The oban sea kayak Race

The Oban sea kayak race was the first saturday in september .I entered because  it fitted my plans for a few days off in Scotland and the paddling round there is great. Dont know why but there is a huge buzz about racing of any type .This was to be my first ever kayak race .Plus I had to try the new boat on the sea.....

Well here we are with the boat at the Kilbowie outdoor centre before the start of the race , which was twelve miles long around the island of Kerrera, near Oban .As you can see there were lots of people in this race , about fifty , and a friendly atmosphere .The amount of gear you need is huge when you put it together and you even need a vhf radio , which is vital for any kayaking more than a few yard offshore . There were almost as many different makes of kayak as people .Most of those kayaks were specialist touring or racing ones .The start was on the beach at Oban , as you see the crowds were out to watch .

To sum the race up ,. conditions were windy and particularly at the south end of Kerrera ,where some waves and swell reached four feet high . And some tricky clapotis to boot  .So I didnt get to use the camera on the way round . On the return leg the wind was on our backs but it didnt help me much as I then had great trouble going straight , maybe my boat was not balanced right  .The winner came back in just under two hours , and my time was just under three , but then my boat is a very old design and not a racing kayak and I havnt trained ,Im old and overweight..........excuses !!