Canoe Slalom The Adventure Show

Hello, and a very warm welcome to a brand-new series

of The Adventure Show. We're now in our 12th year,

bringing you the greatest adventure sports from Scotland

and around the world and, this time around,

I reckon we've got one of the best line-ups of events ever.

This year's Adventure Shows are

all about strength and endurance, featuring the tough

Mountain Bike Downhill World Cup from Fort William

and then, the amazing West Highland Way.

96 miles, 150km, running 3½ marathons over mountains and moors.

It's beautiful. And that's the other upside.

We're also featuring the Glen Coe Skyline, which is running,

boarding and rock climbing. Now in its second year, this race

runs across one of Scotland's most iconic mountain ranges.

Pretty good.

Enjoying myself.

And then, the original Mountain Marathon -

a two-day test which is returning to Scotland after a few years' gap.

It is an amazing test of endurance, mountain skills and survival.

Whoa! There's the map gone!

I don't think I can do anything any more.

We'll also be featuring one other event - the Braveheart Triathlon -

a real showcase for Lochaber.

There's a swim in Loch Linnhe,

a cycle through some spectacular scenery,

then a run up and down Ben Nevis.

The reason I'm puffing and panting today is I'm actually taking part.

I have been training - honest - but I've got miles and miles of hills

over the next couple of months still to come.

But it's also going to feature one thing that I'm absolutely dreading.

I hate it, I'm rubbish at it, I'm miserable, and I'm scared!

The swim.

Here goes Dougie to try and swim a length of front crawl,

and there's a young kid behind him, doing leg kick only,

blasting past him.

'So plenty to look forward to in the next 12 months.

'Later in this Adventure Show,

'Cameron McNeish meets up with one of the world's great explorers.'

I've come to the far north-west of Scotland

to speak to a man who's dedicated his whole life to adventure.

50 years ago, John Ridgway, along with Chay Blyth,

rode a 20-foot open dory across the North Atlantic.

Since then, he's explored the Amazon, from its source to the sea,

he's crossed a Patagonian ice cap

and he's sailed round the world three times.

And those are just a few of his many great achievements.

I'm going to make the absolute most of being alive.

I've tapped my foot on the ground.

I try to do that every day and think, yeah, I am alive.

And I'm taking up my own challenge,

incorporating two of the things I love most -

running and being in the mountains.

I'm attempting to run all of the Scottish mountains over 3,000 feet.

And although I've walked, skied, climbed a good chunk of these,

my running total is currently only a measly 20.

So, hopefully, 21 after today.

But before all that, we're at the Grandtully Canoe Slalom -

Scotland's premier white-water event.

And what a way to kick off the new series,

because this is an Olympic sport that we Scots excel at.

In 2012 in London, Scottish paddlers won gold and silver medals.

And, in the summer, Team GB's four boats

will have three Scots sitting in them.

But this event doesn't just attract the world's best paddlers,

it also gives a chance for those starting their slalom careers

to rub shoulders with Olympic performers.

You're constantly competing with the senior squad.

Some of them are faster and stronger, but you're chasing that,

and sometimes you can get there

and sometimes you can't.

We'll be covering the single-bladed canoe events

and the double-bladed kayak discipline.

And on hand, we have an expert, a champion,

an Olympic gold medallist.

Tim Baillie will now show us how to achieve that winning run

right here at Grandtully.

It's deceptively simple to look at,

because it's not as convoluted,

perhaps, as an artificial course often would be,

but the sheer raw power in the water today -

you underestimate it at your peril

and, if you disrespect it by an inch,

it'll take a mile, and you'll be losing big chunks of time.

Tim retired after the 2012 Olympics,

but he doesn't want to miss out on the action.

So, the afternoon before the race,

he went down the river to check out the conditions.

They've just finished setting the course here in Grandtully,

so I'm going to sneak on and have a quick shot,

try and show you what it's like. Let's see how it goes.

Just getting up to speed.

Coming down to a very tricky move between gate one, two, three.

Got to try and...

sneak under one.

And then it'll be tight behind the rock here into two.

I'm going to spin gate three.

And work hard to get out of four.

Oh, no.

Spin it around...

..into the first red gate, six.

Coming out of gate six, gotta work really hard over to gate seven.

Sprinting as hard as I can,

try and get ahead of the move, going to spin.

Going to try and surf the wave just above it,

so I can spin around on the wave.

Come down a little bit wide,

try and set up the escape on 16.

Need to be careful of the rock on the exit.

That was pretty nice.

Squeezing through.

OK, got to climb a bit, get on the wave, gate 20.

If you miss the wave at the bottom of a run,

it's going to be game over.

Now, one more gate to go.

Just squeezing through, and just a sprint to the finish.

