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Devizes To Westminster A Paddler's Perspective |
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News: Archive
The news archive contains the following stories:
- One Hundred Thousand Pages (26-Apr-2000)
- Tide Times at Teddington 2000 (11-Jan-2000)
- Senior Doubles Start Times 2000 and Rule Ammendments (11-Jan-2000)
- Easter 2000 (5-Apr-1999)
- Waterside D 1999 (26-Mar-1999)
- Waterside C 1999 (8-Mar-1999)
- Waterside B 1999 - postscript (4-Mar-1999)
- Procedure for Ham start (day 4) 1999 (24-Feb-1999)
- Waterside B 1999 (24-Feb-1999)
- Waterside A 1999 (9-Feb-1999)
- Works on the Canal (8-Feb-1999)
- Site News (1-Jan-1999)
- Senior Doubles Start Times 1999 and Rule Ammendments (22-May-1998)
- Tide Times at Teddington 1999 (5-May-1998)
- DW 1998 Presentations (4-May-1998)
- Damage caused on DW 1998 (4-May-1998)
- Easter 1999 (28-Apr-1998)
- DW Weather Forecast: Prepare to be distressed (8-Apr-1998)
- Kennet Pollution (6-Apr-1998)
- DW Anecdotes - can you help? (3-Apr-1998)
- Teddington Tide Timer (3-Apr-1998)
- Waterside C (15-Mar-1998)
- Easter 1998 (1-Feb-1998)
- Senior Doubles Start Times 1998 and Rule Ammendments (1-Feb-1998)
- Race Results (1-Feb-1998)
- Tide Times at Teddington 1998 (1-Feb-1998)
- One Hundred Thousand Pages (26-Apr-2000)
- Tide Times at Teddington 2000 (11-Jan-2000)
- Senior Doubles Start Times 2000 and Rule Ammendments (11-Jan-2000)
- Easter 2000 (5-Apr-1999)
- Waterside D 1999 (26-Mar-1999)
- Waterside C 1999 (8-Mar-1999)
- Waterside B 1999 - postscript (4-Mar-1999)
- Procedure for Ham start (day 4) 1999 (24-Feb-1999)
- Waterside B 1999 (24-Feb-1999)
- Waterside A 1999 (9-Feb-1999)
- Works on the Canal (8-Feb-1999)
- Site News (1-Jan-1999)
- Senior Doubles Start Times 1999 and Rule Ammendments (22-May-1998)
- Tide Times at Teddington 1999 (5-May-1998)
- DW 1998 Presentations (4-May-1998)
- Damage caused on DW 1998 (4-May-1998)
- Easter 1999 (28-Apr-1998)
- DW Weather Forecast: Prepare to be distressed (8-Apr-1998)
- Kennet Pollution (6-Apr-1998)
- DW Anecdotes - can you help? (3-Apr-1998)
- Teddington Tide Timer (3-Apr-1998)
- Waterside C (15-Mar-1998)
- Easter 1998 (1-Feb-1998)
- Senior Doubles Start Times 1998 and Rule Ammendments (1-Feb-1998)
- Race Results (1-Feb-1998)
- Tide Times at Teddington 1998 (1-Feb-1998)
You can receive fresh news as it is posted by e-mail, by subscribing using the form below. This way you can be kept up to date automatically and without having to visit the news page. Your subscription will take immediate effect.
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You can receive fresh news as it is posted by e-mail, by subscribing using the form below. This way you can be kept up to date automatically and without having to visit the news page. Your subscription will take immediate effect.If you ever wish to unsubscribe, simply return to this form.
Issued: 26-Apr-2000 by David Anderson
An unhappy time for DW coincides with a happy one for the Paddler's Perspective; the delivery of the 100,000th page.
Issued: 11-Jan-2000 by David AndersonLast Updated: 9-Feb-2001 by David Anderson
| Easter Saturday (22nd April) | BST 0548 and 1803 |
| Easter Sunday | BST 0620 and 1834 |
| Easter Monday | BST 0655 |
| Sunrise Easter Monday | BST 0544 |
| Easter Monday Starts | SS 0625, JD/JV 0655 |
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| Could be dark... | Very dark... | Even darker than this! |
Senior Doubles Start Times 2000 and Rule Ammendments
Issued: 11-Jan-2000 by David Anderson- The 53rd Devizes To Westminster Canoe Race will start at Devizes Wharf, Wiltshire at 0700 BST on Good Friday 21st April 2000. Senior doubles may start any time in between then and 2000; starts after 1200 must be pre-booked. Saturday starts are also possible for fast boats.
- There are no significant rule changes since 1999.
All competitors of any class paddling on Monday morning must be in Thames Young Mariners compound at least 1 hour 30 minutes before High Water Teddington on the Monday morning and must proceed to the river through the control gate as directed. When this final stage takes place in the dark RULE 17 applies. - See also Tide Times at Teddington and rule changes 1999 and rule changes 1998.
