On Saturday 4th October the inaugural Etive River Race came to a long awaited fruition.

TheEtive River Race came about after a couple of Scottish boaters kayaked from Triple Falls to Twist and Shout, with their mate timing it.  They did it in 24 minutes.  After some slapstick remarks on a couple of web site forums they, tongue in cheek, suggested various records were made that day.  In conjunction with that a small snowball started to roll with the thought of establishing a snow man competition, no no no, that would be silly...an actual race on the river.

Various discussions with the Scottish Canoe Association (SCA) and Scottish National Trust (SNT), as stakeholders, made this race happen.    

Rich Banister was instrumental with initial constructive dialog with SNT establishing firm foundations to build on.  A number of meetings in Glen Etive were held along with the usual sortie of e-mails which would pave the way for the SNT to support this event.
The SCA were instrumental with a small handful of people supporting, guiding and assisting the development of theEtive River Race. 

The months after were frantic with organisation, training, briefings, and heaps of enthusiasm in which the recreational rivers committee of the SCA brought theEtive River Race to fruition.

Friday 3rd October, in Glen Etive was busy with various signage preparation, collection of mini buses, vans, rescue equipment and race preparation.  Whilst at Glencoe Ski Centre the SCA tent was being assembled for registration. 
The levels of the Etive were low (ish).  Some competitors were on the water practising.
Teams slowly drifted in and out of registration with Yvonne Yost (SCA) Arlene and Laura helping out.  Teams were getting their t-shirts (supplied by runandjumpclothing), their race numbers and having a good natter about the race.

However, some texts were filtering through appraising me of a band of rain coming in at 23:00hrs.  Good, I thought!  It’ll bring the river up.

Saturday morning, 06:00hrs and I looked out my room window.  Couldn’t see a thing but the rain was still on.  
I met Chris Tickner outside in the car park and we headed off to the river, it was still dark and raining, heavy.

When driving parallel along the river, I still couldn’t see anything.  Chris was saying the river was high.  We drove to Twist and Shout and parked the car.
There was a shard of light creeping through.  As I was standing on the bridge, looking down at the water I sensed something was not right.  I didn’t recognise anything I was seeing…It was still raining, heavy!
We drove to Triple Step.  By now it was light enough to see the water.  As I walked down to the river I really couldn’t believe what I was seeing.

The middle Etive was unrunnable!

Having completed months of planning, training, discussion, negotiation, meetings, consultation and everything to bring an event like this together it was looking horrendous. I was starting to get a tad emotional, thinking my whole world was crumbling around me.  I wanted to be anywhere except where I was at that moment.  I didn’t want to go back to the ski centre.

I dropped Chris off at the Ski centre and picked up Ian Letton to discus options.  We drove up and down the river again.  It was still raining, heavy! 
“I know, it’ll drop in a few hours and we’ll be fine,” I was thinking to myself.  It was still raining heavy. 
We looked towards the first Crack.  The water was spewing almost over the top rocks where normal inspection took place. 

I had never seen the river that high!

My emotions were starting to get the better of me.  I was finding it difficult to keep a grip of things, at that stage.  My judgment was chaotic.  I just wanted to race the middle section.

It was a no brainer; I decided to move the race to the upper section.  Just short of the grade 5 on the Coupall to the top of Triple Step.  I would be asking too much of the competitors and safety crew to run the middle at the level it was.  That would have been a one-way ticket to Jail and I have been there*, 15 years…that stretch was enough. 

Ian and I drove back to inform the competitors and safety crew…

I didn’t know what to except what would people say…they came all the way to run the middle Etive. 

As I walked into the Ski Centre I felt the world on my shoulders. All eyes were burning through me, OMG!  I stood up on a stool took a deep breath and announced that levels were dangerously high the course was being moved to the upper section!  A slight pause.  Nothing.  I made some remark about the finishing line being two fat ladies and one was my wife.  Laughter filled the room… I wasn’t ready for that.  I continued my wee speech and asked for questions.
It’s going to come now, here it comes. 
“Are there any drops that a grade four paddler would want to know about?” one person asked.
“Erm, no it’s all bouncy waves, grade 3,”  I replied.

I think I was pent up and awaiting a stoning from folks…but I was wrong, on a lot of things.  Yeah, the water was huge!  Yeah, a lot of folks came to paddle the middle section, but forecasting the rain that was falling was impossible.  I wouldn’t have wanted to paddle the middle at the level it was…

The briefing was over and all was well.  We had a race on!

