Ok, I know things have been a little bit quiet on Double2D for a while. This is partly due to me going through a few big changes in my life, those that know me will know what I mean, those that don’t I’m sure don’t want to be bored with the details….

Well, I’m back on track now and off on my adventures again, starting with a month of creeking action in BC (Canada), starting next Monday

I’ll be updating Double2D again when I get back! See you in a month…

Nic has written an article about our time in Madagascar, check it out here: Kayak Session Article

Well we’ve had an amazing summer between us, with D having a full on week in Norway with Ferg! The two of us having a great week in Montreal, Canada; check out 2Imagine for some more pictures. I’ve just returned from a successful expedition in Madagascar, check out the DragoRossiUK website for some more pictures of that trip!

Well the first leg of the Double2D World Tour 2007 is underway. D and Ferg have made the short hop across the North Sea for a hucking big weeks boating in Norway!

Stay tuned for an update of there mini adventure in the next few weeks…

The next leg of the World Tour begins next week with Dan and D jetting off to Montreal, Canada for a week of big wave surfing and poutine!

The 3rd stint will take place in August with Dan leaving civilisation behind and heading of to Madagascar with a team of elite kayakers to explore some of the unexplored rivers of the red island!

Keep checking back throughout the summer for updates of our adventures…

Em, Nic and I have spent the last month or so trying to decide what kayak we wanted to take away on our expedition to Madagascar in August.

After much thought we eventually decided that a DragoRossi Pintail XL would be our weapon of choice for the trip!

Find out more here…

Recently whilst up in the North East boating I managed to catch up with a couple of my good friends, Dan & Tamsin Green. I haven’t seen too much of them since they got married last July as they have been away surfing quite a lot to say the least!

Since they have been away, Tamsin has had quite a bit of success in a surf kayak. So I took it upon myself to ask her a few questions about what she has been up to!

Interview with Tamsin Green, Surf Kayaker

How did you first get involved in the sport?

I have kayaked seriously since university (too long ago to remember!) and always enjoyed playing in the sea in a plastic boat. It was not until I met Dan (now my husband!) that I tried a proper surf boat and instantly fell in love with it.

What boat do you paddle?

I am now sponsored by Mega Performance Kayaks and surf the Reflex 07. My first boat was a prototype boat hand-me-down from Dan which I glued wake board fins to, Dan then bought me a Revenge as a surprise, I loved it and learnt so much in it, I was very sad to have to sell it.

Where are you favourite waves?

I live in Northumberland and we surf some amazing breaks close to home, totally unspoilt and no one else there, to say which breaks would be telling… Round the world I would say some of my favourite waves are, Cenitz – France, Shipwrecks – Bali and Magheroarty - Ireland.

What do you enjoy most about the sport?

I love being in the sea. Every wave you surf is different, exciting and challenging. It is the adrenaline, fear, anticipation and excitement which always draws me back to the sea. I enjoy the challenge of controlling the wave and being the best I can be when surfing.

What are your future goals?

I want to keep exploring new and interesting waves around the world and challenge myself to surf waves which surf kayakers have not previously been to. I believe the way to develop the women’s side of the sport is to raise our standard to the same level as the men’s , so one of my future goals to surf like the best men in the world!! I also want to do what is most important and that is to have fun!

What made you start competing?

I have always wanted to see how well I could do in competitions but never had the chance. Following our trip to Bali in the summer Dan and I were to move to France, we arrived to find out Dan had no job!! We have rented our house out so could not go home and decided it was the perfect opportunity to travel for a while, we had met up with Chris Harvey to surf in France at the time and he suggested we did the Brits in Ireland so we did and the rest followed!

What competition success have you had since you started competing?

I have had quite a lot of success:

April 2007
European Championships
Women’s IC – 1st
Womens’s HP – 1st

March 2007
Santa Cruz Open (World cup qualifier)
Women’s HP – 2nd

October 2006
Home Internationals – team event
England – 1st
World Cup
Women’s HP – 2nd

What competitions are you involved in for the rest of this year?

I am looking forward to helping organise the British Championships in Northumberland in September. It is the first time the comp has come to the North East for years and we are hoping to be able to show how amazing the area is! The World Championships in October are a huge competition and very important to me both on an individual and team level. I know I have the potential to do well and hope to do myself justice!!

Thanks Tamsin!

If you want to find out more about what Tamsin has been up to, check out her website: TamsinGreen.net

Last weekend I headed down to North Wales to hook up with fellow DragoRossi aficionado Chris Headleand. The original plan was to paddle some of the North Wales classics, but due to the lack of rain in the previous week our plans were scuppered! Undeterred by the lack of water in the rivers, we set of to Pont Cyfyng on the Llugwy for a bit of Wales’ finest low water fun and we weren’t disappointed!




Special thanks to Adrian Trendall for taking the superb hi resolution photos and allowing us to use them!

Ok, I’ve now edited the second video from Canada. This is some Squashtail action from the Pyramid wave at Lachine!

Enjoy:

Pyramid Wave LoRes Video (15MB)
Pyramid Wave HiRes Video (58MB)

Dan

I have finally got around to editing some of the footage from my trip to Canada last summer!

Here is the first instalment; it’s made up of my first 3 rides at the Habitat 67 wave in Montreal from my first day in Canada!

Imagine Canada LoRes (15MB)
Imagine Canada HiRes (50MB)

More videos to follow soon…

Dan

It has been a very difficult start to the year for me, those who know me well will know what I’m talking about, but here isn’t the place to discuss all that! Due to everything that has been going on, Double2D has been a bit neglected even though I have been out on the river and had things that I should have perhaps written about and to top it all off, my Google rating has slipped - gutted

So, back to last weekend!

I had an excellent day out with Em, Ted and Jamie (paddling a C1 Burn, rather him than me). We had hoped to be able to get out on the Swale, but due to the lack of water up North, a trip down the Tees was all we could manage.

Here are some pictures from the day…








As you can see, the day degenerated into a boofing session off Low Force! Great fun!!

Jamie has posted his version of the days events on the Team Pyranha blog.

I’m heading down to Wales this weekend to do some boating with Chris Headleand so I’ll hopefully have another update early next week!

Stay tuned…

Dan