Kirkcaldy Canoe Club News

30/4/10 - Kirkcaldy Canoe Club Triumphs on the Millennium Link

A team of ten paddlers from Kirkcaldy Canoe Club recently took part in the Glasgow to Edinburgh Canoe Challenge along the Millennium Link. The race took place over 2 days and covered 55 miles from Speirs Wharf on the Forth & Clyde Canal in the centre of Glasgow, continuing across Central Scotland including a change to the Union Canal at the Falkirk Wheel, and culminated on 25^th April in a finish in the heart of the Capital at Lochrin Basin, Fountainbridge.

The race included intrepid and determined individual paddlers completing the course entirely on their own as well as several team classes. The Kirkcaldy team took part in the K2 Relay Team race which involved pairs of paddlers paddling together over alternate sections of up to 7 miles in length.

The Kirkcaldy team, which included a mixture of both senior and junior paddlers, paddled well throughout the first day in warm and sunny conditions to finish at Falkirk in a time of 3 hours, 26 minutes, 2 seconds. The second day began with the team setting out from Falkirk under cloudy conditions but the day soon brightened up with excellent performances from all paddlers. This resulted in a first place finish and an excellent overall time for the 55 miles of 8 hours, 1 minute, 43 seconds – A new course record for the K2 Relay Team Class.

Also competing were Graeme Stewart and Mike Yeomans in the K2 class, Ursula Mackintosh with Diane Sharp in the K1 relay class, and Keith and company from Leven in the K1 relay team. Well done to all.

6/3/10 - Club AGM

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club held their AGM and presentation of awards on Friday night. This meeting was well attended by club members in Kinghorn community centre. The official business of the AGM was dealt with first including the election of the club committee for 2010.

The presentation of annual awards by the committee was then made. First up was Derek Lula who was awarded Swimmer of the Year for the most memorable swims in Kinghorn Loch last year. This is an award which no-one really wants to win, but there is an esteemed list of names of some of the best paddlers on the trophy from previous years!

Next award was the Most Improved Junior Paddler of the Year. This was awarded to Colin Chapman who the committee felt had made the most significant improvement over the past year. This was clear to see in many of his results at Scottish and National events.

The Most Improved Senior Paddler award was presented to Fay McGlashan who has also made great improvement over the past year paddling regularly at club training sessions in all weathers.

The most coveted trophy, Paddler of the Year, was awarded to Rachel Syme. Rachel has made huge steps forward this past season moving from the Lightning class for U12 to the U14 class in full sized K1 kayaks. As well as being invited to train and compete with the National Development Squad, Rachel has travelled to Nottingham on several occasions for British sprint regattas where she has attained good results. Rachel has also taken part in many Scottish competitions on a variety of water achieving excellent results.

The final award was the David H Chalmers Memorial Trophy. This is a new award to recognise an outstanding performance and is chosen by the committee. This was presented to Neil Chalmers following his first place in division 5 at the Hasler Trophy in September on the River Thames.

10/1/10 - No paddling this week...

12/12/09 - SCA 10k and Annual Prizegiving

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club paddlers travelled to Linlithgow recently for the final race of the 2009 season and the Scottish Canoe Association annual prize giving for sprint and marathon racing.

The prize giving coincided with the K2 10 km Scottish Championships which were held on Linlithgow Loch. This race was held in good conditions with a light westerly wind. The course was five laps of the loch.

In the 10km event, first place was taken by Kirkcaldy paddlers Neil Chalmers and Colin McMorrin. On the 6km course for juniors, Paula Henderson finished second with Linlithgow paddler Rhonwyn Smith. Rachel Syme won the U12 2km course with Amy Redmond of Linlithgow.

The supporting K1 race over 2 km was won by Finlay Williamson.

After the race the prize giving ceremony took place at the Lowport Centre. Kirkcaldy paddlers collected many of the awards for racing at all of the Scottish Championship events through the year, and for end of season rankings.

Colin McMorrin of KCC dominated the Senior Men categories. He collected the K1 Scottish Marathon title, Marathon Ranking list, Sprint titles, and the Senior Sprint League trophy. Derek Veale claimed the Veteran Sprint League title, and Fay McGlashan won the Master Ladies Sprint League title.

