Olympics !

[SteveM]

Just watching the opening ceremony ... wow!

Everyone excited yet? Go Team GB!

[Seedy Paddler]

Not long back from Sundays trip to Lea Valley, some great paddling and fantastic atmosphere, couple of pointers for those still to head there:

1/ When the information states be at the site at least 2 hours before the start time, they ommit to tell you that the gates don't open until 2 hours before the start time. Over an hour spent in the queue at the gate then a mass dive for food, drink and toilets.

2/ You are not allowed to take fluids through security, however there is free tap water so remember to keep your bottle. Coke etc available at £2.30/bottle.

3/ If like me you have been watching LOCOG site for ticket availability to try an dplan family trips, don't be surprised or upset when you leave the wife and youngest at home and then find spare seats unused. Significant sections of unused seats obvious in the stands by the finish sectiion.

Otherwise enjoy and cheer Team GB to some medals, Dave and Rich must have got additional speed from the sheer force of willpower in the stands. Absolutely fantastic noise generated.

PS Stands are open so when it rains you may get wet - not sure who was wetter Peter Kauser or those that remained to watch his final run...

CD

[Dee]

Thanks Seedy. What puzzles me is that we are told to arrive 2 hours before, but that our parking space is not available until 12:00.

[Telemark]

I haven't been able to see much TV coverage as yet, but well done Team GB so far.

Can anyone help me with the layout of the course, in particular gate 12. It shows it as an upstream gate, I think, but the camera angle has been difficult to see it properly. Is the upstream gate (i.e. paddler's right) of gate 12 closer to the river left bank than the downstream gate (i.e. paddler's left) ? Or is the gate, in effect, parallel to the bank ? There have been different methods of coping with it, some more successful than others.

Some of the close up, slow motion replays of paddlers are really brilliant.

[alldaypaddler]

gate 12 is a split gate with first pole river left, 2nd pole downstream of it on river right. so yes, upstream pole is closer to left bank (from the paddler's point of view) which makes it interesting - coming in far river left, across stopper, spin and right hand side of downstream pole to get to gate 13 which is an up river left.

although that'll all change now for the semis/finals?

[Telemark]

Ah that's brilliant. Thank you and it explains why it was causing an issue for some. Spinning got you tight into gate 13, but seemed slower, whereas keeping the boat pointing downstream, seemed faster but through 12 took them low into 13.

Oh and I haven't heard a single, "Hup, hup, hup !" Yet.

[alldaypaddler]

Ah that's brilliant. Thank you and it explains why it was causing an issue for some. Spinning got you tight into gate 13, but seemed slower, whereas keeping the boat pointing downstream, seemed faster but through 12 took them low into 13.

Oh and I haven't heard a single, "Hup, hup, hup !" Yet.

i was hup hup hup-ing at the tv yesterday!

some people did 12 forwards well but many tried and failed, which leaves them very wide and low going into 13... i reckon apart from the K1M a spin is the thing to do.

[John Sturgess]

Problem is that a spin only worked well if (a) you stayed close to the downstream pole of 12 and (b) you did the spin between the wave and the downstream pole. Anyone starting early/going wide could be carted off to the far side of the channel - which made the entry into 13 even slower. A very subtly set gate!

[SteveM]

Made it to Lee Valley today and it was brilliant. Richard struggled but the racing was superb. Heartbreaking to see competitors getting 50's. Proper highs and lows.