The Thameside Series are two canoe and kayak races organised by Reading Canoe Club, that coincide with the Waterside Series races, organised by Newbury Canoe Club. The two races are Thameside 1 (a 12-mile race from Aldermaston, Berkshire to Reading), and Thameside 2 (a 19-mile race starting at Reading and ending in Marlow, Buckinghamshire).
Starting from Aldermaston Bridge, Thameside 1 is a 12-mile, 13 portage time trial down the Kennet & Avon Canal, through Reading town centre and out onto the River Thames. A left turn where the mouth of the Kennet meets the Thames takes competitors upstream and over Caversham Lock, finishing upstream of Caversham Bridge at Reading Canoe Club on the right hand bank. [1]
This is a 19-mile, 8 portage downstream race with mass class starts, starting in Reading and finishing at Marlow. The finish was historically at the Longridge Activity Centre, Quarry Wood Road, Marlow, until 2022. A new finish location has yet to be announced. This race encompasses the Henley Straight - a 2-mile stretch over river running through Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire, which is notorious for its strong head and side winds.
There are 12 classes: Junior K1; Junior K2; Senior K1,; Senior K2; Senior C1; Senior C2; Veteran K1; Veteran K2; Ladies K1; Ladies K2; Mixed K2; Junior/Veteran K2. The Senior and Junior classes are the mostly highly contested, with records often being set each year. Thameside 1 is undertaken as a staggered start, whereby racers are set off in groups at set times. However, Thameside 2 is split into four staggered starts - slower K2 boats, slower K1 boats, faster K2 boats and finally faster K1 boats. Anytime paddler(s) ranked Division 3 or above in the Hasler Series of races must start in the faster starts by race rules. The mass starts are often areas of controversy, as the more competitive boats are often accused of 'pushing the line', and large waves being formed by the start, often capsizing boats further back. On average, about 200 boats compete in each race.
The Thameside Series is held at a similar time to the Waterside Series, a series of four races held by Newbury Canoe Club. The six races in total are also deemed to be good warm-up races for the Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Race (DW). However, the two series on their own are often considered to be good challenges in themselves, and are competed particularly strongly in the Junior K2 section by schools.
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The Kennet and Avon Canal is a waterway in southern England with an overall length of 87 miles (140 km), made up of two lengths of navigable river linked by a canal. The name is used to refer to the entire length of the navigation rather than solely to the central canal section. From Bristol to Bath the waterway follows the natural course of the River Avon before the canal links it to the River Kennet at Newbury, and from there to Reading on the River Thames. In all, the waterway incorporates 105 locks.
The Devizes to Westminster International Canoe Marathon is a marathon canoe race in England. The race is held every Easter over a course of 125 miles (201 km) from Devizes in Wiltshire to Westminster in central London. It has been run since 1948. Starting at Devizes wharf, the route follows the Kennet and Avon canal for 54 miles to Reading, where it joins the Thames. Another 54 miles later it reaches Teddington Lock, ending 17 miles later at Westminster Bridge.
Vesta Rowing Club is a rowing club based on the Tideway of the River Thames in Putney, London, England. It was founded in 1870.
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The Royal Canoe Club (RCC), founded in 1866, is the oldest canoe club in the world and received royal patronage in the 19th century. The club promotes canoeing and kayaking, focusing on flatwater, sprint and marathon disciplines. Members of the club have represented Great Britain at World Championships and the Olympic Games. The club is based at Trowlock Island on the River Thames in Teddington near London. The premises are also used by Walbrook Rowing Club, The Skiff Club and Kingston Royals Dragon Boat Racing Club.
The Dusi Canoe Marathon is a marathon canoe race held over three days between Pietermaritzburg and Durban, South Africa. It is run along the Msunduzi and Mgeni Rivers over a total distance of 120 kilometres (75 mi). The race attracts between 1600 and 2000 paddlers each year, making it the biggest canoeing event on the African continent. It is organised by the Natal Canoe Club. The clubhouse is located on the banks of the Msunduzi River, at the exact start point of the race.
The Waterside Series is a series of four marathon canoe races held on the Kennet and Avon Canal and finishing at the Newbury Waterside Centre.
The Thames is one of the main rowing rivers in Europe. Several annual competitions are held along its course, including the Henley Royal Regatta, the The Boat Race and other long-distance events, called Head of the River races (Heads).
Canoe marathon is a paddling sport in which athletes paddle a kayak or canoe over a long distance to the finish line. The International Canoe Federation states the standard distances are at least 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) without an upper limit, while short distance races are between 3.4 kilometres (2.1 mi), and 10 kilometres (6.2 mi). Many events are raced down sections of river, including currents or portages around obstacles. Some events attract thousands of competitors and are staged over several days.
Viking Kayak Club is an open, community-based, multi-disciplinary club and is now one of the foremost canoe and kayak clubs in the UK. The club offers a broad range of paddling opportunities from easy recreational paddling to competition in canoe slalom, canoe racing and canoe polo and is active in encouraging beginners into the sport.
The Hasler Series is the British national club championship in the sport of marathon canoeing, a long distance form of canoe racing, governed by the Marathon Racing Committee and supported by British Canoeing (BC).
Liam Heath is a British sprint canoeist. He is the most successful British canoeist at the Olympics with a total of four medals; he won a gold medal in the individual 200m kayak sprint event at the 2016 Summer Olympics and a bronze in the 2020 Olympics, as well as a silver in the men's double with Jon Schofield in 2016. and a bronze at the 2012 London Olympics in the K-2 200 with Schofield.
Tomáš Ježek is a Czech flatwater canoer who has been competing in canoe marathon on international level since 1994. Competing at many World Championships in marathon he won one silver medal on K1 in Týn nad Vltavou 2008.
Jo Brigden-Jones is an Australian kayaker. She represented Australia at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London and the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo in sprint kayaking.
Louisa Jane Gurski is a London 2012 Olympic Games finalist who competes in Sprint Kayaker for Great Britain. She was brought up in Walton-on-Thames and started Kayaking at Elmbridge Canoe Club, Weybridge at the age of 10.
Jon Schofield is a British canoeist. He partnered with Liam Heath in the men's kayak double 200m sprint event, and they have won a bronze in K-2 200 at the 2012 Summer Olympics, and a silver at the 2016 Summer Olympics in the same event. They have also won gold at the European Championships three times as well as silver and bronze medals at the World Championships.
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Christchurch Meadows is a park in Reading, Berkshire, England, located next to the River Thames. It stretches along the north (Caversham) side of the river, between Caversham Bridge and Reading Bridge, and is linked to the south (Reading) bank by the Christchurch Bridge, a pedestrian and cycle bridge built in 2015. The name of the meadow derives from Christ Church in Oxford, whose dean owned 25 acres (10 ha) of farmland in Reading.