- A full copy of the rules is available online - http://www.dw-perspective.org.uk/rules/.
Issued: 5-Apr-1999 by David Anderson
Good Friday 2000 will be on the 21st of April.
Entry forms can be downloaded from http://www.dwrace.org.uk/howtoenter.html.
Owing to works on the canal, the race was fromNewbury to Church Lock (Crofton) and back, a distance of 31 miles.
I was somewhat surprised to not feel nervous about this race beforehand - surprising because I've never done more than 17.5 miles in a K1 before,and in fact 31 miles is the grand total of all my K1 experience over theprevious year! I introduced myself to Lyn MacLaren (one of the organisers) beforehand - as promised they had again generously laid on poor weather for a there-and-back race. Lyn was mildly disappointed that I wasn't taller, and expressed surprise that I'd turned up - I could see her point!
Kimbolton, my former school, eventually turned up 5 minutes before the planned off at 07.00, but it was another 15-20 minutes before I was ready. The rain subsided a little, and soon enough it was time. I wash-hung Adam and Duncan of Kimbolton for a few locks before they disappeared off, and Alison and Tara for a short stretch before going past again. From about miles 7 to 12 I was deeply bored and cold, and seriously thinking about putting the boat back on the trailer should I see it - unfortunately for me Dusty had left it in Newbury car park. But as the turn approached it got better, and especially after the turn it was nice to feel that progress back home was being made. Just before the turn the three Kimbolton boys crews and Mr. Ward all came past still together (since the start) going the other way - eventually Adam and Duncan came clear and finished half an hour ahead, to win the junior section. A close second (would have been closer had they realised!) were Barry and Ryan, still going for the senior event (although eligible as juniors). When quizzed, Barry didn't know what time they were setting off, or what time high tide was at Teddington, or any details at all, but don't bet against them!
After 6 hours 44 minutes I finished, this time with boat and steering equipment intact. I was reasonably happy - Mr. Campbell was finally beaten, by around 30 minutes! I've now posted my DW entry (a late entry -oops) - my target is 22 1/2 hours. So it's time... see you in Devizes for DW 1999?
Issued: 8-Mar-1999 by David AndersonOn this day in 1998, Peter Dove and Iwere paddling from Kintbury to Penton Hook (64.5 miles)... probably seemed like a good idea at the time!
Total distance paddled in a K1 in 1999: 13.5 miles Length of today's race: 17.5 miles... excellent!
I spent the first few hours after waking up wondering what on earth I was doing, but once I was in Great Bedwyn there were no nerves. The course was altered from the usual Pewsey to Newbury because of canal works -instead it was Great Bedwyn to Crofton (lock 60) to Newbury, 17.5 miles, the same distance as race B.I did race B in a K2 in 3:14, so I was hoping for about 3:30 for this race.
I started off reasonably smoothly, did the turn at Crofton, paddled on... it was all going well. I was getting a bit tired around the pointMr. Ward eventually overtook (about 7 miles out from Newbury) but then discovered some new energy, and was charging in,until with 4 miles to go, the rudder mechanism broke. Not quite as bad as 1996, when on Waterside D the rudder stick snapped with 13.5miles to go (we still made it, without steering!), but ruining my time and causing me to look a right wally... if you saw me veering allover the river or paddling at 3mph or punting, C1-style into Newbury then honest governor, that's not the way I'd normally choose to paddle!In the end the time was 3:30:30, probably 15 minutes more than it would have been, and causing me to again be beaten by Mr. Campbelland his C1... it's a conspiracy!
As on Waterside A, I had a short chat in passing with another C1 paddler, who surprised me by telling me one of hisbest friends now shared a house with Pete. A small world.
I think I'm decided now, I'm going for DW this year, for the VERY LAST TIME!. Not quite sureabout Waterside D... seems a bit of a long way! This is my fourth (and also final!) waterside series... seems a shame not to finish it off. Hmmm.Is there anyone out there competing for the K1 senior university cup? THEN YOU ARE MY SWORN ENEMY UNTIL DEATH. Ahem. Especially if you ever went to Bryanston.
"DW 2000" does have a certain ring to it and finishing the senior DW in 1998 was such an amazing experience... I think the first time I said "never again" was somewhere around Marlow on DW 1996.
Did anyone see the poster for the 1999 National Championships? The pictured paddlers are Miranda Badcock and Zoë Bee, fromKimbolton School's team of 1996, the picture taken by Mr. Bee.
Issued: 4-Mar-1999 by David AndersonA recently received e-mail:
To: david@dw-perspective.org.uk
From: Lyn McLaren
Subject: Waterside
Date: Thu, 4 Mar 1998
Dear David,
As you probably know, I am the Waterside Organiser.