The Senior Ladies titles for Marathon ranking and Sprint went to Margaret Chapman, with Ursula Mackintosh collecting the Marathon Championships gold medal.

In the junior ranks Paula Henderson was the top lady in the marathon ranking list, and also the U16 Sprint League winner. Colin Chapman was top mini course paddler.

Rachel Syme and Blair Henderson won the Lightning marathon league in the U12 Girls and Boys classes respectively.

Kirkcaldy junior paddlers enjoyed success at the Scottish Sprint Championships which were held at Strathclyde Park. Finlay Williamson, Rachel Syme, Blair Henderson, Matthew McVay, Colin Chapman, Paula Henderson all achieved podium finishes over distances ranging from 200m to 6 km.

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club claimed the inter-club trophies for both Sprint and Marathon once again.

The club are now concentrating on winter training with monthly time trials at Linlithgow in preparation for another successful year in 2010.

24/10/09 - Kirkcaldy Racers Conquer Highland Series for First Time

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club paddlers enjoyed yet more success on Sunday after clinching the Highland Series Trophy for the first time following the Dee marathon.

Kirkcaldy began the day in third place in the Highland Series league table behind North East Sea Kayak club and Integrate Paddling, however dominant performances by KCC paddlers on all three courses saw the points deficit overhauled.

The Dee marathon was the final event in the 2009 Highland Series, with events already held on the Rivers Ness and Spey.

Low water levels on the Dee made much of the river very shallow, with a turning tide in the centre of Aberdeen providing little advantage. On the long course, over 10 miles, Kirkcaldy paddler Colin McMorrin scored maximum points finishing in 1:09.57, followed home by Neil Chalmers in second place.

KCC paddler and former Masters World Champion, Andy Morton won the 7 mile short course in a time of 51:29. Second Master over the line was KCC’s Alan Mackintosh, Margaret Chapman was first lady, Derek Veale was first veteran, Michael Chalmers first senior, and Paula Henderson was first junior lady in 57:46.

On the mini course, held over a 3 mile course in the estuary area, Colin Chapman finished first in 22:05, less than half a boat length ahead of team mate Matthew McVay. James McKeown was third. Alan Henderson paddled on a racing ski, a craft used by beach lifeguards, to finish seventh. In ninth position, Blair Henderson completed his first marathon in a racing K1 after graduating from the Lightning class. Second Lightning paddler was Iain Chapman.              

These results meant Kirkcaldy Canoe Club finished the Highland Series in first place with 2167 points, closely followed by Integrate on 1632, and NESKY in third with 1605.

The previous weekend Kirkcaldy Paddlers had attended the River Isla marathon. This race over 2 mile and 6 mile courses produced good results for Kirkcaldy Paddlers with several gaining promotion including Derek Veale to division 5, Matthew McVay and Colin Chapman to division 7, and Daniel Malcolm to division 8.

The next race for KCC is the K2 10k Scottish Championships in four weeks with the annual prize giving at Linlithgow Loch.

7/10/09 - Successful September for KCC Paddlers

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club paddlers have completed a busy month of racing throughout the country. The racing began with sprint regattas at Nottingham and Strathclyde Park followed by the Hasler Trophy competition held this year on the Thames at Reading.

The competition began with the British Inter-club Sprint Championships at the National Watersports Centre, Nottingham where Kirkcaldy came 20^th of 46 clubs competing. KCC paddlers made many good performances, reflecting the amount of training completed throughout the year.

The Scottish Sprint Championships were held at Strathclyde Park the following weekend. Excellent conditions were enjoyed leading to good performances and several personal best times by Kirkcaldy paddlers. Colin McMorrin dominated all three senior K1 events held over 1000m, 500m and 200m.

The new K2 racing kayak recently donated to the club by Trueform Engineering has been showing its potential with several good results at the regattas. Colin McMorrin and Neil Chalmers had good results in the Mens B class at Nottingham and won both races at Strathclyde Park. The junior crew of Colin Chapman and Oli Carruthers also had good results in their events at Nottingham.                

