and Happy Birthday Graeme

Birthday Boy Graeme- a dead ringer for Oliver Cromwell- warts and all

A cracking outing in the K1 this morning- about 7km. Although the back is still playing up it appears to be improving. I have been given an opportunity to rest it this week and it is helping. A trifle chilli this morning, I think winter may have arrived. The boat and the lawn did not wish to be separated this morning.

The new lawn

GB and DW have both announced that they are up for the next time trial. GB is planning to practice in his Kevlar racing machine, and DW is dreaming of light weight thin K1 hulls, that are easy to balance- dream on- but is resigning himself to the majestic Yellow Sea Kayak.

GB has suggested meeting up at the Star and Garter for fine Ale and Food after the next time trial. However given the new approach and my change of allegiance from Cavalier to Roundhead, after Graeme’s state of the nation address yesterday, I feel I must refuse (for the moment). Does not the “Star and Garter” sound a tad Royalist.

Cavalier or Roundhead

This morning I picked up Graeme at 6:30 for our morning outing, however on reaching the Loch it soon became clear that boating was not an option due to the large waves coming in from the north.

We instead retired to McDonalds for a debrief on yesterdays 6.8 km time trial at Linlithgow. Graeme is clearly depressed by our performance. Whilst our time target was achieved, we struggled to paddle continuously and lost count of the amount of times we had to stop. We need to regroup and refocus. Over a Sausage and Egg MacMuffin Breakfast we analyse yesterdays performance. What quickly becomes apparent is that we both need to screw the nut. Graeme raced with a Urinary Tract Infection- no wonder he struggled with fitness. It was also very cold yesterday with snow on the hills. The UTI has the effect of decreasing Graeme’s body temperature, to then go and try to race in below freezing conditions (30 mph wind- resulted in significant wind chill) was not a sensible option. Therefore we conclude we should not have paddled as a crew yesterday. I on the other hand raced with a significant hang over, completely self induced and unacceptable. Our other major self inflicted issue, was the manner in which we attacked the race off the start. Graeme had a Rocky Balboa moment, the speed at which he was whirling paddles would not have been out of place in a Bruce Lee film- however after 500 metres he was completely done in.

Yesterdays strengths
Technique was good
Timing
Achieved our Performance Target in Time
Crew Spirit held up when performance plummeted
Racing Attitude

Yesterdays Weaknesses
Preparation (Pre Race)
Fitness
We stopped to let overtaking crews past
Graeme’s body position- felt inadequately supported and unstable

Outcomes
Get hip supports
We need to get boat fit
Pre race visualisation required- do not lose sight of the the strategic goal and get involved in tactical tussles.
Weight Loss
Pre Race Preparation- we need to be more focused in our attitude.

Our Conclusion
We are never going to be World Champions, however we can think in terms of the becoming “the best we can be”. This will not be achieved by excessive alcohol intake the evening prior to a race nor by racing when ill. Nor will it be achieved by leading a lifestyle that becomes unenjoyable. We therefore decide that whilst we are not going to become monk life in our devotion to the crew, we are going to endeavour to wisen up.

We have 20 days to our next 6.8 km time trial. We decide not to target time as a performance indicator, but instead focus on consistency and continuity. Our objective for the next time trial is to paddle limiting our number of stops to 3. We accept (reluctantly) that we are prepared to go significantly slower in order to achieve this goal.

In 122 days I need to be able to paddle up to 7 hours a day over successive days in the K1 for the DW.

14 days later, in the K2 we need to be able to paddle similar distances over 2 days. So far the longest continuous paddle in the K2 timewise has been in the region of 4 minutes. We have a long way to go over the next 4 months.

Burning Biceps..

The good, the bad and the ugly? on the start line

Linlithgow is now over. It’s been quite a day. The journey to the event was in itself a challenge. As a crew..we do not travel well. Luckily DW was present to calm things down, although at times he was not averse from rolling the odd hand grenade into the conversation. We happened to arrive very early despite Graeme’s best attempts on the navigation front.

GB furtive in Kevlar

GB rather unsportingly surprised us by turned up with a Kevlar racing machine. At this point DW started getting nervous and self conscious of his bright yellow, exceptionally heavy, sea kayak.

DW fails to impress Cortisone pre race

DW was second to start and last to finish, however given his lack of expertise, experience, fitness, common sense etc etc his time of 62 minutes for the 6.8 km was a testament to the value of stubbornness as personal trait.

