Norwich Canoe club were at it again last weekend, battling the windy and cold conditions at the Bedford Hasler.
Norwich did amazing and came first overall, which means we are now second in the region, and putting some pressure on Chelmsford for the lead. Thanks to the whole team that raced to make this possible!
Div 7-9 and the Geoff Saunders were first to start. Warrick, again the only NCC paddler in the Geoff Saunders race, did amazing with a 2nd place. In division 9 we had several competitors. Joe competed in his first ever Hasler and did amazing, leading the race until someone crashed into him in the final turn, sending him for an early bath. He got back in his boat and still managed 6th place! The win in division 9 was still for Norwich though, as William had an amazing sprint finish, winning the race by inches. Thomas also had a strong race, finishing 5th.
Mary-Anne finished her first div 8 race with a solid 3rd place, meaning she now had back-to-back promotions. Her husband Tristian joined Charlie in a late-entry K2 as Charlie’s partner pulled out because of sickness, and they won the race! You must wonder if Tristian was secretly happy to race K2 rather than having to race against his daughter Jasmine in Div 5 for the first time, as Jasmine decidedly won the div 5 race, and thereby follows in her moms footsteps with back-to-back promotions. Well done Jasmine!
Also in div 8, Kirk has an amazing race to come 2nd. In the K2 category, we had two strong results, as Pepi and Josh came 3rd, and Tammy and Rob won the race.
In div 7 Alex followed our team leaders advice to stay out of trouble at the start, and after a strong start he finished the race in 4th place.
Next up were the top divisions, where we had several K2s competing. First up was div 2, where Albert and Dom had a literal fight with 2 Chelmsford crews. This resulted in Dom getting a paddle in his face, but they had the last laugh after winning the race (no lasting damage for Dom!). Toby and Martin (Billy) finished just after this lead group in 4th place. James How also raced in div 2, and being in a K1 did not deter him from being the fastest boat on the water. We expect a promotion soon! The division 3 K2 was won by NCCs international crew of Suzanne (Netherlands) and Mathis (France), after pulling away at the 3rd portage.
Div 5 paddler Estelle liked the idea Suzanne/Grace had in Cambridge of doing a longer than required distance, and paired up with Jago in Div3 to do 20km. they had a solid race finishing in 3rd place.
A massive congratulations to everyone who race and survived the cold weather and the Bedford Bumps.
Next up is our home race on May 19th. We are hoping for a warm, sunny day, and a massive Norwich team!
