Challenge The Channel

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Very Best Wishes

Paul

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Eastney to Needles - Endurance Row Friday 5th October 2018

The sun rose to welcome us to the start of the endurance training row from Eastney to the Needles IOW.

We set off at 08:10 from Eastney made our way along the Eastney and Southsea shoreline turned out to see to avoid the submarine underwater defence, then began our transit across the Portsmouth Shipping Lane where we were approached by the water police who informed us that a Navy vessel was entering the harbour, as we were halfway across the IOW suddenly disappeared under a shroud of fog. The decision was made to turn north and head towards the mainland shoreline for safety reasons. We headed along the north channel staying close to the Stokes bay and Lee-on-Solent shoreline as the solent had all but disappeared in the fog we reached the Southampton Shipping Channel in approx 2 hours. We waited by a north channel buoy for a while because we heard ships fog horns then out of the mist appeared the Red Funnel ferry heading up Southampton water into Southampton, then a decision was made to sprint the 800/1000m width channel and hopefully find the Calshot North Cardinal buoy and safety, we almost bumped in to it! As we reached the buoy the fog began to lift and there on the other side of the Solent was Cowes and the IOW, the sun shone and everywhere was visible. We headed towards the IOW so we could find the strongest tidal flow heading West/Southwest and on to the needles.

We reached 23 miles (the distance of the channel crossing, I am training for) in 4 hours, we continued on and arrived at 26 miles in 4 hours 30 minutes. As we approached the Needles they suddenly disappeared in fog and all we had to direct us was the Needles lighthouse fog horn.

We reached the Needles in 5 hours 30 minutes which considering the delays due to the fog and that I've had only 21 hours 30 minutes on-water training it was a decent row. I would like to thank my on-water coach Mike Gilbert, my Safety Officer Chris Partridge and my technical coach Emma Gueterbock and my sponsors for your support and a special thanks for all you kind people out there who have been behind me all the way.

The hard work is not over, we still need to find a main sponsor and someone to sponsor the rest of my training. A lot was learned from this row which we will work on over the coming months.

OCTOBER IS BREAST CANCER AWARENESS WEEK: If you would like to support my challenge please do so by wearing pink every Friday for the month of October and donate any funds raised to Challenge the Channel on the justgiving link below, I will be wearing pink throughout the month. Thank you.

Autumn has arrived the weather is amazing, just right for rowing!

Our search for a main sponsor for the challenge day continues, if anyone is interested we can let you have details.

Developments Since the last update:

I met with one of our sponsors on Wednesday, Ideal Window Solutions, it was a real pleasure to meet Chris Palmer and Thom Emerson both of whom have been touched by cancer, two very kind and generous men and I am grateful for their support. We went on to Breast Cancer Haven so Chris and Thom could meet Heidi Rehman and have a tour of the Haven both the guys were taken by the support provided to those with breast cancer or who have just had a diagnosis or an operation, the peace and tranquility of the place is wonderful and full of healing, great to meet you Chris and Thom. The rowing kit has arrived courtesy of kit sponsors Alexandra Sports I'm extremely grateful for your support Dawn Taylor, we will post photos once I have an opportunity to catch up with Dawn who is a very busy lady.

It was lovely to meet Karen Tyrrell of Lakeside 1000, Karen and I had a lengthy discussion which proved very positive so please watch this space for further news, I am very excited about this.

On Thursday RGK Wheelchairs agreed to sponsor my wheelchair upholstery as the current upholstery is looking tired with all the training it goes through, RGK have been an amazing sponsor over the years in fact the chair was given to me by Russel Simms former founder of RGK, the chair has completed 80,000 miles through challenges, training and getting about, she’s stood the test of time which is proof of good quality engineering, Oh she reaches speeds of up to 35.5 mph downhill.

We have been working on getting the logos on vinyl stickers for the boat in time for the Bembridge to the Needles endurance training row (hopefully next Thursday or Friday Morning, weather and tides permitting).

Training:

Training has gone pretty well, 25 mph winds in choppy waters last week but we still managed a good long row. This week, in the gym on Monday for endurance training and on the water on Tuesday we covered 5.37 miles at 4.4mph in 1 hour 12 minutes, Thursday was by far the best and longest row of all, 8 miles in a steady state with an average of 4.7mph. Coach Mike Gilbert said what was most encouraging was the pace of 6mph with the tide, the weather was too perfect, hot and very calm which tested the rowing technique to it’s limits, we were even visited by the local seals. As there are no tides in Langstone next week the boat will be moved to a marine nearby so not to inhibit training. On Friday the technical session with Technical coach, Emma Gueterbock was very productive on the ergo (rowing machine), pace setting and splits were so much better.

