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Frome Canoe Club is affiliated to the British Canoe Union and is a Registered Charity (Number 1104728)

Volume 37 Issue 12 December 2013

Frome Canoe Club has a Champion amongst its ranks. Who is it? Turn to p9 for more

Starts 4th December at the clubhouse. 7pm.

Come and help us paddle round the UK!

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In this issue

3 Calendar in brief

4 River Dart trip

4 New Years Day paddle

5 River Exe trip

5 River Frome trip

6 Pool sessions and Canoe Polo

7 Sunday sessions

7 2014 Tryweryn

8 2014 Club Social

10 What’s The Water Level Like?

12 River Frome trip

14 A day in the life of a SUP

9 The Champion in our ranks

8 Kayak Challenge

16 Going Underground

17 Manoeuvre of the month

18 Bits and Pieces

20 Paying by bank card `

CALENDAR: details

REPORTS

SPECIALS

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Send articles for the next issue to pam@dixon.org.uk by 27th December

THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE

President

Graham Warnecke

Vice Presidents

Richard and Jane Arney

Jim and Catharine Croft

Chairman

Alun Jones

Vice Chairman

Gareth McGiveron

Treasurer

John Kent

Secretary

Pam Dixon

16 Blagdon Walk, Frome, BA11 2YH

Committee Members

Arthur Belbin

Rich Carter

Jonathan Howell

Stuart Miles

Sally Smiles

Kit Officers

Tim and Sally Smiles

SLALOM

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Calendar 2013-4

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Date Event Standard Contact

December

4 Kayak-machine Challenge starts All Pam D

6 Polo at the pool - inexperienced Beginners Jack S

11 Kayak-machine Challenge All Pam D

13 Polo at the pool - experienced Experienced Jack S

15 River Dart One Star + Rich C

18 Kayak-machine Challenge All Pam D

20 NO POOL SESSION All Pam D

27 NO POOL SESSION All Pam D

29 Sunday morning at Market Yard All Rich C

January

1 New Years Day paddle One Star/Passport Rich C

1 Kayak-machine Challenge All Pam D

3 NO POOL SESSION All Pam D

8 Kayak-machine Challenge All Pam D

10 Polo at the pool - inexperienced Beginners Jack S

12 River Exe One Star + tba

15 Kayak-machine Challenge All Pam D

17 Polo at the pool - experienced Experienced Jack S

22 Kayak-machine Challenge All Pam D

26 Sunday morning at Market Yard All Rich C

Strict adherence to the Club’s code of conduct is expected at all times on club events .

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Calendar in detail

Carl, Kurt and Neil on the Allta Chourinn, a steep rockslide in Glen Etive.

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

River Dart 15th December Meet 8am at the Clubhouse Cost £15 Organiser - Rich C

There are three sections we can do. It is of course all water dependent.

Lower - There are numerous small rapids, a lovely boulder garden for eddying in and out and some other gentle play spots for surfing. Good for One Star paddlers and canoeists

Loop - Full of play spots and rapids, it makes a really good paddle. You need to be at Two Star standard and have moving water experience for this one.

Upper - Dartmeet to Newbridge, a grade 4 section, and ideal for those with plenty of white water experience who want a challenge.

Check with Rich, John or Arthur if have any doubt about the stretch you should do.

You need to bring a packed lunch and all your canoeing gear. Of course you can borrow any club kit on the morn-ing.

New Year’s Day Paddle Ist January Meet 10am at the Clubhouse Cost £3 Organiser - Rich C This trip is likely to be the River Frome from Woolverton to Langham Farm. Well that’s what it has been since any-one can remember. (Apart from Graham!)

You need to have recovered from the partying of the night before because it’s better if we don’t have any sleepy heads on this trip!

Seriously, this is a lovely paddle and gets you out of the house, doing some-thing energetic after those days of eating and sleeping and being polite to the family.

You do need to have sensible water-proof kit and warm thermals, because it can be very cold.

NOTICE THE MUCH LATER THAN NORMAL START

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Carl, Kurt and Neil on the Allta Chourinn, a steep rockslide in Glen Etive.

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Calendar in detail

River Frome 9th February Meet 9am at the Clubhouse Cost £3 Organiser - Rich C

This trip will be a good trip for you if you are at Passport or One Star stan-dard (or above) But you will need to remember that at this time of the year the water will be cold and the weather will be cold, so you will need to come prepared with warm clothes and energy food.

Our local trips are always good fun as we get to do the weirs and play in some stoppers, all on our very own door step.

