So things have got serious… Well as serious as freestyle can be.
For a whole week we have now been limited, to a certain extent, to set times to paddle based on our nationality. For each one hour slot, over 20 paddlers would be allocated. However, outside of training times, you were free to train all night and into the early hours of the morning.
Now with the official training, it feels like we have a whole lot more spare time to explore Canada. After our early session on Thursday, the Brits headed to the city. Along with our Claire (our Canadian tour guide), we went shopping in Ottawa before seeing the sights and bringing out the inner tourists.
Back on the Lorne, the surroundings are really starting to look like a World Class venue – the main bleachers are up, judging box built and grandstand on the far bank is under construction. Soon, Garb’s rocky walls will be dotted with crowds of spectators. In order to maximise training times, we split training sessions into two or three groups which meant less time waiting in the eddy between rides. Due to being one of the biggest nations, we virtually had our own training sessions, and with the help of the coaches, I feel they have been very productive. As a whole, the team is looking really strong and I am super excited to watch the action unfold.
Without a doubt, the biggest news story of this World’s so far, would have to be the battle to get Uganda their visas in order to come and compete. After two rejections, all hope had been pinned on one last application. After a media campaign, led by Kayak the Nile, and support from the whole community, Uganda was at last granted their visas! However, this wasn’t the end of the struggle unfortunately. After the final application dwindled the majority of their fundraising, it was back to social media for one last push! With the help of Wilderness Tours and everyone’s donations, the team were soon on their way; and after driving to Nairobi to get one of the next planes to Canada, and the World Championships.
Despite the long journey, missing the first day of team training and many of them not having paddled another river than the Nile, the team was still incredibly enthusiastic. Catching up with them in the eddy, they all seemed to be getting the hang of the feature and will certainly do Uganda proud.
With the end of team training now imminent (and a glitter war raging on), Team GB set off on our team meal. After a dinner on land, we soon headed onto a boat for team bonding, and were also joined by Team Uganda. With the revelation of a swim, Sam had to take on the task of a bootie – and with none of his nearby, it had to be a customer rafting boot! On the boat, entertainment then turned to the competitive nature of any athlete: with pull up contests, monkey bar races and even planks. At the halfway point, Adam was optimising his entrepreneurial skills as he jumped into the river, minus some clothes. All in all, it was a great evening and certainly memorable.
With the opening ceremony and competition week getting close, the community is fully supporting every aspect. Tonight, we plan to head to a Demolition Derby in a local town, before it all kicks off in Beachburg on Sunday. Next week is sure to be exciting, as everyone is looking strong on the wave, it’s going to be an awesome show. I am excited to compete, but still very nervous, especially with it being on my 18th birthday (doubt I will forget this one)!
For a whole week we have now been limited, to a certain extent, to set times to paddle based on our nationality. For each one hour slot, over 20 paddlers would be allocated. However, outside of training times, you were free to train all night and into the early hours of the morning.
Now with the official training, it feels like we have a whole lot more spare time to explore Canada. After our early session on Thursday, the Brits headed to the city. Along with our Claire (our Canadian tour guide), we went shopping in Ottawa before seeing the sights and bringing out the inner tourists.
Back on the Lorne, the surroundings are really starting to look like a World Class venue – the main bleachers are up, judging box built and grandstand on the far bank is under construction. Soon, Garb’s rocky walls will be dotted with crowds of spectators. In order to maximise training times, we split training sessions into two or three groups which meant less time waiting in the eddy between rides. Due to being one of the biggest nations, we virtually had our own training sessions, and with the help of the coaches, I feel they have been very productive. As a whole, the team is looking really strong and I am super excited to watch the action unfold.
Without a doubt, the biggest news story of this World’s so far, would have to be the battle to get Uganda their visas in order to come and compete. After two rejections, all hope had been pinned on one last application. After a media campaign, led by Kayak the Nile, and support from the whole community, Uganda was at last granted their visas! However, this wasn’t the end of the struggle unfortunately. After the final application dwindled the majority of their fundraising, it was back to social media for one last push! With the help of Wilderness Tours and everyone’s donations, the team were soon on their way; and after driving to Nairobi to get one of the next planes to Canada, and the World Championships.
Despite the long journey, missing the first day of team training and many of them not having paddled another river than the Nile, the team was still incredibly enthusiastic. Catching up with them in the eddy, they all seemed to be getting the hang of the feature and will certainly do Uganda proud.
With the end of team training now imminent (and a glitter war raging on), Team GB set off on our team meal. After a dinner on land, we soon headed onto a boat for team bonding, and were also joined by Team Uganda. With the revelation of a swim, Sam had to take on the task of a bootie – and with none of his nearby, it had to be a customer rafting boot! On the boat, entertainment then turned to the competitive nature of any athlete: with pull up contests, monkey bar races and even planks. At the halfway point, Adam was optimising his entrepreneurial skills as he jumped into the river, minus some clothes. All in all, it was a great evening and certainly memorable.
With the opening ceremony and competition week getting close, the community is fully supporting every aspect. Tonight, we plan to head to a Demolition Derby in a local town, before it all kicks off in Beachburg on Sunday. Next week is sure to be exciting, as everyone is looking strong on the wave, it’s going to be an awesome show. I am excited to compete, but still very nervous, especially with it being on my 18th birthday (doubt I will forget this one)!
I love the sport of kayaking.It's quite exciting to see that the wild of side of Canada can be tamed through kayaking.As a female thrill seeker, I love the adventure that you are having. The thing that fascinated me is that there is a Ugandan team! Kudos to them and best of luck to you and your team in the next competition.
ReplyDeleteMaribeth Curley @ UP Communication