Email 2

Hey everyone,

I hope yesterday’s email has given you most of the information you need for this weekend.  A couple of questions have come back to us which I will answer below for everyone.

Bib collection will go ahead tonight at the Lucan Spa Hotel from 6.30 as planned.  Everyone has gotten back to us with regards bib collection so there will be no official collection tomorrow morning.  If however something goes wrong for you this evening, bibs can be collected tomorrow from the white event trailer which will be parked under the big oak tree at the Sluice Weir for the duration of the event, a 2 minute walk from the Sluice Car Park (Boat Drop Off Point).  Note bibs will only be given to club reps and not to individuals.

  1. The marathon race will be running from below Sluice to the Canoe Centre, which is the old Rough Stuff Factory in Mill Lane below Palmerstown Weir, as shown on the map here.  There will be flags up on both banks to indicate the finish line and the take out will be on river right.
  2. There was a typo in the definition of Juniors it should have read that if you are born in 1997 you are considered to be under 18 if you were born in 1996 you are considered to be over 18.
  3. We will have 4 rafts and paddles available for the raft race on Sunday afternoon for clubs to borrow courtesy of Rafting.ie, we thank them sincerely for their support and generosity.

There is an overall event plan which can be found here for each discipline and gives you a general overview of the events.

I have attached start lists for Slalom, Sprint, Le Mans and Polo to this email.

Note there are no start lists for WWR or Rafting, individuals and teams can race at any time in the allotted timeslot.

Marathon will start in waves from Sluice just below sluice at 9.00 K2’s, K1’s, Sea Kayaks & WWR, GP, Others.

Freestyle Heats lists will be emailed tomorrow for Sunday Morning and posted on the event trailer.

I’d like to wrap up with a huge and massive thank you to Canoeing Irelands Discipline Committees without whom this event would not be possible.  The committees and their volunteers have been great in their support, collaboration and dedication throughout this years club champs.  Please remember that the people running the events this weekend are all volunteers giving up their free time so you guys can all have a fantastic time on the water.  So please be nice to them, even if things don’t quite go to plan, and remember to smile and say thank you J

We are really looking forward to seeing you over the weekend for some incredible events and some super banter.  Can’t wait!

 Email 1

Hi everyone,

Here we go, this is it, only two more sleeps to Club Champs!  Thanks to all of you for getting your registrations in as quickly as possible and to you all for your patience so far.  We are delighted to announce that you have submitted great entries across all the disciplines and things are geared up for a super weekend.   The computers in the Canoeing Ireland office are smoking and the staff are on a steady diet of Coffee and Pizza to keep us going.  I have broken the below email into a couple of headings to make it as easy as possible for you to reference.

Times

With the number of events on offer, the logistics of the events is going to be key to success.  All competitions will start at 9.30am sharp on Saturday Morning, meaning you will need to be onsite around 8.30am to get geared up and ready to go.   Where possible we will issue start lists and times for individuals and teams tomorrow afternoon by email so you will know exactly what time you will be racing or playing at.  If you don’t get this information please be ready to race for 9am at your event venue on Saturday morning and 2pm on Saturday afternoon.

Below is a simple break down of the event timetable:

Saturday 21st March 2015

9.00-13.00 Slalom at Sluice map here

9.00-13.00 Sprint at Leixlip Lake map here

9.30-16.00 Polo at Kilcock !!Note Change of Venue!! 15 min drive from sluice map here

14.00-16.00 Wild Water Racing at Sluice map here

Sunday 22nd March 2015

9.00-12.00 Freestyle – Sluice map here

9.00-12.00 Marathon – Sluice to Canoe Centre, Palmerstown map here, note you must provide your own shuttle.

13.00-14.30 Raft Race – Sluice map here

14.30-15.30 Le Mans Race – Sluice map here

Overview map with all directions and venues

Bibs, Collection & Return

Every individual in the competition will be issued with a bib and a unique number for the weekend.  It is very important that people keep these bibs for the whole weekend for every event they enter, no bib no race L!  The bibs will be issued to a club rep from each club for all of the club participants. It is very important that the right person gets the right bib as this will determine their class in every event they enter.  Bibs can be collected

  1. On Friday evening from The Lucan Spa Hotel from 6.30pm to 9.00pm
  2. On Saturday morning at the Sluice from 8.00am

!!Club Reps, Please let us know by reply email which collection time and venue suits you best!!

All the bibs for each club will be given to one club rep who will then distribute them amongst club members, bibs will not be given to individuals.  If clubs are going to struggle to get bibs or if you have any difficulty finding us please call Vicki on 085 730 3865.  All bibs must be returned at the end of the event at the Sluice or at the prize giving in the Lucan Spa Hotel.

Numbers

Club numbers are slightly down on last year with 11 registered clubs in this year’s competition but with a healthy 200 competitors.  We have 46 entries in Slalom, 8 Polo teams, 61 entries in Sprint, 62 entries in Wild Water Racing, 90 entries in Marathon, 30 entries in Freestyle, 116 entries in the Raft Race and 86 entries in the Le Mans Race.

Equipment

Everyone must wear a buoyancy aid at all times on the water.  Helmets are obligatory for Slalom, WWR, Freestyle, Rafting and Le Mans.  Helmets are very strongly recommended for all classes in the Marathon race and obligatory for all classes except K1 and K2 over 18 classes (Note junior k boat paddlers must wear helmets).

Canoe Polo helmets with faceguards, padded polo buoyancy aids, padded polo boats are obligatory for Canoe Polo.  A number of each will be available to borrow.  Polo players must have their own blades of at least 5mm in thickness.

The various competition disciplines are brining as much equipment as they can to the event however as you can imagine with the numbers above the gear will be in high demand.  We would like to encourage clubs to bring as many competition boats as they can to ensure there are enough boats on site for everyone to use.   !!Club Reps, Please let us now in advance what equipment you think your club is likely to need to borrow!!.

 Ability and Rescue

We will have rescue crews on standby for each event however clubs must ensure that individuals entering events are competent enough for each event.  We don’t mind people falling in from time to time, it happens to the best of us, but we want to avoid people having multiple swims, getting cold and not enjoying themselves as much as possible.   If you are an experienced paddler and interested in helping out with rescue at some of the events between your runs please let the event organisers know and they will appreciate the support.

 Slips and Trips

As with many Canoe events the event is held in a natural environment please watch your footing when moving around on the bank and be wary of uneven or slippery surfaces.  Access across the weir at the Sluice and onto the rock island is hazardous and is not recommended.  The ground in this area is particularly uneven and slippery, anyone crossing the weir does so at their own risk.  Note that the weir will be dry on Saturday morning for Slalom but will be covered on Saturday afternoon for Wild Water Racing.

First Aid and Medical Conditions

The Red Cross will be present both days at the Sluice with a first aid crew and an ambulance.  Any first aid incidents should be reported to the first aid crew as soon as possible.

Anyone with prior medical conditions should consult their GP to confirm their entry to Canoeing Events.  Anyone with prior medical conditions is advised to bring any medication they may require with them to the river and leave it on the bank with a designated person or bring it with them on the water if possible.

Any emergencies should be reported to Benny Cullen at event control on 087 1213152

Leptospirosis

Leptospirosis is a serious but rare illness, however cases of Leptospirosis have been reported on the Liffey over the years.  Canoeing Ireland and I-Canoe have teamed up this year and will be providing information and sanitation packs with hand wash and water proof plasters with event registration.  Hand washing stations will be available on site at river egress points.  We encourage participants to cover any cuts or grazes prior to canoeing activity and to wash their hands regularly during and after activity.  Canoeists should also be aware of the early symptoms of Leptospirosis which  include fever, chills, muscle pains, headache and nausea.

Weather Forecast

The forecast is for generally clear and sunny weather at the weekend however it will also be cold.  Please dress warmly and bring extra jackets, hats and gloves to keep yourself warm on the river bank.

Socialising & Party

Friday night: Canoeing Ireland will be in the front bar of the Lucan Spa Hotel from 6.30pm to 9.00pm, if you want to call in to say hello.

Saturday night: We have arranged a party venue in the Lucan County Pub, next to the Lucan Spa Hotel from 7pm till late on Saturday night with bar and DJ. There will be finger food at 9.30. As this is a private function the party is open to juniors as long as they are supervised.

Food & Toilets

The Salmon Leap Pub in Leixlip, and Mc Donalds and the Topaz Garage in Lucan have all made their toilets available for event participants so please use them and consider them for your food stop in response to their co-operation.  There is also food available in the Lucan Spa Hotel.  In addition there is plenty of food available nearby in Lucan, Kilcock and at Leixlip Lake.  So bring a couple of euro’s for a hot bite and drink to keep the energy levels up for the day on both days and maintain good relations with the communities we paddle in.  We have left people to make their own arrangements for dinner on Saturday evening and will be meeting you all later in the evening from 7pm in the Lucan County Pub, next to the Lucan Spa Hotel for a few drinks.

Parking

We suggest that anyone with trailers or boats leave them in the Lucan Spa Hotel.  We will have a reserved area at the back of the Lucan County Pub.  The area is out of sight and is fenced off but it is not locked.  Drivers must complete a one way loop to get from Sluice to the Lucan Spa and then from the Lucan Spa back to the Sluice.

Directions Sluice to Lucan Spa Map

Directions Lucan Spa to Sluice Map

Sluice:  In order to maintain positive relations with the locals there is no parking at the Sluice for the Club Champs, please do not park at the Chinese takeaway, mc donalds or the topaz either.  Competitors are requested to drop their boats off at the sluice car park and then drive around to the Lucan Spa Hotel to park.  There is a short 5min, 400m walk back to the Sluice car park under the motorway. There will be signage up on site to help direct you.

Kilcock: Parking in Kilcock is road side pay and display, so have a few euros with you.  The polo pitches for the club champs are located above the Lock Gates, a short walk away.

Leixlip Lake: Parking is available at the back of the Salmon Leap Pub, please park down the end of the car park so as not to jam it up.  Gear drop can be completed up to the lake bank before parking.

Canoe Centre Palmerstown: There is ample parking available at the Canoe Centre in Palmerstown next to the river exit point.

Club Points, Classes & Medals

Due to the smaller number of clubs this year, we have made a minor modification to the points system.  Any class with 3 clubs or more will count towards club champs points.  Where possible we will merge some of the categories; for example if only 2 clubs entered Mens Senior in a class and 3 clubs entered Mens Master we merged the two classes to allow the classes count for club points, in some cases we have merged all of the classes and even sometimes across classes, but trust me you don’t want all the details!  The important thing for you is that every category with entries will run, and count for club points.  All categories will get medals this year.  For details on how the club points are calculated you can check the club champs pages on the website.

Age Classification

Age will be determined by year of birth, so if your born in 1997 you are considered under 18, regardless of whether your birthday has happened or not.  If you are born in 1996 you are considered over 18.  Same for the other classes.

Prize Giving

The prize giving will be in the Lucan Spa Hotel at 4.00pm on Sunday afternoon and should last no more than 30 minutes.  We’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of the event sponsors including I-Canoe, Great Outdoors, Cotswold Outdoor, Palm Equipment, Dagger Kayaks, Peak UK and Pyranha for their support, enthusiasm and generosity.

Invoices for each clubs registration will be sent out to club reps tomorrow.

We will send an updated email tomorrow with confirmed start lists and times where possible and any last minute changes.

That is all for now folks.  Really looking forward to seeing you all at the weekend for some great paddling and banter.

!!CLUB REPS Please let us know what time you can collect the bibs at and a rough idea of what equipment you think you might need to borrow.!!

 

Many thanks

 

Benny Cullen