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Freshers Trip 2000
Freshers 2002 - watch this space
It all began on Friday morning for me, as I am no longer a student at Trent, boo hoo, sob sob, nor a resident in Nottingham ... Again boo hoo sob sob, I had to drive up from home in Portsmouth to begin my weekend manoeuvres. Apart from the Canoe club Alps trip in the summer this was my only other week off this year, so I was obviously looking forward to a bit of a phat one. Got to Nottingham at 12.30 ish after testing my roof bars on the car to the limit. no, of course I wasn't breaking the speed limit officer!!!
Friday arvo, the minibuses were picked up from the hire company, the trailers picked up from their dealers, and all headed down to Holme Pierrepoint to be loaded. 27 canoes, copius quantities of safety gear, helmets, and wetsuits.
We headed back to our homesteads to pick up own gear at grab a last warm shower before a large weekend of camping and paddling, and perhaps a little drinking too!!!
Everyone met in the Sub, doh sorry, Glo-Bar to all you youngsters!, at about 5, those who were running late were not told off cause it gave those who were waiting more time at the bar.
Everyone got there ok, and all bundled onto their relevant of the three buses, and weekends manoeuvres kicked off. I tried to kidnap one of those silly enough to decide not to attend the trip, and she promptly gave me a beer shampoo. thanks a lot Jules, you'll keep!!!
After the initial faff, i.e. Chiefs bus going the opposite direction to us at one point between the Union and Radford Asda, everyone stocked up on the weekend supplies, mainly beer and alcoholic beverages and we all managed to set off not very far from 7pm. Very good by our standards!!!
Got to a local pub just outside Ripon at 10ish where the other two buses had already managed to fill the pub, shame about the locals quiet Friday night drink. They were all pretty cool though, I think the female members of our party helped a great deal with the old men in the pub dealing with us. nice one ladeeez!!! After closing, the usual Friday night carnage of pissed people trying to put up their tents, in the dark or by transit headlights if they were really lucky. Always a good laff to sit back and watch, a big up must go to Jon-Chap here who totally forgot to put his flysheet on his tent - doh. Oh, and also Bolton, who put his tent up for some girls to use, only to find laying next to him when he got in Jon's tent, his tent pegsd - blimey Charlie.
Saturday began with people, including me, dealing with last nights drink, I made quite a performance apparently leaning head first out the drivers seat of the bus where I had landed the night before, unloading some stomach contents onto the grass. As least I managed that, unlike some people. MOSES!!!!!! Everyone, bar Moses who passed out somewhere and got forgotten, dived onto a bus and headed for a nice greasy spoon in Ripon. It is fair to say that the toilets at the Bakers Oven in Ripon, will never be the same again!!!!!!
Back at camp, everyone began to think about getting their kit on for a paddle, Slenningford Mill is a short stretch of river, which is ideal for freshers to check out moving water for the first time. The more experienced amongst us went down from the top of the section to show the freshers what is was all about, they thought this looked knarly. You should see the Alps rivers guys!!! Keyboard did a nice little "What not to do!" for the freshers by getting cauhght underneath an overhanging tree and swimming - nice one!!! Back at the bottom, it became apparent that a major faff factor had occurred. The helmets were still at the top of our cul de sac in Nottingham! DOH!!!!! Rob the builder and Bolton dived straight into a minibus and headed back home to pick them up.
There were enough personal helmets there however to do two shifts of freshers paddles just doing basic stuff in Eddies. Lorna showed them basic stuff and just about got them all to head into the moving water, there were a couple of swims which must be recognised - Susan, Dave/Elli, etc...
WHO ELSE SWAM GUYS?????????????????
Everyone seemed happy enough and people gradually began getting changed into warmer, dryer gear, and some even had to dive into the shower, usually banned on canoe trips I must add!
Rob and Bolton arrived back with the club helmets all the kit was packed away and we headed back into Ripon for some tea and a cold beer or six. I'll give a shout out to the beer monster himself here, Claude, who woke up with a beer in his sleeping bag at 8am, and carried on drinking during the day, he was beginning to look worse for wear by teatime! While the other buses faffed, our bus no. 1 came to a hunaminous decision to go for a good old Ruby Murry, got recommend one by the barman in the pub and dived in there at 6.30ish. Felt sorry for the couple at the table window having a quiet romantic curry, no doubt before their Saturday night bedroom manoeuvres, 16 of us piled in, Claude making enough noise for three or four people. Fair play to Calor who managed somehow to get on a table with 6 ladeez and Ben, well ok, 7 ladeeez, but on the other hand, Dave/Elli had all blokes on her table, game on for you Dave!!! A wicked curry was had by all, Claude had a Chicken vindaloo which apparently wasn't only hot when he ate it. I fell into the toilets, got caught out by one small step for man, but a very bloody large step for Drive!!! Headed back to the bus, and went off to the country local for evening manoeuvres to kick off. Once again we had managed to fill the pub to bulging point, the landlord seemed happy enough though. Ipswich canoe club were also in the pub but we soon drowned them out!!!! Big up.