At 09:00hrs the shuttles started to take the competitors to the river.  It was still raining, heavy!

Team Ireland was first to go, at 11:00hrs.  Hamish Fleming, the starter, set Team Ireland off at exactly 11:00hrs.  As I approached the starting line there was an almighty cheer as the whistle blew for the first team to go.

I should add here that the timekeeper, Tom McMenemy, started the starter’s watch and his own finishing watch simultaneously.   Tom was timekeeper at three Commonwealth Games so he knows what he’s doing.

The inaugural Etive River Race was underway.

The Red Bull wigwam was placed at the finishing line.  The timekeeper started to clock the teams coming in from the water.  The safety crews were up and down the river.  Every five minutes teams were set off.

As the day went on and the teams went through the starter it was soon coming to team GRRR, Ian Letton and James Fleming.  How would we fair. 
Hanging around the start it was good to get amongst it.  The team prior to Ian and I were off.  We made our way down to the stationary start line.  Hamish, the starter, gave us a count down.  We had discussed tactics, basically I would lead and Ian would follow.
I have done a lot of White Water Racing in the past (first British paddler to cross the finish line in the 1985 Arctic Canoe Race, in my class) and Canoe Polo.  I was starting to get the race fix.
I’m in the eddy and we get “ten seconds!” from the starter.  I’m loose and gripping the paddle with my right hand and ready to push off the rock with my left hand, stretching forward with hamstrings stretching ready for the first catch…

…the whistle was almost silent, as all peripheral noise was switched off.  I was in my wee bubble.  I stroked out one or two fast strokes and slowed it down for the long haul.
As we cut through the water I was thinking, erm, this is rather chunky!  The waves were proper alpine style grade three.  However, the wind hurtling up the glen skimming the tops of the waves forcing little pellets of water in your eyes made it all the more extreme. 

For me, it was trickier than I had expected.  Keeping on the true fast line and trying to keep clean lines and save time.  I was buzzing!
Ian and I crossed the finishing line and I was whooping and cheering.  Complete and utter satisfaction filled every part of my body. 
The 2008 Etive River Race, which so many people organised, was a success!

I had a can of Red Bull In the Red Bull tent to celebrate!

Team after team came down the course. 

As the afternoon went on the weather changed and almost, with four teams to go, the rain stopped.  The river responded almost instantly.  It was dropping.  Lines on Triple were forming, albeit it was a scrape down some rocks on the left…
With Team Tech Titans, Mark Mulrain and John Bowie coming in as team 41 the race came to a final conclusion. 

Teams were being bussed back to the Ski Centre for some warm dry clothes and warm food.

In Kinlochleven the Ice Factor was getting ready for the award ceremony.  Teams met up from 5 pm. Curry, chilly, lasagne and soup were on the hotplate to feed some ravenous competitors. 
Dagger, Nookie, Palm, Flow Free Coaching, Nevis Canoes were some of the supporters that provided prizes.
A Dagger Nomad, Steep Creaking weekend, spray decks, throw bags and many more prizes were awarded to the open category.
Cash prizes were awarded to the winners of the sponsored category with the winning team getting £150 and prizes.
However, they all came to win the trophies.  Phil Hogg at TECHNOCUT provided two hand made trophies for the open and sponsored categories.

Jonathan Hiam and Adam Cox, Team Psychotic Badgers, came first in the 16-18 category.

Pete Scutt and Graham Milton , Run And Jump Clothing Team 3, came first in the sponsored category

Simon Grant and Calum Hogg, Team Bowl Full of Fun, came first in the open category.

 

 

The Inaugural Etive River Race only came to fruition through the goodwill of about 30 safety and supporting personal.  Without them the race could not happen.  My thanks to them. 
Thanks also to the SCA, NTS, Ryan Paschke our photographer at www.liquidimpact.co.uk, Nevis Canoes at www.neviscanoes.co.uk, Dagger, Palm, Nookie, Flow Free Coaching, Desperate Measures, RUNANDJUMPCLOTHING, THECHNOCUT,  Sterwat Letton at Intelligent Print, Jason for the radios, the race Doctors Tony & Claire, all the safety crew, Glencoe MR, the drivers and most of all my wife!

 

So what now…easy. James Fleming and Ian Letton are still the holders of the record for paddling the middle section of the Etive in 24 minutes.  But you all know me.   I’m not one to make an issue over such things!!!!!
One River… One Race…

Etive River Race 2009 Coming soon…

If you liked what you saw and want to support the 2009 race, get in touch.