Gotta give it everything you got!

-HE PANTS:

-And...we're done.

Well, I'm a bit out of shape,

but I'd say that's a fiendishly difficult course.

It's going to be a really tough test for the competitors tomorrow

and, er, well...I'm looking forward to being impressed by their ability.

Tim obviously struggled, but conditions soon got far worse,

as it rained nonstop throughout the night.

When the paddlers took to the water the next day

for the first of their two runs,

it was clear that this course was virtually impossible to complete.

Everyone struggled, including Olympic gold medallist Etienne Stott

-and his C2 partner Mark Proctor.

-We hit a lot of gates,

but we're the only C2 crew to get all the gates on the first run,

which is a bonus, but it was a very live-it-in-the-moment kind of run,

which we're not used to, because we prepare so hard for each run.

We couldn't really see very well, so we were having

to make up a lot of it as we went along and improvise.

So, yeah, it wasn't, certainly, a pretty run,

or one of the most precise runs we've ever done.

Officials took the difficult decision to reset the course.

Even so, it's still going to be an epic challenge.

And competitors will now have only one attempt at it.

So it's all or nothing.

We're picking up the action for the women's kayak race,

where, once again, there's a strong Scottish entry.

Fiona Pennie grew up in Crieff, but now lives in London.

She represented Britain at the 2008 Olympics,

and she's been selected for Rio this summer.

This is her home course.

Some of the younger paddlers, who I know in London, the small kids,

you know, I tell them, "Well, this is where I used to paddle."

They can't believe it.

They're used to nice, warm changing rooms

and artificial rivers, where there's no rocks to break their boats.

And they can't believe that this is where I used to train.

Sadly, there's only one British place available

in the K1 Women's class at the Rio Olympics,

and there's no shortage of Scottish talent.

22-year-old Alice Haining from the Borders is a rising star,

and she's now been selected for the British team.

Last year, I didn't race this race, because I had...

I fractured my second right rib right at the start of the season.

Got a new coach, he's pushing really hard.

Everything's back on track and it's the strongest I've ever been.

From south of the border,

Lizzie Neave is another kayaker at the top of her sport.

A former world champion,

she paddled for Britain in the London 2012 Olympics

and she's looking forward to the big water at Grandtully this year.

It is nice, sort of coming back to nature,

paddling on a river which is a bit unpredictable.

It's a very different feel to paddling on an artificial course.

Fast water, big, wide river.

It's good fun.

'So, let's join the action with Lizzie as she takes to the water.

'Currently, the fastest time

'is 117.14 seconds.'

Well, look at the top of the course now and look at the paddle stroke

of Lizzie Neave as she flies towards gate one.

This is the reserve Olympic boat.

Fiona Pennie will go and represent Team GB in Rio,

but Lizzie Neave is such an experienced paddler.

She's the reserve boat - if anything should happen to Fiona,

then Lizzie will be representing Team GB,

and you can really get a sense of how important it is

for Lizzie to do well here at Grandtully this afternoon.

Really putting the power on.

Really attacking the course.

And leaving nothing on the water.

My goodness, she's absolutely flying through this section.

Such an experienced paddler is Lizzie.

Won here in previous years.

As she ferry glides over towards the middle section of the course,

and comfortably turns the boat and chooses the right line.

She's been up to Grandtully many times,

she knows the River Tay very well.

She knows the break out, she knows how the rocks lie,

and how the river flows.

And she'll use the speed of the river now.

Some big strokes. Oh, look at the speed of her strokes at this point.

Takes a tremendous amount of control.

Massive upper body strength.

Using the fast water, the edge of the fast water,

then breaks out to the upstream gate.

And she's looking very smooth on the bottom half of the course.

Such a strong competitor, Lizzie.

And she's got plenty left

as she powers down under the bridge and through the finish.

What a fantastic run for Lizzie Neave -

102.48 seconds - and she touched no gates, so no penalties for her.

This is the time to beat.

So dropping in at the top of the course now is Amy Hollick.

Under-23 paddler from Manchester, she was in, er,

the Under-23 GB team two years ago,

but didn't compete last season, because she dislocated her shoulder.

A horrific injury.

Strangely enough, her sister Jade also did the same thing.

So both of them coming back from the same injury.

It's a tough old sport is kayaking.

If you get things wrong, things can pop out.

But Amy looking good, actually, so far.

She's looking very good, looking pretty strong.

She'll have worked during the winter in the gym,

made sure the muscle's and the power's back in that upper body,

and build up the muscles around about the shoulder

to support it as well as she kicks through the downstream gate,

and quickly turns the bow of the boat round.

Almost stops herself, so she doesn't go too far downstream,

then she'll turn it round for the downstream gates of 13 and 14.

