Saturday the 10th September saw the Peak UK British Freestyle Championships, a competition where the top British freestyle kayakers fight it out to be crowned the British Champion. 2016 saw the competition return to the world renowned Inlet Gate at Holme Pierrepont, Nottingham. The 2016 event saw over 80 people enter at all various levels of paddling, from novice up to our expert paddlers.Despite a rainy start to the heats, the railings surrounding the inlet gate were packed, people fought to get a good view point to watch the proceedings. There were 8 heats across the day that had a ‘Jam Heat’ format. All this means is that heats last a set length and paddlers can have as many runs as they manage in that time frame, however each move only scores once across all rides for a paddler. This led to some massive scores coming in, especially from the senior K1 men! From these heats the top 5 of each category was taken through to the grand finale to be held that evening.
The rain had stopped, BBQ’s were lit, music was blaring and various paddlers were taking it in turns on the mic. Elbows were being jostled as eager spectators tried to get the best view possible to see some magic on the water. The stage had been set for the 2016 Peak UK British Championship finals. The first final to get underway was the junior men’s K1. The running order was Hugh Mandelstam, Matthew Stephenson, Nathan Hefford, Alex Walters and through in first place from the heats was Harry Price. For the finals standard ICF rules were applied, so three 45 second runs for each paddler, with the best run counting. Each paddler came down showing the judges their best moves, pushing the other paddlers hard. Scores got higher and higher and the crowd got louder and louder. After all the junior men had done their rides proceedings moved onto the C1.
The C1 saw a fantastic turn out, with many people trying their hand at it. However not everyone could make it to the final. Our C1 finalists were Joshua Wedgewood, Alan Ward, Adam Ramadan and James Ibbotson. Despite only having a singular blade and less stability than the K1s, these guys really put on a show. Usual K1 paddler Alan Ward transferred many of his skills over, whilst James Ibbotson showed off what hard work and persistence can do for you. Every paddler was amazing and loved every second of performing for the crowd, warming the crowd up for the finals left to come.
The womens finals were a mix of juniors and seniors, giving a large final of 7 ladies. These paddlers were Ottilie Robinson –Shaw, Sophie McPeak, Heidi Walsh, Jen McGaley, Lowri Davis, Kim Aldred and Islay Crosbie. The junior girls stepped up and were pushing the seniors. They all put on an amazing show and really showed off how good the British women are at freestyle paddling. All the ladies throwing the gauntlet down for the men to try and follow.
By the time the senior men K1 final got under way the course’s floodlights had come on, making the atmosphere even more exciting. In the finals were the usual big names of Robert Crowe, Gavin Barker and Alan Ward, fired up after his C1 final. But there were also a couple more names in the mix that really pushed the big names hard, these were Ben Aldred and James Weight. This final was very exciting, showing off the pinnacle of GB freestyle. Nobody disappointed. Every man in the final showed exactly why they were there, and pushed hard to try and claim the British Champion title.
Once finals were done and scores were being collected people slightly retreated to the BBQ’s, grabbing burgers and sausages to refuel themselves. But it didn’t take long before results were being announced. Paddler, spectators, friends and family all gathered round the podiums to hear the results. First to be read out was the junior men, third place went to Hugh Mandlestam, second place was Harry Price. First place and British Champion was Alex Walters. Then turn of the junior women. Second place was Ottilie Robinson –Shaw, meaning Sophie Mcpeak had took the victory and the title. C1 were called out next. Third given to Alan Ward, closely followed by Adam Ramadan in second. This meant that James Ibbotson had ran away with the lead and the British Champion title. This was swiftly followed by the Women. Third place was Lowri Davies narrowly behind Kim Aldred in second, with Islay Crosbie taking the title in first place.
Last to be announced was the senior K1 men. This was the closest of all the categories, with only 215 points between the top 3 places. Third place was awarded to James Weight, with Gavin Barker just ahead of him in second. Sneaking into first place and claiming the title was local boy Robert Crowe, with a very impressive 1500 points!
Each title winner took it in turn to stand atop the podium, be presented with the British Championship trophy and their custom Peak UK British Champion cagdeck. A big bottle of bubbly was also given to them to spray around like the superstar they are. Everybody thoroughly enjoyed themselves and went for a good drink after.
Full results can be found on the
GB Freestyle Page.
Article / images: James Ibbotson
