Lincoln 2008

Perhaps because Lincoln is in a northern corner of the Midlands region, there seems to be a myth that the weather for the Lincon marathon is cold, wet and windy. A quick look at the photos from 2007 shows that this was not the case then and apart from a steady breeze, not the case in 2008 either, as you can see from pictures from this year's race.

This made for a near perfect start for some of our newer Lightning paddlers to venture into their first race away from the club. Like other canal races, it's a good course for Lightnings, with tow-path access for the entire length, plus a excellent vantage point at the end of the Brayford Pool.

They obviously enjoyed themselves despite only a small number racing from a few clubs. Numbers this year mark an increase in the Lightnings entering Lincoln, so let's hope this is a trend. Well done to Max, Harvey & Olivia. Lincoln were generous in their allocation of prizes, so cups all round.

At the other end of the scale, Rex had a good race coming 2nd in Div 4.

Mick enjoyed the Div 5 race, coming ahead of Mark from Gailey for a change, but as can be seen from the photo, caught by Matthew, a young lad from Burton, who had started in the Div 6 race, a minute behind!

Lincoln is one of the marathons in the Midlands that incorporates real hazards as a challenge, rather than streams of red and white tape on false portages. This adds to the interest not only for the paddler, but the spectator. Of course you have to do the 8 or 12 mile course to enjoy the succession of low bridges, but long may races like Lincoln survive un-homogenised, with their own character.

In the combined divisions K2 race, Norman and Cathy managed to come both first and last, much to the distress of the finishers and the results compilers.

Not wanting to miss out on the low bridges and the extra 4 miles, they finished the short course, but then carried on to do the most interesting bit of the race and crossed the finish line for a second time! No extra points I'm afraid Norm, the Hasler Race Management system has difficulty in allocating points equitably anyway, without people attempting to get two lots. Nice try though!

Thanks to Julie for the photos. Maybe more to follow.

Full Results http://www.marathon-canoeing.org.uk/results/Lincoln2008.htm