Whitewater Kayaking in its Purest Form

First off, I would like to apologize to my devout following. I'm sure this past week has been boring and uneventful for you - I know most of you thrive on reading my blog and hearing about the exciting and adventurous times of John Hastings.

With a hard week of training in Augsburg coming to an end this past Friday, we were off to Bovec, Slovenia to race our ultralight whitewater slalom boats down the Soca (pronounced So-Cha) River against some of the worlds best. The Soca river, situated in the heart of the Slovenian Alps was by far one of the most beautiful rivers I had ever paddled on in my life. The water was cool and crisp and clean enough you could drink it. The actual river was littered with massive boulders which put to test the kayaking and river-running skills of any kayaker of any level brave enough to navigate it.

Although water levels have been very low this year (due to the lack of snow in Europe), today's torrential rain remedied the problem significantly. In fact, the rain became a bit of a problem. Between our first and second runs, the water rose at least 0.5 - 1m and completely changed the course even though the gates were in the same place. Simply, rocks were hidden under the water, new waves and currents formed...it was pretty crazy. Anyways, after our first runs, I was ranked 6th, but dropped two positions and ended up 8th after the second runs. Although I had wished to be ranked higher, this race was incredibly fun. Normally, when racing on artificial courses, variables such as changing water level are non-existent. However, today we had a whole new challenge to deal with. We were forced to read and react to the changing conditions as we went, with the only game plan to try and make it to the bottom in one piece.

We are now in Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia. We will train at the course here (named Tacen) all week in preparation for the double-header race next weekend.

Until next time race fans!

Thrill of Victory, the Agony of Defeat

Unfortunately, the outcome in the Slovak Open (Race #2) was not what I had planned. Flipping over in the last section of the course, appropriately named Niagara, resulted in me missing the last two gates and finishing last in the semi-final. Very devastating, especially since there were generous cash prizes for the finalists (those in the top 10). Today, the dice didn't roll in my favour, but this is thing about sport which keeps all of us coming back for more. We get a dose of the drug called victory or excellence (depending who your dealer is) and we constantly Jones for our next fix. I didn't get my fix this weekend, which increases my anticipation for next weekends race in Slovenia.

We will leave Bratislava and Slovakia tomorrow and head to Augsburg, Germany (site of the 1972 Olympic Games) for some training. I am looking forward to training there as the site is home to many of the World's best kayakers and a regular stop on the World Cup tour.

Until next post race fans, keep fit and have fun!

Wind - The Bain of my Existence!

We are currently situated here in beautiful Bratislava, Slovakia as we prepare for the Bratislava World Series race. Typically, this city is hot. So hot, that you can literally fry eggs on the hood of your car! Crazy you may think, but my good friend, Connor Curson, claims to have fried eggs and even cook steak on the hood of a rental car on one of his many stints here in Bratislava.

Anyways, since our arrival on Monday the weather has only gotten worse. We have been hit with wind, rain and cold. Fortunately, my many days spent training in the windy city of Valleyfield, Quebec are starting to pay off - this unpleasant weather is no more distracting than a mosquito hitting a windshield.....well, maybe that is a bit of a stretch.

Being Wednesday, it is only two more days until we race. Since Kayaking is the number two sport here in Slovakia, I am anticipating a spectacular event with many off-water attractions/activities and race fans. I've been honing my autograph-signing skills, just in case they will be needed.

Ciao for now.

Race #1: 22nd - 10th - 4th

With the Tatra Slalom here in Liptovsky Mikulas, Slovakia coming to a close, I am happy to report that I ended up 4th. Although the margin between me and the podium was 0.16 seconds, this 4th place finish was a good result for the beginning of the season.

In June, this same course here in Litpovsky Mikulas will host the European Championships. Thus, this race was well attended and included many of the top names in Slalom Kayaking from all over Europe and the World.

Although the weekend got off to a slow start as I finished 22nd in the Friday prelude. However, after some modifications to my equipment, I turned it around for the Saturday qualifier (finishing 10th) and then 4th today in the final.

A memorable moment for me this weekend was when a female racer from Iran proceeded to flip over and roll herself upright using only one hand. For those of you foreign to kayaking, 'hand-rolling', which was it this Iranian did, is deemed a more advanced kayaking manoeuvre which some of the most gifted/elite kayakers have trouble doing....thus, for this Iranian (who I was informed has only been paddling for a month), this feat was really cool to see, especially the second time she did it!

Planes, Trains and Automobiles

I made it. I am now in Liptovsky Mikulas.

First off - the train is overrated. Well, from what I remember. Although it is a mortal sin to sleep during the day when trying to fight off Jet-lag, the ambiance and rhythmic hum of the train put me to sleep instantly. I have paid dearly for this mistake as I have spent my nights wide awake.

Anyways, the adventure was cool. I had the opportunity to see the Vajda factory and how they make their kayaks, or water rocket-ships. I was instructed not to share this information with anyone.

BTW - Brendan Curson, you owe Vajda 1460 EUROS.

Anyways, off to the river to paddle my new Vajda 350 - which paint design makes it look like I am sponsored by Air Canada. Maybe they will respect this and let me fly my boat for free next time!

Anticipation Mounts

I am so very much excited for my departure to Europe tomorrow. I feel like a kid in a candy store....well, I actually don't know what that feels like. As a child, my diet consisted of spinach, steak, potatoes, beets, brussel sprouts, cabbage and perogies; however, I have heard that kids go 'crazy' and are very excited when they enter a candy store.

Anyways, I am very motivated to race now...after a few days of active recovery, my finely tuned body (thanks to Adam Douglas at the ACC, Jonathan Tremblay, Michal Staniszewski and Interactive Nutrition products), had time to recover and recharge for the next two months of racing. If you haven't seen my schedule, I'll be based in Slovakia for two weeks, and then a stint in Slovenia, a stint in Italy, a little bit of training, and then it is the World Cup Tour.

Although the entire two months will be filled with adventure, I think these next few days will be pretty cool. Never have I had the chance to ride the trains in Europe....finally, on Tuesday I will get that opportunity to Ride the Reading (monopoly jargon) from Munich to Bratislava. I am looking forward to being able to see some new terrain across Europe...from my understanding, I will be heading into Europe's 'Bear Country'....maybe I'll see the infamous Knut, or Knut's parents....One last thought, do Gypsy's travel by train? I hope not. Anyways, this will be my last post before I arrive in Liptovsky Mikulas, my first stop and race on my journey.

Stay tuned my devout followers.

And it Begins

Yes, I am a terrible blogger; however, I am back.

With our national team selections wrapping up this past weekend, I am glad to say that I qualified once again and will have the opportunity to represent Canada at a variety of races including World Cups and the ever important World Championships. Much can be said about this past weekend; however, I would like to simplify it and say that I loved it. The high stakes, high pressure racing environment was intense, but very much elating. I have now just begun to relax and return to a more normal state. Qualifying was anything but easy - I left it to the last minute this time around....not a smart play, especially with such stiff domestic competition.

Anyways, I'm on the team and for now that's all that matters.

I will be leaving to Europe on Monday with plans to compete in as many races as possible. When in Europe I will use this tool more regularly and ensure that everyone is up-to-date on the happenings of John Hastings.