A Right Royal Challenge Beckons

I have enjoyed the shape my paddling year has taken over the past few seasons. Events like the Hawkesbury Classic & a few open water races are motivation enough to get myself into gear and aim for a good showing. To do them properly means some form of conditioning program, which in themselves I find tremendously satisfying.
Once they're out of the way I've usually got enough base fitness and endurance to enjoy the  warm weather paddling I get up to for the rest of the summer & autumn, be it surfing in my sea kayak, chasing runners at sea in my ski or even lining up another big ocean paddle like a 'Degree in a Day'.
Even though so far this spring I've competed in the Hydrothon, Myall Classic & the Hawkesbury Classic, they have to an extent been means to an end, the terminus looming at this coming Saturday's Royal Challenge.

This is a 21km paddle split in half by a half-marathon run along the trail of Lady Carrington Drive in Sydney's Royal National Park (course map is HERE). The paddle part is something I've always been confident of completing, but I only started running in February, and herein lies my challenge. I have a long log of slow and consistent running build up since February, was fortunate enough to do a winter season with the Brighton Athletic Club, but even so I've only ever pushed myself past 15km once. That was last Thursday on a very hot arvo; I did a great job dismantling any confidence about my running that may have falsely began to develop!
Anyway, for some strange reason I enjoy the possibility of a nasty endurance surprise. It reminds me just how dedicated and talented the elite people who consistently do this stuff are, and allows a small glimpse into that world of deep inner examination. It's something like meditation combined with suffering, with a stopwatch making you meditate faster.
The race starts at 7am Saturday down at the weir at Audley, and I'm hoping to finish somewhere between 4 - 4 1/2 hours. That is a probably a bit optimistic considering I've never run a half marathon then tried to paddle 10km afterwards, but there you go, you can't go to jail for being an optimist.
Organiser Steve Southwell puts this race on for the KIDS Foundation. KIDS is an acronym for Kids In Dangerous Situations and their charter is to try to redress the startling childhood injury statistics in Australia. More children in Australia die from injury than from disease. Not only do they offer childhood programs on injury prevention, but also they also support hundreds of children and their families who have endured trauma, horrific burns and other injuries that have changed their lives. I'll admit to not knowing much about KIDS prior to becoming involved in the Royal Challenge as a sponsor, but seeing what they do makes me proud to be participating in an event to their benefit. 
I have a sponsorship donation page set up HERE. If you have a spare dollar or two any support for this worthy cause would be muchly appreciated.
Last minute tips from experienced long distance runners will be received with much gratitude.

All @ Sea II - The Real Deal!

My favourite paddling weekend last year was the inaugural All @ Sea Weekend with the Sutherland Shire Canoe Club, essentially a sea-familiarisation weekend at Bundeena where we tried to help the club members with sea aspirations, to get out safely with their mates & experience the big, wide ocean.
It was a hoot, with laughs all weekend as we took most members from their first wet exit on the shore at Bonnie Vale to deep water rescues off Jibbon Head, over two committing days on the water.
This year, organiser Bob Turner had a more challenging goal and booked the camp ground at Currarong, and we basically aimed to take up where we left off and head straight out into the demanding waters of the Beecroft Peninsula.

Twenty paddlers hit the beach on the Saturday morning for what turned out to be the only calm-ish weather of the entire weekend, and in two groups we headed east.
A rolling Nor Easterly swell was being lifted by the complex undersea topography of the area & making a series of bomboras occasionally go off, but otherwise the windless skies just made everyone feel rather small. As an intro to what the sea can look like when it's being lifted by a swell with some length to it, the intimidation factor was almost as elevated as the waves hitting the bombies.

Back safely inside Currarong Creek we then spent the arvo getting wet, practising rescues, edging, turning, with a few even having a crack at rolling. It was great fun, with an infectiously enthusiastic bunch of mates with a tremendous group attitude to having a go & egging each other on.
The feature of Saturday night's entertainment was a series of ten minute presentations by members on subjects as diverse as a paddling/road trip to Queensland, some ridiculous NZ whitewater action (which explains much of Steve Dawson's behaviour), and the iconic Murray Marathon. A few bottles of red washed down a superb seafood spread put on by Zac's, the omnipotent Currarong eatery, and merriment ensued well into the early hours, as a big southerly weather system wrought winds & driving rain outside. As you can see from the pic below, it was cold enough for the hard men of the club to reach for their blankies...

