Hi ,

This time tomorrow, I will be sitting in a plane on my way home.

First stop, which feels like a lifetime ago, was Jels, in Denmark, for the ICF World Marathon Championships.

Team SA, once again, did the country proud. Some really surprising results, interspersed with a few disappointments.

The handful of masters paddlers who braved the trip managed an array of medals. Some even brightly coloured. Unfortunately we did not have our usual armada dominating proceedings. Hopefully, next year in Croatia, we will be back up to full strength in the 'ballies' department.

Our first, and most surprising result (even to them), came in the form of a gold medal in the junior K2 for women. The first ever gold medal in this age category by a South African crew. Georgia Singe and Holly Smith, after finishing 6th and 10th in the K1 race the day before, had hung tenaciously to the front group from just after the start. A sublime last portage and put in, saw them pull a short gap of 20 metres or so from the chasing crews. Many thought they were going to get caught on the last short lap, but it was not to be. They pinned their ears back and, after a number of furtive glances over their shoulders, crossed the finish line, to make history.

It was a superb early gold, but, unfortunately, the only time our anthem was going to be played over the course of the next few days.

A few hours later, an ecstatic Saskia Hockly walked away with a K1 bronze medal in her very first year in the U23 age group. Considering the massive jump from juniors (where she won a silver in the K2 last year) to U23, it was a significant result.

Uli Hart, who had won a bronze in last year's U23 K1 race and appeared in sublime form in the K1 senior short course heat, must have lined up as the pre-race favourite. Unfortunately a clip of the paddle saw him take a swim, ending his chance of taking home the U23 title (his last year in the age group).

The senior women's K1 was race was touted as a showdown between the reigning K1 champion, Hungary's Vanda Kiszli and the winner of the short course, Sweden's Melina Andersson. The expected showdown never materialised, and the race turned into a demolition job by Kiszli. She simply turned on the gas on a portage and then just paddled away from the rest of the field, as if she was doing a training session. Andersson did manage second, but only 15 seconds ahead of our very own Christie McKenzie, who found herself wearing the brand new design SA track suit on the bottom step of the podium.

Another medal hopeful was Hamish Lovemore, in the senior K1 category (his first year in the age group). After winning the U23 title last year, and having a magnificent training build up this year, Hamish was quietly confident that he could mix it with the big guns. Unfortunately, by his own account, he never managed to settle down in the aggressive environment, and eventually finished in 6th place.

In a carbon copy of the women's race, the local Danish hero, Mads Pedersen, did a hatchet job on the rest of the field. He bolted the portage at the end of the 4th lap like Oscar after he has won R20 on the golf course, and was never seen again. The chasing group, which included Andy Birkett, could not seem to make up their minds whether they wanted to chase, or to contend for the minor placings. At the finish, it came down to one of the best end sprints of the event, when Andy left it to the last minute to deprive Eivind Vold from Norway the silver.

And that is where it ended. Our medal count was one gold, one silver, and 2 bronze.

We did, however, have 2 other very close shaves, when Nix Birkett and Jade Wilson finished 4th in the senior women's K2 (only a second and a half behind the leaders), and Bruno Cochrane and Luke Salmon were tantalizingly close to a medal in the junior K2, also finishing 4th.

All in all, the team can walk with their heads held high. The regatta certainly knew that the South Africans were in attendance.

The one huge downside to the event was the availability of the new livestreaming that the ICF has contracted. The content was absolutely superb, with fantastic footage and educated commentary, but many people could not access it due to technical reasons that are not apparent.

Huge thanks to Antje Hockly for being such a superb manager, and to Miki Smith for all his culinary skills.

After Denmark, I headed to Madeira to do an inspection, on behalf of the ICF, of the facilities and course for next year's world ocean racing championships.

It is certainly going to be a worthwhile trip for those who get selected, or are prepared to go in any case.

For those who have never been there, the island is really interesting, with a labyrinth of a road system through tunnels and over passes. Steep cliffs and a magnificent blue ocean. The people are really friendly, and the proposed course, as well as the alternative, look exciting.

After a few days on Madeira, I headed to Heraklion, on Crete, to attend the Mediterranean Beach Games, as a "technical delegate".

The event is the beach version of the Olympics, held every 4 years.

My expectations of the Mediterranean were fairly way off the mark.

For almost every day that I have been here, there have been exciting downwind conditions. 

If the event were to have been scheduled for the first day I arrived, it would have been cancelled due to the conditions being too extreme.

I can't believe that surf ski paddling is not a huge pasttime here. Warm and safe conditions, with moderate downwind conditions on an almost daily basis.

The level of the competition was also impressive.

Much has happened since I have left home.

Besides the rugby world cup starting, and SA handing out a couple of klaps, there has been a steady turnover of events ...

Our young sprint team, consisting of 12 athletes has just returned from Poland, where they competed in the Olympic Hopes regatta in Poznan.

The event is used each year as an opportunity for aspiring sprinters to gain exposure to top level international competition.

Although the team did not win any medals, the experience, for the majority of them, will be something to build on in the years to come.

A small team of 4 SA paddlers has arrived in Lee Valley, London, to take part in the ICF Slalom World Championships, which begins on Wednesday. The event will act as a selection for quota places in next year's Olympic Games.

The team, consisting of Don Wewege, Scott Humphry, Iain Rennie and Chantal Bronkhorst, are under no illusions that they will qualify any spots, but will be using the opportunity to gain much needed competition time before the continental qualifications.

Don reported from London that "It's been quite a shock to the system when they first got here a week ago, but now they have gotten a hang of it. Its one of the biggest courses on the world circuit so takes some getting used to! The next few days are for fine tuning the specific moves on the course."

On the local front, two of the country's premier river races have taken place on subsequent weekends, both concentrating on the K2 class. 

The Breede marathon was held in superb conditions, with a decent water level. The depth of the talent at the top of the results board is an encouraging sign for the future of the event. 

Mark Keeling and Luke Le Roux edging out Tom Lovemore and Ron Benjano. The junior women K2 champions, Holly Smith and Georgia Singe easily won the junior women's section and finished 2nd overall in the women's category, behind Melanie Van Niekerk and Kira Bester. What is more noticeable is the fact that they only finished 25 seconds behind the winning junior men's crew of Ryley Smith and Jared Shrimpton.

Gauteng was not to be outdone, with the hosting of the Liebenbergsvlei 2 day classic. Clean, fast flowing water and a large, competitive field signaled an encouraging return to the local calendar.

Tom Lovemore must have done some nifty travelling, because he went from second place in the Breede the weekend before, to winning the race with his brother, Hamish. They had a ding dong battle with the K2 that narrowly edged ahead of Hamish and his partner, Clint Cook, at the world marathon championships, showing that Wayne Jacobs and Brad Boulle are a K2 force to be reckoned with wherever they go.

The action does not stop on the local scene, with the Pre Fish and the Fish River marathon creeping up on us at a rapid rate.

Some strange weather and animal behaviour happening on the other side of the Outeniqua (as well as many other coastal towns).

Huge waves causing extensive damage to property and our brand new junior world champion being bitten by a seal.

Well. That's all I have time for. The next one will be from the comfort of my office.

Until then

Your SG
Copper
1111

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"Yes, go ahead," comes back the answer.

"We have a case here. A woman has shot her husband for stepping on the floor she had just mopped clean."

"Have you arrested the woman?"

"No Sir, the floor is still wet.”