Celbridge Paddlers Canoe Club

Saturday 21st March, 2009 - Junior Marathon Series - On the Liffey from Athgarvan to Newbridge - 1pm start - organised by Newbridge Kayak Club - race notice NKC_Junior_Race_21Mar09_notice.doc

POOL Sessions for beginners and improvers (members only) - Clondalkin Sports and Leisure Centre

Group 1 - three sessions - Saturdays - 7th, 14th and 21st February 2009 - 5.30pm to 6.30pm

Group 2 - three sessions - Saturdays - 14th, 21st and 28th March 2009 - 5.30pm to 6.30pm

Contact Eamon Fleming, Vincent O'Sullivan or any committee member to book your place

Fri 12th December 2008 - Celbridge Paddlers party in style! (report here shortly - any pics?)

The final event in the Wild Water Junior Series was held on the Liffey at the Castletown rapids. The conditions were difficult enough but that didn't dampen the enthusiasm of our junior and senior paddlers. Neil Fleming was 3rd fastest in the Men's WWR Div 1 and Brendan Buggy posted a creditable 2:08 in the one run he attempted in Men's WWR Div 2.
Fintan Mitchell was 3rd fastest (out of 20 competitors) in the Junior Men's K1 class. Ronan Mac Giolla Rua was fastest in the Junior Men's GP and Mark Verdon was 4th fastest - there were also excellent performances from Gareth Doolan (9th), Mark McGovern (12th) and Jake Harries (15th). If it wasn't for an unfortunate swim at the start Cormac Noonan would have been up there in lights also - better luck next time Cormac (well done anyway!)
Clodagh MacGiolla Rua was, once again, the fastest in the Junior Women's GP event - that's three Firsts in a row! Well done Clodagh!
Roisin Everard was second fastest in the Junior Women's GP class - not bad for her first Wild Water competition!

There was a great turn-out for the final marathon ranking race of the season not least from Celbridge Paddlers. Everyone looked well in their new red jackets! The weather was dry and pleasant and everyone enjoyed the day. Thanks to Brendan Buggy for hauling the trailer loaded with boats to Robertstown. The short starts were 'robust' to say the least but at least we didn't have any swimmers! I'll post the results as soon as they are available.

In the second of the Junior Wild Water we had a five competitors from the club. Mark Verdon was 4th fastest in the Junior Men's GP class with a time of 21:02, followed closely in 5th place by Ronan Mac Giolla-Rua (21:30). Gareth Doolan was 7th fastest (22:09) and Mark McGovern was 11th with a time of 23:33. Clodagh Mac Giolla-Rua was again fastest in the Junior Women's GP section completing the course in a time of 22:38. Well done to everyone who took part. Thanks as usual goes to Brendan Buggy for hauling the trailer and also to the parents/taxis for hauling the athletes!

The first of three races in the Junior Wild Water series was held on Saturday 4th October - a classic from Templemills to Salmon Leap Canoe Club. We had three competitors - Ronan MacGiolla-Rua, Clodagh MacGiolla-Rua and Gareth Doolan. This was their first wild water race and they did extremely well in difficult conditions. Clodagh was the fastest (24.49) of four competitors in the Girls GP class, Ronan was 4th of ten competitors in the boys GP (in a time of 22.46) and Gareth was 8th of ten competitors (in a time of 23.55). Well done guys! The second race is over the same course (organised by our own Brendan Buggy) next Saturday.

Sat 4th October 2008 - Blessington 500 Challange - Cancelled due to the adverse weather conditions

There was a strong southerly wind on the day which can lead to dangerous conditions on the lakes at Blessington. Very disappointing for everyone geared up to go (especially those who had raised money) but, as it turned out, a good call on behalf of the event organisers.

In this year's Liffey Descent, two time Olympian, Gary Mawer showed that experience triumphs over youth as he took Gold in the K1 Racing Class. Eoin Rheinisch fresh from 4th in Beijing chased a podium place in the doubles event with clubmate Barry Watkins, but the physical distance took its toll and they could only manage 8th in a highly competitive field.

