The last of the Dabs Derakane Winter Time Trials took place on Thursday evening, and with this we had 83 proud and pleased paddlers who won well-deserved Dabs Puffer Jackets. Thank-you to the resin guys Steve Beal and Mark Reddy from KZNR for supporting our sport – the opportunity to earn something different each year, and something as worthwhile, clearly motivated many. Winners included little Aara Judy as our youngest competitor and Tony Lightfoot as the oldest; while Nikki Slater Aayan Judy were the only paddlers who did all 12 Winter Time Trials. Alex and Fish were recognized for their swimming while Pete Flemmer took the most K3 wins. Well done to Elandrie and Caren for making this happen, and the good news is that Mark and Steve will continue to run the Dabs Derakane Winter Time Trial promotion – their association with our club dates back to 1991. Thanks guys, and we hope to see both of you paddling too please; and then enjoying a beer with us afterwards.
As a pre-cursor to Saturdays Short Course Race, this last winter night Time Trial doubled up as a Marathon event with K1 paddlers portaging at the end of laps 3, 6 and 9. Clint took the win ahead of Brad Boule and Alex, while only Helen Jansen Van Vuuren and Karen Field contested the ladies race, with Helen winning.
Some volunteers were out and about at sunrise on past weekends, promoting our sport and our club, handing out water sachets and vouchers to runners going over the bridge, inviting them to the Dabs Open Day – offering them free coffee and the opportunity to experience a different way to enjoy their sporting day.
Thanks to efforts like this we attracted about 30 people the Dabs Open Day – despite the cloudy and cold conditions that arrived. Those that came were treated to coffee in the clubhouse where there were talks, following which there were demos from some of our elite paddlers and then the newbies got to get on the water. Some battled and swam, but others looked like naturals. While we were unlucky with the weather, we were fortunate in that we had several young people (guys and girls) who really enjoyed the experience and signed up; so congratulations to all who were involved.
After the Open Day it was the Short Course races of three laps with two portages on the new astro, with lots of familiar names making the podiums. The guppy boys race was won by Ruoxi, followed by Phamana and Asher while the guppy girls was won by Aara, followed by Buhle and Amile. The B race was won by Kyle Armdorf followed by David Miller and Nhlamulo. Jess Lee won the ladies race after out-running Helen on the portages and then pulling away on the water; Renchi was third. Well done to Bridget Hunter who took the sportsmanship award; being new to paddling but still participating. The main men’s race provided the most spectacle. At the first takeout it was a 4-boat race with Wayne, Luke, Siseko and MJ in the mix. At the put-in Luke took a swim, Wayne raced off followed by MJ and Siseko, but Siseko seemed to be battling. Luke caught MJ and Wayne; some say Wayne waited, others say Luke worked hard to mitigate his mistake. Siseko retired at the next portage, he had put a big hole in his boat on the first run. Luke and Wayne then dropped MJ, and that’s how the race ended. There was a furious sprint for fourth place between Benjamin, Sibu and Rob, with Sibu Standing up in his boat when he crossed the line, looking like he had just won an Olympic sprint, and then taking a swim. Thanks to the time keepers Jodi and Nicole; and move over Steve Jourdan, it seems we have a new man who likes the mic – well done to Simi for his cool commentary.
Spring has sprung so summer is on its way – and with it our river races like the Liebenberg’s and the Vaal. A few groups will be tripping LBV this weekend and proficiency testing will be available too. If you are keen to join, please contact Karen Field. If you want to watch some interesting extreme sports (Climbing, Kayaking, Skiing and Surfing) on telly, check-out Edge of Earth on Showmax; but not much is as nail-biting as Bok rugby. Yoh!
Till next time – Go Dabs – and Go Bokke!