Paddle Peak Annual Report 2024
Winter Pool Sessions continued through January to March increasing all paddlers confidence and rolling ability. Superb e@orts from them all. The sessions started again in November to build on skills and technique. A grant from Derbyshire Dales District Council very kindly helped with the costs of booking the pool. These skills were then taken to the river in the spring, allowing both groups to be paddling on the Derwent and to give the ‘Sprogs’ group their first taste of moving water and river travel. They progressed from easy moving water to running the rapids at Matlock bath and paddling all the way back to Cromford, with a portage around Masson weir. Great work team. We also had guest paddlers come along on evenings, one highlight being Harry Price, freestyle kayaking world medallist. Harry was great with the kids and talked to them and demonstrated his skills to ‘wow’ and inspire.
River cleans. February and March saw more teams of volunteers rallied to help cleaning sections of the river from the Arc leisure centre, down to Artists Corner car park – a wellused section of river that also attracts a lot of debris. Once again, a large amount of haybale wrap was retrieved from the riverbanks and trees, saving this from breaking down and entering our wider waterways. Representatives of the NFU and Severn Trents’ ranger team came to help (bankside) with the clean in March, to witness the sheer amount of debris and the hard work involved.
A grant was also received from the Canoe Foundation, following a successful application by Pete Astles, for the future installation of a pontoon, pathways and launch area at the garden centre development planned along the canal. This will help a huge amount in ensuring safe access for all club members.
We once again hosted Holloway Scout group for a double session of kayaking on the canal in May. Our volunteers dedicated another evening to introduce more youngsters to the water.
Our partnership with the Derwent Valley Trust has been strengthened, thanks to long time river-cleaning volunteers Allan Mellor and Peter Montandon for collaborating with the trust and working alongside them to help the trusts understanding of river access, with the eventual aim being a canoe trail along the length of the Derwent alongside the riverside trail.
Another exciting opportunity for the youngsters was to try Wild Water racing. Nicky Cressar and his Team GB paddlers came along with a fleet of these unique craft and let the youngsters try them all out under their expert instruction. They then returned and helped with a couple of ‘Derwent Dash’ downriver races and the Paddle Peak youngsters all had their first taste of racing.
Once again we hosted the ‘come and try it’ kayaking sessions on the canal for the Cromford Adventure Weekend. Almost 300 local youngsters had the chance to try out a session of kayaking on the canal, under instruction from our amazing volunteers, along with GB team paddlers from all disciplines as well as meet Paris Olympic medallists Adam Burgess and Kimberly Woods (with their Olympic medals of course!). Alongside the come and try it, we hosted a family Peak Challenge multi-discipline event on the river for more experienced paddlers. With racing and coaching each day (from numerous GB and Olympic champions past and present) in a di@erent discipline, the event attracted paddlers and their families from all over the country, and everyone had such a great time and said they’d be back next year!
In October, we had the opportunity to join Ben Seal from Paddle UK and take our local MP John Whitby on a trip down the Cromford Canal. We chatted about access, pollution, local kids kayaking sessions, river cleans and our vision for the old garden centre to become a community base for young people to enjoy the canal. Thanks to Ben Seal from Paddle UK for making this possible.
November 29[th] again saw the river clean volunteers take to the river on our annual ‘Black Bag Friday’. Once again, along with our crew of volunteers, we cleared literally ‘boat loads’ of rubbish and bale wrap from the river and its banks. Such a shame we have to keep repeating this, but a very worthwhile day on the water.
The youngsters from the club have also continued racing in Slalom events around the country in their respective divisions and have put in some stellar performaces. We’ve had some great weekends away, lots of fun and some tight racing and terrific results throughout. It’s so good to see the enjoyment they get from these events, the friends they make, and their confidence continue to grow.
Rankings at the end of the 2024 season for our paddlers choosing to compete;
in Div2, 13[th] J14.
Daniel Pick – promoted from Div 3 in September with 2 race wins, ranked 77th in Div 2, 16[th] J16.
Eli Hill – 5 top ten placings in 2024, ranked 12[th] in Div 3 at the end of season, 2[nd] J10.
Bodie Ramsdale – 5 top ten placings in Div 3 through 2024, ranked 19[th] at close of season, 3[rd] J10.
at end of Lucas Pick – 1 top ten finish in Div 3 and all 6 races in the top 15. Ranked 44[th] season, 7[th] J12.
Eadie Whiting – 3[rd] place in a Div 2 race at Cardington, finished the season 22[nd] in Div2 after starting 69[th] , 4[th] J12.
As the evenings drew in, sessions went back to the canal and Paul R kindly led some Sunday morning sessions on the river for those paddlers wanting to maintain their skills on moving water. Pool sessions resumed in November too, to continue working on those rolling skills.
The last, and perhaps most exciting, application this year though was that of the planning permission for the new Paddle Peak clubhouse (as part of the Cromford Garden Centre re-development by Peak PS). A permanent base for the club will secure its future and allow it to guide more youngsters each year into paddling, enjoying and caring for the environment. Fingers crossed for the future!
Eternal thanks to our partners and sponsors – Peak PS, Cromford Mills, Willersley Castle – Manor Adventure, Paddle UK, Derbyshire Dales District Council, Derbyshire County Council Countryside Services.
| Paddle Peak Profit & Loss Accounts 2024 | 30/12/2024 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Income | £11,857.47 | ||
| Grants | £3,526.59 | ||
| Donations | £5,902.61 | ||
| Entry Fees | £2,428.27 | ||
| Total | £11,857.47 | ||
| Expenses | £11,857.47 | ||
| Pool Fees | £ | 824.20 |
|
| Lighting | £ | 1,405.20 |
|
| Slalom Gates, Lines & Posts | £ | 577.28 |
|
| Sundry | £ | 22.75 |
|
| Website | £ | 235.63 |
|
| Insurance | £ | 272.69 |
|
| Paddler UK Club Fees | £ | 165.00 |
|
| Equipment | £ | 5,752.61 |
|
| Event Costs | £ | 2,602.11 |
|
| Total | £ | 11,857.47 |
Net P/L
£0.00