The South African crew, brothers - Ryan & Greg Louw took first in K2 Racing Class while the Irish dominated the other classes with Jim Morrisey (Galway) winning the Wild Water Racing Class, Maire Diggin taking Gold in Womens General Purpose, and Mark Redmond Gold in Mens General Purpose

Quotes from ICU President Eamon Devoy:

“It was fantastic to see our two potential 2012 paddlers, Eoin Rheinisch and Barry Watkins, from sprint and slalom, teaming up in the doubles event. Eoin did this event as a junior and it obviously inspired him to greater things.”

“The race had the three main ingredients for a classic - sunshine, whitewater and competition, with over 800 paddlers participating. They represented 103 clubs and athletes came from the UK, France, Spain, Portugal and a large contingent from South Africa.”

Quotes from Gary Mawer, two-time Olympian and Winner of the K1 Racing Class:

"I may have won the race many times before but the Liffey is unpredictable - I nearly fell in at Straffan, and as it turns out I cracked my paddle there but didn’t notice it till after the race. The River Gods were certainly with me today."

"This race is a great warm up for next weekend's Marathon Racing World Championships (in Hungary) where seniors - Neil Fleming, Jason Briody, Jenny Egan, and juniors - Daragh Fleming and Fintan Mitchell, represent Ireland. I took Silver there 12 years ago and this generation represents our best chance of getting back on the podium."

As usual Celbridge Paddlers kept it's end of things up and had a good number of competitors in the race. Darragh Fleming and Joe Murphy came 1st in the Junior K2, Paul McKay came in 2nd place in the Senior Men's GP (an excellent time of 2.31), young Brendan Buggy took a creditable 6th position in the Masters K1 (he has a great future behind him!), Lisette Krol came in 6th place in the Women's GP (an excellent time of 3.09 despite being caught by her nemesis Palmerstown Weir!), Ciaran Fleming and Sean O'Neill (out for his annual paddle!) came 14th in the Senior Men's K2 in a time of 2.07 (well done!), despite losing the nose of their boat at Straffan Kevin Durkin and Damien Byrne cam in 21st in the Touring Canadian Doubles in a time of 3.06 (next year for the medal lads!), Gerry Keane kept the flag flying for the club in the Masters GP (24th in 3.13) and son Paraic Keane did a creditable 2.55 in the Men's Senior GP. Well done all - you're a credit to the club!

Sun 24/08/2008 - Upper Liffey - Long Start from Clane - Short Start from Straffan - to Salmon Leap Canoe Club

Well done to everybody - Aisa Cooper came in 2nd with David Pringle (SLCC) in the long course K2, Ciara O'Toole and Sheena Devoy made a very welcome return to competitive paddling on the long course K2 and were going well (a lovely shoot at Straffan - see pic below) but had to retire after being pushed into the trees by an overly aggressive short course K1 paddler (we know who you are!) - Padraic and Gerry Keane put in their usual steady performances in Div 3 and Div 4 respectively - Lisette Krol put in a great performance and came 2nd in the womens GP - well done to Aoife Cassidy (1st Girls GP) and Mark Hartnett (2nd Boys GP) - and last (but First!) was Kevin Durkin and Damien who won the Canadian Doubles (I feel a Liffey Descent medal coming on here!)

Sun 20/07/2008 - Ranking Race - Graiguenamanagh to St Mullins - run by the 180 Kayak Club, Waterford

This is always a very enjoyable event on a challenging stretch of the Barrow with six weirs and several sets of rapids. Well done to everyone from the club who took part - Padraic Keane, Brendan Buggy, Mark Hartnett, Gerry Keane, Tom and James Smyth, Kevin Durkin and Damien Byrne (with plenty of help from Clodagh MacGiolla-Rua) and Ronan MacGiollaRua (3rd Boys GP).
I'm told Clodagh found the robust and colourful language of her fellow crew members to be quite 'educational'!

Two Summer Camps were run by the club in the weeks beginning 30th June and 7th July and were a great success. Organising camps like this is a huge undertaking and very time-consuming so the club is extremely lucky to have dedicated members like Graham Buggy, Cathi Fleming, Eugene Ryan, Darragh Fleming, Fintan Mitchel, Ciaran Fleming and Tom Smyth who were prepared to run the sessions with the help of instructor Caoimhe Ni Chuinn. Thanks everyone!
If I get some picture I'll post them here...
Vincent

