DW 2009

Both Crews booked into a bed and breakfast close to the start at Devizes.

Len and Nick started at the earliest time of 7am and Rob and Simon opted for an 8.20am start. Timings are important to ensure you arrive at the tidal section of the Thames when the tide is going out. If the tide has turned when you get to Teddington you have to wait for the next tide.

The boat is taken into the Marshall's area and a kit check is carried out before going to get your race number sticker for the boat and both crew members getting crimped wrist tags.

We were ready to go at 7.45 in the marshalling area waiting to get in at 8.15am. James Cracknell was there with a film crew and we were looking to see the type of boat he had mastered. We also saw Owen Peake, the favourite to win the race. At the speed he paddled, I reckoned he would not be getting in until 1pm or 2pm.

We got away at 8.16am. We were apprehensive about what lay ahead but glad to get underway after all the training and preparation.

The Pound was first. Fourteen miles of nothing. After about 10 miles we had to stop for a wee. I'm told real racers do it in their boats .... No Way!! James Cracknell went past us at this point and we heard "They have got a speedcoach - I could have brought mine", before he was gone.

The Speedcoach is a speedometer that has a tiny impeller stuck to the bottom of the hull to measure the speed of the boat through the water. By keeping the speed of the boat at 5mph we were at a good cruising speed without burning ourselves out.

The second piece of technology we were using was my Blackberry. This was on my back in a clear waterproof wallet with line of sight to GPS Satellites. Our support crew could log on to Google Latitude with a laptop or another Blackberry and get a real time position for us with an accuracy of about 50m.

During the latter stages of the Pound, I saw Uday the swan. That's him Rob, the one that wacked me on Waterside D. He saw me too and came straight in for the same style of attack. I held my paddles horizontal to fend him off and he passed us without incident. Minutes later we heard beating wings, as he took off behind us for an attack from our rear. I braced myself for him flying into my back as the sound got closer and warned Rob. The bird hit the water between our paddles right next to the boat. I was so relieved but didn't know he was going for the rear of my right arm and Rob had given him a good wallop with his paddle to fend him off.

The Bruce Tunnel was fairly uneventful in our stable boat. At the Crofton flight we met our Support crew and ditched our camelbacks. We managed a steady jog along the length of the flight.
We found the canal section to be very straight forward. We had covered it all several times, our portaging was smooth, our support crew were faultless and we had a mental goal to get to the compulsory portage at Reading. We knew we could do that. We passed Nick and Len between Newbury and Reading a noticed a couple of crews looking weary at this stage.

At Reading we were at the compulsory portage for about 4 minutes. Liquid, food, light on the boat, crack the light sticks on our bouyancy aids and go.

Our next stop was Marsh where we were to get into warmer night clothes. We were lucky with the weather - 13degrees by day and 4 degrees at night, very little wind , slight rain but unfortunately very little river flow. Again, the support crew were brilliant at Marsh. A complete change of clothes, warm chilli and rice, back into the boat and away all within our allotted 12 minutes. At this point we were 5 minutes ahead or our planned time (a race duration of 24.5 hours) Excellent!

On the river section we had planned for 1mph of flow and as there was very little flow our times started to drop off steadily. Also we were walking at the locks in the dark. It was fine to Cookham Lock at the 75 mile stage and then we started dropping back substantially from our planned times. We first started to feel tired at Old Windsor Lock at the 87 mile stage.

For the three miles between Sunbury and Molesey and then the 5 miles from Molesey to Teddington we had to dig deep. We comforted ourselves that once at Teddington we would float down to Westminster on the tidal flow.

At Teddington we were shattered. We should have stopped and had a substantial meal to prepare us for the final 17 miles, but we didn't. The Marshalls took the mickey out of our clothes - "matching colour co-ordinated gear guys - very nice". All in orange we were getting known as the "Tango Boat" and the "Happy Crew" as we had been smiling nearly all the way earlier in the day.

Our support crew knew we were pooped at Teddington so they sweetly encouraged us by shouting "Death or Glory" at us as we joined the tidal section.

This is where the mental game began. Think of 17 miles and you cannot do it. Think of 3 miles to the next bridge and you might just do it. We got to Putney Bridge, 6 miles to go and our support crew were cheering from the bridge. I was at my absolute lowest. No energy whatsoever and I had no idea how we could cover the next 6 miles. We had stopped drinking so we didn't have to stop on the tideway for a wee. Once I took a big slug of the energy drink I felt better within a couple of minutes. I told Rob we had to drink and he told me that we should enjoy the scenery because it would take our mind off things and we were never going to see this view again. Despite our pathetic speed of 3mph through the water, we were soon at Westminster.

When we saw the bridge, we couldn't believe that we had made it. Devizes the previous morning and now Westminster. The Childhood Eye Cancer Trust banner was hanging from the bridge and we had a fantastic welcome as we arrived.

We were helped out of the boat at the bottom of the steps in front of County Hall. Our medals were presented to us at the top and we were welcomed by our supporters.

Nick and Len were behind schedule and stepped up the pace on the last few legs to Teddington and made it to the tide window with only minutes to spare. The tide was coming in as they approached Westminster making their final leg even tougher. A magnificent effort in a boat 7kg heavier and slower than ours.

Thanks to our support crews for a brilliant job and to each and every sponsor who put their faith in us. The sum raised for the Childhood Eye Cancer Trust is magnificent and is down to each and every one of you.

Position:

All Senior Doubles Teams - Marlow CC - 6th out of 8

Civilian Senior Doubles Teams - Marlow CC - 3rd out of 4

All Senior Doubles Crews - 306 (Simon & Rob) 92nd out of 176 / 341 (Nick & Len) 113th out of 176.

All Civilian Senior Doubles Crews - 306 (Simon & Rob) 63rd out of 131 / 341 (Nick & Len) 81st out of 131

Veteran Doubles Crews - 306 (Simon & Rob) 38th out of 75 / 341 (Nick & Len) 49th out of 75

Times:

306 (Simon & Rob) - 26 hrs 47 mins

341 (Nick & Len) - 29 hrs 13 mins

Amount raised for the Childhood Eye Cancer Trust as at 21st May 2009: £21,242

Crew 1 at the end of the DW 2009 Senior K2 Race

Both crews completed the race - a fantastic achievement.

Rob has taken on some really serious mountaineering challenges in his time having previously climbed several un-climbed mountains in Greenland said "This is by far the toughest thing I have ever done. I am never doing it again." There must have been six guys in the changing rooms after the race, army PT instructors etc. They all said the same...........never again.

A big thankyou to the support crews. You cannot complete this race without very good support and you did a fantastic job................ all through the night.

Finally, thanks to each and every one of you who sponsored us to raise funds. During the times when we were at our lowest it was the thought of letting you down that drove us on. A glance at the Charity logo on the boat and then thinking of all those who had faith in us finishing the race reminded us we had to finish.

Full race update to follow shortly.