Wild Water Racing
Wildwater Canoeing is a discipline of canoe racing, also known as Wildwater Racing and Whitewater Racing.
Do you want to experience the exhilaration of racing flat-out against the clock down stretches of the UK’s top white water through unspoilt countryside and gain a sense of achievement by successfully negotiating a demanding time-trial course?
Then try Wild Water Racing – the canoeing equivalent of downhill skiing. Races take place on grade II to IV water – the exact difficulty depending on water levels. Pace yourself correctly over a 10 – 25 minute Classic event or test your speed and boat control over a 2 minute Sprint event.
New competitors should enter Div. B races where all types of kayak and canoe compete against each other for points in a single race, using a handicap system. Prizes are awarded, for all class and age group winners and some Div. B races are used to contest the U10/U12/14/U16 Championship (age as at 1st January). There is also a specific junior event – the Wavehopper Challenge series, which is run on challenging but appropriate stretches of water across the UK. Please just come along to a race and try it out in your boat, or at some events wavehoppers may be available to borrow, but if you want one please book in advance by contacting the Wavehoppe Co-ordinatior Email
Once you have mastered the art at Div. B you can gain promotion to Div. A, where races take place on the more difficult courses and National Championship Rankings in Classic and Sprint are gained from results throughout the year. Inter-Region and Inter-Club Champions are decided on points earned by all paddlers at events throughout the season.
The wildwater time trial is the purest of whitewater racing forms - the athlete, the river, the clock. A racing performance is the result of physical conditioning, skill and harmony with the water - and is the only sport where social paddling is necessary to achieve a peak performance. Beautiful water, scenery and companionship make the Wild Water Racing experience compelling. The competitor is free to take whichever route on the river they desire, a freedom of racing unsurpassed in the whitewater world.
Races are run in three formats:
Do you want to experience the exhilaration of racing flat-out against the clock down stretches of the UK’s top white water through unspoilt countryside and gain a sense of achievement by successfully negotiating a demanding time-trial course?
Then try Wild Water Racing – the canoeing equivalent of downhill skiing. Races take place on grade II to IV water – the exact difficulty depending on water levels. Pace yourself correctly over a 10 – 25 minute Classic event or test your speed and boat control over a 2 minute Sprint event.
New competitors should enter Div. B races where all types of kayak and canoe compete against each other for points in a single race, using a handicap system. Prizes are awarded, for all class and age group winners and some Div. B races are used to contest the U10/U12/14/U16 Championship (age as at 1st January). There is also a specific junior event – the Wavehopper Challenge series, which is run on challenging but appropriate stretches of water across the UK. Please just come along to a race and try it out in your boat, or at some events wavehoppers may be available to borrow, but if you want one please book in advance by contacting the Wavehoppe Co-ordinatior Email
Once you have mastered the art at Div. B you can gain promotion to Div. A, where races take place on the more difficult courses and National Championship Rankings in Classic and Sprint are gained from results throughout the year. Inter-Region and Inter-Club Champions are decided on points earned by all paddlers at events throughout the season.
The wildwater time trial is the purest of whitewater racing forms - the athlete, the river, the clock. A racing performance is the result of physical conditioning, skill and harmony with the water - and is the only sport where social paddling is necessary to achieve a peak performance. Beautiful water, scenery and companionship make the Wild Water Racing experience compelling. The competitor is free to take whichever route on the river they desire, a freedom of racing unsurpassed in the whitewater world.
Races are run in three formats:
- Classic - A single run over a 15 minute (approximately) course.
- Sprint - The total of two runs over a 500 metre course.
- Wavehopper - A format specifically for youngsters, the best of two runs to count.