Mighty Fish successes
The K3 racing canoe was designed and built in South Africa just over 10 years ago and it is the only country in the world that recognises the K3 class in races.
The Hansa Fish Canoe Marathon, which is hosted annually in Cradock, has proved to be a popular A grade race with a guaranteed water release.
Canoeists flock to the little Karoo town to enjoy the wild water obstacles, chutes built over the weirs, and mighty rapids on the fast flowing Fish River.
Suitable for novice canoeists as their first A grade race, it is also a fabulous social away-weekend for the whole family with bands and parties, including guest entertainers such as Theuns Jordaan and Centre Stage who performed this year.
West Rand first finishers included Shaun Maphanga as top paddler from the Florida Lake Canoe Club (FLCC) while the only K3 from the club included Gauteng Canoe Union Safety Officer Bertie Baard with Warren Mackenzie who lives in Silverfields (Krugersdorp) and Jennie Dallas, the club’s captain.
Mackenzie, who is recovering from a recent hip replacement desperately wanted to do the Fish this year, but caution prevailed and he enjoyed the opportunity to participate in the K3 with two paddlers who have 10 Fish races under their belt.
While a longstanding member of the club and having paddled on and off for some years, Mackenzie wanted to ensure that he could reduce his risk of swims and possible damage to the healing hip, and the K3 ploughed through the mighty waves and rapids of the fast flowing Fish River like a Sherman tank.
The K3 racing canoe was designed and built in South Africa just over 10 years ago and it is the only country in the world that recognises the K3 class in races.
The paddling power of three strong canoeists can be immensely effective, while the boat is also tremendously suitable for taking less experienced learner paddlers on rivers, in a safer less risky situation.
The FLCC K3 finished as the 36th K3, in seven hours and 14 minutes over the two days and 80kms on 27 and 28 September, in 451st position overall.
With seven paddlers to transport to the race some 850km away from Johannesburg, the club is immensely grateful to West Rand Sandown Motors, Jeep/ Chrysler suppliers in Constantia Kloof, who provided a branded seven-seater Voyager vehicle to enable the young talented extreme-sport achievers from the club’s community youth development programme to participate in the event.
