500 X 500

It was once said to me by someone who ought to know what they were talking about, that in order to complete the DW race you would need to do at least 500 miles paddling, plus take in at least 500 portages during your training. Both of those are quite formidable numbers but quite likely to be necessary to complete the race in a respectable manner. It was also suggested that those would be good numbers to work towards if you wanted to take on the Waterside and Riverside races which are the precursors to the DW in the first couple of months of each year.

For me, the thought of making a first try at the DW has long since receded into oblivion. Even prior to the shoulder accident my kayaking ambition had been commuted to doing a couple of the Waterside races and maybe one or two of the Hasler races that are the mainstay of the club's competition calendar. The accident took even that out of my options and it's only eighteen months later that I've been finally signed off by the Physio as 'fit for purpose'. This is something of a milestone.

For the most part I've relied on jogging to keep some sort of a level of fitness while I champed at the bit for months while trying to get the shoulder and arms back to being useable in any kind of meaningful manner. In March I had worked out a mileage schedule that by completing 55 miles per month I'll have done the 500 miles by the end of the year. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

Now that it's come down to it though, I really haven't found any enthusiasm to get my kayaking career back on track. Over the last two months, despite good intentions, I've managed only two sessions a week which has totalled out at around 35 miles per month and each session it becomes harder to drag my sorry ass out to do the miles. With the thought of kindling up a bit of enthusiasm I joined up for a four week intro course on marathon racing given by the head coach of the club. It started at the beginning of May and for four Saturday mornings I've been practicing race paddling and techniques.

It's been an eye opener and I've learned quite a lot, especially from the videos used to analyse my style. Basically there's a lot of room for improvement. The last session, last Saturday, was about the hardest I've worked at this and for just a few seconds things seemed to be making a small improvement. But, my time for the next Hare & Hounds in mid June will have to show a significant improvement for it to have been worth-while. Also on the horizon is one of the Hasler races which is scheduled for next weekend on the Thames at Reading. Something to look forward to.