This is a point where a lot of paddlers can get their breath back,

cos there's still some physical stuff to happen

at the bottom of the course. Just blow out the cheeks,

get some air back in the lungs for the upstream gate.

And then quite a power back upstream.

Now, has she come upriver far enough to get across?

We see her having to work really hard across the middle.

Oh, no, you see, she hits.

She needed to come up a little bit further.

She could've come up on the eddy and turned it round,

but she decided to try and paddle against the hard water,

the fast water, which is never easy.

Amy's picked up two penalty seconds,

and finishes with a total time of 111.64,

putting her currently into second place.

-DUNCAN MCCALLUM:

-Sprinting through the timing at the top of the course

is Alice Haining from Selkirk.

Just recovering from two years' worth of injury.

Oh, nearly got tipped up there, there's a big stopper there,

and again struggling.

I's very tough. It looks like there's either a rock

or a piece of very fast, heavy water there to catch.

But she hasn't clipped anything yet.

She's clean so far.

And nice and tight on the up. Now, having said that,

she's just clipped number seven with her shoulder.

Very tricky conditions.

They only get one run today.

Come on, Alice.

But I'm afraid that mistake early on will have cost her the race.

DOUGIE: A gutsy performance from Alice, recovering from that injury,

but she's off the pace today, currently lying in eighth.

This is Kim Woods.

Kimberly is recovering

from surgery on her knee, which she had last October.

And she'll come round and ferry glide across.

You really have to put the work in.

Getting herself a wee bit of shape there,

but that's better, much nicer.

And Kim's getting in a pretty good place here, actually.

Paddling from Busby club.

Oh, a little touch on 11.

And she carries on down towards the bottom half of the course.

There's a lot of water in the river today,

and this course is really physical,

especially down the bottom of the course.

And having the ability to use the power of the water,

use the speed of the river when you can.

Coming across that really fast water

takes a tremendous amount of control.

The water's been rising all morning.

And through 17, turns it round.

I wonder, I wonder, has she got enough to finish

on the podium in the K class?

Over the line, Kim's made it down in a total time of 113.83.

That puts her into third place,

with just one woman still to race.

So, coming through the top of the course there is Fiona Pennie.

Now in the Olympic squad for Rio.

Local girl from Crieff, Parents live in Crieff,

and has been on this river many, many, many times.

Now full-time training in London...

..and a really, really talented girl.

Works extremely hard on all her strength and conditioning.

Terrifically powerful paddler.

And a amazingly good person to read the water.

This is an absolute demonstration.

Through there so, so quickly.

Coming very far across in here.

She works... Oh, got the tail slightly caught up there.

Such a fantastic...

..ambassador for the sport.

Been doing this a very long time.

Her target is Rio, so she's just trying to peak.

So few paddle strokes to get through these difficult gates,

and strong enough not to go too high into this.

And beautifully through.

Nicely done, so Fiona just pushing...

pushing with her stomach and her back to get in there. So quick.

This looks like the winning run for Fiona.

Two or three strokes through the finish.

A fantastic run.

Two touches means Fiona has four penalty seconds,

making a total time of 101.24.

She's the fastest woman today.

So confirmation of those final results in the Women's K1.

Amy Hollick came in third

with a total of 111.64.

A terrific result

for this 20-year-old paddler.

But just look at the times of the top two racers.

Lizzie Neave had one of the few clean runs,

and what a great result - 102.48.

But with a total time of 101.24, Fiona Pennie took the top spot.

I knew that I was quite fast,

but I thought it was going to be pretty close.

I thought that Lizzie might have...

I actually saw her run before I started,

and saw she went pretty quickly and clean.

Fortunately, my knowledge of the old days -

paddling here day in, day out - helped today with the big waves,

knowing how to cross them efficiently.

Congratulations to Fiona Pennie,

really laying down the law here at Grandtully,

and we wish her all the best in Rio at the Olympics.

We'll be back with the white-water action later in the programme,

but right now, we're heading north to meet a man whose life has been

shaped and defined by adventure.

52 years ago, a young couple from the south of England

set out on this very path,

intent on creating a new life for themselves.

A life that was to be very different

from that they had enjoyed beforehand.

John and Marie-Christine Ridgway

were heading for a little, tiny crofting township called Ardmore.

They didn't know it at the time,

but they were actually setting out on a lifetime of adventure.

We walked along the track and up the waterfall,

a very rough route in, I didn't know where on earth we were coming to.

But in one moment, I was completely won over by the place.

I thought it was so beautiful.

It is incredibly beautiful, but Marie-Christine and John

had chosen to live four miles from the nearest road.

For years, they had no electricity or running water.

As a paratrooper, John was used to a hard life,

but he also wanted to prove himself to the world.