Unsurprisingly given the drastic turn in the weather overnight, there were fewer paddlers up for the Sunday trip, which we decided would be a tight coastal hug in the lee of the land, out to the headland where the southerly winds would rapidly make things more interesting. We beachcombed all the way along the picturesque coast to Little Beecroft Head, at which point the sea took over as our instructor. The group paddled into some steep & bouncy seas for a few minutes, getting a taste of just how mighty it can be 'outside', before we ducked back into Abraham's Bosom to regroup. It was challenging, once again very intimidating, but everyone relished the exposure.

Sunday Action.

I particularly enjoy the atmosphere around the Sutherland Club, they all know each other well enough to laugh along together in the wet & dry moments that are inevitable on a weekend like this where so many boundaries are being pushed. The Saturday night was a screamer, in my opinion the sort of gathering that makes shared paddling experience such a joy.
Well done to all of the wide eyed folks who got out among the rolling apartment blocks off Beecroft, and thanks to Bob Turner for putting it all together. 

The EK Online Store Gets Serious!

CLICK HERE!

Despite all original intentions of Expedition Kayaks being a fun little side business to keep Rob & I entertained, the reality now is that seven years down the track it's grown to the point that we have to treat it as a proper entity. We're even considering a mission statement, KPI's and a campaign where we'll endlessly write about how passionate we are, so far these have only made draft format, and only after about 11pm at noisy paddlesports events. With ukulele backing music. Stay tuned for the final document.

So, if we're going to pretend we know what we're doing, we should at least look like we know what we're doing, and today we've launched a brand new online store to replace our folksy little effort that has skipped around the boards of the web since 2007.

We've categorised things more comprehensively, added more than 30 brand new products, with a bucketload on the way from great paddlesports companies like Reed, NRS & Peak UK, and introduced for the first time a range of products from KajakSport in Finland, including the full range of LRC hatches.

In the background we're busy testing products sent to us in the aftermath of the Kanumesse event in Germany, and will have some very cool new things up online over the coming months.

Rob shows us his X-Range

We have also added in the new Lendal USA X-Range Kinetik paddles, with more in that range landing before Xmas.

For the bargain hunters, we have listed some run-out specials, ranging from NRS Hydroskin & Cags, to half a dozen great quality ex-demo paddles.

The store can be reached through the link on our home page, and all transactions are encrypted through our 128bit security system. We aim to dispatch on the day the goods are ordered subject to stock, and of course freight is free, nationally, on all orders over $50. 

Our aim is, and always has been, to make an overseas purchase essentially redundant, by keeping our prices as closely aligned as we can manage to the prices you see for our products online overseas.

Take a tour & let us know what you think!

'Small Boats, Big Difference' Sharon Betteridge's thoughts on the range of skis & kayaks for smaller people.

These are exciting times for smaller paddlers.  For many years the Australian market neglected to cater adequately for these paddlers, offering only wide, stable short kayaks (erroneously thinking women need wider kayaks so they wouldn’t feel unstable), or smaller versions of large kayaks. Both options were still way too big and cumbersome for smaller paddlers to handle.

Expedition Kayaks recently added a new kayak and ski to their range for the lighter weight paddler. Alongside the already popular Valley Avocet LV, there is now the Tiderace Xcite-S sea kayak and the Think ‘Eze’ Ski. Like the two Valley kayaks, these new additions to the range are specifically designed for the smaller paddler.  Not just ‘cut down’ versions of their bigger siblings. All these craft are carefully designed - narrow where you plant the paddle, ergonomic seating, efficient hull designs, reasonable water line length to ensure good forward speed, and in the case of the kayaks the smaller design allows a comfortable fit in the cockpit, easier edging for manouevering strokes and rolling and, with good sea manners on the open water, and still with enough room to pack your gear for overnight trips.

Whilst I have never been a proponent of ski paddling, I couldn’t resist a test paddle of the new Think ‘Eze’ ski when Rob brought it home on his roof a couple of weeks ago. It is shiny and slim, and light enough for me to get on and off the roof of my car on my own, and, after a few paddles on Sydney Harbour in genuine 20 knot winds, I was impressed to say the least. After a few anxious moments on launching, I adapted quickly to the feel of the both the ski and the wing paddle. Into the wind and across the wind I felt pretty much in control, and the ski was going quick. Then it was time to turn around and catch a few runners home. After a few unsettling moments I realized I could make this craft go fast, with little effort. A few days later I was out on it again.

