PADDLER 34
Palm Groms on tour ! Ask , Jools , Cam , Oli , Ewan and mentor Chips !
PADDLER 34
HOLME PIERREPONT
HOLME PIERREPONT
Day four of the Park Jam was held at my local white water course , Holme Pierrepont ( HPP ), here in Nottingham . Most of the paddlers had been to Cardiff , but I had not been with them , so it was nice to see everyone again and hear about the Cardiff event . By complete coincidence , I had been at HPP all day already as I had been there with students from my school , helping the PE department assess them kayaking for their CNAT sports qualification . I have always loved it when the different areas of my life come together this way .
Once one set of teenagers had left me , the next set arrived as the Palm Groms ( Jools , Charlotte , Ask , Cam , and honorary Grom Ewan ) parked up . Palm Grows is a programme set up by Palm to help develop and mentor young kayakers . In my opinion , it is one of the most wholesome things a brand has done for a long time . The current Groms are all lovely , and it was great to hear about their adventures down on the Dart over the last couple of days .
The rest of the team arrived just in time for the 18:00 event start . We only had a little daylight left , but luckily , HPP has floodlights allowing for evening paddling . There was a good turn , and seeing so many of the local kids showing us their moves was fantastic . There was a lot of party surfing and fun times . When I told them to ‘ do something cool for the camera !’, I shouted out to Ted and Henry , who went for a party surf and paddle swap . Another youngster , James , also stood out as enthusiastic , giving everything a go . I decided to give him a shout-out later on for one of the spot prizes and , through that , found out that he was Oli ’ s cousin !
Once everyone had had a good time on the water , it was time for the talks . There isn ’ t a function room at HPP ’ s white water course , but manager Matt did an excellent job setting up an outdoor screening area ! Heidi , Huw and Adrian all gave a talk , which was again followed by some spot prizes and a chance for people to meet and greet with the team . I love seeing how excited everyone ( kids and adults ) was to get their posters signed and photos taken . It ’ s such a wholesome atmosphere !
The pub dinner afterwards was very appreciated , as everyone was pretty hungry by this point . We reflected on what a great community there is here in Nottingham . It really is special , and I was pleased that the team got to see that . Thank you , HPP , for a lovely evening !
All ready for Park Jam ! Photo : David Rogers
Brothers Sam and Ted Worgan meet Adrian ! Photo : Del
Palm Groms on tour ! Ask , Jools , Cam , Oli , Ewan and mentor Chips !
Inlet gate at HPP . Photo : Tom Clare