DW – What’s it all about?
Alternatively,
the race can be done, in daylight, over 4 days. On the first day paddlers cover 34 miles,
then 36, 38 and, on the final day, a mercifully short 17. The competitive 4 day classes
include Junior Doubles, Senior Singles, and Veteran / Junior Doubles. Do not mistake the 4
day events for a soft option. Each day sees intense racing and the cumulative toll this
takes on body and soul is considerable. Some of the most exciting racing, from a spectator
point of view, takes place in these classes because the boats do not get so strung out as
in the straight-through event.
Finally, we
have also introduced a non-competitive 4 day
Doubles category – the Endeavour Class - for adults who prefer to take their time and
enjoy the beautiful scenery the Thames Valley has to offer.
THE COURSE
The course
itself falls naturally into 3 sections. The first 54 miles runs along the Kennet and Avon
Canal and is punctuated irregularly by over 50 locks. The water is placid and, apart from
avoiding “numb bum” on the first 14 mile stretch, negotiating the deceptively
long Bruce Tunnel, coping with the frequent portages and running for up to a mile at
Crofton Locks, there are no great technical difficulties. Within the canal section, a
significant landmark is reached after 34 miles at Newbury because between there and
Reading, where the canal comes out into the River Thames, there is a little helpful flow
on the water created by the River Kennet weaving in and out of the canal.
The second
part of the course is the 53 miles along the River Thames from Reading to Teddington, This
section has slightly more flow - depending on how much rain there has been in the weeks
leading up to Easter - and fewer locks so it is inherently faster than the canal. The main
challenge on the Thames – apart from keeping going - is to ensure that the boat is
correctly positioned when approaching locks and weirs. There are a number of dangerous
antiscour weirs and it is crucial to steer well clear of them so as to avoid being swept
over. Memorising the layout of the weirs in advance is important for all paddlers but
particularly for straight-through racers who will be negotiating the river in the dark.
Full diagrams of the river locks are issued to all entrants.
The final
section of the race is the 17 miles from Teddington to Westminster Bridge on the tidal
section of the Thames - the Tideway. This stretch often has big boat washes thrown up by
pleasure craft and speed boats so it is important that paddlers select a boat of
sufficient stability for their technical level, particularly as this section is undertaken
when paddlers are at their most fatigued. It is also imperative to arrive at the Tideway
when the tide is flowing out because it is not feasible to paddle against an incoming
tide. This fact leads to an important characteristic of the race, namely that each crew
must calculate how long it expects to take to get from Devizes to Teddington and select its start time from Devizes accordingly.
A crew which underestimates how long it will take to reach the tidal section will find
that the tide is coming in and they have to wait hours for it to turn again. This, of
course, has a disastrous impact on their overall race time. Equally, a crew arriving too
early at Teddington will have to kill time till the tide turns and starts to run out.
THE BOATS
Most of the
boats in the race are kayaks, whether K2s or K1s but there is usually a good turnout of
Canadian canoes, particularly in the straight-through race. Finally, some of the military
crews enter in folding boats (Kleppers) but the weight of these boats makes them suitable
only for the strongest competitors. Whatever type of boat you choose, it is important to
achieve a high level of stability because the most difficult technical section of the
course is encountered when paddlers are most tired – it is better to err on the side
of a slower, more stable boat if you are in any doubt about your ability to handle a
faster boat in difficult water.
TRAINING
It is vital to
prepare thoroughly for the race. It is difficult to generalise about how much training is
necessary but most crews should be thinking of an absolute minimum of 3 outings per week
for the 3 months leading up to the race. For newcomers to the sport, people starting from
a low fitness base or those aiming for fast times, the training will clearly need to be
longer and more intense. As noted above, all paddlers must reach a level where capsizes
are few and far between. It is important to practise portaging because with 77 locks on
the course, much time and energy can be wasted if you don’t handle portages smoothly.
It is also important for paddlers in the straight-through race to be comfortable with
paddling at night and this should be incorporated into the training.
PREPARATORY RACES
We strongly
recommend that paddlers participate in the Waterside and Thameside Series in the run up to
DW. These 6 races range in distance from 13 miles to 34 miles and cover a good proportion
of the course. The races offer an excellent opportunity to test kit, fitness, portaging,
feeding and all the other ingredients necessary to complete DW as well as familiarising
paddlers with the layout of the course. The times achieved in these races will also help
you calculate how long you might take for DW itself. Links to these races can be found on
the website.
SUPPORT
Whichever
class a paddler decides to enter, a key part of race preparation is to arrange suitable
Support. Particularly in the straight-through event, it is simply not possible to be
self-sufficient in food and drink. Crews should aim to be fed and watered roughly every
hour and this typically means arranging to have 2 or even 3 cars leap-frogging one another
down the course, meeting the paddlers at pre-arranged points to give them whatever
supplies they need. Even in the 4 day events, crews will be on the water for upwards of 5
hours per day and need to be re-supplied regularly.
ACCOMMODATION
For those
paddlers doing the straight-through race, accommodation is simple; paddlers may choose to
stay in Devizes the night before or drive there on the morning of the race depending on
the start time they have decided on. For those paddlers doing the 4 day race, however,
accommodation needs to be arranged each night. Camp-sites are set up at the end of each
stage and for Junior Doubles crews it is obligatory to camp. For all other classes in the
4 day event, it is optional so for paddlers who prefer home comforts, it is possible to
find local hotels, bed and breakfasts or simply to go home.
COMPLETE BEGINNERS
If you are
interested in entering the race but have no previous experience of canoesport, we suggest
that you contact the nearest canoe club with a marathon racing section. Within the UK you
can obtain information about canoe clubs by checking the British Canoe Union website
(www.bcu.org.uk). If you have difficulty locating a suitable club near you, please contact
us and we will try to help.
RAISING MONEY FOR CHARITY
We encourage
paddlers to raise money for charity and award a trophy to the crew raising most money for
their chosen cause.
PRIZES
All finishers
in the competitive classes receive a medal and a certificate and there is a wide range of
prize categories both for individual crews and teams. These include prizes for Senior Men,
Senior Women, Veterans, Mixed, Military prizes, Overseas, Scouts, Universities, Schools,
Cadet and so on. A full list of prize categories is on the website.
VOLUNTEERS
DW is run
entirely by volunteers and we are always looking for people to help with a range of tasks,
from marshalling, to stuffing envelopes, driving, preparing food etc. If you are
interested in helping with the race, please contact us or check out the website for
details of specific help we are seeking.
FURTHER INFORMATION
If you are
interested in learning more about the race, we would initially advise going through the
material on the website. Next, we strongly suggest reading the booklet entitled “The
Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race” by Brian Greenaway. Running to 50 pages, the
author, drawing on his unparalleled experience of the race, explains in detail the
historical origins of the race, how to train for it, what kit is needed, how to calculate
when to start, how to organise a suitable support operation, what to eat and much more
besides. This booklet is a goldmine of information and may be purchased for �16.50
(inclusive of postage) by sending a
cheque made payable to “DW Organisation LTD” to Wokingham Waterside
Centre, Thames Valley Park Drive, Earley, Berkshire RG6 1PQ.
We also
encourage paddlers to attend the DW Introductory Seminars offered free by Marsport,
details of which are also available on the website.
If you have
any other questions, please get in touch and we will try to help.
So, why not make next Easter one to
remember - enter DW and conquer the canoeists’ Everest!