The section we will paddle will be decided on the day and will of course depend on water levels. We did the stretch from Creamery to Langham Farm last time but there are many other sections we could do. We could for example explore the new fish/canoe pass constructed at Iford Weir or take in the Zoom Flume like we did last September.

Be prepared for whatever we choose on the day.

River Exe 12th January Meet 8am at the Clubhouse Cost £12 Organiser tba

The River Exe is the one we paddled at the Tiverton weekend. Generally a Grade 2 but the weirs make it more interesting.

Bolham is the first and when water levels are right. I makes a good play spot.

Then Salmon Ponds Weir with hole below and onto the Town Weir where, if you are not careful the wall grabs you! Not far till Walronds - good for surfing.

We leave the town and paddle out into the country for two or three miles to Broken Weir and finally Bickleigh Weir.

A beautiful river with its stunning wild life, but it can be freezing in January so bring plenty of food, thermals and warm drinks.

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FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

POOL SESSIONS

Frome Leisure Centre Fridays, 8-9pm

Cost £2.80 young people, £3.30 Adults

Come and have fun at the pool! A variety of boats to choose from, you can mess about or get some training in! On two nights a month we have a game of canoe polo.

Ways to help us help you have a good session

Flooded boats. - by all means mess about in the boats and have fun. You will be shown by the supervisor how to empty your boat and then it’s up to you! People with flooded boats will be whistled 5 minutes before the end of their session to empty the boat ready for the next person

At the end of your session, help us by: Paddles: return them to the pile by the store door Spray decks: put them by the changing room door so they can be rinsed Boats: help us put the boats away at the end. Own boats: take your own boat out through the fire exit - don’t leave it for others to do!

Emergency Evacuation Plan: we leave by the fire exit doors and collect in the College car-park. We do not go back into the changing rooms. Pool staff will supply blankets to keep us warm

CANOE POLO

December 6th inexperienced paddlers

December 13th experienced paddlers

Remember: 13th

December is last pool session in 2013

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FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Monthly Sundays and Tryweryn weekend

MONTHLY SUNDAY MORNING

PADDLES

On the last Sunday of each month

through the winter Market Yard

10am till noon, Cost £2

All through the winter we meet on the last Sunday of the month and paddle at Market Yard.

Sessions are more relaxed than the Wednesday club sessions and so you get to paddle around and do your own thing. Or come for a chat and catch up on the club news!

29th December

26th January

Date for the diary Tryweryn 14/15/16th March The Tryweryn is a managed river which means three things. First, the water re-lease is controlled by a dam, so you can paddle on this river all year round and you can find out a few days beforehand what the water level will be. Second, the white water features (waves, stop-pers, drops, etc.) are somewhat man-made, but in a way that makes them look like a natural river. Third, there are hot showers and a decent café on site!

The section of the Tryweryn that is managed is about 2 km long and has sections on it from Grade 2 to Grade 3. It is a large and powerful river, so it is a great place to develop your skills but it can be a punishing place to take a swim. There are some excellent places to playboat, and the river is also popular with the best slalom paddlers and wild water racers. The lower Try-weryn is a much more gentle river, with three big volume Grade 2+ rapids providing some ex-tra challenge amongst the Grade 1 background. It finishes with the impressive rapid known as Bala Mill Falls, which is a Grade 4, but easily portaged (though not so easily inspected!). Standard required: You need to be happy paddle the Loop to come on this trip. Accommodation: We book a bunkhouse for Fri-day and Saturday night at £15 per night. Food: is a do it yourself affair! Bala has good cafes for breakfasts and pubs for evening meals. More details next month

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Non paddling things

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

We haven't forgotten our Grand Social event!

Normally it is in January, but the upstairs room

won’t be ready by then!

So the date will slip from January to February.

Look out on the website and next newsletter for

more news!

Starts 4th December

Every Wednesday

At the Clubhouse

7-9pm

Two ergos - let’s see how

many miles we can

collectively paddle!

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Slalom Champion

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

http://www.canoeslalom.co.uk

League M60 K1M

Rank Name Age Division Club Races Total

1 John Kent M 2 Frome CC 7 1849

The FASTEST SLALOMIST in the Master League M60, K1 Mens. See below an extract from the canoe slalom web site.

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What’s the level like? “Perfect!”

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Jonathan’s Upper Dart Trip

I paddled the Upper Dart for the first time on the Dart weekend. There are a lot of words you could use to say how I felt that Sunday morning but since this article could be read by children, ‘bricking it’ will have to do.

We did the shuttle and parked up at Newbridge. We had a look at the levels while we were here and I asked Rich about the water levels. “Perfect” was the reply.