At closing, the majority of us scaved a more than dodgy lift home, how many drunken Canoers can you fit in the back of a tranny van! answer, as many as you like I reckon!!! Maybe it didn't help that the driver kept weaving from side to side, maybe he'd just come out the pub as well!!! Back at camp, there was frost on the ground, it was obviously gonna be a chilly night, so some people managed to weave some magic and get someone to use as a hot water bottle, and maybe a bit more, who knows!!! Fergie continued to resist the charms of Rob the Builder, who tried the vinegar, chicken and mushroom pie, and Colgate mouth freshness approaches to try and score with her, fair play Fergie.
In the morning, the wet gear that had been left out was now capable of standing up on its own, there was one hell of a frost and the thought of canoeing wasn't particularly appealing at this point. Everyone packed up and we moved off to head for Teeside Barrage. We grabbed a breakkie in Thirsk, which was much respected, good nosh people. At Teeside, the white water course there is tidal, so we had a couple of hours to wait before it opened, a good chance for a nice warm cuppa, and to spend in the canoe kit shop.
Then everyone got kitted up and we got all the freshers who wanted to on the lake for some scampateering fresher lessons. Massif respect to the frehsers, unusually including the ladeez, who were all well up for the paddling crack despite the cold, wigedy wack! Attempted to get them all paddling in a straight line, then kicked off the games like walk the raft, chariots, and bulldog. When the course opened the experienced paddlers headed down and the freshers all got off, the course was ok, but not on the scale of Holme Pierrepoint, although the water was of course a whole bunch cleaner.
All freshers who wanted to get taken down the course in the duo canoe so they could check it out, all seemed well stoked. I wasn't convinced by Posh Michelle who I took down, and we had a collision with some tosser who was in the way, and we capsized. She was laughing when were swimming down after the boat so I guess she wasn't too put off. Sorry tiger!
Once all the packing up had been done, it was the long trek home. Smiley Rich began drivers duties in our bus while the rest of us began drinking anything left on the bus! All non-alcoholic of course!!!!! Rob the builder took over half way, and Rich began playing catch up with the rest of us. The usual scampateering of Drive, trying to get any car driving past to give us a Waaaaaasssssssssuuuuuuupppppppp!!!!!! wasn't too successful but gave the others something to laugh at I guess. Just managed to catch the Sub, sorry, Glo-bar, before it closed, big up to them for putting up with us in drunken states. Worse states this night were Crazy Nikki who was scampateering big time, smiley Rich who successfully managed catch up looking at the state of him, and also Fergie & Posh Spice - you clowns!!!
This was my 5th freshers trip, and I personally think that it was my best ever, all the new freshers seem completely barking and can hold their own in the drinking stakes. From our point of view, the number of foxy ladeeeez on the trip was also more than pleasing, I lost count of how many times I had to say How-You-Doin?!?!? which is always a good sign ay, see you on the next trip gals!!!! Wish I was in Nottingham to spend more time with you nutters!!!
Big ups all round, massif respect and a hoofing BUYAKASHA to the new canoe club, if you're not in it, you're missing out!!! (Plug Plug Plug Plug Plug Plug). -
Drive Keech
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The Freshers Trip - Slenningford Mill
Paddling on the River Ure, Little Rich in the foreground
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The get on for the river Ure
Notice Claude with the can of beer in hand |
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A raft on the Ure
Left to right: Andy, Simon, ?, Lottie, Nicky, Andy |
Slenningfords Loacal Pub
Left to Right: Lorna, Keeley, Rich, Melvin, Becky, Nicole, Lee |
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Outside the local
Left to Right: Claude, Rich, Nicky, Emily, Lottie, Calor, Neil, Elly, Andy |
Bus Number Two
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Teeside White Water Centre
Practicing and messing about on the warm up lake at the top of the course |
The second drop on the White Water Course at Teeside
Matt perfecting his stand and watch technique |
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Teeside Top Wave
Smiley Rich (left) and Rob (right) |
Ready for off!
left to right: you must be joking! |
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If anyone has any more good photos of the trip send them to us to put on the site
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