The success was topped with a good performance at the Hasler finals at Reading on Sunday. This is the culmination of a year of racing where clubs qualify within their regions to paddle at the Hasler finals. This marathon racing event is attended by the top clubs from throughout the country. All the paddlers who attended had results to be proud of.

There were three courses over four, eight, and twelve miles held on the Thames. In the morning the Lightning races were held for paddlers 12 years and under. In the U12 girls race Rachel Syme came second. In the U12 boys, Blair Henderson was 16^th leading home team-mate Iain Chapman in 20^th.

The next series of races brought more success for Kirkcaldy with Stephen Veale and Kirsten Syme in the division 9 K2. They crossed the line in 3^rd place in 37.00. Paula Henderson followed this in division 7 K1, finishing fifth in 36.35, and earning promotion to division 6.

The afternoon races were held over 8 miles. In division 6 K2, Alan Henderson and Derek Veale had an excellent race to finish 8^th in 1:17:41. In division 5, Neil Chalmers won in a time of 1:15:57 gaining promotion to division 4, whilst Margaret Chapman came 17^th.

These excellent results by all the paddlers meant the club ended up in 15^th   position for the Hasler Trophy. This was a great result even though we had a smaller team than usual, and many thanks must be passed to the support team and coaches who made the trip possible.

8/8/09 - Kirkcaldy Canoe Club Celebrates 30 years

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club held their eagerly anticipated 30^th anniversary event at Kinghorn Loch on Friday evening. To celebrate 30 successful years a race in four man K4 kayaks was held over 30 minutes.

Paddlers, past and present, from Kirkcaldy and other Scottish clubs came along to join in the racing. Teams were drawn from random taking in paddlers from various age and ability categories to make very even teams. This gave newer paddlers the opportunity to paddle with more experienced paddlers during the event. The only stipulation was that every paddler had to paddle once, whether that was one lap or six laps.

The race was completed in K4 boats. There are only seven of these boats in Scotland, and six of them were at Kinghorn for the event. This was the first time all six boats had been racing together in Scotland at the same time.

The weather was excellent with calm, warm conditions. The racing was close with many teams taking turns at the front, with some crews doing three laps before a pit stop and some doing two. This kept the eventual winner unknown until the closing stages of the event. 

The winning team who managed to complete 6.5 laps in 30 minutes were Kristina Medovcikova (SCA), Brian McMorrin (KCC), Gareth Smith (Linlithgow), Fay McGlashan (KCC), Tanya Marshall (Linlithgow), and Ollie Carruthers (Forth).

In the junior event for under-12 paddlers two teams raced over two laps in the mini K4's known as Rockets. These are smaller and more suited to youngsters than the traditional K4's. This event had 10 entrants and the winning team was led home by KCC paddlers Rachel Syme, April Chapman, Alex Scullion, Owen Scullion, and Reece Martin.  

The event was followed by a barbeque and raffle. Also on display at the loch was Kirkcaldy’s new K2 boat donated by Trueform Engineering to the club. This boat will make its racing debut next weekend at the Scottish Sprint Championships to be held on the regatta course at Strathclyde Park.

8/8/09 - Kirkcaldy Canoe Club Receives new K2 from Trueform Engineering

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club was delighted this week to receive delivery of a brand new skinny K2 (2 man) sprint canoe which meets the current Olympic Standards for sprint racing canoes funded by Trueform Engineering Ltd. Derek Veale, Scottish Operations Manager for Trueform is pictured here handing over the new canoe to members of Kirkcaldy Canoe Club.

The new canoe was funded by Trueform Engineering Ltd, complete solution providers for public transport, when they learnt of the success the Kirkcaldy Clubs sprint paddlers had at the British National Sprint Championships in July 2009 in a fleet of aging craft, some of which are in excess of 25 years old.

The new K2 sprint canoe will be used by Kirkcaldy’s group of sprint paddlers, also members of the Scottish Development Squad, during training sessions and national sprint events. The team, joined by paddlers from Linlithgow and Forth Canoe Clubs train six days a week with up to 3 sessions per day in their bid for success and selection to the Great Britain team under the guidance of the Scottish Canoe Associations Sprint Development Coach, Kristina Medovcikova.

