STOPP’IN at the DEE

Don’t let the stopper catch you off guard,

Point your bow upstream, and drive in hard.

Treat it like …… WHAT!

Pete’s words crack a laugh.

Concentrate!

LOOK,

only where you want to GO

Keeping the down stream edge dug in low.

Glide in, triumphantly……

“Hey look at Me!”

Hear John shout with Glee.

Uncontrolled rodeo,

Check out that flat spin!

Bow stall and stern squirt,

Up end, and ……SWIM.

Here in the washing machine

We rolled round and round.

Chris’ old Boot,

Will never be found.

Top to bottom,

Bottom to top,

Pete, and Deano

Tirelessly saved us,

As out of our boats we did POP

Cos, we can get on,

we just …well,

don’t know how to make it all STOP.

A cheer from the crowd

Adrenalines HIGH

As the next kayaker,

Paddles off ……to REACH FOR THE SKY!

By Georgia Newsome

19 Feb. 06

Inspired by a fantastic week of Intermediate White Water kayaking at Plas y Brenin with Pete, Deano and the ‘PANTS PADDLERS’ (who almost ALL know how to Swim).

Georgia on the falls above Betsy Coed, N. Wales

Club memorial to Steve Sambell

During the club's October weekend in Devon in 2003 we planted a copper beech tree, with a memorial plate, on the river bank in the River Dart Country Park. The occasion marked exactly one year since Steve's death during the same trip, and the location marked Steve's first encounter with white water and many subsequent outings on it.

A group of members gathered to help and witness the occasion, together with old friends of the club, Colin and Liz Butler. It was Colin who led our first few trips to Devon in the early years of the club, and he had happy memories of Steve paddling, and swimming, that section of the Dart. It was an occasion of happy memories recounted amid sadness that Steve won't share in the fun in future.

Next time you are there you can find the tree just upstream of the electrical turbine hut where the Dart web cam is mounted. In fact it is just out of view at the top of the web cam picture!

I am collecting contributions towards the cost of the tree and memorial plate. Any shortfall will be met by the club, and any excess will be donated to the British Heart Foundation. Please send your cheques, payable to RCC.

Barry.

MISSISSIPPI WANDERER

This is a story of a boat in a garden or more precisely a kayak, travelling to and from work I chance to pass a home with a lovely garden and in it a lime green canoe of slalom descent, after a couple of weeks I asked Trish to have a look at this boat as, A. it was raised of the ground on what can only be described as a saw horse, B. it was placed the right way up, where as we all know if your going to store a boat outside you store it upside down or at least on it's side, and to top it all off it looked as if it had plants growing out of it.

This is where my nosiness gets the better of me, so I stopped and knocked on the door on my way home from work one day, on answering the door I met a delightful lady by the name of Sandra and straight away she asked me if I was the culprit, however I had to disappoint her as I was not.

The story begins about 2 1/2 years ago when Sandra and her family bought the house and on cleaning the garden from overgrown fauna and flora they discovered this canoe, putting it aside under the hedge whilst continuing to do up their newly acquired house complete with new extension the canoe remained under the hedge until summer arrived and Sandra decided that she'd like to have a beach garden and thought that correctly placed the canoe could have centre stage, but! when she went to the hedge the canoe was no more, asking all of the family with no one having any knowledge of its disappearance.

Now 18 months had gone by and after a B.B.Q and some of the obligatory alcohol the canoe appeared on the drive with a "post it" on it saying thanks for the loan had a wonderful trip down the Mississippi.

Sandra believes that this particular Mississippi is in Hampshire somewhere but would like to thank the Mississippi Wanderer for the safe return of her plant pot.

Karl. March 2003