The 2008 Great Outdoors Junior Liffey Descent was held in brilliant sunshine yesterday. Beginning at Salmon Leap Canoe Club there were over 140 young competitors from clubs all over the country. The race was a tough test for the athletes - beginning with a hard slog across Leixlip Lake against a stiff easterly breeze - then a gruelling 500 metre portage followed by some tricky weirs. Everyone got down safely and a big thanks to everyone who did rescue at the weirs. Celbridge Paddlers were responsible for the timekeeping and also the rescue at the Sluice Weir.
Congratulations to Darragh Mitchell for a brilliant 1st place in the Boys u15 Open Singles class (a 500 metre portage carrying a wavehopper is no joke!). Congratulations also to Tom Daly, Mark Hartnett and Ronan MacGiolla-Rua for putting in excellent performances and flying the flag for the club. Full results on the ICU website www.canoe.ie

Mark Hartnett gets a perfect shoot at Lucan weir in the Junior Wildwater Race from Lucan to Palmerstown on Saturday, April 19 2008. Mark came 1st in the boys u15 GP class and was the only competitor from Celbridge Paddlers in the race. Well done Mark!

Sat 23/2/2008 Marathon - Junior Series - Grand Canal - Celbridge Paddlers Canoe Club

This was the first race of the 2008 marathon season and was also the first of the junior series of five races culminating in the Junior Liffey Descent in May. This year the race had an 11am start so that it didn't take up the entire day - especially for paddlers who had to travel long distances. It turned out to be a very enjoyable day for everyone involved - competitors and spectators alike! The weather held up nicely (unusual for this time of year). The turn-out wasn't too bad (28 competitors) given it was so early in the year and everyone had a good race - lots of medals to go around. The official results aren't available yet but they should be posted soon on the Marathon website. Celbridge Paddlers took several gold and silver medals - well done to everyone! Here are some pictures (courtesy Tim Hartnett) -

The Annual Celbridge Paddlers Turkey race was held last Sunday 16th December and it was a great to see so many paddlers taking part and enjoying the festive cheer and having some craic. There were 47 boats entered for the race in total and over 76 paddlers took part. The Canadian class was particularly well supported and there was also a very strong entry in the fun class as well . Lots of paddlers in fancy dress added to the Christmas Spirit and the occasion . All the proceeds from the race (race entry fees) and the raffle afterwards in Macs will be donated to St Vincent de Paul . In total we raised 1,427 euro for the charity on the day so well done to one and all .

A special word of thanks to Aisa Cooper and Patagonia for organising the prizes and the members of Celbridge Paddlers for organising the rescue. Thanks also to all who turned up to paddle and support the race as well. There are still some sponsorship cards yet to come in and the final tally will , I'm sure, be higher.

Have a great Christmas and New Year
Eamon Fleming

We would like to congratulate all members who managed to complete this years Dublin City Marathon - in particular we congratulate former CPCC chairman Gerry Keane who finished in a very respectable 4hours 15mins - well done Gerry! (there's still hope for the fossils!)

Congratulations to everyone from the club who took part in the 2007 Liffey Descent - and also well done to the usual crew from the club involved in the organisation of the race and rescue. The weather really held up and a most enjoyable day was had be all - competitors and spectators alike.
We even had some good results! Ciaran Fleming came 4th in the Mens Senior K1 in a time of 2.05, Paul McKay came 6th in the Men's Senior GP and Fintan Mitchell came 7th in the Men's Junior GP. Brendan Buggy had a great run in the Masters K1 (only two swims!) and the dynamic due of Kevin Durkin and Sean Marchetti powered their way to 25th (out of 81) in the Touring Canadian Doubles (in a time of 3.19 - not bad!).
David Finnegan, Fintan Mitchell Snr, Gerry Keane and Paul McEvoy all proved that live doesn't finish at 75! Austin McCartney and Padraic Keane kept the CPCC flag flying in the Mens Senior GP (Padraic used the occasion for 'resistance training' completing the course in a 'plakker'!).
Aisa Cooper with brother Fergus had a great run coming in 10th in the senior K2.

The 2009 Liffey Descent will be the 50th Anniversary of the race - let's start training NOW!