I hope I haven’t missed anything or anyone out in the update, please contact us if we have. 

Overall it’s been a good week!

Please visit the social media sites below for more frequent updates.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Social Media Sites: 

https://www.facebook.com/ChallengeTheChannel/

https://challengethechannel.blogspot.co.uk/

https://www.instagram.com/challengethechannel/

Return to Training

After picking up a virus two weeks ago and becoming extremely frustrated at the thought of not being able to train, Paul returned to training on Friday 14th September 2018. However because Paul lost the colour in his face his technical coach Emma Gueterbock stopped the training session after just 20 minutes, Paul admits that this was the right decision as it was clear that although he felt ok it was apparent that he wasn't out of the woods. After more rest over the weekend Paul returned to the rowing machine and gym work completing 1 hour 30 minutes on the rower and felt much better, Paul was excited that he was at last back on the road to full training. On Tuesday the 18th Paul's coach, Mike Gilbert had text to say that it was he who now had the virus so therefore training was suspended as he was too unwell to go on the water and the winds were too strong for Paul to go out alone. Back to the gym on Wednesday and Paul put himself through a tougher session than usual on the ergo (rowing machine) and came out on top, he was very buoyant and looking forward to Thursday's on-water session with Mike but concerned that the weather forecast wasn't looking good. Thursday morning arrived, Paul was given the green light to go on the water with wind speeds at 25 mph the sea was choppy Paul just took it on and completed 1.5 hours on-water training covering over 4 miles at a steady speed of 4.2mph which is extremely positive after a week off, he also learned how to deal with choppy water using a different technique of feathering the oars for longer and allowing them to run on the water to maintain stability. On Friday Paul met with Karen Tyrrell of Lakeside North Harbour to talk about how Lakeside could support his challenge, Paul was very pleased to meet Karen and very grateful to discuss many different options, he may even pop down with Epona (the open ocean scull) and row on the lake, watch this space. Overall it has been a good week, Paul is very excited about the positivity and we look forward to the weeks ahead.

Best Wishes to you all and thank you for your kind support!

Training Cancelled but it's not all bad!

Due to a cold that developed on Saturday 8th I have only trained today (Friday 14th) it’s been very frustrating not being able to just get on with it. Unfortunately the lack of training this week has affected the proposed endurance training row from Bembridge to the Needles 5/6/7 September so we are now looking at our final three dates of 5/6/7 of October to achieve this important session.

One good thing that has come out of this week is I met Rachel Morris MBE, Gold medalist rower from the Rio Paralympic Games. Rachel has asked if I would like company on my Bembridge to Needles session, we are pleased that she will be with us on the day we go for it!!!

Sponsors Required:

The challenge is still looking for sponsors to help Paul, if you know of anyone who maybe able to support Paul’s training he would really appreciate it. We will update you on sponsorship as soon as we have more news. Thank you so much for your kind support.

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Social Media Sites:

https://www.facebook.com/ChallengeTheChannel/

https://challengethechannel.blogspot.co.uk/

https://www.instagram.com/challengethechannel/

Very Best Wishes

Training and Sponsorship update 7th September 2018

Developments since the last update:

We are proud to announce that we have another sponsor onboard Challenge the Channel, On Monday 3rd September Paul received an email from Chris Palmer of Ideal Window Solutions, Fareham, Hampshire. After reading Paul’s story Mr Palmer promptly replied to Paul’s email to inform him that it would be an absolute pleasure for the company to sponsor training, Thom Emerson business partner with Chris was equally moved and inspired by Paul’s story and is in full support of the sponsorship. We would like to thank both Chris and Thom and those at Ideal Window Solutions https://www.idealwindowsolutions.co.uk for their kind support and welcome you aboard, Paul is absolutely delighted and looks forward to meeting you and your team in due course. Monday the 3rd of September just happens to be Paul’s mum’s birthday she sadly passed away as a result of cancer in May 1995 just as Paul was emerging from lock-in Syndrome, so this news is also a way to celebrate her birthday and also helps bring this challenge closer to reality.

After a successful on-water session on Thursday 6th September Paul arrived home and received a phone call from a company who are equally inspired by Paul’s story and fundraising efforts and are looking to support the challenge, we cannot reveal who the company are until confirmation of sponsorship has been received, watch this space.

Kit:

Paul hopes to take delivery of the on-water training kit shortly.

Fundraising total to date:

The fundraising total to date has now risen to £1,451.

If you would like to donate to Paul’s fundraiser please do so by visiting the justgiving page below, this is the best way to ensure funds are correctly designated to the Challenge the Channel fundraiser in memory of Marjorie Anne Walker for Breast Cancer Haven.