Trueform, who have provided the Fife Commuters with their upgraded transports facilities and bus shelters over the past three years at all the major bus stations as well as Fife wide maintenance and supply of bus shelters stated that “they would have loved to have given more in these difficult times and wished Kirkcaldy Canoe Club’s athletes every success in their quest for British Team selection.”

The first outing for the new K2 will be the Scottish Sprint Championships at Strathclyde Park on the 16^th August 2009 followed by Kirkcaldy Canoe Clubs sprint regatta at Kinghorn Loch on the 23^rd August 2009 where all local visitors are welcome, thereafter it will make a debut trip to the Inter Club Regatta at the National Water Sport Centre in Nottingham on the 5^th and 6^th September 2009.

Margaret Chapman, Chairperson of Kirkcaldy Canoe Club, said she was “absolutely delighted to hear the fantastic news that Trueform Engineering Ltd was able to help elevate the profile of sprint canoeing with their generous gift to the paddlers of the Kirkcaldy Club.” She went on to say “that when the club members heard of the news their own aspirations were lifted and that there was an uncanny enthusiasm in their training commitment that evening. “

15/07/09 - Successful trip to British Sprint Kayak Championships

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club paddlers enjoyed a successful trip to the British sprint kayak championships last weekend. The event was held at the National Watersports Centre, Nottingham. Club paddlers were competing for either the club or racing under the Scottish Development squad banner.

Conditions were good over the weekend with a slight headwind, however it did slow the times slightly. On Saturday the racing was over the 500, and 200m courses in K1, K2, and K4 kayaks. On Sunday racing was held for all the classes over the 1000m course.

Club members Colin McMorrin, Paula Henderson, Colin Chapman, Steven Veale and Matthew McVay competed for Scottish Development squad. All achieved good results in their respective categories, with this event being their first visit to the British championships for several paddlers. Notable results included Colin Chapman coming sixth in his 1000m race and winning promotion to the Boys C category. Paula Henderson also gained promotion to Girls B after winning bronze in the K4 500m race.

Paddling for Kirkcaldy, club members Alan Henderson, Derek Veale, Neil Chalmers and Margaret Chapman recorded good results in K1 and K2 races.

Kirkcaldy also had paddlers competing for the first time in the mini-kayak category. This class is for paddlers up to 12 years old in a single make of boat. At this regatta Rachel Syme and Iain Chapman were KCC’s representatives. Both had the opportunity to paddle in single and crew boats on an Olympic standard laned course.

The next sprint regatta for Kirkcaldy paddlers will be at Strathclyde Park on August 16^th, followed by another trip to Nottingham for the inter-club sprint regatta on September 5/6^th.

24/5/09 - Scottish Racing Week

Kirkcaldy paddlers have won several of the Scottish Racing Week awards. The series started last Sunday on the Tay with the Grand-Dunk marathon, Strathclyde Park 10k on Tuesday, Forth & Clyde canal 10k on Thursday, Loch Lubnaig marathon on Saturday, and Lubnaig 10k on Sunday.

At the culmination of the week's racing KCC paddlers won the following awards for their performances over the week: Senior Men - Colin McMorrin; Senior Ladies - Ursula Mackintosh; Junior Ladies - Paula Henderson; and Junior Men - Colin Chapman.

29/4/09 - Ratho Marathon

Kirkcaldy paddlers enjoyed a glorious Spring day at Ratho on Sunday for the third marathon event of the Scottish season.

In excellent conditions, Rachel Syme took first place in the Under 12 girls lightning race and in the boys Under 12 event Iain Chapman came first with Blair Henderson in third place. The mini course saw Paula Henderson take first place, in a new record time, ahead of Rhonwen Smith of Linlithgow with Colin Chapman in a meritable third place.

Possibly Kirkcaldy's best performance on the day came from Neil Chalmers who excelled himself, taking second place on the short course behind Thomas Sneddon of Linlithgow, a just reward for all his hard Winter training.

Colin Mcmorrin won the long course from Linlithgow to Ratho and even paddled back to Linlithgow after the event.

Excellent performances were also recorded by K1 paddlers Matthew, Stephen, Derek and Kirsten, and K2 paddlers Margaret and Brian, Alan and Daniel, and Barbara and Fay, who took advantage of the good conditions to paddle the short course and portage for the first time. Well done to everyone who took part!

5/4/09 - Club Member Receives Fields in Trust Award

Club member and SCA Scottish Performance Squad paddler Paula Henderson  has received an award from the Fields in Trust (FIT).

At a ceremony on 24 March in Dundee City Chambers, the annual Fields in Trust Awards for sporting achievement were presented to a group of young Scots athletes covering a wide range of sporting disciplines. The athletes were nominated by their Scottish sports governing bodies for their significant achievements in the 2008 season.

Paula was recognised for her excellent progress and achievements in 2008. As the Under 14 Girls Scottish Champion and with Gold, Silver and Bronze medals secured in the 2008 British Championships, Paula was recognised as having a great chance to become a British internationalist in the future. Paula is sponsored by the Tayside and Fife Area Institute of Sport. The club wish her well for another successful year!

Also awarded was Linlithgow Kayak Racing paddler Sean Redmond.

11/2/09 - Annual General Meeting and Prize-giving

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club held their AGM at Kinghorn Community Centre on Friday 6th February.

The AGM business was dealt with, and then we had the presentation of annual club awards with some light refreshments.

The new Committee were elected. The 2009 committee is:

Chair - Margaret Chapman

Treasurer - Margaret Kinninmonth

Secretary - Isabel Syme

Committee - Neil Chalmers, Alan Henderson, Derek Veale, Derek McVay.

Paddlers Representatives -  Kirsty McIntyre, Daniel Nicol.

The annual club awards were presented, the winners were:

Paddler of the Year - Paula Henderson

Most Improved Senior - Derek Veale

Most Improved Junior - Matthew McVay

Swimmer of the Year - Kirsten Syme

Brick of the Year (for assistance to the club) - Janet Bradbeer

Betty McCaig was presented with a card in recognition of her service to the club in recent years as the secretary.

A collection was also held in memory of David Chalmers in aid of the Association for International Cancer Research (AICR), for prostate cancer research. A fine total of £60 was collected for the AICR Butterfly Fund. If anyone else would like to add to this total please click here.

The photographs below were taken on the night and are courtesy of Blair Henderson.

29/9/08 - Veterans Lead the Way

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club made their annual trip to the Hasler finals on Sunday.

The Hasler final is the annual inter club competition for marathon racing, and the event is the culmination of a season of regional racing where the top clubs in each region qualify to compete for the Hasler trophy. Kirkcaldy canoe club was top club in the east of Scotland and travelled to Burton on Trent for the competition which they have won twice previously.

The team arrived on Saturday night to be met by glorious weather. The paddlers went for a paddle to check out the course and prepare for the following days’ competition. 

Competition day was cloudy and wet, however the Scottish paddlers felt at home. The first series of races were for the division 7-9 paddlers who competed over the four-mile course. Kirkcaldy had paddlers in the division nine K2 race with Cem Toruntay and Daniel Nicol having a strong start. Unfortunately they caught a submerged rock in the river and damaged their rudder which slowed them, however they battled on to finish in 19^th position. Next up, in division 8, Kirsty McIntyre and Lindsay McMorrin paddled well to finish in a time of 42.19.

In division 7 Kirkcaldy had two crews’ competing in the K2 event. Brian and Colin Chapman, and Alan Henderson and Derek Veale. Alan and Derek have trained hard all year, and were even promoted to division 7 over the summer. This spurred them on to train harder and the effort was rewarded with the team’s best result; a second place in division 7 K2.

The Lightning races were next on the programme. Kirkcaldy fielded a strong team in this class which uses boats of identical design and specification for under 12 paddlers. The club have a fleet of fourteen Lightning kayaks to increase paddling amongst younger paddlers.

The club was represented by Stephen Veale, Blair Henderson, Rachel Syme (U12), and Iain Chapman (U10). All the paddlers performed very well in a competition as large as the Hasler with large entries. Stephen Veale lead the way with a fourth place in his race.

The afternoon races were over the longer distances of 8 and 12 miles. These courses included a compulsory portage on each lap. This was wet and muddy and care had to be taken to avoid falling. This feature is incorporated to replicate canal locks and obstructions in marathon racing.

