| Three members of BSCC took part in the 13.5 mile Waterside A race with 21 portages, from Great Bedwyn to Newbury. Chris Sze and Gordon Bullock (paddling for BAD) were 18th in K2 Vets in 2:31:38. However, the star of the day was Kerstin Queeney who again crewed up with Maidstone's Catherine Ayling. The pair completed the race in 2:21:20 to take 3rd position in Ladies K2. Provisional results of the race on online. Photo courtesy Chris Sze |  |
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This report has been updated 28/2/22 (for the 2nd time) in the light of further revisions to the provisional results. Further changes to the points and promotions are still possible. A small BSCC team was amongst the 188 competitors who flocked to Cambridge from all over the country for the first Hasler race of 2022. After two years of interrupted racing, no fewer than twenty different clubs took advantage of this unusually early start to the Hasler season. As well as the usual faces from within the region, the list of out-of-region clubs read like a Who's Who of flatwater racing, with members of Pangbourne, Reading, Nottingham, Elmbridge and many other well known clubs represented, and Richmond and Lincoln particularly in evidence. Needless to say, the standard of paddling was high. Whenever there has been a long break between races, and also whenever paddlers from different regions compete together, there tends to be a great deal of movement between divisions as the discrepancies between regions are levelled out. Perhaps for this reason it proved impossible to calculate the promotions on the day, and thus the points due to each of the six Eastern Region clubs present. 
In Division 7 Eddie took second place from the start line and retained it all the way but with a Norwich paddler on his tail throughout, so he too had to sprint for the line to take his silver award in close finish. Eddie too has been promoted.  Also in this race were Jack and Tom H, both of whom were racing for first time in Div 7 following promotions from Div 9 at Chelmsford last October. Jack finished a very comfortable 7th. Tom got off to a great start and was going well at the first turn but had to pull out with an injury soon after.
Our only paddlers on the 14km course, Kerstin & Mark, unfortunately also fell victim to injury after a promising start. But it was still good to see Mark back in a BSCC vest! DOUBLES - 14km, 4 portages Div 5: Kerstin Queeney & Mark Adams (retired) SINGLES - 7km Div 7: Edward Kirtland 2nd (39:47), Jack Gaulton 7th (43:22), Thomas Holloway (retired) Div 9: Thomas Barton 1st (39:58), Jaroslav Klumpler 8th (42:13) The other Eastern teams Norwich, Leighton Buzzard, Chelmsford, as well as the Cambridge home team, were all out in force. As only four BSCC paddlers finished the race out of an already undersized team of seven, and only three of these scored points (no points are awarded if the paddler is promoted more than one division) BSCC inevitably finished in last place in the main Hasler race.
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