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| The Rally | Rob Roy | Log book | The start | At each lock | The finish
The Rob Roy Canoe Rally has been created to enable anyone who canoes or kayaks to be able to enjoy a real challenge of paddling the whole length of the non-tidal Thames.
It is a distance of 123 miles with 44 locks.
The Start will be at St John’s lock at Lechlade and the finish at Teddington Lock.
The aim is to paddle the whole distance. You have the summer to do it in and can take it in any journey length that you like. We would expect you to be able to do about 12- 15 miles/day. This would take into account stops at locks etc
Rob Roy
Rob Roy MacGregor seems to be the first paddler who recorded his adventures on paper and who went out on the water with the primary goal of pure enjoyment. Later in his life he also helped found the first ever paddling association, the Royal Canoe Club of England. Many people agree that if John MacGregor hadn't travelled a thousand miles on European rivers in 1865 aboard his "Rob Roy" boat, our sport would not be the same today.
Your log book
The Rally is for you. This is not a race but an opportunity to enjoy yourself, discover the beauties of the Thames and its wildlife and be proud of a serious achievement.
In order to record your performance you will be issued with a small Logbook. The purpose is to find out how long it took you to paddle the length of the Thames and to make a record of your journey
At the start
You need to make contact with the Lockkeeper at St John’s Lock at Lechlade. He will sign you off. (he will sign his name, date and time)
But you need to fill out the actual time that you get into the boat and cast off.
At each lock
You need to record the time you reach the lock. You now need to get the Lock Keeper to sign you off. Then you need to record the time you set out from the other side of the lock.
So at each Lock you will have:
An arrival time
Departure time
A dated and signed signature from the Lock Keeper.
If you stop when there is not a Lock Keeper in attendance just record your arrival and departure.
At the bottom of each Lock Entry: subtract all the stops and mark the total paddled time.
Please use the notes section in your handbook and remember that if you stop for a picnic etc you must deduct that time. We are looking for your actual paddling time on the river.
This is not a race so you are recording this data for you only. Cheating just demeans you.
What happens at the finish?
Make sure that your log book is correctly filled out with the required signatures. If any of the lock keepers were not available write this down with time and date you were at the lock or take a picture of yourselves there.
Add up your final paddling time and the number of days you took to complete the challenge.
