A fun canoe and kayaking club based at Chiswick Pier
Steve Date 15 May 2022 Lovely weather for a paddle and to start with a lovely tide and then the tide gods turned against me. I had cancelled the club session I normally run on the grounds it was too dangerous a tide. I wasn’t wrong and that was a mere 7.7 m one I guess not helped by the previous night’s rain and it felt like every other boat that could float was out on … Read more
Canoe Session at Chiswick Pier Canoe Club Date 8 May 2022 Five open boats paddle the mighty Rover Thames at Chiswick with Coach Steve A great day on the water with all the club’s open canoes in operation. Now this wouldn’t have been possible without our club’s kit man (Julius):and his efforts to kit them each out with kneeling thwarts. We had two people completely new to paddle these canoes, one who hadn’t paddled one … Read more
The first paddling session for 2022 run by Coach Steve These sessions are built around improving the level of club members paddling skills. This specific session, due to the almost ideal tide was run in whitewater boats. We started out by fitting each other into the club’s boats. This is probably the most important part of the session for without a good fit, it’s much harder to manoeuvre the boat around on the water. Next … Read more
Having run the last session of 2021, I thought it might be useful for some club members to know what we get up to. Although we don’t travel huge distances, we spend our time working on paddling technique. That might be turning and edging the boats or simply improving forward paddling, it really depends on what those that sign up for the session require. The last Sunday prior to the Christmas break was in fact … Read more
Another in the series of a slower paddle from Chiswick to where ever we get to! Flooding tide with high tide around the 1pm mark Coach Steve Canoe Paddlers Mick Kayak and MJ Canoe Start time circa 10:30 On the day Chiswick Pier had a couple of groups heading out, so Coach Steve’s team waited until they were clear of the pontoon area before heading down. We waited on the bridge, even then it was … Read more
As part of coach Steve’s slower paddles there was only one sign up so an easy paddle on an extremely easy tide. As my club member hadn’t paddled for a year due to lockdown, it was a very gentle introduction to paddling, so no heroics was required. A little worrying and just as the flow was right, just in front of the pontoon we practiced a little edge control. Its funny those boat designers spend … Read more
Students : Jan, Philip, Niamh, Steve & Svetlana Coaches: Coaches Elaine and Steve Weather: Sunny on both days. Tide: low tide on first session, high tide on second section. Day 1 is basic kit up day. Check everyone has sufficient clothes for the session. Ask about their paddling experiences and share Coach Elaine’s and Coach Steve’s. Choose buoyancy aids and check they are tight enough not to fall through them should they swim. Down to the pontoon on route a … Read more
Beautiful weather and an ebbing tide should have meant an excellent teaching opportunity. Unfortunately, both club members contacted me early cancelling their session. Should I have gone out without teaching, well yes and I did. This was a day where I could practice those paddle strokes and techniques that i don’t have time to do whilst teaching others. Low tide must mean practising poling, something not used in a kayak. For several hours I reminded myself how much … Read more
Another coaching session based around Chiswick Pier. Aim: to improve two distantly different skill level students whose experience of paddling is extensive, but technique needed some practice. Over time habits become ingrained and become the normal. Unlearning skills gained becomes frustrating, but quite possible with patience. Students: Federico (kayak) and Mary Jo (canoe) Coach: Steve Water conditions: Low water on a flooding tide. Firstly teaching a mixed skill and mixed vessel course is challenging, but … Read more
Our First Club Session back on the Water. Session Coach Steve On the water Coach Elaine Participates: Club paddlers Eva and Peter Conditions on the day: Ebb tide with visible land opposite the pontoon. Weather: Warm and Sunny. The session started with a discussion of paddle type and length. Boat number recorded in the club log book (so anyone would know what had be used on a previous session) and we were good to go. … Read more
