Marathon & Sprint Racing

Although Friends of Allonby has no tradition in Sprint or Marathon, the Club ran very successful 200 Metre Sprint and a 2000 Metre Sprint events for the World Firefighters Games in 2008 (WFG08) which took place in Liverpool, hosted by the Merseyside Fire and Rescue Service. To ensure 'a level playing field' all competitors used identical Speeder kayaks which were loaned to us by Pyranha, and Brookbank Canoes provided paddles, spraydecks and buoyancy aids for those paddlers that hadn't brought their own equipment.

Since WFG08 a number of our young members have been encouraged by one of our senior Coaches to have a go at Sprint to complement their Polo training, and build up their stamina. To help them quickly gain experience they have been training with another Merseyside canoe club which specialises in Sprint / Marathon, and they will enter their first Sprint event in March 2009. If this initiative is successful, and there is real interest in taking up Sprint / Marathon racing, the programme will be extended to our adult members and the Club will subsequently invest in the necessary boats to enable training to take place at our base in Queens Dock.

Liverpool Docks are ideal for Sprint and Marathon distance training, and we already have a Sprint / Marathon Representative, Prudence Blyth, who will be helping to promote these competitive disciplines within the Club.