So in June 1966, exactly 50 years ago,

he set off on a 20-foot open boat to row the North Atlantic

from America to Ireland with his army colleague, Chay Blyth.

They did this unsupported, in an age before everything

was sponsored and documented for the media.

There were no communications at all.

No bedding, no accommodation, it was hard. You know, we set off

and he'd never been to sea before.

-Really?

-No, he hadn't, no.

-And, you know, off we went.

-Describe the boat for me,

because I'm aware that nowadays people row the Atlantic

in what could obviously be described as luxury cruisers.

This was a plywood boat from the Bradford Boat Service,

which is a long way from the coast.

And it was inexpensive.

It was called a dory, which comes from New England.

It's flat-bottomed and, consequently,

when very big waves came, it sort of surfed off them.

It wasn't held by the keel, which would roll it over.

John and Chay endured 92 days at sea,

battling through two hurricanes, vicious storms,

and fighting for their survival.

That crossing became one of the greatest feats

in the history of adventure.

There's no decking that you can get in under,

so, to sleep, they just slept in the floor boards

with a space blanket over them. They had no bedding.

It was a completely open rowing boat.

-In the middle of the Atlantic?

-In the middle...

I mean, it's a boat that, if I went on the loch here,

-I think I'm going to perish.

-No GPS?

-No GPS.

They had a beacon,

which we were assured by the military that they would send out...

Once it got, kind of, halfway,

this plane was going to go out and chart their progress,

but it never went, and that was a terrible letdown.

During the 12 hours of day, we would both row together, with four oars.

I would be in the forward one,

with the compass before me, so I could navigate

with the sextant, which was absolutely vital, that!

-You know what I mean?

-HE LAUGHS

And then, at night-time, we would row two hours on and two hours off,

so you'd have three two-hour periods of sleep.

But when you were woken up,

you had to get there quickly before the thing...

It's very hard to bring it back onto course, you know, a lot of the time.

Then when the weather was really bad, you just lay there.

I think I will do a deal, you know, anything...

"I'll do anything you want if you let me keep alive," you know.

LAUGHTER

It was terribly worrying.

I mean, I was fearful.

We hadn't been married more than two years,

and there was the love of my life putting himself in such danger.

I sort of kind of thought, at that point, "For what?"

But it was exciting,

and anything I've ever done with John has been exciting.

Rowing across the Atlantic was only the beginning.

Two years later, the Ridgways opened a school of adventure,

here at Ardmore, which left the winter months free for exploration.

From an early age, their daughter Rebecca

joined them on many of their expeditions.

And what an impressive list that is,

including sailing round the world three times.

I always really enjoyed those trips with them.

It was always something that was far away

in a completely different culture and, you know,

perhaps was something that, in fact, has an impact on your life

years later, in that you've seen how people live

in different parts of the world.

How would you describe your parents?

Crazy? No, I think they, um...

They had a dream and a passion.

I remember a lot of times when, you know, things weren't easy at all.

But they have a great enthusiasm and zest for life.

Can your father be difficult?

Oh, yes, I think all people who achieve a lot are not easy people,

are they? Because they've got some sort of edge which gets them

to that situation. He's much better now than he used to be.

He's mellowed a lot with age, but he certainly can be difficult still.

It's obviously not been roses all the way.

We've had terrible battles.

-Do you row?

-Do we row? I'm afraid we do.

He's very, very annoying.

But, um, I think what's kept us going has been this place, Ardmore,

and, you know, when it's been really bad,

and we've both felt like going in separate directions,

I would never have left Ardmore and he would never have left Ardmore.

It has actually been the cement in our marriage.

He's a great source of inspiration, and he sees...

I don't know, he sees a bigger picture.

I'm going to make the absolute most of being alive.

I've tapped my foot on the ground, I try to do that every day, and think,

"Yes, I am alive. Get at it, get after it."

Because you're only going to live a very short time.

Wouldn't you agree? Life is short.

I realise how short it is. It soon goes by, and then, what did you do?

What did YOU do with it?

I don't know.

John may have his doubts, but others certainly don't.

Earlier this year, he and Marie-Christine received

a lifetime achievement award

in recognition of everything they've accomplished.

Welcome back to the white-water here on the River Tay.

Now, this is where a young Tim Baillie really honed

that competitive spirit and fell in love with his sport.

But what was the Scottish scene like way back then?

My era of paddlers that came through,

there was a really healthy group of paddlers.

Actually, a lot less paddlers than there are now, but just, you know,

all really enjoyed canoeing a lot, and did it a lot,

and we were lucky that there were some really key,

influential volunteer coaches that facilitated that training.