I enjoyed reading your account of the first two Watersides. You know, we lay
on the bad weather for Waterside B especially to increase the pain level.
It is ALWAYS grotty weather for Wside B. The last time I raced it - it
snowed! One year two thirds was frozen, so it became a running marathon
instead.
Just to make you really happy, it looks like both races C & D will be there
& back races. Maybe, after this weekend you could publish the details of
race D on your Website.
(snip)
See you on Sunday
Lyn
* * *
I hate there-and-back races!
Procedure for Ham start (day 4) 1999
Issued: 24-Feb-1999 by David AndersonThe committee have issued a time schedule for the start of day 4 at Ham. Read it at http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~rmeads/hamstart.htm.
Issued: 24-Feb-1999 by David AndersonContinuing in my quest to make previous years' achievements look more impressive...
02:00 I finally drop off to sleep, 4 hours after climbing into bed; could I be nervous about something?
06:00 Time to get up... the thought "Why am I doing this?" passes through my mind more than once. I do not enjoy "there and back" races and haven't found time to do quite as much training as I'd have liked this fortnight (I don't have a canoe, it's just gym and running - read the Waterside A report). OK, it's just gym. Running requires too much effort.
So why am I doing this? Well, I've done the junior in 1996 and 1997, and senior in 1998 - the senior K1 would make the set, and I think I'd be the youngest yet to achieve that (I am open to correction on this). I'm just using Watersides A and B to see if I can still remember vaguely how to paddle.
07:00 Having washed and clothed myself, and having had my quiet time bible reading, I start the 35 minute trudge towards the Oxford British Rail station, in the south of the city. I live in the grim North.
07:39 All aboard for Reading.
08:15 Change at Reading for Newbury.
08:40 Arrive at Newbury - I realise I am lost. I follow some signs to the Kennet Centre, which sounds promising but turns out to be a shopping complex. Some inspired guesses (and a sighting of a canoe on a car) and I arrive. Dusty tells me that one of the Kimbolton School paddlers is ill and Alison (22nd in junior DW 1998) needs a partner... I am elated not to have to race a K1! I meet up again with Barry and Ryan who are continuing their quest for glory in the senior event - this week borrowing a boat from Bryanston. We finally cleared up the mystery of why it was that in 1997 we gave Bryanston a good drubbing in the Waterside Series, only to receive a beating on the DW. Apparently it was due to lots of pep talks, and "We had the Ninja Force... which was helpful".
10:00 Time to go... We have a good first half (I am in the front, Alison in the back), getting ahead of the other Kimbolton boats, even Mr. Ward, who's racing in the Junior-Veteran with Hannah Toms. But when we turn around, it's a different story. It was as windy as last year, and it rained like the year before that. Not pleasant. In fact, for periods this was the second worst conditions I've ever raced in (some distance behind the 1996 Trent K2 snow blizzard - anyone remember that?) Mr. Ward (3:09) and one of the other Kimbolton crews (3:12) picked us off, but we finished next in 3:14:39. As ever, I have an excellent range of excuses from which you can take your pick:
- First time in a K2 since June 1998
- Second time in a K2 since being picked out at Westminster, Easter Saturday 1998. Yay!
- Alison had paddled 84 miles in the previous 3 days
16:00 Dropped off back in Oxford. I think it was worth it... I'm committed to race C (it took me until 3 days before to get a decision on B, so this is progress!). In previous years on Race B I'd managed 3:21 (my first DW, 1996, with Adam Brown), 2:56 (1997, again with Adam), 3:05 (1998 with Peter Dove, training for the senior after a night practice the day before). I think there could be a pattern in there somewhere - the more time spent canoeing, the faster you can canoe? Mentally the races get easier, but physically the reverse! A last memory of race B 1999 - coming up to a portage, a crew in front were approaching the side almost head on, until at the last second they straightened... to take it exactly head on! No prizes for guessing which way up the boat was after that... Issued: 9-Feb-1999 by David Anderson
Congratulations to Steve Baker, not content with winning the senior class of Devizes to Westminster 1998, who managed a storming time of 1 hour 42 in winning the K1 class.
As last year race reports are confined to the webmaster's personal experience, as I couldn't do justice to a complete account.
Waterside A: 7th February 1999, Great Bedwyn to Newbury, 13.5 miles
The day began early; I woke up at 6.10, about an hour before I needed to. I had a few nerves, with good reason:
- I hadn't raced since April - DW 1998 (in the senior class for the first time - the most amazing experience of my life so far, by a long way.)
- I had canoed only three times since then, covering a total distance of approximately 6 miles, most recently 2 miles in October!
- DW 1998 was followed by six months of no exercise, then three and a half of very little.