Vincent

Barry Watkins, of Salmon Leap Canoe Club , took gold in the Junior 500m individual kayak class (K1) in Belgrade this morning. This is Ireland ’s first ever gold medal at Championship level in flat-water racing, which is an Olympic discipline since 1936. On Saturday, Barry took bronze in the 1000m K1 class. The two medal haul by Barry puts him firmly on track for the 2012 Games.
Neil Fleming also had a good run coming 7th in the Under 23 500m A Final while Ciaran Fleming and his K2 partner Zsombor Kulscar got some useful international experience reaching the B finals of both the 1000m and 500m events.
Jenny Egan of Salmon Leap also had a good run coming 4th in the B final of the 1000m K1 event and 7th in the B final of the 500m event.
Well done to all.

This was an exciting race beginning at Salmon Leap and finishing at the Garda Boatclub in Islandbridge. There was a very good turnout generally (people usually use this race to familiarise themselves with the weirs etc before the Liffey Descent) although there were only three paddlers from Celbridge Paddlers (Lisette Krol, Brendan Buggy and Vincent O'Sullivan) - a bit disappointing to say the least! Well done to Lisette, Brendan and Vincent for flying the flag!

Sprint time trials were held at the club on Saturday to select the 500m and 1000m squad for the European Championships in Belgrade in August.

Sean Marchetti takes off at the sprint time trials held at the club on Saturday, 21st July 2007

01/07/2007 - Congratulations to Neil Fleming and Brendan Maloney - 7th in Spain

FLATWATER CANOE EUROPEAN CHAMPIONSHIPS, PONTEVEDRA , GALICIA, SPAIN JUN 27 to JUL 01

Neil Fleming and Brendan Maloney won the K2 1000 meter heat to qualify for Saturday final, in an Irish record of 3 minutes 12 seconds, knocking over three seconds off the time the pair set last year. In setting the fastest time Fleming and Maloney qualified directly for the European K2 Flatwater Canoe Racing Championships final.
They covered the 1,000 meter course in a time of 3:12:218, the fastest of the day, and substantially faster than their 3.15.87 set last year in the European Championships. In the final, they finished seventh in a race won by the Olympic medallists from Hungary. However, the Irish pair surprised themselves by also making the A-final of the 500m event. Seventh place in this event was also another best ever performance at this level in sprint racing by an Irish crew.
The crew pioneers Irish canoeing at world level in this event and according to their coach Gabor Kulsar, they are on target for qualification for the 2008 Olympics.

Celbridge Paddlers hosted the first race of the 2007 junior series on Saturday 24/2/2007. The turnout wasn't great but considering the time of year and the prevailing weather (and the fact that the Ireland England rugby match was on in Croker!) we couldn't complain! The race went off without a hitch. There were some great performances from our paddlers - over the long course Orla O'Toole came first in the Girsl Over 15 K1 and Fintan Mitchell came second in the boys Over 15 K1. Over the short course Michael Fitzsimons and Daragh Mitchell came first and second in the Boys Under 15 K1 while the three Durkan sisters Hanna, Rebecca and Paula swept the boards with first, second and third respectively in the Girls Under 15 K1. Well done to everyone - hopefully we'll have a better turnout from the club at the next race which will be held at Salmon Leap on the 10th March - Vincent

The Celbridge Paddlers Christmas Party was held in Elm Hall Golf Club on Friday night (9th Dec) - a great night was had by all. Thanks to all the organisers - especially Cathi Fleming and Mags Ellis who put enormous effort in arranging everything. The food was excellent (thanks to Seamus Lawless), the music was excellent (thanks Neil, Cathi, Aoife and Graham) and the atmosphere had the usual tinge of lunacy (thanks Eamon Devoy!)

Here are some photos of a very enjoyable night. More photos to follow (I hope - I'm not in any of these!) A big thanks to Kevin Burke, Cathi Fleming (Marie Antoinette) and everyone who helped out. A report to follow soon...