Nowadays, there's a lot more groups, and the Lottery funding's having

an impact, so you have better strength and conditioning coaching

down to a younger age, so athletes, right from the get go,

are doing the things that we only learnt to do in our 20s, perhaps.

I think it's a very bright future for Scottish canoe slalom.

So who are the Scottish paddlers who could win gold in the future?

Someone who is forging ahead in this highly competitive world

is Bradley Forbes-Cryans from Edinburgh.

He's recently won a place in the GB team.

It's absolutely fantastic to be a member

of the Great Britain canoe slalom team.

I now train at the Lee Valley White Water Centre in London,

which is an absolutely fantastic facility.

We get to train on white water two times every day, Monday to Saturday,

and I feel like that really, really boosted me,

and now I'm able to compete with the top guys in the world.

Bradley's just turned 21 and he's part of a new generation of younger

Scottish paddlers who are determined to make their mark on the sport.

Angus Gibson races in C1, and his older sister,

Eilidh, in both the canoe and the kayak disciplines.

They grew up in Kinross.

We do it as a whole family. I made such good friends at canoeing,

just go out on the river and have fun together.

-It's really good, yeah.

-And do you train together, as well?

-Occasionally, yeah.

-Yeah. A couple of times a week.

It's the very nature of siblings - there's going to be rivalry, right?

-Well, I always win, so...

-Yeah, that's it(!) That's it(!)

No, it's good, like, I think, because we do the same class,

-we do give each other tips.

-Yeah.

If one person's doing something well, we both watch that.

Because we don't race against each other, it makes it easier for us

-to train and coach each other...

-Yeah.

-..which is quite good.

Another possible future star is Maddy Jennings from Aberfeldy.

Last year, she came first in the Scottish Under-16s,

and was runner-up in Britain.

But there are big decisions ahead.

I'd really like to keep going with canoeing all through my life,

if I can, but it is a huge, huge commitment and I don't actually have

any plan what's going to happen as I leave school

in the next few weeks, so I'm just going to canoe as much as I can

and just see where it goes, really.

And there's also a bright future for the 16-year-old Ogilvie twins,

Sophie and Rebecca. They're from Denny, near Falkirk,

and, once again, sibling rivalry is fierce.

At the end of that season, I've managed to get in front of Sophie,

but the seasons before, I've always been chasing Sophie,

so it's kind of been like a change in order this year.

It's quite good to have that competition between us and then

one goes in front, other one's got a target to push on.

I felt like, this year, I became more competitive in my C1,

so then my kayak kind of, like, disappeared away,

but I think, over the winter now, it's starting to come back,

and I've seen it be more competitive between me and Rebecca now.

Unlike when Tim was starting out on his career,

all these young paddlers are now benefiting

from a newly-developed artificial course at Pinkston near Glasgow.

It's nice and short, compact, quite powerful,

and it emulates the course down in London.

Same obstacle system, really nice features, and the kids there are

really getting some strength in growing skills and power.

So the obstacles are hollow plastic tubes that fill with water,

and that gives them the density to stay in place?

They're anchored down to a series of rails on the floor.

They're empty plastic blocks,

so we've got the opportunity to move them around

to an infinite number of combinations,

and we can actually start to copy different rapids around the world.

So, on some of the courses in the UK,

we've been working at copying features

in Prague and - vice versa -

they sometimes copy features on our courses,

as up-and-coming races progress through the season.

So it's steadily evolving and, now it's established,

I think there's good opportunity for grants and money to come in to

strengthen that as a real centre of excellence for paddling in Scotland.

Back to the natural waters of the River Tay.

And it's time for the canoe events.

Here, competitors kneel in the boats

and use single-bladed paddles.

Tim's C2 partner in success at the 2012 Olympics was Etienne Stott.

Following Tim's retirement, Etienne's now got a new partner,

the experienced C1 paddler Mark Proctor.

I've known him a long time to be strong with him

and get on with what we need to do,

and it's just good to be on here in C2 and experiencing new feelings,

but we both know where we want to put the boat,

-and it's worked out quite well.

-We did a lot of work off the water

with a team psychologist and our coach, trying to, like,

bring our two philosophies together, whereas, me and Tim,

our philosophies kind of developed together as we grew.

This was bringing two things together,

creating a consensus out of two different positions,

which was very interesting.

We're joining the action as the last two C2 boats start down the course.

And to give us an expert's view, we are joined by Olympic C2 medallist,

our very own Tim Baillie.

So approaching the top fall here,

we've got Mark Proctor and Etienne Stott.

Pole position favourites to take the win today,

and they're showing you why. They're very, very direct

and clean into gate three.

Squeezing through, the gates here at Grandtully are quite narrow,

and they're particularly difficult for the C2 category.

But Etienne and Mark making a good job of it so far,

surfing out nicely from gate seven.

