I've never ever sat in a kayak let alone paddle that sort of distance.
Donated. Very well done, and thank you.
Donated. Very well done, and thank you.
Thanks Toddy, our current schedule shows us passing Bray at 23h20 on Saturday night. Our timings, though, are based upon a few assumptions, the most unreliable being our pace on the Thames which will be very flow-dependent.When you likely to be coming past Maidenhead and Bray Paul?
I can pop down with some refreshments, hot drinks etc. if needed!
PS: flow is dropping past our rowing club - but still on red boards!
Thanks Toddy, our current schedule shows us passing Bray at 23h20 on Saturday night. Our timings, though, are based upon a few assumptions, the most unreliable being our pace on the Thames which will be very flow-dependent.
At Bray we'll have been paddling for just under 19 hours (with roughly 11 to go), so our timings may be way out by then. Thanks for the offer of sustenance - in fact we have people lined up at about 3 places with food (and painkillers!) so we're sorted there.
Bloody internet malarky... failed three times. PM - I'll pay you into your bank, you sort the daft electronic gubbins please.We'd like to think that none of us will ever need this, but the reality is that many bikers have been, and will continue to be, saved through the air ambulance service.
Personally I cannot believe that these (and the RNLI for that matter) are funded directly by citizens while we chuck public money at seemingly pointless initiatives, but maybe that's a topic for another thread!
Anyway, in brief - I'm aiming to raise £100 for the air ambulance.
In order to do this, a mate and I have spent the last 18 months training for the Devizes-Westminster kayak race.
This is the longest single stage kayak race in the world. We will start in Devizes, Wilts, at 04h30 on Easter Saturday and if all goes well, we'll finish at Westminster some time on Easter Sunday morning, having paddled non-stop for about 30 hours, covering 125 miles, and carrying the boat around 77 individual locks.
The biggest challenge will probably not be the physical endurance or the sleep deprivation (although both of those are very unpleasant), but the sheer discomfort. I'll be 60 later this year and it's deeply uncomfortable sitting in a kayak for any length of time. After the first couple of hours, everything aches. Fingers blister, backs knot up, shoulders take the brunt of it.. you're certainly wet and most likely cold.
Anyway... the ill-conceived decision to enter this race was made in a pub, after way too many beers. So I invite you to have too many beers, too, and if 10 people chip in £10, we'll make the £100 target and the air ambulance will be able to fly for another hour or two. That could mean someone's life.
So neck those pints, then if you feel the urge, come here:
Paul's fundraiser for Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussex
Help Paul Greenhalgh raise money to support Air Ambulance Charity Kent Surrey Sussexwww.justgiving.com
Cheers!
Paul
Hi! Yes, we have a race plan, which shows us being at Molesey at 03h49 (GMT) . However an accurate race plan is hard to create because of the variables, as above, esp the river flow rate. By Molesey we could be an hour ahead, or behind schedule, or silently weeping somewhere..!Paul, is there a 'forecast estimate' for hitting the lock at Hampton Court/East Molesey? I am a mile upriver from there right on the riverbank at Hampton ferry crossing/Yacht Club... Happy to cheer you on!
Fixed it for you.At the end of any arduous event it’s good to have a picture, everyone knows that. I am sure there’ll be photograph of the (un)happy pair, crawling up the bank and saying “Jeeeeezus my bloody back.... ”.
Hi! Yes, we have a race plan, which shows us being at Molesey at 03h49 (GMT) . However an accurate race plan is hard to create because of the variables, as above, esp the river flow rate. By Molesey we could be an hour ahead, or behind schedule, or silently weeping somewhere..!