Congratulations to everyone who took part in this year's Liffey! As usual the club did it itself proud in the standings. The highlight was a club first and second in the senior men's K1. Aisa Cooper was chasing Neil Fleming all the way to the Sluice where Neil went for a rare swim. After that it was Neil chasing Aisa all the way to the finish line! Well done Aisa - it was a long time coming! There's always next year Neil!
Other highlights include Darragh Fleming and Paddy Martin (1st, Junior Mens K2), Fintan Mitchel (6th, Men's Junior GP), Diarmuid Meldon (8th, Men's Junior GP), Conor Finnegan (12th, Men's Junior GP), Paul McKay (8th, Men's Senior GP).
Graham and David Buggy had a great race (15th, Senior K2 in 2.20) as did their irrepressible dad Brendan (19th, Senior Wild Water - you can't keep a good fossil down!). Cormac Walsh did well (16th, Senior Wild Water in 2.55). Robert McKay and Brendan Ryan had a good race coming in 10th in the Touring Canadian Doubles in a time of 3.21.
Peter O'Toole was best of the fossils coming in 13th in the Masters GP (despite being, er...'tired' from the night before!) in a time of 2.58. He was followed by trainee fossils Fintan Mitchell Snr (32nd in 3.22) and David Finnegan (36th in 3.23).
Kevin Durkin and Keith Burke did their best in the Touring Canadian Doubles (there's always next year lads!) and Brian Magee, Paul McEvoy and Sean O'Neill put in good performances in the Men's Senior GP.

24/6/2006 - Carrick-on-Shannon report
On the 24 of June, Celbridge Paddlers travelled up to Carrick-on-Shannon in quite a large group to take part in the Marathon race there. Conditions were good, the weather warm, the water calm and not too many cruisers causing waves. On the short course, there were 36 boats taking part. Mick and Breda Keating took gold in the k2 class, while our own Padraig Keane took first place in k1 div. 4.In the open k1 section David Boyle took the gold, while Michael Fitzsimons came home in a close second place. Kevin Durkin got a great start to his race in men’s G.P. and took second place. He then had to rush home to celebrate Hannah and Rebbeca’s birthday. Happy Birthday girls. Tom Smith and Gerry Keane had a good race in the T2, John Fitzsimons set a blistering pace in his G.P. and Dave Finnegan nursed Cathi Fleming round the short course, thus enabling her to come first in womens G.P.

The long course was a staggering 17 miles, with two difficult Portages on it. The day was becoming warmer as time passed. The first crew of Banks and Hudson crossed the finish line in just two hours. Our own Junior crew in k2 David Buggy and Darragh Fleming were the fourth k2 home. Well done to the two lads. Garry Mawer breezed in to take gold in k1 and make it look so easy. Conor Finnegan raced in k1 on the short course, and two of the Durkin girls paddled together on the same course. A great day was had by all and we are hoping to see another good turn-out from Celbridge Paddlers at next weeks race in Castleconnel.

1/6/2006 - Quiz Night report
On June 1, Celbridge Paddlers and supporters gathered upstairs in the Kildrought Inn for a club Quiz. There was a great turn out of over 20 teams and the atmosphere was electric with lots of banter and chat. Quizmaster for the night was Cathi Fleming, correcting the sheets were Mags Ellis and Eamon Fleming. Keeping score, in a most professional way was Gerry Keane. The quiz itself consisted of 8 rounds of 8 questions. One round was a live music round and this was certainly enjoyable. Neil Fleming and Wesley Burke entertained us all with a rendition of 4 songs and there were 2 questions based on each song or piece of music. Many people had brought spot prizes for the raffle, from the welcome bottles of wine and chocolates, to lovely bath towels and makeup sets. But the highlight of the raffle was when Margaret Mc Kay won the fabulous necklace donated by Marion Durkan's sister. Many a females face was green with envy. The first lady was not to be out done and walked away with the second necklace. Well done Ethna. At the end of the night, two teams fought gallantly through three rounds of tiebreakers. We finally found a winner with the question "to the nearest km. how long is the Grand Canal?” Thanks to Eugene Ryan for that help. A great night was had by all with the team of Tino Marchetti, Kevin and Marion Durkin and their neighbour coming in third. The coffers are richer by 1038 euro!!!! Well done and congrats to all.
Thanks From Cathi Fleming

Well done to Cathi Fleming and everyone involved in organising the Quiz Night - a very enjoyable evening was had by all and it was a great success on the fund-raising front also. Ed