Colin McMorrin competed in division 3 over 12 miles. He tangled with another boat at a turn and was knocked in. This slowed his progress, however he persevered and finished seventh picking up valuable points for the club.

In division five Neil Chalmers recovered from a poor start to finish 15^th and team mate Margaret Chapman came in 24^th. In division 6 Paula Henderson had a good race in her first race at the longer distance.

Full results are available here.

15/9/08 - Is this our most senior paddler? Happy Birthday Mrs K.

Margaret Kinninmonth, or Mrs K as she is known in the club, celebrated her 80th birthday this week with a training session in a K2.

A surprise party was organised for the clubs regular Monday night training session at Kinghorn Loch. The shed was decorated and cake bought to celebrate when Mrs K turned up at the loch for just another training evening. Over 25 people were present to help mark the occasion.

Mrs K then took to the water in the back of the K2 with daughter Margaret and put into practice all the tips and tuition she usually gives from the bank. It was soon getting dark and was time to come off the water and light the candles on the cake. This was enjoyed by all the people who came along on the night.

On behalf of Mrs K she would like to take this opportunity to thank every one who came along and made the night so memorable, it was very unexpected!

The photos below show every one who came along, the training, and the cake.

22/8/08 - Kirkcaldy Canoe Club Paddler awarded Sports Grant by Asda

British canoeist Paula Henderson is paddling her way to a stellar future with the support of ASDA in Dalgety Bay after being named as one of the first recipients of the ASDA Sporting Chance grant.

Identified as one of the UK’s best sport’s stars of the future, lucky Paula who lives just outside Kirkcaldy, will receive a grant of ￡500 from ASDA Dalgety Bay which she plans to use for new equipment.

ASDA, with the help of SportsAid has compiled a list of the best emerging young talent in the UK and Paula was chosen along with over 300 other sporting stars across the country. Over the next five years, ASDA Dalgety Bay will be giving out a further nine ￡500 grants to young sporting talent in the area.

Talented 14-year-old Paula has been canoeing since the age of nine after a family friend suggested she try it out. Paula took to canoeing like a duck to water and has never looked back! Recently, Paula took part in one of the major regattas on the British canoeing calendar, the British Sprint Championships in Nottingham. She won gold, silver and bronze medals in various disciplines including the K4 team race and the individual K1 500m and K1 1000m.

Paula is a pupil at Balwearie High School and spends most of her free time training towards competitions. She plans to spend her ￡500 grant on various pieces of equipment including new paddles and a pool bar – this attaches to the rudder and will help Paula gain speed.

Paula is delighted that she was selected to receive the ￡500 grant from ASDA and said: “I’m so happy and grateful that ASDA have chosen me to receive the grant. I can’t wait to get my new paddles and the pool bar, it will really help me in future races. I love competing, this is a very exciting time for me”

Sporting Chance, aims to link children with free sports sessions over the summer. Local sporting venues in the area will offer children a wide range of sports lessons over summer – from fencing to football, badminton to basketball and trampolining to table tennis, the list is endless.

2/8/08 - Second Training Camp completed

The second of two training camps run by the SCA Scottish Development coach was completed last Friday.

As before two sessions were held every afternoon run by Development coach Kristina Medovcikova. Club coaches also took part ensuring everyone had beneficial paddling sessions.

The paddlers who took part earned their Level 1 PaddlePower certificate.

Shown below are the participants with their certificates.

25/7/08 - Kirkcaldy Paddlers Promoted to Division 7

Congratulations to Alan Henderson and Derek Veale who have been promoted to division 7 following their excellent race at the Forth & Clyde Canal.

The race on 1st June was held on the canal rather than the river Tay due to a lack of water in the river. Alan and Derek who have been training hard in recent weeks came third overall just behind division 5 paddlers Margaret Chapman and Derek Marshall in the K1 class.

This has lead to them being promoted from division 8 and 9 respectively to division 7. They will no doubt be delighted that their hard work has paid off, and the club wish them luck in div 7.

11/7/08 -  Successful Training Camp held at Kinghorn Loch

The first of two summer training camps to be held at Kinghorn Loch finished today.