Now, they've gotta line up,

and this is a very physical cross, squeezing sweetly through gate nine.

This cross really punishing Mark Proctor into the front.

He's got to work very, very hard on the right-hand side to keep

the boat tracking, but they've done a good job of that, as well.

A lot of the speed in canoe slalom

comes from using the water to your maximum advantage.

So you want to be out of the eddies

and back into the flow as quickly as possible.

Remember, this is the one-run super final, so there's no second chances,

but so far it doesn't look like Mark and Etienne are going to need it.

A great run, but they did pick up two penalty seconds,

so their overall time is 106.59.

By far, the fastest so far.

Last down the course are two up-and-coming under-23 paddlers.

Just coming into gate three, we've got bib number three,

it's Michael Brown and Andrew Huston.

Squeezing neatly through gate five.

Oh!

Victim of the narrow gate there on gate six.

Just rubbing Andrew's back.

Nice, neat surf out.

Lining up for this move.

They're actually, you'll notice,

set up the other way around from Etienne and Mark,

so they've got... Michael in the front's paddling on the left,

and Andrew in the back on the right, which makes that cross a bit easier.

They've got to turn without any difficulties.

Now, looking to control the surf.

Slide through gate 11.

Oh! Another penalty, that looked like.

The judges will confirm it later.

I think, with the number of time penalties they've collected,

they probably won't be able to challenge Etienne and Mark's run,

because they look like they've had a very clean navigation of the course.

Mike and Andy will be disappointed with that.

Ten penalty seconds puts their total time up to 122.21.

That's nearly 16 seconds slower,

but it's enough for them to take second place.

The clear winners today, though, are Mark Proctor and Etienne Stott,

with their phenomenal time of 106.59.

There's bad news, though, for the C2 paddlers.

After this year in Rio, it will no longer be an Olympic discipline.

But where there are losers, there are also winners.

The C1 Women's category will be included in future Olympics.

Traditionally, all C1 paddlers used their paddles on one side only,

but that's beginning to change.

Something that's emerging more these days is where paddlers actually

choose to switch. So they'll be paddling on their right, perhaps,

but then they'll change and paddle on their left as well.

It can be a very effective technique.

If you're either a specialist righty, or specialist lefty,

there are often going to be places on a course where you'll either be

up a bit or down a bit and there's almost no way of closing that gap

unless you become ambidextrous, but at the same time,

the amount of time you have to spend training just on your right to be an

expert at that, it's very, very hard to find the time to perfect both.

So I guess you choose your strategy,

and then spend as much time as you can learning it.

Today's conditions are really tough for this canoe class

and, like the C2 boats, none of the C1 women manage

to get down the course without touching a gate.

20-year-old Kim Woods, who came fourth in the kayak discipline,

was the race favourite.

European champion in C1 last year,

she struggled today on this Grandtully course.

Her speed was good, but ten penalty seconds

meant she finished second with a total time of 159.28.

Things started well for 16-year-old Sophie Ogilvie from Denny.

Lower down the course, though, she drifted offline and lost time.

But while she was slower than Kim, she only hit two gates.

That meant her total time of 153.70

was over five seconds faster than Kim's, gaining her

a well-deserved first place.

On the basis of today's performance, and her sheer determination,

-Sophie's got a great future ahead.

-Oh, it's amazing!

Especially when you're competing against top athletes like Kim.

I was knackered by then, I couldn't breathe -

that's how bad - but I think I just stuck at it.

And, if you've got a plan, just stick by it

and, yeah, I'm very happy.

Now, it's the men's turn.

And there's a strong line-up in today's C1 event,

with Sam Ibbotson, Zachary Allin and Ryan Westley

all competing for the top spot.

But with the river rising all the time, it could be anybody's race.

We're picking up the action as

19-year-old Will Smith from Winchester takes to the water.

Nice and cleanly round three.

Good start for Will.

Over to the cluster of staggered, downhill gates.

Last year, Will was part of the GB Under-18 squad.

That looked like a wee touch there!

No problems with the upstream gate, though.

On across this powerful water.

Will now lives in Nottingham to further his canoeing at

the National Watersports Centre.

Very keen to make the Under-23 team.

Getting to the bottom half of the course now.

Quick paddle change.

With water this strong, it seems this technique is pretty useful.

Nicely through 17.

Then under the bridge. And flat out for the finish.

Will did have one touch in the top part of the course,

so two penalty seconds,

but a good time - total of 108.60.

He's set the time to beat.

Next up, it's 18-year-old Zachary Allin.

He's from Northumberland and competes in both this

and the kayak discipline.

Creeping round gate three.

He's made it, it's clean.

Zach's been paddling since he was four

and started slalom training five years ago.