On the 27 of May, the annual Junior Liffey Descent for 2006 took place. The weather was good and there was a record number of clubs taking part. A total of 19 clubs from as far a field as Donegal to Sligo, Waterford to Dublin competed for the medals sponsored by The Great Outdoors. Some new clubs made the journey, including Gurteen Paddlers and St. Mac Daras.The race started at Salmon Leap Canoe Club with Darragh Fleming boys over 15 k1narrowly arriving first at the Portage in front of Brian Keogh. Unfortunately the entry back into the river was quite slippery. A bad fall knocked Darragh out of the race and left Brian fighting off Paddy Martin and David Buggy. Quite a crowd had gathered at Lucan Weir to cheer on all the young paddlers, and the looks of relief on some of the faces as they cleared the weir safely was a joy to see. After shooting Wrens weir and capsizing, Brian was chased to the finish line, and pipped at the post by a delighted Paddy Martin at a time of 53mins and 1sec. David Buggy came in a close third 1sec later. In the girls open k2 t2 section, Orla O Toole and partner Aine Fleming took the gold medal with a time of 58mins and2secs.

In boys under 15 k1 Fintan Mitchell did the club proud by winning the gold with Raymond Boylan taking a good third place. In the boys under 15 open singles, first place went to Michael Fitzsimons in a time of 1hour and 10 mins, while young Daire Mitchell finished third in a time of 1hour and 19 mins. In the girls under 15 GP. It was a family affair, with the 3 Durkin girls doing the club proud. Paula Durkin came in second, while her sister Rebecca finished third and Hannah came in a respectable fifth. All in all, the young competitors of Celbridge Paddlers once again showed that the club is progressing from strength to strength. The abiding moment of the day for me was at the finish when Mick Feeney got all the boys and girls together for a photo. The smiles, the laughter, and the friendship showed that it wasn’t the winning that was important but the taking part. Cathi Fleming

27/5/2006 - Junior Liffey - CPCC results
Congratulations to all our paddlers who took part in the Great Outdoors Junior Liffey Descent on Saturday - there was a great turn-out AND great results! Áine Fleming and Orla O'Toole took first place in the Under 15 Girls Open K2, Fintan Mitchell came first in the Under 15 Boys K1 with Raymond Boylan in third place, Michael FitzSimons came first in the Under 15 Boys Open Singles with Daire Mitchell in third place, Paula Durkan had a great paddle to finish second in the Under 15 Girls GP with her sisters Rebecca (third) and Hannah (fifth) close behind.
Paddy Martin took first place in the Over 15 Boys K1 with David Buggy a few seconds behind in third place. Conor Finnegan came a very creditable seventh in the Over 15 Boys Open Singles and Diarmuid Meldon put in a sterling performance to finish fifth out of fifteen on the Over 15 Boys GP.
Well done to all! Ed

26/5/2006 - CPCC AGM
The AGM was held once more in the Celbridge GAA Club. Our thanks to them for allowing us the continued use of their facilities. Against a backdrop of “Thump Thump Music” from the hall and a Poker Classic in the bar, the outgoing committee struggled valiantly to keep the members interest up.
It was a poorly attended meeting with only TWENTY people in attendance this was almost 50% LESS than last year where 37 members attended. Of the twenty present only two were juniors. Despite the small numbers a number of good discussions took place, centered mostly on club membership, junior racing and the proposed new clubhouse.
A new Committee was then elected and everybody ran from the hall to get away from the music!
The first meeting of the new Committee will be held again in the GAA Club. The time as usual will be 9pm on Wednesday June 7^th and all are welcome. Kevin Burke

14/5/2006 - First World Cup
Well done to Neil Fleming and Brendan Maloney for an excellent performance at the First World Cup Canoeing Regatta last weekend at Poznán, Poland. The K2 crew representing Ireland came an outstanding seventh in the A Final of the Men's 1000m event. This is the first time and Irish crew have reached an A Final in a world cup event against a top class international field. Congratulations must also go to the national sprint coach Paul Byrne. Here's looking forward to the European and World Championships later in the summer!

28/4/2006 - Devizes to Westminster
Congratulations to Caoimhe Ni Chuinn & Aisling Ni Chuinn who were the first women home last weekend at the DW (Devizes to Westminster), almost half an hour ahead of their rivals. The Dun Laoghaire Sea Scouts crew (also Celbridge Paddlers) completed the 200k course in 22 hours 45 minutes, placing them 23rd overall in a field of over 100 starters. Their time was such that they even finished an hour ahead of the first ladies team who competed the same distance over the four day stage race, indicating that perhaps canoepolo and wildwater racing are a good background for ultra-marathon racling.
For a full report on the race by Tadgh McIntyre check out the Irish Marathon Canoeing website.