Last week the Tiderace container arrived at the EK warehouse and inside was the new Tiderace Xcite-S. Having sat in so many ‘small’ sea kayaks over the years, I never really know what to expect but I was ‘Xcited’ when the box was opened to reveal that the Xcite-S was another genuine small person’s kayak. Tiderace have the formula right – comfortable fit in the cockpit, cockpit combing height just above my hips, the kayak moves easily when I want to edge, the deck is narrow where I want to plant the paddle for an efficient forward stroke, it has a decent waterline length for speed, enough rocker to ensure ease of turning, and of course all the usual excellent features of its larger relatives. I took it out for a paddle on the weekend, and it was everything I hoped it would be – comfortable, narrow foredeck, tracks well, turns easily, rolls exceptionally well and is more stable than its narrow beam would indicate. Another winner!

Tiderace have also just released the new Pace 17S; I think the market will benefit from the addition of a smaller fast sea-touring kayak in the high performance range for longer expeditions.

Last time a penned a review I was inundated with requests from paddlers asking to buy my personal kayaks. So before anyone hits the send button I am not selling. I love my Avocet LV. The Pace 17S certainly fits more gear for the overnight and extended trips; and the Avocet LV makes a great day boat and instructor’s kayak with its nimble responsiveness, ease of maneuvering and quick turn of speed when managing a group but then with access to the whole EK demo fleet I don’t have to sell my favourites to enjoy these new additions!

At last the leading designers and manufacturers are starting to take the under 65kilogram paddler seriously and provide them with real sea kayaks that they can use in real conditions. Small boats really do make a big difference - just ask any kayaker who paddles one.

Sharon Betteridge

Trials, Tides & Tinkerbell, the 2013 Hawkesbury Classic

The Hawkesbury Classic has been run & endured for another year, with more than 450 paddlers completing the journey down the 111km course from Windsor to Brooklyn.
The 'Hawkesbury Weekend' really begins early Saturday as you pack all of your gear up for the 90 minute drive west to the start, and for me this year was complicated somewhat by also being an exhibiting sponsor.

Unlike fellow sponsor Matt Blundell from Pro Kayaks who had a huge selection on hand for any last minute gear requirements, I decided to bring out the EK marquee & a couple of boats as eye candy. It was an energy-saving tactic really, but still made the lead up to the race a little more hectic than last year. 
If you could bottle the vibe at the preliminaries to this race you'd be onto something. There is a wonderful atmosphere of camaraderie amongst the competitors & land crew, and the cheery volunteers who run you through scrutineering make the whole process of getting yourself sorted for the event simple & good humoured.
I had my Mum, Suzanne, with me again to crew, and Owen Walton & Colin Sheringham once again helped me out with moving the boat around to marshalling & the start.

Mum

The briefing done, the first paddlers in the non-competitive Brooklyn or Bust away, I got myself sorted for my Medium Rec start at 5pm. As last year, I was paddling Tiderace's fast ocean tourer, the Pace 18.

My lesson from last year's race was to try & push it when the tide was going my way, so this year I was determined to go as fast & hard as I could from the start to take advantage of what should quickly develop into a favourable ebb tide.
From the gun I targeted the fast guys in their dedicated flat water racers, but they were too quick off the mark for me to even draft, so I had to make do plugging into the head current & a gentle head wind for what I hoped would be an hour or so.
My little honesty box on the foredeck was telling me a few things that I didn't want to hear. First off I was working hard, about 10% over & above the rate I do on our brisk training paddle on Thursday mornings. Second I wasn't going very fast! Either I was suddenly crap or the tide was flooding way longer than the tide tables had indicated. The words of paddling mate Bob Turner came back to me - 'they're always wrong, don't plan around them, just paddle what's in front of you!'
Despite the brutality of busting it through this contrary stage, it's always the highlight of my race. The  slower starters from the Brooklyn or Bust line up in front of you & one by one you slide past and have a quick chat. The absolute funniest thing I have seen in five races, was Captain Hook, Tinkerbell & Smee in a triple Canadian Canoe, in full Disney kit.  Jolly Rogers flying, they were punting their ship down the Hawkesbury fast enough for a pair of elite SUP guys to get a mighty ride on their not unsubstantial wash. So you had the delightful juxtaposition of three jesters having a ball in their fancy dress, being tailed by two paddlers who looked like they really meant business. Probably sums up what the Classic is all about.