GB started a minute after DW, however his pre event psyching technique of stripping off to reveal his well oiled, muscular torso being quickly negated by an erratic course. GB’s time was 52 minutes.

We in the K2 started a minute behind GB. Graeme ignored our pre race/time-trial briefing, and sprinted off from the start line, however reality/ lack of fitness soon meant normal business was resumed and we settled to our usual stop/ start pattern of racing. We had a couple of nervous moments, on one occasion being very close to a capsize. Eventually we finished in a time of 46 minutes and 15? seconds (6.9 minutes per km), achieving our target of sub 49 minutes.

Afterwards, Graeme complains of burning biceps, no doubt due to the effort spent dragging his fat crew down the course. Graeme in the immediate aftermath of the event attempts to cultivate the quickest paddler of the day, Colin, with some success. I clearly need to up my performance level.

Beaujolais ups his game

The morning of battle (Linlithgow 6.8 km time trial)

It is the morning of the Linlithgow 6.8 km time trial and I am not feeling that great. The back is playing up and I have run out of pills, plus I possibly over did it last night. The Scotland v Argentina game yesterday was a disappointment that was hard to stomach. I sought solace with an old trusted friend, Pinot Grigio (I cooked Prawns last night). This was not, perhaps, the best way to pass the eve of battle. Graeme (the Calvinist) can be a little disproving about excessive enjoyment the evening prior to an event.

Although I have been struggling to do any training, I have made a real effort to lose weight. I have almost stuck rigidly to my core principle of not eating after 6pm (work permitting) and until last night I had been successful in limiting my alcohol intake. This mornings “weekly weigh in” was a positive- 16 stone 10 lbs. Over the last week and a bit I have lost 6 lbs- Hurrah.

The weather looks good except for the wind, which is a steady 16 mph from the North East- gusting at 30 mph. Whilst this would make life on Loch Lomond hazardous, we should be ok on the canal. I shall report back later with the outcomes of todays event.

Stealth Outings

Cortisone presents his paddle

We boated at 6:30 this morning, pitch black and tranquil. DW joined us for his first paddle in sea kayak, and stayed dry until trying to exit boat at end of outing. Graeme rather unsportingly decided to abandon DW in the dark, in order that our outing would not be compromised. On the way back he even turned off our head torch in order that we might surprise DW by glidng up to him- this was achieved. In the K2 we managed 7km in 49 min (including the 11stops). Paddling felt really good this morning. DW’s pace not that far off ours. Tomorrows time trial should be interesting.

DW armed and ready

Cortisone goes solo

Cortisone and DW ready for the off

Cortisone dips his wings

Beaujolais and Cortisone in happier times

I picked up Graeme this morning at an ungodly hour, he was in a particularly provocative mood. Graeme is clearly frustrated at not as yet having had the opportunity to blood his new paddle. Although the water level has risen even higher, it is clear that we will need to boat this morning otherwise blood will indeed be shed.

Eventually we opt for the Duncan Mills Memorial Slip Way. It is pitch black, with a strong breeze coming from the West. We have never boated from the wheel chair before, however the need to boat is overwhelming and we enter the water until Graeme’s seat is only about 4 inches above the water level. He looks like a latter-day King Canute trying unsuccessfully to hold back the forces of nature. We go for the move…I straddle the Condor and Graeme swings onto the back of the Cockpit..there is a small pause…and then ecstasy as successful entry is achieved. I hand Graeme his paddle, and leave him alone in the dark to put away the wheel chair and park the car.
He is still upright when I return- success- there is now no reason for not boating in future when the Loch is this high.

We paddle off into the darkness, narrowly missing some posts that we only notice as we are passing them. Graeme takes to the wing like a duck to water, and is clearly enjoying the new sensation. Initially we still have to stop every 30 or so strokes as Graeme eases of his shoulder and I have a few problems with my back, but after about a 1000 metres and just as we are passing Cameron House all aches and pains disappear.

After about 2000 metres it is clear that fitness is an issue and we stop occasionally to take a break. We return to the slip way and dismount successfully again using the wheelchair. Today we have paddled approximately 7km with only 11 stops. This is comparable to our race two weeks ago when we paddled 6km with over 20 stops. The wings are clearly (as Tom would say) the way ahead. Having dropped Graeme off, I am back home in Helensburgh by 8:20- a successful morning. We are both looking forward to the time trial on Sunday. As yet we have heard nothing from DW or GB, it looks as if they might be wimping out.