Training:

This has been a good week for Paul, his on-water training has gone really well, he has now reached a distance of 5.2 miles (8.36km) and a speed of 4.8mph (7.72km/h) in one row session, this after only 17 hours of on-water training, his coach Mike Gilbert is delighted with his progress as they prepare for the Bembridge to the Needles endurance row. There are 6 dates for this training row and they are 21st/22nd/23rd September or 5th/6th/7th October, after these dates there will not be enough light. The gym work which includes weights/core work and Ergo (rowing machine) training is also going well, with his Technical coach, Emma Gueterbock setting his sessions on the Ergo which Paul really enjoys.

Sponsors Required:

The challenge is still looking for sponsors to help Paul, we may have a main sponsor for the challenge day but if you know of anyone who maybe able to support Paul’s training he would really appreciate it. We will update you on sponsorship as soon as we have more news. Thank you so much for your kind support.

Social Media Sites:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Very Best Wishes

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Paul's Training Update

Dear Friends

We hope this email update finds you well and enjoying the summer, at the time of writing it is cooler than when the last update was sent out.

Developments since the last update:

We are so pleased to announce that two companies have supported Paul’s training, firstly while we were at Cowes Week Paul approached Lendy P2P the main sponsor of the Cowes Week Regatta to ask if they would like to support his training and/or the Challenge the Channel event. We are delighted to say that the CEO Liam Brook has agreed a £200 donation towards training, Lendy P2P also donated £75 to the fundraising page, we look forward to receiving the donation.

On our return from Cowes Week we received more good news, another company (who wish to remain anonymous) have donated an astounding £2,000 towards the training costs so it goes without saying that Paul is overwhelmed by these very kind donations. We are sincerely grateful for the support from both companies as it will mean that we only have to find around £2,500 for the rest of training and £2,500 for the challenge on the day. The cost of training is for Mike Gilbert's time and the transport of the boat and support boat for the Bembridge to Needles endurance training row in September/October.

Radio interview:

Paul was delighted to be invited on to Radio Solent, Nick Girdler morning show on Sunday 22nd July, Nick is a very enthusiastic man, who’s show on a Sunday morning is one of the best shows we have listened to. Thank you Nick.

Kit:

Kit is sponsored by Alexandra Sport and is being made as we write, we don’t have a date for when this arrives but Paul is looking forward to wearing it, we sent out some images of what the kit design looks like a while ago.

Globaleather have sponsored Paul’s gloves and made a £300 donation to the justgiving page to which we are sincerely grateful, we received another 3 pairs of gloves this morning, thank you.

Training:

Training has been going well, Paul has completed 366 hours in the gym and on the Ergo (Rowing machine) and 11 hours on the water. Paul’s on-water coach is pleased with how Paul has progressed given it takes 2 years to learn to Scull properly, there are (I believe) some technical hurdles to overcome but with the progress Paul is making the Challenge is looking more and more achievable with only a short period of time spent on the water. Emma Gueterbock who is Paul’s technical coach in the gym and an experienced former Team GB rower has been coaching Paul techniques which has been a great help, Emma gives up her time for free and also rows with Paul on the rowing machines on a Friday morning.

Print donation:

Ingrid Abery, who is a renowned sailing photographer has donated 1 of 3 limited edition prints for auction to help raise funds towards Paul’s training, the prints are valued between £500-£650 we would like the bidding to start at £200 please. We can send you copies of the prints upon request.

Fundraising total to date:

The fund-raising total to date has risen to £1,121, thank you to those who have made donations.

Overview:

Training is going well both on the water and in the gym, we are still in search of sponsors for the event before we can go ahead and print the posters and promote the event. If anyone knows of any company that may wish to support this challenge please let us know. Clearsilver the PR company will be dealing with the promotion of the challenge but we will be sending out updates via email, on FB and twitter. Photos will be added to instagram and the blog page as and when we have.

Social Media Sites:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Many Thanks.

My Very Best Wishes

Paul

Paul A Smith OBE

M: 07796595432

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Dear Friends....

Dear Friends

Just a quick update reference Challenge the Channel.

On-water coach, Mike Gilbert has given me 6 days in which we can complete the marathon training session from Bembridge to the Needles all of which are subject to weather.

September 21st/22nd/23rd or 5th/6th/7th October 2018, after these dates we won’t have enough light, the row will take at least 4 hours the distance is 26 miles at least 3 miles longer than the channel crossing.

Last week was a rest week, so I took the opportunity to take in some sailing photography at Cowes Week onboard the media boat.