The get on for the Upper is by the bridge at Dartmeet, a lovely spot. Not that I was thinking that at the time - I had other things on my mind. The run-in is a gentle paddle, which you use to warm up for what is to come. Well I was already warm, I was sweating. Right let’s get going. “This is where it starts proper”, I was told.

Now on most rivers the only time you see a horizon line is when you have a weir in front of you. “Is that a weir ahead” I asked myself. I soon found out as everyone in front of me disappeared from view. At this point I began to won-der what I had let myself in for.

The speed and steepness of the river was like nothing I had ever experienced.

I tried to remember every thing that I had been taught, but memory loss comes with fear. The first few drops and rapids went by in a blur of speed and a paddle stroke rate that a sprint canoeist would be proud of. It was at this point that I heard Carl say that it was the highest level he had ever run the Upper! Well it was just as well I couldn’t speak, out of breath from pad-dling so hard.

The first swim of the day came from Mark. I thought it would be me. I was next and just to keep me company Rich, Arthur and James did the honorable thing. Four people in the water at the same time, a big thank you to the res-cuers - they were going in all directions. It was good that I swam because I needed a rest as I felt shattered. I didn’t know that the human body could pro-duce so much adrenalin. Mark paddled over and asked if I was ok. I replied “I have never seen a river this ……. big before”.

When I got back on Andy told me to slow down and paddle backwards more, to stay in control. It turned my trip around, I followed his lines and did what he did, I really began to enjoy my-self and my confidence came back so I would like to say a big thank you to Andy.

I looked at Euthanasia and walked

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FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Dart weekend continued

Dart Weekend Paddlers and Points Girls: Gine MBL, Isi M, Boys: Alex H, Ben B (3), Ben L, George Mc (5), James B (24), Keiran C, Will J Ladies: Kath N, Linz K, Mary H, Megan J, Pam D, Men: Alun J, Andy V (3), Arthur B (6), Ben T (6),Bill F (9), Carl G (4), Gareth M, Jack O (3), Jack S (2), Jim R (14), John G, John K, Jonathan H (15), Mark B (3), Rich C (3), Rich T (3), Stu M (6), Terry O (6), Tim C (2). One dayers Ladies: Bex T and Paula B Men: Alex N, Bob B (3), Chris H, Chris W, Nick K and Ryan C.

around. Jack ran it twice and George made it look so easy, pesky youngsters! The next swim came at Pandora’s Box and that was Andy. After all the help he had given me I felt it was only right to rescue him, so I had some throwline practice as well, all for the cause Andy. I forgot to say I portaged Pandora’s Box as well. Maybe next time ..!

“Well that’s the Upper done, just the run-out now. It’s all easy from now on.” The next section I didn’t get to see because I hit Mark and spun round, did

it backwards but stayed up right. Result! It was on the run-out where I picked up two more swims mainly from not concentrating, but by this time I was exhausted. At the get out I had my final swim, I blame that one on wobbly legs.

That has to be the best paddle I have ever done, with a great group of friends. Some things went right, some things went wrong, but I was smiling at the end and that is all that really matters.

Ed: James B here - his first time on the Upper section today and apart from a few swims, he did really well. He has asked to have his thanks passed on to all those who rescued him both days! And the verdict from those taking part in the weekend was that is was blinding! One of the best.

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FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

River Frome, 17th November

The weather gods were looking after us today: with a little window of ‘warm’ weather between two cold snaps. So a group of 15 paddlers in ten kayaks, three canoes and one SUP headed off to the Creamery. With near perfect water levels we all thought ‘no walking today’. And we were right. Not only that, Beckington weir was just a little sticky today - perfect for stopper practice. And we had some moving water at intervals along the way with a good play wave at Langham Farm.

Surprises were the order of the day: Jack on his SUP. He didn’t fall in getting in! But George on the SUP got so many points we have just written them off! Gareth provided a little entertainment at Beckington weir. Can you guess? Ian getting trapped in the hole at Cliffords Mill weir. We don’t normally

paddle into that one, but he did. The onlookers watched and waited. Was he all right? No, Rich decided, and paddled in to push him out. George, also deciding it had gone on too long and edged along the weir top to help too. All safe.

Jude paddling all the way (without a spray deck) and saving the inevitable capsize until he was playing in the moving water at Langham Farm. Well done Jude on your first river trip!

Some wonderful wildlife with a couple of kingfishers keeping us company at one point, and three herons politely flying off leaving the river to us.

Beckington Weir

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FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

River Frome continued

Below - someone always has to show off, don’t they?

