First Race, Ceske Budejovic

It had been raining for a couple of days and today was no exception, although the sky did appear a bit brighter on our early departure from the Tennis Club Hotel.

The C2 was first off at around 9.30 after some stylish demo runs and a few 12 year old pairs cutting the course to shreds. They performed very well considering that we had only a couple of short sessions on the course prior to this race and finished in 2nd place. An outstanding effort only diminished slightly by the age of the crew that came in number one… 13 and 14, a normal occurrence for a country with so many stylish and young paddlers.

K1 was run in the same session, with mixed results. All of the guys did some excellent moves, but a few lapses of concentration allowed room for improvement on the second run, which all of them took. Results were mixed, but there was some question as to the accuracy of the timing, which was confirmed when we found out that the start beam stopped working early on.

The afternoon brought not only rain, but also the C1 and ladies classes. Watching the beginning of each class was not inspiring for our team as some of the younger paddlers struggled with the speed and power of the course, acceptable given that they were probably less than 10 years old!

The Aussie C1's must have been sharing each others toothbrushes (or more) because not only did Robbie come down with a fairly serious case of food poisoning and couldn't race but Jono had a couple of calls to hewy prior to his run. They all performed admirably for their first international race of the year with some great moves intermingled in a sea of mediocrity (see results). A highlight would have to be Craig's non-intentional kick flip only inches before gate 14, a lightening fast roll saving him from a sure fire fifty.

The woman taught the guys a lesson in boat control by nailing the trickiest section of the course. Farrah and Emmie decided to test the density of the poles (wooden), Emmie smacking her cheek bone and Farrah smacking her elbow! The rain may have been cooling off the land but the heat was on the water with all the girls throwing down respectable performances. Penalties in the afternoon session appeared to be somewhat more lenient and the call for the judges would have to be 'as the beer flowed less touches showed', perhaps something the Aus judges could consider!

The day ended on a down note with Robbie being taken to the doctor with a persistent sickness and Jono coming down with a fever. Lets hope for high health and strong performances tomorrow. Robbie was admitted to the locl hospital and placed on a drip. Hopefully he will be OK and will be able to leave hospital in the morning.