The Marathon Racing Committee will be meeting for their annual all day meeting on Saturday 16th November. If anyone has any points, issues or comments that they would like the MRC to consider during that meeting, please email to the MRC Secretary by midday on Sunday 10th November.
The Safety Advisory Panel provides guidance and advice to Paddle UK to support safety practice within all aspects of paddlesport. The panel comprises of the Director of Recreation and Development, External Safety Advisor, Safety Lead, representatives from each of the National Associations: Canoe Wales, Paddle Scotland, and the Canoe Association of Northern Ireland, RNLI representative, and four independent volunteer advisors who are appointed for their knowledge and expertise within the safety industry and or paddlesport. Occasionally, other relevant representatives are to attend where appropriate.
Paddle UK is now looking for a new independent member who will complement the existing skills within the group. For more information, visit their website here.
The Marathon Racing Committee’s 2024 Annual Consultative Meeting will be taking place online at 8pm on Monday 8th July, as previously advertised.
As a reminder, please make sure your club has registered to vote for the ACM to ensure you are represented.
Please see below for all relevant papers for this years edition. Any questions, please direct them towards the MRC Secretary, Anoushka Freeman, here.
There is a change to what used to be Event Tickets (ET). Temporary PaddleUK membership for an event is now available online as a Single Event Membership (SEM). Paddlers entering without either On the Water Membership or Club Associate Membership via an Affiliated Club will need to purchase SEM where they used to use an ET. This can be done while entering.
Race Organisers will need to be aware that the paper ET form should no longer be used or payments taken which will reduce their tasks.
Team Leaders and Paddlers will need to be aware that they need to purchase SEM if they do not have other membership of PaddleUK. Team Leaders should however use Club Associate Membership if at all possible where a club paddler does not have On the Water Membership of PaddleUK. The link to Membership classes on the PaddleUK Website is https://paddleuk.org.uk/?s=membership
The system has been tested and appears to work fine, but should an issue arise, please let Mick Nadal know.
The MRC will be re-electing committee members at the ACM on the 8th July.
We are always looking for passionate people to join the committee and help drive positive change forward within the sport.
If you are interested, please get in touch ASAP at marathon.secretary@vol.paddleuk.org.uk
There are various roles available with differing levels of commitment.
We’d love to hear from you!
Please note that the Marathon Racing Committee ACM will be taking place on the 8th July at 8pm.
Each club needs to nominate a representative to receive voting rights during the ACM. This can be done on the link below and should be done by 10pm on Monday 1st July: https://forms.gle/hSKZ5bfzywjTu7t39
The ACM offers a formal space for the marathon racing community to engage with the committee and support the development of the sport further. We strongly encourage ALL clubs involved with marathon racing to attend and nominate a representative to vote. We also encourage ALL members of the marathon racing committee to attend even without voting rights.
Incidentally, the MRC are looking for feedback on increasing participation at the Short Course National Championships and would be delighted for any feedback from individuals/clubs before the ACM. Please also ensure this is complete by 10pm on Monday 1st July so that your views can be heard!
Feedback can be shared here:Â https://forms.gle/QwYWBfeAKrrgfPHS7
Thank you!
Following a number of incidents over the past 12 months, race organisers are reminded of the recommendation in Part C of the Marathon Racing Rules. See below for a summary of Item 3 from Part C.
3. SAFETY
Safety measures are largely at the discretion of the organiser, since courses and conditions vary considerably. All paddlers ranked in Divisions 7, 8, & 9 or competing in GST and fun races must wear a buoyancy aid [Rules 5 (a)(v) and 56 (a)]. Make sure you have adequate safety cover for all GST and Div 9 races. On the open sea it is wise to insist on buoyancy aids for all. On open water, rescue boats are very important. Ensure that no one is stranded or lost halfway round the course; it is important to account for all competitors. On calm water it is usually sufficient to have a back marker paddling the course. Marshals at turns and portages should carry safety equipment including an absolute minimum of space blanket or similar, throw line and mobile phone. Where possible a checklist of boat numbers will help marshals tick off those who have passed them.
All Race organisers shall appoint a Safety Officer, prepare a Risk Assessment and Safety Plan well ahead of their event and put in hand appropriate safety measures. Risk Assessments must be forwarded to the Regional Marathon Advisor before the event.
Paddlers, parents & Team Leaders are also reminded how important it is to keep race organisers informed of information such as health issues, retirements or incidents that may occur during a race.
Following the ACM and the new Marathon Racing Committee’s first meeting in September, the committee roles for 2023/2024 have been confirmed. You can now view the full list of roles and contact details here.
After 20 years of looking after the money, David Enoch has decided to step down from the role of Treasurer. From the 1st November, Joe Fitzpatrick will officially take on the role, after shadowing David for the last six months. David will still sit on the committee and will be supporting the transition over to the new Treasurer. If you wish to contact Joe, his email is J.Fitzpatrick93@outlook.com. All enquires around budget, race levys and more should go to Joe from the 1st November. We thank David for his incredible work that he has done in this role over the last twenty years as a volunteer.
The Marathon Racing Committee are seeking an organised and consistent individual to take over the responsibility of trophies and medals for our three major events.
For a overview of the role and responsibilities, click the document below.
If you are interested in taking on this role, please contact our chairman, Stan Missen, here. If you have any particular questions about the role, the current co-ordinator, Neil Urquhart, is willing to be contacted here.
We would like to have this role filled by December as we prepare for the 2024 season.
We have had to postpone the MRC ACM to Wednesday 12 July. This will still take place on Zoom, starting at 7.30 and lasting approximately 1 hour.
The Agenda and papers are all in the pdf pack below, along with the Zoom link. Please note, we do encourage paddlers to bring up any topics that they would like the MRC to discuss/review during the year, and there is an opportunity for that at the end of the meeting.