The camps were run by Scottish Development Coach Kristina Medovcikova, and were aimed at 8-13 year old boys and girls. The camps were held over 2 hours each day from Monday to Friday. Paddlers were introduced to paddling and under the expert tuition by Kristina quickly learned to paddle a kayak. They developed their skills each day learning to paddle forwards, backwards, and sideways!

All the paddlers were developing well by the end of the camps on Friday, and several impressed with their natural ability.

At the end of the week each paddler received a certificate on completion of the camp, and gained their Level 1 PaddlePower certificate.

The photographs below show the two groups of paddlers who completed the camps this week.

There are two further camps which will be held the week commencing 21st July. Further details and booking information is available here.

10/7/08 - Kirkcaldy Paddler is British Champion

Paula Henderson returned from the British Sprint Championships held at the National Watersports Centre, Nottingham, as the Girls K4 500m British Champion.

Paula paddled with Scottish Development Squad (SDS) compatriot Rhonwen Smith of Linlithgow and two other paddlers from Basingstoke. The photograph shows the two paddlers during the medal ceremony.

 The K4 crew also enjoyed success in the K4 1000m race taking silver. Paula paddled with regular K2 partner Rhonwen to take bronze in the K2 500m race. Both paddlers also had good results in their K1 events over 200m, 500m, and 1000m.

Colin McMorrin also competed in the Mens B competition, over 1000m, 500m, and 200m. He also teamed up with a paddler from Falcon canoe club for the K2 1000m race.

Conditions were difficult at times over the weekend with strong headwinds and rain. However a very successful trip was had by all, making the journey south very worth while.

Full results from the event can be found here.

23/6/08 - Kirkcaldy Canoe Club June Regatta

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club held their June regatta on Sunday 22^nd. The weather forecast for the day was poor, however the weather was much better than expected. There were several heavy shower through the day, but also some warm sunny spells, accompanied by a light to moderate westerly wind. There was a full programme of some 30 races in Lightnings, K1, K2, and K4. Competitors came from throughout Scotland to compete. The regatta formed a round of the Scottish Sprint League with points accrued over four regattas.

Full results can be found here. The main trophy winners on the day were:

Photos of the day are here.

A very successful event was held and all the paddlers and helpers must be thanked for supporting the event and making it a great success. The next KCC regatta will be held on Sunday 31^st August. Check out www.kirkcaldycanoeclub.co.uk/kccregatta.htm for more information. The re-scheduled Scottish Sprint Championships will be held at Strathclyde park on Sunday 17^th August.

14/6/08 KCC members attend opening of Fife Canoeing Activities Group new building

Members of Kirkcaldy Canoe Club had the pleasure of being invited to attend the official opening of Fife Canoeing Activities Group (FCAG) new building. The clubs enjoy close links, with many paddlers having paddled with both clubs over the years.

FCAG are an established local canoe club who have recently completed a new building for a boat store at Lochore Meadows country park. They had been forced to move from their former rented building after it became beyond economic repair.

After five years in the planning and construction the official opening was on Saturday 14th June 2008. The project has been long, but with much hard work and fundraising by the club, they now have a building to be proud of. It is primarily a boat and equipment store, with changing in the adjacent outdoor sports centre, however it will allow the club to build and develop it's current membership.

The ribbon cutting was performed by Brian Chapman, president of the Scottish Canoe Association, following an excellent speech by Kevin Williams. The ceremony was followed by a cake cutting, barbeque, and paddling session.

Kirkcaldy Canoe Club would like to wish FCAG all the best in their new building and continue their success. For more information visit them at http://www.fcag.co.uk/index2.php

3/5/08 Successful Come & Try day at Kinghorn Loch

A successful come and try day was held at Kinghorn Loch on Saturday 3rd May. The event was organised by Kinghorn Loch Users Group (KLUG), with Kirkcaldy Canoe Club, Kinghorn Sailing Club, and Fife Scouts Boating Group providing boats and equipment for people to come and try a new sport.

The event was attended by 40-50 people, with 30 people trying out canoeing. The weather was excellent with sunny, warm conditions and light winds making an excellent day to be on the water. 

Coaching was carried out by club coaches, and a big thank you must go to them for their time.

If you would like to try out canoeing the club meet on Tuesday and Thursday evening at 6pm. Bring a change of clothes!