Events over the past week:

Whilst at Cowes my good friend Ingrid Abery who is a renowned Olympic and international yacht photographer has offered 3 limited edition prints for auction, all monies raised will go towards my on-water training, examples of the 3 prints to choose from at attached. The value of the prints are £500-£650 and a suggested starting point for bidding is £250, this is a win, win situation, you get a magnificent print of 16 x 24 inch I get to go on the water to continue my training, Your bid can be kept anonymous if you wish but most of all your kind support will be really appreciated.

Fundraising has now risen to around £1,056 which will help the Marjorie Anne Fund at the Breast Cancer Haven, our target is £250,000 to help the fund as Breast Cancer Haven receive no government funding so they rely heavily on fundraising to provide free support to those who have breast cancer or had an operation.

My training gloves have arrived courtesy of Globaleather, I will be trying them out in the gym on Monday.

Our search for a sponsor for training goes on.

Training:

It was hoped that I would get out on the water to row but unfortunately the only day was Thursday morning which I wasn’t able to attend.

Social Media Sites:

https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/ChallengetheChannel

Many Thanks.

My Very Best Wishes

Paul

Paul A Smith OBE

M: 07796595432

Supporting Children and Teenagers with life threatening illnesses and people with breast cancer.

Challenge The Channel Update!

Dear Friends

We hope this update finds you well and explains what things have been quiet since the last update 13th June.

Since the last update a lot of things have happened including a search for a major sponsor, training both in the gym and on the water and most importantly we have news of a date change for the challenge plus another exciting development.

Since putting out a request for a major sponsor we have received a number of personal sponsorships to help the on-water training to continue, two personal friends have sponsored sessions with the latest sponsoring the last two sessions Tuesday 31st July and today Wednesday 1st August, I am indebted to you both for your kind support.

Alexandra Sports https://www.alexandrasports.com is sponsoring the kit which is being made by Godfrey Sports Ltd, the kit should be with me soon.

B and D engineering have offered sponsorship to help with on-water training, I sincerely thank you for your kind support.

Justin Miller who is a good friend sponsored the float stabilisers and some of the on-water training, we will be naming the floats after Marjorie Anne once we find a major sponsor, my sincere thanks to Justin for believing in me.

Ed Pont of Afia who have supported my challenges in the past with gloves has been in touch with an offer of a donation and support of the challenge you can see the gloves at www.globaleather.com your support is very welcome, I will be in touch shortly.

MAJOR SPONSOR(S) Requested

As a major sponsor you will have your name on the boat, exposure through social media and on publicity posters as well as on any communication and in the media. We can be contacted on details below.

Challenge date change: After a lengthy discussion with Mike Gilbert of Adventure Rowing and my tech coach, Emma Gueterbock I have taken their advice onboard and therefore there has been a change to the date of the challenge. As most of you know it was hoped that Challenge the Channel would be sometime in September 2018, the new date of Challenge the Channel with be Saturday 25th May 2019 to coincide with the passing of Marjorie Anne’s and will be weather dependant. I have to be guided by those who have much more experience than I do and as a novice I have no rowing knowledge whatsoever. The good news is that I will row a marathon as part of my training, the marathon row will be from Bembridge IOW to the Needles so all training is now geared towards this marathon sometime in September or when Mike advises.

Training: I am enjoying training in the gym and on the ergo and on the water, things have gone pretty well in both areas and there is still some way to go but I feel positive with the progress that has been made on the water in particular. My total hours of training in the gym/on the ergo are 360 hours and 9.5 hours on the water, how time flies when you’re having fun! I arrive at the gym between 7.45 and 8.15 every weekday morning which will probably increase as we progress and as my coaches see fit, on-water training is tide dependant and can be anytime during daylight hours.

The rising total on the just giving page has now reached £620, thank you to everyone who has kindly made those generous donations because without you we just couldn’t do it.

Part of my story: I was adopted at 6 months, once an adult I joined the Navy and at 32, I was involved in a horrific road traffic accident and subsequently I went into lock-in Syndrome for 12 years. A very unique experience and one that changed my life and those around me forever. I've been inspired to help others by taking on challenges and raising money for specific charities important to me. I was awarded the OBE for services to charity in 2016, a great privilege.

Now I’m raising funds for Breast Cancer Haven in memory of my good friend and huge inspiration in my life, Marjorie Anne Walker who passed away last year after fighting breast cancer. She was involved in setting up Portsmouth Breast Friends, a local support group for those effected by breast cancer. I want to give others a chance and support by rowing the channel with a hope of raising £250,000. I have paid for some of my on-water training to date but can no longer afford to so I’m in search of a major sponsor(s) who would like to see their name on the boat and support a great cause. Thank you for reading just a small part of my story. I'm happy to talk about my experiences and especially this new challenge.

Social Media Sites: