Marlow is at Mile 70 of the race and Teddington is at Mile 108 so we had 38 miles to cover. With no support crew we both had 2.5 litre camelbacks, 2 packs of sandwiches each and loads of cake.
We dropped the boat in the river under Marlow Bridge and adjusted the foot rests and seat backs. I had bought a speedcoach gold digital speedometer for the boat as it has an automatic backlight which will be essential through the night on DW. The theory is that by regulating our effort throughout the race (by running at a set speed through the water) we stand the best chance of finishing.
We left Marlow lock at 08.55. The first challenge was at Maidenhead where you take your boat out of the water just past the weir, walk across Boulters Island and drop the boat into the weir stream. The water was a foaming torrent with re-circulating currents. To prevent getting pushed into the bank we had to make several attempts to launch the nose of the boat towards the centre of the stream and paddle hard. We were very thankful to be in a stable boat.
Windsor Bridge lock is a challenge as you have to get out on the right, then cross to the left over the lock gates to put your boat in the water. If you stay on the right you end up in a boat yard.
As we passed the Castle grounds we had several drive bys from the Castle security and then saw a 30ft river boat approaching at speed. As soon as he saw us he slowed but the wake behind him consisted of four sets of 2 1/2 foot waves that cames over the boat and into the cockpits - thanks mate.
Not sure what the island is called at Old Windsor (Ham Island?) but it smells like most of your toilets empty into the Thames.
We didn't stop to eat or drink. One of us would carry on paddling while the other munched cake. Some fisherman were looking incredulously at me as we passed them. I was eating cake with my paddle by my side as Rob paddled. Rob shouted at them "he has been doing that since Marlow".
At Sunbury lock I was pooped but the lock keeper said it was 2.5 miles to Molesey and then 5 miles to Teddington. Molesey arrived quite quickly but the stretch between Molesey and Teddington took an age. The young lads in rowing 8s on this stretch were very polite as we passed them. Not sure which school they came from but they did the school proud.
We were both relieved to get to Teddington at 15.40. Within a couple of minutes of getting out we were getting very cold and were thankful for the waterproof jackets in the rear hatch of the boat.
38 miles in 6.45hrs an average of 5.63mph was a good result for us. If we could do that speed on DW we would finish in 22hrs 20 min. Our aim is to complete DW in less than 30 hours. The down side is that we had completed less than 30% of the course distance and we were pooped. More training required!
We dropped the boat in the river under Marlow Bridge and adjusted the foot rests and seat backs. I had bought a speedcoach gold digital speedometer for the boat as it has an automatic backlight which will be essential through the night on DW. The theory is that by regulating our effort throughout the race (by running at a set speed through the water) we stand the best chance of finishing.
We left Marlow lock at 08.55. The first challenge was at Maidenhead where you take your boat out of the water just past the weir, walk across Boulters Island and drop the boat into the weir stream. The water was a foaming torrent with re-circulating currents. To prevent getting pushed into the bank we had to make several attempts to launch the nose of the boat towards the centre of the stream and paddle hard. We were very thankful to be in a stable boat.
Windsor Bridge lock is a challenge as you have to get out on the right, then cross to the left over the lock gates to put your boat in the water. If you stay on the right you end up in a boat yard.
As we passed the Castle grounds we had several drive bys from the Castle security and then saw a 30ft river boat approaching at speed. As soon as he saw us he slowed but the wake behind him consisted of four sets of 2 1/2 foot waves that cames over the boat and into the cockpits - thanks mate.
Not sure what the island is called at Old Windsor (Ham Island?) but it smells like most of your toilets empty into the Thames.
We didn't stop to eat or drink. One of us would carry on paddling while the other munched cake. Some fisherman were looking incredulously at me as we passed them. I was eating cake with my paddle by my side as Rob paddled. Rob shouted at them "he has been doing that since Marlow".
At Sunbury lock I was pooped but the lock keeper said it was 2.5 miles to Molesey and then 5 miles to Teddington. Molesey arrived quite quickly but the stretch between Molesey and Teddington took an age. The young lads in rowing 8s on this stretch were very polite as we passed them. Not sure which school they came from but they did the school proud.
We were both relieved to get to Teddington at 15.40. Within a couple of minutes of getting out we were getting very cold and were thankful for the waterproof jackets in the rear hatch of the boat.
38 miles in 6.45hrs an average of 5.63mph was a good result for us. If we could do that speed on DW we would finish in 22hrs 20 min. Our aim is to complete DW in less than 30 hours. The down side is that we had completed less than 30% of the course distance and we were pooped. More training required!
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