Author: Del

BUKE – What is it and why you should apply!

Post author By Del
Post date October 3, 2021
2 Comments on BUKE – What is it and why you should apply!

Tomorrow is the deadline for this year’s application for the 2022 British Universities Kayaking Expedition, otherwise known as BUKE. I have known about BUKE since I first started paddling in the UK. It is an incredible and highly sought opportunity for student kayakers. I thought I would write an article about it so that more people know what it is and don’t miss their chance at applying. Hopefully by the end of this article, if you are a student kayaker, you will already be writing your application!

See my note at the end if you have left it a little late to start your application!

Mind set

‘I’m sorry I’m not good enough’ – Perfectionism on the water

Post author By Del
Post date September 7, 2021
9 Comments on ‘I’m sorry I’m not good enough’ – Perfectionism on the water

We all know that if you make a mistake, the best thing to do is own up and apologise for it. Hit your friend in the head with your paddle as you drop into the eddy? Say sorry. Bash into the side of them as you cross an eddy line with a little too much enthusiasm? Say sorry. But what happens when the mistakes you are apologising for are only visible to you? What happens when the only standard you are willing to accept is perfection? Should you continue to say sorry for not being, as seen through your own eyes, ‘good enough’?

It has taken me a long time to realise that I am a perfectionist and an even longer time to admit it. I have found that this personality trait has had a real impact on my paddling, both positive and negative. Learning to cope with my perfectionism is still very much an ongoing process for me but I wanted to share some of my thoughts on here. Ironically this article isn’t perfect and I don’t have all the answers. But maybe it may help someone who is reading this. Equally, anyone reading who has more ideas than me, please do get in touch!

Gear ShePaddles

Paddling kit I love as a woman

Post author By Del
Post date August 26, 2021
2 Comments on Paddling kit I love as a woman

Nobody told me when I started kayaking just how much gear is involved – especially when more than one person in your house paddles! A lot of people who start out in kayaking ask me what gear is worth investing in first or what my favourite bits of kit are. So this blog is dedicating to discussing 5 of my most favourite pieces of kit, from a woman’s perspective.

Gear Mind set

The benefits of buying a playboat

Post author By Del
Post date August 2, 2021
8 Comments on The benefits of buying a playboat

‘Buy a playboat if you want to get better at kayaking!’ If you are a whitewater kayaker then I am sure that these words will sound familiar. It took me 5 years of paddling before I finally bought a playboat and now I wonder why I waited so long. I had assumed freestyle was not for me and yet there have been so many unexpected benefits of spending time in a playboat. I am sure that the ‘benefits of playboating’ has been covered many times before, probably by people much better at playboating than me. But here is top 6 reasons from the viewpoint of a paddler who enjoys running rivers.

Freestyle Training Trips

Learning to loop with Lowri

Post author By Del
Post date June 20, 2021
2 Comments on Learning to loop with Lowri

A while ago I saw Lowri from FlowFree advertise a ‘Looptastic’ course at HPP. Having bought a playboat in lockdown, learning how to loop it has been one of my goals over the last year. Whilst I have made improvements off the back of tips from kind friends, I still have a long way to go. Having considered getting some freestyle coaching for a while – this course looked like the perfect one for me! This weekend my highly anticipated day of learning to loop with Lowri took place and I wanted to share it on here!

ShePaddles

Being a #ShePaddles ambassador

Post author By Del
Post date June 4, 2021
1 Comment on Being a #ShePaddles ambassador

A year ago I received an email from the lovely Cadi at British Canoeing, letting me know that I had been selected to be one of this year’s ten #ShePaddles ambassadors. I had been happily surprised and equally humbled to find out I had been chosen. A year later and I would like to take the opportunity to reflect on why I applied to be an ambassador in the first place and my experiences so far.

Trips

24 hours of flat water paddling for charity? Why not!

Post author By Del
Post date April 7, 2021
6 Comments on 24 hours of flat water paddling for charity? Why not!

‘I have a plan and I need people to do it. I think you could be one of those people…’ This was a message I received from my friend James Ibbotson 3 days before Christmas 2020. The plan? Paddling for 24 hours on the Nottingham loop, our local 15km loop down the river Trent and back up the canal. All in aid of raising money for the mental health charity Mind.

Never one to shy away from a challenge, of course I said yes! Also joining us would be good friends and local paddlers Sam Valman and Matt Stephenson. On the 3rd/4th April 2021, we carried out this plan and managed to raise over £4000 for Mind. This article is a summary of our 24 hour paddling challenge.

Training

How to train for 24 hours of paddling

Post author By Del
Post date March 26, 2021
2 Comments on How to train for 24 hours of paddling

In one week’s time I will be paddling flat water for 24 hours in order to raise money for Mind. When my friend James Ibbotson asked me to be part of this charity challenge at Christmas, I had very little flat water experience. The hour back up the Llangollen canal when paddling the river Dee is usually enough to remind me why I paddle whitewater and not flat water! So after saying yes to the challenge, I decided I quickly needed to establish a training plan to make sure I was prepared.

With offers of help from an overwhelming number of people, friends and strangers alike, I came up with a training plan. For the last 3 months I have tried my hardest to stick to that plan. In this article I want to outline everything I have done to go from being someone with minimal flat water experience to (hopefully) being able to paddle it for 24 hours next weekend!

Guest posts

Approaching coaching – an interview with Matt Brook

Post author By Del
Post date March 5, 2021
3 Comments on Approaching coaching – an interview with Matt Brook

Since he started kayaking 15 years ago Matt has developed into one of the UK’s most notoriously stylish paddlers and is affectionately referred to by friends as a ‘kayaking ninja’. Matt is well known for his love of downriver freestyle but also his expedition paddling. I’m still not sure which is cooler: the fact that Matt has paddled in remote Madagascar or that he once took a hand roll during the Green race.

Matt’s passion for the sport is infectious and he has combined his enthusiasm and his love of teaching to start a coaching business to help others to progress their skills in the sport, specialising in his favourite discipline – downriver freestyle. In this article, Matt discusses his approach to coaching and how you can make the most of your coaching sessions.

Paddling tips

5 tips that have improved my paddling

Post author By Del
Post date February 17, 2021
2 Comments on 5 tips that have improved my paddling

Whether you are a complete beginner or an internationally regarded expert – people will always share advice with you on how to improve your paddling. I’ve been paddling for 6 years and I could not even begin to list all of the pieces of advice I’ve been given.

Some tips however have really stuck with me as they made such a positive impact on my paddling. These were tips that permanently changed the way I approached an aspect of my paddling and made a clear impact on my overall progression as a paddler. Read on to find out what they were!