Mud but plenty of Smiles at Dearne Valley

Thank goodness the days of rain we’d had finally stopped in time for the Dearne Valley Quadrathlon, our 2nd Trophy Race of the Season, lots of passion for our sport, with non stop smiles as juniors, first timers, and seasoned quadrathletes crossed the finish line! Organizer Mark Benton and his ‘Team’ of volunteers and marshals hosted a great race for us all, there enthusiasm and friendliness shone through, to make their 3rd time of running the event a huge success, thank-you you did your selves proud yet again!

A fantastic turnout with 13 juniors, 8 in the Quad and 5 in the Tri, and 34 seniors in the Quad and 32 in the Tri, so all the pre race training days organized by Mark Benton and Mandy Greenaway certainly paid off, so again a big thanks for getting those athletes in kayaks and encouraging them to do the Quad!

The kids races got underway at 8:30am and everyone seemed to be having a good time. As always they were supported the whole way around. The ethos of the Manvers Waterfront Boat Club is one of inclusivity and giving everyone a chance, which is just how it should be, this was clear throughout the weekend and it was good to see the kids giving it their all, Congratulations to them all!

The kids presentations were made at around 9:30am. The jubilant podium finishers collected their certificates, proud parents cheered and the adult Quadrathletes and Triathletes assembled ready for their races.

It was a real mixture of 34 quadrathletes racing with 20 of those BQA members, so plenty of National Trophy points ready to be picked up! There were plenty of athletes giving the quad a go for the first time, and they looked like they had given everything and had a great time!

Congratulations to the Winners and to all those BQA Members Flying the Flag for British Quadrathlon, as ever thank-you for the support, you make our races tick!