- Only two weeks before Waterside A did I decide to give it a go (at which time having misread a calendar I thought I had three weeks...)
- I decided on the K1 class - I have only ever twice raced a K1, at the 1996 nationals (4 miles) and December 1997 in an 8 mile race.
The words "underprepared", "chronically" and "suicidally" spring to mind!
Nevertheless, I was mentally prepared - DWs in 1996, 1997 and 1998 saw to that; and if you have to go through nightmares to gain the experience, it seems a shame not to use it! So, at 9 a.m. we were there, my number one supporter and father and I, doing the late entry. I was surprised to bump into Barry, a member of the Kimbolton team of 1997, back to have a crack at the senior event with a university friend, Ryan Ferguson, formerly of former rivals Bryanston. The fools! Ryan took his time turning up, and for a few moments a race in a K2 looked on, which was a slightly more appetising prospect.
As it does, the time came, the moment of truth. Having done the stretches and eaten the pre-race banana, I lowered myself into the boat (generously lent by Mr. Ward) somewhat gingerly, not sure whether I still knew what I was doing. After sitting still for a minute, I was satisfied I still had a vague sense of balance, and decided to head directly to the start line, reasoning it would be unwise at this stage to expend any unnecessary energy.
Soon I was off. The arms still seemed to work, and progress was made (albeit at a slow pace, not wanting to do anything rash too soon). The familiarity of the course was a great help. Soon it was time to portage... but what's this, I have to carry the whole thing myself? Not fun at all, but for the record I'd like to say there were some truly shocking portages from some K2s out there... I may not have been paddling for 10 months but once learnt you never forget how to portage. I was lumbering along at half pace, but just in getting in and out smoothly I was gaining yards on paddlers who on the water were moving past with ease.
The first 4-5 miles went well enough, then I began to remember what it was that makes marathon canoeing so hard; the mental battles. The boredom. The repetition. The slow passage of time. The constant arm ache. The cold. The soggy clothing. The distant-ness of the finish. Did I mention PAIN?
It was hard... but when was it ever easy, I thought to myself. After 10 miles I realised I'd never been more than 8 miles in a K1 before. The miles passed, the end came closer, and I was able to speed up. Not too far out I passed Alan Bennett and made my meagre excuses (not raced since DW, etc.). "I won't say it shows..." came the reply!
And finally the finish. 2 hours, 39 minutes, 26 seconds. I was happy; I'd been expecting about 2:45 at the best, and didn't like to consider the worst. I know it's hardly exceptional, but to have completed 13.5 miles in a K1 after 10 months out (and then all my racing in a K2) and only 2 weeks serious fitness work, I was happy. Happy enough to have a crack at race B? Possibly... The only downside - beaten by Mr. Campbell of Bedford School by a mere 24 seconds. Next time!
For reference, my previous Waterside A times are:
1996, first time, partner Adam Brown: 2 hours 36. We started together in September; this was our first waterside, in a white Mirage 4.
1997, with Adam Brown: 2 hours 18. I was very happy with this - a very rare beating administered to James and Barry, and a complete thrashing handed out to the Bryanstan crews as part of a glorious series team victory.
1998, with Peter Dove: 2 hours 31. As part of our training for DW 1998, we paddled 41 miles to Marsh Lock, the first 13.5 of which were Waterside A - hence we were by no means racing!
Will I make it to Westminster this year? It's an awful long way away, so let's take it one race at a time!
Waterside A 1998 report...
Updated: 13th March 1999
There are ongoing works on the Kennet and Avon canal in three areas, including just before Crofton
and Wooton Rivers. Although a note on the official news page states
that the waterway should be open at Easter, the organisers of the Waterside Series have been told not to expect it to be open for Waterside D
(12 days before Easter). The impact of this is that the course of Waterside C will be Great Bedwyn to Crofton to Newbury, Waterside D will be Newbury to
Crofton and back, and on DW extra running may be in order!
Notice on Waterside D, from Lyn McLaren:
Waterside D is on Sunday 21st March. It is from Newbury to Crofton Lock 60, and back to Newbury, approx 31 miles. Check in from 6.30 am Start Window 7.00 to 9.00 Finish Window 12.00 to 14.30
There will be plenty of portaging practice for DW!
Lyn McLaren Waterside Organiser.
Issued: 1-Jan-1999 by David AndersonLast Updated: 9-Feb-2001 by David Anderson
On Mon 29th March 1999, a mammoth 620 pages were viewed by visitors, completely trouncing the previous best of 24th March (337 pages)... but this was nothing compared to the 1157 pages delivered on 6th of April, the day after Easter Monday! On the day after Easter Monday 2000, 2799 pages were delivered; 15000 for the week, including the hundred thousandth page. On Wed 3rd March, the 20000th page was delivered since counting started (in May 1998). On Thu 4th March, the front page was delivered for the 3000th time, to a visitor from Nottingham University. On Tue 11th January 2000, the front page was delivered for the 8000th time, to a visitor from Leeds University who had typed "Devizes to westminster canoe race" into the Dogpile search engine. Although the fact that the counter malfunctioned for a whole month may have skewed figures somewhat!