Later….Since posting the above I have had contact with both GB and DW. Both are still entering on Sunday with DW contemplating actually having a paddle in his boat for the first time prior to Sunday and GB raising the ante with a wager.

Will Beaujolais be decanted?

When will the storm break? Strong winds and heavy rain mean boating is unsafe whilst our boating point for the K2 on the Loch is still underwater. My back problem means that I would struggle to boat anyway.

Graeme is in surprisingly good humour considering all the above… having had an enjoyable lunch this week with Big G (as he shall be known on this site). Big G, who must be approaching 50 by now, is a very strong ex international oarsman with a fondness for food and beverage (that is quite unsurpassed in my experience). Unfortunately Big G has recently damaged his legs whilst falling down the stairs (ethanol induced) which means he is struggling to train. A little like myself perhaps..Big G trains to eat and drink. Graeme is of the opinion that Big G is up for a bit of paddling,– given his strength, it would be like having a Mercury engine in the back of the boat (although possibly noisier)…I fear for my seat.

Cortisone Gets His Wings

This morning the winds are gusting up to 60 miles per hour. I decide not to boat and attempt a walk instead, for all of about 100 metres.

Graeme telephoned yesterday in a state of great excitement..he has ordered a wing paddle and it has arrived. To the uninitiated like us, selecting a paddle appears to be a dark art- Harry Potter had less trouble selecting his wand.

What is myth and what is fact, how do you choose the length of the paddle? length of Shaft? Size of Blade? Freud would have a field day…and they are not cheap! Especially if you choose the carbon option..and then you get into the debate about how much carbon content you should have. Will 100% carbon, be so stiff as to put excess strain on the body over a marathon? etc etc etc.

We started paddling with conventional asymmetric paddles, based on the assumption that there could not be that much in it, and given the DW record as set by Greenham and Cornish in 1979 was achieved with asymmetric blades. However when I entered my first race the Ratho East Marathon (20th September 09), and met fellow paddlers for the first time, I noted that every other competitor was using wings- mostly carbon. Shortly afterwards I acquired a set of wing paddles (Lettmann Nordic 50%) and promptly fell in on the first outing with them, and regularly thereafter. I persisted with them, research on the internet suggested that they reduce times by 2% to 5% and this could theoretically improve my DW time by as much as an hour. Although as Margaret Chapman from Kirkcaldy soberly pointed out- any benefit is only gained if you know how to use them correctly. In fact it soon came apparent from my first few outings over a timed course, that they slow you down if you cannot use them properly- and that is before you include the time lost swimming.

Paddle Technique
Graeme and I started practicing our paddling using broom handles, despite some unkind comments from acquaintances who witnessed these sessions, they proved useful- as ridiculous as it seems. Our initial technical approach, was based on emphasising the following recollections I had from 30 years ago and the doctrine of my father:

Keep the arms straight
The hands high
Rotate the waist as much as possible
Keep the stroke as long as possible
Keep the stroke parallel to the boat

From rowing, we were conscious of the concept of Levering the boat through the water rather than shovelling water.

Margaret very kindly gave us a coaching session at Kirkcaldy, on the conclusion of that session we adjusted our technical approach which is now:

Keep the arms straight
The hands high
Rotate the waist- but not past the point at which the hand meets the hip
Keep the stroke long- noting the point above
Paddle in front of your self
Keep the stroke parallel to the boat when using asymmetric blades
However if using Wings the stroke is slightly angled away from the boat during the stroke.

Having started to get used to the wings, I have really enjoyed the sense of locking into the water at the catch. For Graeme we had a further consideration. Graeme’s injury to the back does limit the range of waist rotation. The angle the wing is pulled through the water, we think, will be more appropriate to the range of movement he has- however only time will tell and more experienced minds may find fault in this logic.

Paddle Envy
After work I rushed round to Graeme’s house to see his paddle. I take my paddle with me. I am greeted by his father who shakes his head forlornly as leads me to Graeme’s bedroom- apparently Graeme hasn’t been able to take his hands off his paddle all evening and hasn’t come out of his bedroom once since getting home from work.

Graeme presents his paddle. It is a Knysna Swing LD, adjustable from 210 to 220 cm. At full length it is bigger than mine.