Paddlers and points Ladies: Kath N and Pam D Boys: Alex H, George M, Jamie E (3), Jude G (3) and Keiran C Men: Gareth M (3), Ian J, Jack S (6), Jonathan H, Mark B, Rich C, Richard H and Terry O. Thank you to John for doing the shuttle and to George for leaping out of his canoe at every weir to help us all. And finally: Gareth didn’t get to use his chainsaw today because the threats of trees down just didn’t materialise. Shame!

And look!¬ Proof: Gareth can stay upright in a weir descent!

From Back Page Ian was indeed well and truly stuck in the hole! But Rich to the rescue! A nifty little push and Ian is freed. George also is on-hand, just in case!

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FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

A day in the life of a Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP)

The Get-In. A bit undignified to say the least. But help is near at hand!

We’re off. Yes! Afloat and looking good so far!

Well we’ve made it to Clifford Mill weir. Does Jack stay upright?

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SUP continued

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Still at Clifford Mill weir. So far, so good!

On to Shawford weir. Where’s the SUP now? Looks like Jack has aban-doned it in favour of a more tradi-tional craft.

Ah! Over to George.

Ed: It was really good to see you on the SUP, Jack. Thank you for providing us with some entertain-ment all the way along! We are awarding George with the armband prize for taking so many swims we lost count.

On a more serious note, it was an impressive achievement, well done! Good to see other disciplines within the club.

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Going Underground by Kath Norton

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Alas, the combined navigational skills of

Norton and O’Neill were no match for the

random and inaccurate road signs around

Priddy. This was unfortunate because it

made us half an hour late for Jack’s caving

exam and this probably wasn’t what Jack

had hoped for when we had volunteered to

be part of the group that he would be lead-

ing. The reputation of FCC wasn’t com-

pletely ruined however as Keiran F man-

aged to get there on time, and

be suited and booted with time to

spare.

Un-phased by our lateness, Jack

kitted us up in overalls, wellies,

caving belts and helmets and we

set off through the fields to get to

the mouth of the cave.

Swildon’s Hole is the longest

cave in the Mendip Hills running

at 9,144m (30,000 ft) and is a

Site of Special Scientific Interest

(SSSI). The upper series of the

cave has lots of features includ-

ing stalagmites, stalactites and

curtains (thin, wavy sheets of

calcite that look a bit

like...curtains!)

Jack had told us to bring a complete change

of clothes for later and it was easy to see

why. Swildon’s Hole is a wet cave, and to

get in it, we basically had to sit down in a

torrent of water and slide! The overalls did

quite a good job to begin with but wading

through water, crawling in water and climb-

ing and descending waterfalls eventually

meant we were completely wet through.

On our way in, we passed Jacobs Ladder

which had the appearance of a very deep,

very dark, very narrow hole in the ground.

“We might come back up that” said Jack

“Not in this lifetime” I thought to myself.

Surprisingly, all the things that I imagined

would be scary – narrow, confined spaces

for example – were actually the most fun.

Jack was excellent at giving instructions,

rigging up ropes where necessary and pull-

ing/pushing the odd person who got stuck!

By the time we got to Jacob’s Ladder I

couldn’t wait to give it a go.

The only disappointment on

the trip was that we didn’t see

any bats, or the Crunchies

that Jack had allegedly

brought with him. On leaving

the cave we did have an ex-

tremely cold and wet yomp

through the fields back to the

car but once there we

changed into dry clothes be-

fore making our way home.

On the homeward journey

O’Neill and Norton’s naviga-

tion showed great improve-

ment, although some of

Terry’s comments about my

driving suggest that I probably

shouldn’t drive on trips espe-

cially when its dark.... “Have you got your

headlights on?” “You might want to slow

down - this is a really bad bend......YOU

PROBABLY WANT TO SLOW DOWN - THIS IS

REALLY BAD BEND” “wheelspin!!!”

What can I say? I am a student of the

Belbin school of motoring!

Anyway all was well, Jack passed his

exam, everyone had a great time and we all

got home in one piece even if we haven’t

quite warmed up yet!

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Other events/courses

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Weymouth Outdoor Education Centre Spring 2014

BCU / UKCC Awards

2 Star Training & Assessment 3 & 4 April £134

Foundation Rescue & Safety Training 28 April £69

3 Star Training Sea 27 April £69

UKCC Level 1 Coach Award 29 April to 2 May £242

UKCC Level 2 Coach Award 22 April to 25 April £242

UKCC Level 2 Transfer 12 Feb £120

Coaching the mind foundation module Jan 13 or 12 Mar £30

First Aid (2 Day) 13 & 14 Feb £115

Recreational events

River Dart loop trip 24 Jan £55

Kayak Skills Coaching 3 April £67

Canoe Skills Coaching 4 April £67

Sea Kayak Skills Coaching 27 April £69

For full details of these courses and a booking form please contact the

centre. Address: WOEC, Knightsdale Rd, Weymouth, Dorset DT4 0HS

Tel: 01305 784927. Email p.hurrell@dorsetcc.gov.uk

Manoeuvre of the month - Synchronised Swimming

FCC synchronised swimming team does its final practice while paddling

the Upper Dart. Said Jack, co-ordinating the demonstration, “It was a

very successful rehearsal for the national championships later this month”

