Great River Teign Adventure at Teign Corinthian Yacht Club
by Anton Saxton 16 Sep 2018 09:05 BST
Briefing for the Great River Teign Adventure 2018 © TCYC
A record-breaking 76 people in 30 boats turned up at Teign Corinthian Yacht Club (too) early on a Sunday morning to take part in the legendary adventure. Actually it was the first one of its kind, so not yet a legend - though for many of the youngsters involved, it turned out to be legendary.
Open to any vessel not powered by an engine, the fleet of dinghies, kayaks, canoes and rowers took to the water in a flurry. Our mission - to visit 3 checkpoints located next to the three pubs on the Teign estuary and have our hands stamped in exchange for emergency rations of chocolate bars for all hands on deck.
Although not officially, a race - it turned out to be a race against the tide, which refused to wait for anyone. It didn't take long for the competitive spirit to kick in as many of us sailed as hard and fast as we could in order to over-take other boats. Some dinghies resorted to paddles in order to improve their ramming speed and gain advantage.
A couple of the boats were armed - with super-soakers - and they proceeded to engage in battles with anyone sailing, rowing or paddling too close to them.
Pirate games aside, the gentle breeze and mild temperature made for a very pleasant 6 mile round trip cruise on one of the most beautiful estuaries in Devon. The day finished with a BBQ and much story-swapping of adventures on the River Teign.
Such was the success that the club's Pirate-Rear-Commadore Ben Miles is already planning the same event for next year. It's good to see that as club, we haven't lost our sense of humour nor adventure.