Christmas fun at the Island

We at Hampton-Molesey are very fortunate to have an alternative location to AquaPaddle when the River Thames is in spate and that is of course the Island Barn Reservoir. We are grateful to our friends at the Island Barn Sailing Club for letting us use the water. It does mean an earlier start, but that means we are up to meet the day and make the most of it.

We only manage on event in December, due to the proximity of Christmas and that was on 17th December. Considering the weather we had a reasonable turn out and everyone made the effort to dress-up in seasonal wear. We also had our first OC1 (Outrigger Canoe) paddled by Betsy, one of the GB OC6 crew who recently competed in the Worlds in Fiji.

Henry was as usual the one to lead out, this time in his K1 as opposed to his surfski. However, the conditions weren’t good for a personal best time. In fact the wind picked up quite a bit during the event and it made for a bit of a challenge to get up the the finishing line. But since we allow Stand-up Paddle Boarders to kneel down it was all very safe and all made it round apart from one retiree. They are a regular and weren’t feeling it this time. And that is OK. AquaPaddle is a personal challenge and you are a winner just to get to the start line. If you finish and get a time, that’s great, but it is not the be all and end all. It is the taking part, however much that is.

Once we came of the water, we heading into the Clubhouse for warm drinks and mince pies. There were some great conversations as we watched the sailors heading out into the stiffening breeze. There were a number of capsizes as the wind took some of them by surprise.

Finally, we headed off, wishing each other a Merry Christmas and all looking forward to a dry warm Spring. We will be back at Island Barn on 7th January 2024, meeting at 8am for a 8.45am start.

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