Then, in 2013, picked for the British junior team.

Definitely someone to watch out for in the future.

He's having a pretty good run today as he ferry glides across the river.

It's certainly not getting any easier.

Today's course really is a test of stamina, strength and determination.

Upstream gate next.

Nicely done, then back across again!

Really is incredibly physical out there today.

Through 11. Then on down to the bottom part of the course.

Just last few gates to go.

This looks like the best run so far. Just one left. Can he make it clean?

Yes, he can. No penalties for Zach

as he powers under the bridge to the finish.

And what a time that is, as well - 105.96.

That puts him into top spot, at least for the moment.

Angus Gibson here.

17 years old,

competing in the world's this year.

A terrific performance getting selected and going there.

Great, strong Scottish paddler.

And, in C1, it's a competitive discipline.

And THE most technical of the paddling disciplines here.

Fantastic.

Beautiful technique there just to keep the boat aligned

to go through these gates.

Doing well. Coming into this one nice and high.

Boat beautifully aligned there.

That was a terrific line, the best we've seen so far.

So, come on, Angus.

A very talented paddler.

Looks balanced on both sides.

Couldn't help but give himself a good chance there.

Pushed off the side with his paddle, look, to hit 16.

And Angus is now... That's a very difficult gate to catch.

Still plenty strength there.

He's still pushing on hard. As soon as he was through that,

he looked at the next gate, getting himself lined up.

That looks like a very strong paddle.

Four penalty seconds, though, for an exhausted Angus,

which makes a total time of 117.55.

That's not going to get him on the podium today.

This is Sam Ibbotson.

Number four, Under-23 paddler.

He's the youngest of four

in a family of paddlers.

And he's a talented boy.

Using the natural contours of the natural river, there, Sam.

Basically, he pushed off the back, which is absolutely fine.

It doesn't matter what you use on the natural rivers.

Upstream gate, and heading to another one right now.

And a tough one, as well.

This is gate number 10

as he ferry glides across the fast part of the river.

Kicks into the downstream gate. Changes hands.

Effort getting put in now as he goes across the river.

You'll notice he'll move the bow of the boat

and use the power of the river to take him through 16.

Yep, well done.

And try and keep himself upstream enough to break out for 17.

Look how hard he's working for this.

My goodness. Really putting the power on

and turning it down for the bottom half of the course.

Clean through 18, but two penalty seconds further up the course

brings Sam's total time to 110.31.

Now, there's just one man still to race.

Ryan Westley coming in at the top of the course.

That looks nice, GB paddler.

Coming in here, Ryan has...

..taken those top three gates very well.

Swinging around there a little bit in the wind.

And you can see Ryan using the water very, very well here.

Experienced paddler.

Nice tip under there.

And a very good line into this.

The bow should just go underneath.

Look at that! Fantastic technique.

Really beautifully done.

And he now needs to hit the slightly upside of this,

straight through the middle, looking ahead.

A couple of left-hand strokes to get through there,

spin round the paddle. Very nicely done from Ryan.

This looks like a strong run.

You imagine these guys are kneeling in the boat.

Lots of force coming through the core.

As Ryan has his paddle on the left side right.

Now into this gate.

Took that well.

Coming across this awkward glide into the upstream 17.

Ryan pushing through. Nicely done, spin on the strong side.

That looks like pretty competent

as he's pushing his way down into the...

Cutting the timer now.

A clean run and a great time of 102.02 -

over three seconds faster than his nearest rival.

So, confirmation of those final results.

Will Smith came third.

Two penalties brought his total time to 108.60.

Zachary Allin had a clean run to take second place in 105.96.

But dominating the field today was Ryan Westley,

with his time of 102.02 - what a fantastic run from him.

Completely different challenge to what we're used to

on the international circuit - it's all artificial white watercourses,

the river level, you've got great access, you can walk it really well.

When we're away, we've got video, everything,

preparing down to the last detail.

Er, out here, obviously, we've been challenged by the conditions.

A lot of rain. The river level's

come up three, four feet since this morning.

So, it's been challenging for everybody.

But I think everybody will come away a little bit better from it.

Congratulations to Ryan Westley.

3½ seconds is a pretty impressive margin of victory.

We'll be back later in the programme

with more white-water action from Grandtully

with the final event - the men's K1.

Right now, though, we're joining Deziree Wilson

who's busy with a project of her own.

For anyone interested in the outdoors,

it's hard to beat a day in the Scottish hills.

And in search of a challenging adventure,

many people are drawn to the idea of Munro bagging.

There are 282 of them

and over 5,000 folks have completed the circuit.

Now, I seem to have been sucked in, too.

But instead of walking up them,

I'm going to try and run up them instead.

