Lea Valley Whitewater Centre...My opinion and a Podium Result

Yesterday I was lucky enough to have been chosen to take part in a special Youth Freestyle event which was to be held on the Legacy Loop. Now, credit it where it is due, the build quality of this course is outstanding. The water had no silt in because the water is held in a concrete lake and the water is slightly chlorinated..swimming pool?

The Legacy course itself was pretty nice and I would compare it to CIWW but slightly deeper. In regards to the main feature..it took time to get used to but was deep enough for loops although it was common for people to hit the bottom every so often but all hole tricks could be done with enough effort. Directly after this hole was another feature which loops could also be obtained in. In the competition, I came 2nd in the 15 and under age category which I was pretty pleased with!

However, I felt that the legacy loop still had a long way to go before it could be classed as a good paddling destination such as the Tryweryn or HPP. First of all, nearly every eddy was almost as fast as the main current itself creating some amusing carnage (to some)...it reminded me of bumper cars but with less control! To add to this some of the other features could be easily tweaked to become even better but I guess all this will improve with time!

James Weight mcnasties in the main feature on the 'Legacay Loop'

Unfortunately only the gb team were allowed to paddle the main Olympic course but believe me in saying it is world class as it indeed is! I cannot wait to take on the main course as it looks a top quality bit of white water. From observations and after asking people who have paddled it, it is definitely harder than the like of the Tryweryn, Hpp or any other 'artificial' or 'altered' course I have ever been to. It looked very continuous and included some pretty steep drops and big surging waves. It is also very continuous and I can imagine a swim on here would be fairly exhausting. It is definitely not for the faint hearted!

Now I have heard a lot of speculation on the price of the main course but I am pretty sure after an hour on this piece of whitewater you will be pretty tired and after 2 hours you will probably be tired for the next week!

See you on the water,

Charles

CIWW TVF Birthday Event & Boater X Win

Me landing a huge loop on 12 cumecs at CIWW


The Vertical Element Tag Team!

Early on Saturday Morning me and Ryan Liquirish headed off to the Cardiff International White Water Course for the annual Thames Valley Freestylers 4th birthday event. When we first arrived the course hadn't been switched on yet so me and ryan did a quick long board session in the shadow of the rising sun untill the water came on. As soon as the water came on we were a bit weary of the depth of the course but as soon as we entered the main hole our minds were changed instantly! If you paddled this spot right it offered you good rewards at 9 cumecs and at 12 cumecs HUGE rewards! It was truely a great day with myself getting into the final of the freestyle competition and winning the very grueling Boater X race, another victory under my belt which I was pretty stoked with! A big shout out to Dave Wortley and Mandy Chan for running the event and of course Gareth Harvey who runs TVF! Well done to all the competitors and I think it is safe to say everyone enjoyed them selves thoroughly!

The final results were:

Freestyle:

1st: Matty Nicholas

2nd: Dale Mears

3rd: Ryan Liquirish

Boater X

1st: Charles Blyth (me)

2nd: James Metcalf

3rd: Dale Mears

A BIG thank you to Dale Mears for the photos...infact check out his blog here

Now I am waiting to get over a nasty case of food poisoning and for the rain to come so I can go creeking once again!

Also, check out my latest video of all my paddling up to date:

Everything Everything. from WEK on Vimeo.

The Outdoor Leisure Show N.E.C and a Shiny New Boat

On the 25th-27th February I was given the opportunity to help out with my new sponsor West Midlands Canoe Centre to perform with the CIWW crew at the out door leisure show. Me and Chris Hackett did a daily display and entertained ( I hope) some large crowds and helped publicise our great sport a little bit more! It was a great experience and it was great to support a local company to me so please check out there site!

http://www.canoesport.co.uk/

I have also recently become the proud owner of the new Project 56x! I feel I am really progressing in this boat as are a few others such as Dale Mears!
While it is very different compared to the allstar I am glad I have made the swap and reccomend you all to try this out!