He went on to say that really the team should have five swimmers, but

FCC went for just four on this occasion. Rich, Arthur, James and Bill were

each judged 10/10. Unfortunately Tim didn’t managed to swim on

account of doing a roll, and so his score was 8/10. “Still,” says Jack, “It

wasn’t bad for our first club attempt!”

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Bits and Pieces

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Get all your canoeing things from the Family Adventure Store at

Hilperton, BA14 7PJ

Don’t forget your club card gets you 10% off purchases.

Hi All, from Andy My 2014 European Alpine trips are now adver-tised. Corsica 5th - 13th April Italy Val sesia 24th - 31st May French Alps Classics 21st - 29th June (grade 3/4+) French Alps Improver 13th - 20th July (grade 2/3+) Austria 26th July - 3rd Aug and the 9th - 17th Aug All trips include FREE Travel over from the UK in minibus and trailer so you can take your own boat. Excellent chalet self catering accommodation and all guiding and coaching. See website or contact me for more details and a booking form. www.escapetoadventure.com

An invitation to a ‘regional club weekend’ at Kayaks and Paddles. We will be hosting an exclusive only event with mince pies, refreshments and up to 20% off all boats, clothing and equipment – for one weekend only. This will include any items ordered and paid for on the night if we don’t have them in the shop. It’s also a great op-portunity to pop in and sign up for our new KP Loyalty Card which gives your club mem-bers discount all year round.

Saturday 14th December 10am – 5pm

Sunday 15th December 10am – 4pm

We have a large showroom with over 80 boats on display and many more in stock, plus loads of kit! We’re easy to find too - we’re just of the A38 at Lee Mill, less than 20 minutes from the River Dart.

Hello Everyone Check out our website for the latest deals on all stock, www.suescanoes.co.uk We are still a family run business which as been trading for over 20 years in the sport, this year we have opened up a bike side to the business where we stock bikes from Clauld Buttler, Dawes, Raleigh, Lapierre and Ghost Mountain bikes. The bike website will ready soon so keep an eye out for lots of good deals on bikes and kit. And check out this good deal: http://www.suescanoes.co.uk/Mens-Dry-Suits/Yak-Titan-Drysuit with free next day delivery!!

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www.thepaddler.co.uk October’s issue is here

Joomag http://www.joomag.com/magazine/thepaddler-ezine/M0151422001368812110

Issuu

http://issuu.com/thepaddler/docs

Bits and Pieces

FCC ‘THROWLINE ’ CLUB MAGAZINE

Christmas comes to the Clubhouse! Sam spent an hour decorating the Christmas tree at the Club-house on Sunday.

THE DIFFERENCE ONE MONTH MAKES!

Top: October. Bottom: November. The floor is done ready for carpeting. The walls need last sand and paint. Roof lights are in. The skirting is fixed. Still a lot to do though! But it’s coming on.

What would we do without you, Andy? Thank you so much for welding up the small trailer for us.

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Canoeing and kayaking are “Assumed risk” – “Water contact sports” that may carry attendant risks. Participants should be aware of and accept these risks, and be responsible for their own action and involvement.

www.frome-canoe-club.org.uk

Check out the photos of club events on the website. And refer to the calendar for all the club activities.

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CONTACTS

Chairman Alun Jones 01373 823513

Vice Chair: Gareth McGiveron

Treasurer: John Kent 01225 765168 jfkent@blueyonder.co.uk

Secretary: Pam Dixon 07740 472982 pam@dixon.org.uk

Head Coach: Rich Carter 01373 864623

Youth Rep: Stu Miles

Volunteer Reps: Jonathan Howell and Sally Smiles Kit Officers: Sally and Tim Smiles

Ian here in the hole at Clifford's Mill weir on the Frome trip. We don’t usually go back into this hole because it is bit grabby, as Ian found out. But what happens next? Turn to p13.

You can now make

payments using the

new remote terminal!

Debit cards only and

for payments over £5

please.

We are introducing a way of paying for several club

sessions in one hit, so that you have flexibility about

attending. Ask at the desk about our new system of

Upfront Payments for club sessions!