 A new W.C.C.U. K1 canoe race was raced off this immediate past Saturday (6th June), and on the Breede River - normally the venue for K2's (double canoes)..This K1 event, sponsored by Viljoensdrift Wine Cellars, was raced between the Goree Weir, 5 kilometres upstream from Silverstroomstrand, near Robertson, to Viljoensdrift, covered 28 kilometres of a very full and fast-flowing Breede River, the result of the extensive rains that fell in the Western Cape last week.
The start at Goree Weir saw canoeists facing upstream and on the gun, they sprinted away to a turning buoy some 500m upstream, where, after the turn, they had the option of passing an island in-the-stream or either the left or right hand side. Such was the flow that the split made little difference to the group, as once past the island, it came together after it and headed back to the weir. The Goree Weir, re-shaped by local farmers in 2008, thus making it generally a weir that has to be portaged to spare canoe damage, was inundated on Saturday by the high water levels and so paddlers could shoot it at will into an exciting, long roller-coaster rapid that took them all the way down to the long (2 km) pool below. From the start, the top group of Graeme Solomon (Pens), P-W Basson (Paarl), Heinrich Schloms (Paarl), Ernest van Riet (Stel), Andrew Birkett (UCT), Patrick Birkett (Pens) and Eugene van der Westhuizen (Mil), showed their backs to the rest of the 69 canoe-field and pretty much stayed that way until the short-cut that leads off the main stream on river left to the pool at Silverstroomstrand, about 5 km from the start. This narrow channel, running very fast, naturally broke up the group and at the low level bridge mid-way down its length, the group was further reduced as paddlers made good (or not) their portages over it. Here Heinrich Schloms, Ernest van Riet and P-W Basson got away from Graeme Solomon, but nothing daunted, the Peninsula paddler hunted down the three paddlers in front of him whilst racing past the second compulsory portage (Silverstroomstrand Weir) so that by the time he had reached the McGregor Bridge, he had narrowed the gap to such an extent that by the end of the rapids after the bridge, had re-established contact to form a classic leading diamond of 4 racing canoes. And so it continued, these top paddlers sharing racing slips down to the backed-up, flat waters from the Sliding Weir, below Viljoensdrift. From here on, it was flat water racing at its most intense, and wonderfully cheered on by the large crowd at the Wacky-Wine Festival on the river banks (the racing field having to go past the cheering crowd to the weir, approximately 1.5 km further downstream, turn around a buoy placed strategically there and then back upstream to the finish line at Viljoensdrift). The end sprint was exactly that: a flat-out, 'voet-in-die-hoek' affair, with Solomon returning to his winning ways in W.C.C.U. K1 canoe races this season, when he edged out P-W Basson by 1 second, who beat Paarl clubmate. Heinrich Schloms by 1 second who beat his former Stellenbosch team mate, Ernest van Riet also by 1 second - so the top 4 were only separated by 4 seconds! The watching crowds certainly got their fair share of exciting canoe racing as the rest of the field came in hard on the heels of the Top Guns. Robyn Kime, Stellenbosch, continued in sublime paddling from when she easily outclassed the other senior women in the race to come in 14th overall, beating Jemma Hofmeyer (Pen) and Robyn Henderson (Mil) into 2nd a 3rd places by more than 10 and 12 minutes respectively. The U23 class was well won by Andrew Birkett (UCT) in 5th place overall from Sean Rice (Pen) 8th overall and Shaun Griffin (UCT) 9th overall. Paarl Canoe Club's Development paddlers continue to dominate the junior rankings, showing a similar result to last weeks race when Joseph Williams and Diviano Pietersen (Paarl) took 1st and 2nd, with new-comer, Emile Pienaar (also Paarl) filling the third spot. Sub Master, Eugene van der Westhuyzen (Mil) again showed his class, when he recorded another top 10 result, coming home in 7th place, only 6 minutes off the winners pace. Those paddlers who did not make this race, for whatever reason, lost out on not only a good event paddled in excellent river conditions, but also a fantastic party where local Bree Rivier hospitality was enjoyed carried on late into the night. Paddlers should mark this race is well when the 2010 paddling calendar is released, and make a point of doing it - you wont regret it! Results Top Ten. 1. Graeme Solomon - Pen - 1:38:58 - also 1st Sub Veteran 2. P-W Basson - Paarl - 1:38:59 3. Heinrich Schloms - Paarl - 1:39:00 4. Ernest van Riet - Stel - 1:39:01 5. Andrew Birkett - UCT - 1:41:31 - also 1st U23. 6. Patrick Birkett - Pen - 1:43:42 7. Eugene van der Westhuizen - Mil - 1:44:56 - also 1st Sub Master 8. Sean Rice - Pen - 1:46:16 9. Shaun Griffin - UCT - 1:46:18 10. Edgar Boehm (jnr) - Pen - 1:47:41 Senior Women 1. Robyn Kime - Stel - 1:48:16 2. Jemma Hofmeyer - Pen - 1:59:13 3. Robyn Henderson - Mil - 2:03:08 Under 23 1. Andrew Birkett - UCT 1:41:31 2. Sean Rice - Pen - 1:46:16 3. Shaun Griffin - UCT - 1:46:18 Juniors 1. Joseph Williams - Paarl - 1:53:58 2. Diviano Pieterson - Paarl - 1:59:17 3. Emile Pienaar - Paarl - 2:07:32 Sub Veterans 1. Graeme Solomon - Pen - 1:38:58 2. Herbert Conradie - Paarl - 1:51:48 3. Murray Williams - EVP - 2:08:22 Veterans 1. Jami Hamlin - EVP - 1:52:17 2. Robyn Henderson - Mil - 2:03:08 3. Lisa Scott - Mil - 2:11:03 Sub Masters 1. Eugene van der Westhuizen - Mil - 1:44:56 2. Daantjie Malan - Stel - 1:57:48 3. George Hall - Paarl - 1:59:20 Masters 1. Christo Smit - Mil - 1:58:17 2. Francis du Toit - Paarl - 2:02:59 3. Rene Boehm - Sim - 2:11:52 Sub Grandmasters 1. Andre Rabie - Paarl - 1:54:48 2. Peter Unite - Pen - 2:18:47 Grandmasters 1. Giel van Deventer - Paarl - 1:53:49 2. Peter Tucker - Pen - 2:15:51. Regards, Rob MacLean Media Liaison - W.C.C.U. 082 496 8957 |