By 11th January 2000, 2747 pages had been viewed during the year; the equivalent figure for 1999 was 859.
Since the site started, we've had visitors from Argentina, Austria, Iceland, the Virgin Islands, the Czeck Republic, Hungary, Switzerland, Malaysia, Portugal, Thailand, Poland, Spain, UAE, Slovenia, Denmark, Japan, Israel,Greece, Russia, Moldova, France, Singapore, Finland, Hong Kong, the US government, Italy, Norway, South Africa, New Zealand, Malta, the US military, Sweden, Germany, Ireland, (anyone still reading?), Australia, Canada, US universities, Belgium, Holland, and of course the vast majority to the UK.To see the access statistics for The Paddler's Perspective, go to http://www.rroom.co.uk/cgi-local/bin/tracker/dev/view.cgi?id=dw&page=Summary.
If you are interested in having a discussion area or tracker on your own commercial or non-commercial site, then contact me.
New domain - www.dw-perspective.org.uk The site has moved from its old home at http://users.ox.ac.uk/~shug0684/ to its own domain. The webmaster can now be e-mailed at david@dw-perspective.org.uk or webmaster@dw-perspective.org.uk.
Please visit the discussion area - to read or join in discussions on all aspects of DW, go to the the discussion area. You can subscribe to receive new messages via e-mail.
The site has a revamped guestbook, at http://www.dw-perspective.co.uk/guestbook.php. If you have any suggestions or comments, then please get in touch.
Senior Doubles Start Times 1999 and Rule Ammendments
Issued: 22-May-1998 by David Anderson- The 52nd Devizes To Westminster Canoe Race will start at Devizes Wharf, Wiltshire at 0700 BST on Good Friday 2nd April 1999.
- The only amendment to the 1998 rules for 1999 is that rule 20 (b) will be
replaced with the following:
All competitors of any class paddling on Monday morning must be in Thames Young Mariners compound at least 1 hour 30 minutes before High Water Teddington on the Monday morning and must proceed to the river through the control gate as directed. When this final stage takes place in the dark RULE 17 applies. - See also Tide Times at Teddington and rule changes 1998.
A full copy of the rules is available online - http://www.dw-perspective.org.uk/rules/.
Issued: 5-May-1998 by David Anderson
Last Updated: 26-Jan-2001 by David Anderson
| Easter Saturday (3rd April) | BST 0514 and 1732 |
| Easter Sunday | BST 0542 and 1800 |
| Easter Monday | BST 0612 |
| Sunrise Easter Monday | unknown |
| Easter Monday Starts | SS 0540, JD/JV 0610 |
To help you calculate the optimum time to leave Devizes and be at Teddington, why not use the Teddington Tide Timer?
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| Could be dark... | Very dark... | Even darker than this! |
Issued: 4-May-1998 by David Anderson
Please read the important news and request about damage caused during DW 1998, at http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~rmeads/dw_act.html#damage.
Issued: 4-May-1998 by David AndersonThe Presentation of Trophies will take place at Bouverie Hall, Pewsey, on the A345 Swindon to Salisbury Road, Wiltshire on Saturday 20th June 1998 at 3.30 pm. This is the same weekend as the Southern Canoe Exhibition. The results booklet is being printed in the week of the 4th of May.
Issued: 28-Apr-1998 by David AndersonLast Updated: by David Anderson
Updated 9th February 1999
Good Friday 1999 will be on the 2nd of April. Entry forms for DW 1999 can be downloaded from http://www.mackinlay.demon.co.uk/dw/dw99.html (Microsoft Word .doc format).
DW Weather Forecast: Prepare to be distressed
Issued: 8-Apr-1998 by David Anderson
This weather report is taken from the official DW web site (see the links page).
Weather at Easter
Note: This detail amended 8 April
With acknowledgement and thanks to The MET OFFICE. This forecast interpretation and
Opinions stated are from DW Safety desk.
Thursday : Wind NE poss increasing to force 6 (22- 27 mph); temp 2 - 6C, cloud, sleet later,
maybe snow on high ground, rain - our opinion "Cold & wet".
Friday : Wind NE becoming N; bringing very cold air from Arctic; wind force up to force 6 (
22 - 27 mph), poss gusting up to 40 mph (force 8) possible; top temp 4 - 5 C; wind-chill
factor high into wind; poss snow West of London; skies beginning to clear later in day; An
occluded front over the whole course bringing rain to heavy rain; sleet reducing to showers
over Friday night - clearing over Friday night becoming very cold; temp less than 0 -opinion
"Cold & wet : Frostbite & hypothermia risk at night".
Saturday : Wind N to NW; force 3 - 4 (18 - 15 mph)- high winds gradually reducing; wind
chill factor - high into wind, clear (sunny) but poss showers or sleet or hail later. Temp 2 - 3 C
in morning - up to max 10C in day - opinion "Cold. Risk of frostbite & hypothermia".
Sunday : Wind N; force 2 - 3 (4 - 12 mph); temp poss minus 4 in morning , up to 11C in day;
bright & frosty; wind chill factor - moderate to high on Tidal Thames, clear, warmer during
day; becoming cloudy with rain on Sunday night.
The "weather" section on the official DW web page is at http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~rmeads/dw_safe.html#Weather.
Honestly, I'm not trying to steal their hits by reprinting their reports, just spreading the information as widely as possibly. Ahem.
Issued: 6-Apr-1998 by David Anderson
Last Updated: 26-Jan-2001 by David Anderson
- Detail changed 6 April 1998
Ref: Major pollution in tributary of the Kennet, between Oak Hill Down Lock (No 68) (mile23) and Dunmill Lock (No. 75) (mile 26.6). The Environment Agency reports that the canal IS NOW OPEN for boat traffic. The cause of the fish deaths was an aggravated starch growth in algae, blocking the gills of fish. Monitoring is continuing, but the situation appears to have been caused by an unusualcombination of circumstances.
DW IS GO !
For more details on the pollution story, see the BBC report at http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid_62000/62535.stm.
The "pollution" section on the official DW web page is at http://www.ndirect.co.uk/~rmeads/dw_safe.html#Pollute.
Issued: 3-Apr-1998 by David AndersonLast Updated: 26-Jan-2001 by David Anderson
A recently received e-mail:
To: david@dw-perspective.org.uk
From: albenito@eurobell.co.uk
Subject: DW Website
Date: Fri, 3 Apr 1998 23:39:01 +0100 (BST)
...
Incidentally, I am still collecting anecdotes on the race (and there are plenty!). Perhaps you could use your site to advertise this - I hope to publish at some time...(I also have a brief letter from Rt Hon Paddy Ashdown, recalling his past Easter).
...
If you have a suitable anecdote then e-mail albenito@eurobell.co.uk. You can tell me too! (david@dw-perspective.org.uk).
Issued: 3-Apr-1998 by David Anderson
I have written a short program to help paddlers time when to leave Devizes and when to be at Teddington, based on their expected DW performance. All that is needed to run it is a browser that supports JavaScript, such as Netscape Navigator or Microsoft Internet Explorer.
To use it, go to http://www.dw-perspective.org.uk/tidetimer.php, and read the disclaimer!
News on 1998 tide times at Teddington can be found in the relevant section below.
Issued: 15-Mar-1998 by David AndersonWaterside C, from Pewsey to Newbury (22.8 miles), 15th March was called off due to the recent pollution scare in which 3 million fish died. The source of the pollution is suspected to be in Little Bedwyn, which is 9 miles down from Pewsey, and hence British Waterways closed a section of the canal. There was a race running, but only from Newbury to Kintbury and back (11.5 miles). For more details on the pollution story, see the BBC report at http://www.news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid_62000/62535.stm.
Issued: 1-Feb-1998 by David AndersonGood Friday 1998 falls on the 10th of April.
Issued: 1-Feb-1998 by David Anderson
These are race results and reports relating to the 1998 DW effort of Peter and David (the author of this site).
- 1st Feb 1998 - Marlow to Teddington (38 miles)
- 15th Feb 1998 - Great Bedwyn to Marsh Lock (41 miles, includes Waterside A)
- 1st Mar 1998 - Newbury to Aldermaston & back (Waterside B, 17.5 miles)
- 15th Mar 1998 - Pewsey to Marlow (59 miles, includes Waterside C)
- 29th Mar 1998 - Devizes to Newbury (Waterside D, 34.5 miles)
-
1st February 1998 - Marlow to Teddington (38 miles)
Time taken: 5 hours 52 minutes.
Weather: cold (ice on boat, buoyancy aids etc. for whole paddle!), but fair.
Incidents with fishermen: 2 (Wire broken 200m out of Marlow, later fisherman shouting "You should have had your Weetabix!", which I had. Cornflakes too.)
General comments: Despite cold condtions, the paddle went to plan except for being turned right around by vicious currents at Boveney. Once past Romney we were continually mistaken for paddlers in Royal K2 (Windsor to Teddington, 26 miles) and made to feel silly as we passed the start of Royal K2 about 20 minutes after the start and hence everybody seeing us thought we were in it and losing quite badly! (Hence fisherman's comment above). Pete paddled in the front all the way, with David in the back. Support provided by Mr. Dove and Mr. Anderson, plus James and Becky until they unfortunately got lost after Molesey and were never seen again. Oops.
-
15th February 1998 - Great Bedwyn to Marsh Lock (41 miles)
Time taken: 7 hours 33 minutes.
Weather: warm and dry
Incidents with fishermen: Countless. What I want to know is, what exactly is the point of using a fishing rod which reaches right to the other side of the river? Why not just use a 12" stick and sit on the other bank? Also, could the fisherman sitting next to the "Danger, overhead pylons, no fishing" sign read?
General comments: This paddle included Waterside A, Great Bedywn to Newbury (13.5 miles). It was fairly embarassing saving energy along this first part as people racing in this came storming past us. One other army crew carried on after Newbury, also finishing at Marsh Lock (though they were planning to go to Marlow - I don't know, perhaps the army are going soft...).
Short intermission: The army bite back!
Some weeks after writing this, I received this piece of feedback:
To: david@dw-perspective.org.uk
Subject: Nice site.
Date: Wed, 18 Mar 1998 21:28:06
Just to say... what an excellent DW site.
One complaint - I'm one half of the army crew that were in front of you going to Marsh Lock after Waterside A - I can't believe you accused us of being soft! If we see you on race day we'll probably have to kill you. (Only joking!)
Moral of the story: If you must suggest that people are soft, then make sure they're not professionals in armed combat!
Final word: We beat them in the end!
Back to the report...
There were no major crises, although building works at various locks caused some confusion, and a couple of the low bridges were a close thing - "Do you think we'll make this one, or shall we portage?", "Not sure, looks quite low - what do you think?", "Too late now....!" A steady pace was maintained throughout, with Peter steering the first half before swapping as planned at Aldermaston, which was a welcome change. Darkness was just beginning to draw in when Marsh Lock was reached. This race also saw the return of Peter's famous red cap!
Time for Waterside A: 2 hours 31 minutes. Not exactly stunning, seeing as it took David and Adam 2 hours 18 minutes last year, but then again, 2 hours 31 is exactly one third of the total time, and Waterside A was almost exactly one third of the total distance, so the pace was preserved well. Congratulations and much respect to the crew who broke the course record for Waterside A.
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1st March 1998 - Newbury to Aldermaston & back (Waterside B, 17.5 miles)
Time taken: 3 hours 05 minutes 25 seconds.
Weather: Warm but very windy, wind directly against coming back in to Newbury.
Incidents with fishermen: Virtually none. After the first fifty of the two to three hundred boats came past, the fishermen twigged that this was not going to be a peaceful session, and most left. Some diehards stayed long enough to see all of the canoeists past - only then to see the first of the fastest boats coming back again!
General comments: This race was an interesting challenge as it is far shorter than any of our other paddles (we didn't plan to go any further because of our night practice the night before). Having done 100% of our previous paddling on our own and over longer distances, we had done no speed work. All things told, we were pleased with our result (26th out of 43). Our time was 3:05:25 - slower than the 2:52 and 2:56 times recorded by Dave and Pete in previous years when training with other partners for the junior event, but reasonable enough. Dave steered.
Just like old times...The traditional old enemy of Kimbolton, the evil Bryanston (hiss) were of course at Waterside B, and with a strong junior team (unlike Kimbolton, for whom this is a rebuilding year after so many great years).
On the start line, a Bryanston crew pulled up alongside us, and we started simultaneously. Images of past battles came flooding back.
They went off faster, only just, but nevertheless they soon put us behind them by around a hundred metres. Buy they never went totally out of sight for long, and as the first half of the race progressed it became clear to us that they were just faster on the water, but we had the advantage on portages.
By the half way stage we were making this advantage pay as we started to haul them in and eventually overtake them at portages before they would claw it back. In the 2 1/2 miles without a portage between Woolhampton and Aldermaston, and then 2 1/2 back again they re-took the lead, and looked to be comfortably on top. However they had to take 10 seconds out to inspect the rudder at a portage, and a pattern was established whereby we overtook them whilst portaging only for them to re-take the lead half-way to the next lock.
With four miles to go it was dead level; we were managing to negate their speed advantage when they caught up with effective wash-hanging of them and others. As we entered the final three miles, each crew made breaks, the other holding them off. Then, with 1 mile to go, they made a sustained attack. We just held on and then immediately counter-attacked, leaving them in our wake. With the penultimate portage we pushed our lead out to around three lengths. The last portage came in sight with another spurt keeping us favourites having watched their backs for most of the way.
Sighting the short cut that we had used well on the outward leg, we cut inside for it. But disaster. The boat had too much water in it, and in the time it took to haul it up the incline and tip the water out, they were past and into the final stretch. We could only hang our heads as they sprinted across the finish, yards ahead; we had snatched victory from the jaws of defeat, only to then drop it. OK, so we're no longer juniors or at Kimbolton any more, but as the race had gone on with the Bryanston crew in our sights all the way, this had seemed as important as any battle in previous years. We lost after an annoying slip with the finish in sight, after a brilliant move had seemed to give us victory. What a race, what a finish. It's a shame we won't be able to repeat it in Waterside C (as we are continuing on to Marlow for another 36 miles and will be saving energy!), and Bryanston often skip Waterside D (I claim because for the last two years Kimbolton have had it sewn up by that stage!). But who knows when we will meet again.
We also met a man who had done DW so many times he couldn't remember! "This is my sixth time - no, I've done it six times, um, err..."
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15th March 1998 - Pewsey to Marlow (including Waterside C, 59 miles)
Change of plan: Due to the pollution incident which lead to Waterside C being cancelled and a section of the canal being closed, this paddle was altered to be from Kintbury to Penton Hook (64.5 miles).
Time taken: 11 hours 30 minutes.
Weather: Very reasonable, not too much wind.
Incidents with fishermen: Big fat zero! With the recent pollution killing so many fish, even the fishermen realised that not even the world's longest rod was going to help them this time! There still wasn't anybody fishing when we got to the Thames.
General comments: Considering this was easily the longest paddle either of us had ever done, by 24 miles, it went very well. For anybody wondering, I can confirm that 64.5 miles IS a long long way! The sheer boredom was a challenge, but with much appreciated support from Simon, Trevor, Mr. Newby, Mr. & Mrs. Paton, Mrs. Dove as well as regulars Mr. Anderson, Mr. Dove we finally arrived at Penton Hook at 20:15 with some good experience of paddling on the Thames in the dark. This practice involved a meal at Dreadnought Reach and seat changes as planned for DW, which is now under 4 weeks away. We met one other crew who were paddling from Newbury to Reading, so we didn't feel too bad when they steamed past us!
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29th March 1998 - Devizes to Newbury (Waterside D, 34.5 miles)
Change of plan: Due to the pollution incident which led to Waterside C being cancelled and a section of the canal being closed, the 5.5 mile stretch from Great Bedwyn to Dunmill was removed from the race, and timing stopped as paddlers moved between the two points by car.
Time taken: 5 hours 23 minutes.
Weather: Fairly warm for the time of day, later a sprinkling of rain.
Incidents with fishermen: The fish are all still dead! The fear now is that the algae will make some sections a nightmare to paddle.
General comments: An unspectacular final paddle before the big day. I for one felt quite tired following a training camp at Pangbourne in the preceeding week, and the fact that the clocks went forward didn't help; we had to get up at what was really 4.30 a.m., and we were only staying down the road! Some of the early parts of the canal were quite clogged already. We all sincerely hope that by Easter the pollution will have receeded enough for British Waterways to re-open the whole canal, otherwise there's going to be a lot of running to do!
| Easter Saturday (11th April) | BST 0332 and 1555 |
| Easter Sunday | BST 0410 and 1629 |
| Easter Monday | BST 0442 |
| Sunrise Easter Monday | BST 0610 approx. |
To help you calculate the optimum time to leave Devizes and be at Teddington, why not use the Teddington Tide Timer?
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| Could be dark... | Very dark... | Even darker than this! |
Senior Doubles Start Times 1998 and Rule Ammendments
Issued: 1-Feb-1998 by David Anderson- The 51st Devizes To Westminster Canoe Race will start at Devizes Wharf, Wiltshire at 0700 BST on Good Friday 10th April 1998.
- Senior Double class (about 150 boats) can start at any time from then to 2000. Also, fast crews have the option of starting between 2355 Friday and 0455 Saturday. All starts after 1200 Friday must be pre-booked, the Friday night ones in writing by Friday 3rd April.
- Senior Doubles are timed continuously until they finish.
- Disallowance of Friday daylight runs. No boat will be allowed to pass Teddington Lock until 0332 BST Saturday.
- Lighting - Below Kennet Mouth, an all round white light or 2 white lights giving same coverage must be exhibited between dusk & dawn. Other lighting rules still apply.
- A full copy of the rules is available online - http://www.dw-perspective.org.uk/rules/.
N.B. 1998 is officially the 51st race (as decided by the race committee). However 1988 was officially the 40th race! Let us allow Allan Bennett (albenito@eurobell.co.uk) to explain:
The first race took place in 1950. Prior to that were the two challenges in 1948, plus the non-organised effort at easter 1949. Incidentally, the first stated junior race is 1953 where actually an organised (official) race took place in 1952, but all 3 entrants were disqualified!
For a fuller history of DW, see History of DW (External link - Rafiki/Taurus Venture Scout Unit).