I had my first micro break at the 20km mark, a tough couple of hours where my average speed was just below the rate I needed to break 11 hours. The tide then began to swing as the sun set & I had a red hot go all the way to the 58km stop at Wiseman's Ferry.
With the tide still running I wasn't going to mess around, so jumped out, switched my water bladder (thanks Greg & Rowley), put on my Endurance jacket, popped a Neurofen and headed off. My entry into the Ayrton Senna pit stop award, 5mins 56 seconds!
From Wiseman's I had 42km to go in 4hrs 40mins, just behind where I wanted to be, and even though at that point I was on for a 10.30 time, I new the bad tide was coming....
I figured I could grind out 24km in the last 3 hours of the full flood tide, based on what last year's opposing tides did to my boat speed. With this in mind I set myself to get to the 76km mark by 1am, which after my mini rest, meant throwing everything at the next hour and a half.
At the 8 hour mark I was 1.5km short of 76km, and that effectively, was that. I grunted it out for the next three hours but realistically only a series of ocean runners were going to give me the little push I needed to get back ahead of the game.
In the last little stretch the tide quite inexplicably seemed to return (or the Red Bull kicked in), and for a brief time I was half a chance of running down my 2012 time, but again it wasn't to be, crossing the line at Brooklyn in 11:10.
Unlike last year when I could see the little errors I made that cost me, this year (with the exception of paddling 400m further due to two navigation boogles), I followed my plan and finished the race well stuffed. Last year I got out of the boat feeling pretty rosy, not so this time, completely buggered! My trace comparing the two races shows that I worked way harder to acheive more-or-less the same time, and a few guys I consider to be yardsticks had also gone slower this year than they had managed in 2012.
I suppose that's probably why it's a bit useless comparing one Hawkesbury to another, the tides & when they kick is really what it's all about. Such a demanding event to analyse & plan around, and then physically and mentally to execute, but you still need a little bit of good fortune to really nail it.
My trace of the race is HERE.
Among my paddling mates there were some brilliant efforts. Anne Moore & her paddling partner Jack Ward smashed the previous record for Long Rec doubles by more than 20 minutes, blazing down the course in 9:44. When you consider that Anne also broke a longstanding record on her own last year (even though it was bettered on the night), she is building quite a Hawkesbury resume. 

Anne relaxing before her & paddle partner Jack gouged a path down the river

My training buddies Steve & Kate Dawson took nearly 40 minutes off their time last year, their 9:44 only four minutes short of the record that they had in their sights. Bob Turner put in 50 minutes (!) of preparation in his brand new boat before smoking it home in 10:07. I will no longert listen to Turner when he says he's not quite 100%. Dee, Rae, Clair & Merridy set a new record for Ladies K4 in finishing on 10:53. It sounded like a challenging journey for the four of them over the past few months! A bunch of my sea kayak mates also clocked good times in a varying mix of boats, and there were pained smiles all round in the dark at the finish line.
Mum was there at the end with a cup of hot soup, sneaking into the 'officials only' bit at the finish again to cheer me home, after following me down the river in the dark of the night. What a lady!

Finished & looking a hundred dollars!

Finally, friends & colleagues also helped raise more than $1000 for the Arrow Bone Marrow Foundation through their sponsorship of my race, which is just a brilliant thing. Sincerest thanks to Scott & Stephen, Ian & Dave (who are about to attempt a circumnavigation of Sri Lanka), Captain Udi, Peter from Townsville, Paddy, Stuntman, Marija, Rosy, My Favourite Mexican, Roger, Nigel, Christina, Pete, David, Auldy, Andrew, Fiona and the inspiring Davo. (PS it's not too late to donate - http://www.canoeclassic.asn.au/my/races/sponsorship?rid=15993).
Next year....?? If I'm going in it, I'm going in a boat that can mow down a few of those guys & girls in their Flashes & Sonics. I reckon it has to be an easier race if you're out there for a shorter time..!
Well done to everyone who took part, it's hard to imagine another 'everyman' event like this, anywhere, that requires such commitment to complete. Just fantastic.

Peak UK Lands This Week

We land our first shipment of the Peak UK range of touring paddle gear early next week, the first big brand we've brought back from our trip to the PaddleExpo event at Nuremberg earlier this month.

We were keen to add a premium brand of paddling gear to complement the Reed Chillcheater & NRS range we have successfully sold now for several years, and every time we asked a reputable paddler or retailer at the show who we should be looking at, we kept hearing 'Peak UK'.

Meeting owner Pete on his big, bright stand, and having him run us through his range of touring specific paddle wear was a treat. This stuff is well thought out, as well made as anything we've seen and very competitively priced.

We have begun with Peak UK's Tourlite Short Jacket & Pro Jacket, their neoskin Pants & Shorts, a compact & nicely conceived 15m tow system, a thermal rashie & their lightweight paddle shoes. Consider that we haven't ever stocked paddle shoes before, because we haven't seen a pair that we thought combined light weight, stiff soles & a low profile.

Best of all, there is more to come. Peak release their Northern Summer range in a couple of months with some more products that are just so impressive. Keep an eye on our pages for updates.
The range is now up live on our ONLINE STORE, with freight free on all orders over $50. 

The Hawkesbury Classic Looms

Less than two weeks to go to this year's Hawkesbury Classic, an iconic 111km paddle race with up to 500 hardy participants, overnight along Sydney's Hawkesbury River.
I revisited this race last October after not having taken part since 2003, and gained a lot of satisfaction from my race training & the event itself.
I was aiming to beat the magic 11 hour mark, racing in Tiderace's fast ocean going Pace 18 sea kayak, but fell foul of a brutal final tide and a smidgin of tactical nous, in just missing out, finishing in 11:08. My report of the race 'Emptying the Tank' is HERE.

Last year's start - I'm back in the Tiderace Pace 18 in 2013

This year I think I'm generally fitter, maybe if not quite as flat water paddle hardened - lets face it, how much of that stuff can you do before you start to go a bit strange? Not much offence intended to my white line buddies…
The tides are going to cruel a few of the early starters in the recreational 'Brooklyn or Bust' non-competitive division, but for my Medium Rec category (I'm back in the Pace 18 so it's fair race against my 2012 self) going off 45 minutes later things aren't quite so unfavourable. This year we'll run into about 60-90 minutes of weak opposing tide, before getting an almighty push for 6 hours or so.

The colour of the Hawksbury Classic

Herein lies the crux of my race against 2012 me. My aim is to get as far & as fast along the course in that 6-7 hours where things are either going my way or not going against me too hard, then holding on for the last 3 hours or so & hopefully clawing home inside my target time. Last year's maximum flood tide dropped my speed as low as 7kmh, which when I need to maintain about 9.1kmh to beat 11 hours is quite a slug. If last year's flow is replicated, this means I need to be no further than 30km from the end after 7 hours (the true race course being pretty much bang on 100km).
The good news from past experience, is that even if you feel like you're going to die at the traditional 60km stop point at Wiseman's Ferry, you generally don't feel much worse than that at the finish line. I call it the 'feeling like sh*t plateau', and it's quite comforting to know that what you're feeling at Wiseman's is probably as bad as it is going to get.

Wiseman's Ferry stop 2012, overjoyed at reaching the 'feeling like sh*t plateau'

The tactical nous that I missed last year was not going hard enough when things were running my way. I conserved energy paddling down tide, when I probably should have gone harder, and trusted my ability to recover whilst moving into the steady resistance of the incoming tide later on. Hard as it sounds, the flood tide by it's very nature restricts your hull speed and you do tend to level off your effort as you plug through it. I'm fitter this year so no excuses!

Last year's finish, 8 minutes adrift….aaarghh!

The Classic is run in support of the Arrow Bone Marrow Foundation, and this year it carries special resonance for me, having caught up a few weeks ago with my old cricket coach at Randwick, Barry Davison. Davo is a proper legend in the Sydney grade cricket scene, having mentored countless Test & State cricketers through the system, and even managing to get a few decent performances out of me when I was paying attention. He has had his coaching curtailed in recent times by a full frontal battle with bone marrow cancer, one that has hosed him down more than once, but fingers crossed a fight he is slowly getting the better of. During our lovely catch up he he gave me the rundown on the treatment, the expense, the discomfort of it all, and emphasised the phenomenal research work being done by bodies like The Arrow Foundation. He has had a couple of brand new drugs fresh off the lab table and they have made a world of difference to his recovery, so this stuff is real and it makes a difference.
The Hawkesbury Classic people make it very easy for people to sponsor paddlers, with individual pages set up for donations. Mine can be found HERE. I described sponsoring me in race a while back as an investment in my suffering, but having talked to Baz I think that's clearly an overdramatisation of something that I'm choosing to do for a challenge. If you've got a spare few bucks, please consider sponsoring me and contributing towards the treatment of Bone Marrow Cancer patients. If you look at my sponsor's list, you'll see that Barry was the first guy to chip in.
Best of luck to all of the paddlers taking part this year.
Expedition Kayaks are a major sponsor of this year's Hawkesbury Classic, following on from our support of the Myall Classic, Royal Challenge & Hydrothon. If you've got any last minute questions or queries about your race, we've got well thought out gear combinations that are proven to work across the broad temperature range during the night, and can offer advice on tactics & race day preparation. Always happy to hear from a fellow Classic racer!