Today, I'm hoping to tick off Sgairneach Mhor, which is

one of a group of four Munros to the west of the Drumochter Pass.

I suppose there is an element of it being a bit of a tick list.

But in a way, I think humans need those goals.

I think it's just human nature. I don't think it necessarily

detracts from the wilderness element.

I mean, at the end of the day,

it's still just about getting out there and being in wild places.

Part of the attraction for me is doing something under my own steam.

So, I'm not relying necessarily on path and tracks.

Navigating when you're running is much more difficult,

because I'm not tending to stop very often and look at the map.

I'm having to plot a route before I go and then, as I run,

I'm ticking things off in my mind that I'm expecting to see.

It's not just a physical challenge - it's a mental challenge, as well.

It's that combination of mind and body

having to work quite hard together that really appeals to me.

There's something about just being by myself and knowing

that I'm the only one that I can rely on to get me around.

The weather might be bad. I might not see anybody the whole day,

but I still know that I've got the skills and I've got the fitness

to be able to achieve that.

Although it's a big enough challenge for me,

it's nothing compared to the achievements of some others.

Hamish Brown was the first to complete

a continuous round trip of these hills, way back in 1974.

And today, the record for an entirely self-propelled round trip

is just shy of 50 days.

Incredible!

This challenge, for me, was maybe my version of a midlife crisis,

because I decided to do it when I was 40

and I don't have a time limit on it at all, er, it's...

Partly, I don't want to, because I'd like to think

that I'm still going to be out and about in the hills when I'm 80.

So, I'd like to think that this is something that's just going to

keep me motivated to keep exploring, really, for the rest of my life.

I love it. I love the freedom of movement.

I love... I guess I love the adrenaline rush

that you get from running that you don't really get from walking.

I love having to move quickly over broken terrain,

because it means I have to kind of engage my brain a bit, as well,

and I'm having to risk-assess it quite quickly.

So, that feels challenging,

but it also feels a bit more exciting, as well.

This is what I love about the Scottish mountains.

We've just had every kind of weather today. Spindrift behind me.

It was really windy two minutes ago,

and now, it's completely still and the sun's about to come out.

It's just absolutely fantastic.

The something about running along

a beautiful ridge in the Scottish Highlands,

and the weather might be really a bit gnarly

and it might be really windy and squally,

and you're just running really fast

and it just feels absolutely amazing.

Ah! Brilliant. I think that's our summit ahead.

Woohoo! Summit cairn!

This is brilliant, it's just what I wanted from today.

Amazing light coming in and out.

It's really squally and then the sun comes out and it's warm!

Amazing views of Ben Alder in the background.

21 down, 261 to go.

So, not that many.

'Well, if you say so, Deziree.

'I wish you the best of luck for the years and years,

'and possibly years ahead.'

Welcome back to the River Tay here at Grandtully.

We'll be rejoining the action at the premiere canoe slalom shortly.

But first, Tim Baillie wanted to give ME a taste

of what it's like on the water. Although with me on board,

we'll definitely need to take a simple line down the river.

It would have been nice to try some of the gates,

but the level it's at now, it's probably better off just going for

a straight charge and just try and make it down upright, to be honest.

I've been down this on a raft, maybe about 15, maybe even 20 years ago,

and I was absolutely terrified doing it then!

What should I think about sitting in the front of your boat?

Don't get you wet, I guess!

Well, yeah, that is the luxury of sitting in the back

and it's something Etienne used to enjoy in the winters,

cos I would often act as a snowplough for him

and splash the water and part it for him, but no, I think

the key thing for you while you're sitting in the front is just

keep paddling, keep going at stuff, so that I can steer in the back,

cos if we start drifting and floating, we're just at

the mercy of the water, then you don't know what's going to happen.

If you get broadside on one of these waves,

then it'll be very, very hard to stay upright.

Very nervous indeed at the prospect of this. Here we go.

Coming to the left of one. Oh, my goodness. Oh, my goodness.

OK, we're through one.

We're through two.

Oh, my goodness me.

Oh, wow! DOUGIE LAUGHS

This is amazing!

Oh, up and down!

Face full of water. That's the first time I felt some water on my face.

Oh, what's this?

Oh, oh...!

Oh, my goodness!

We're coming down towards 15. I can see 15. I can't see much else.

Ah! And we're going steady on,

coming towards the bridge, which means we're near the edge!

Oh, my goodness me.

What an incredible rush.

Oh, wow!

Oh, wow! That was amazing.

Whoo-hoo-hoo!

That was such great fun!

Ha-ha!

You get some pace up and I was willing to stop at any point.

But then, the water's splashing in your face.

It feels fast. You're sitting in it. It's all going over the top of you.

What an unbelievable rush!

'A good job, though, I didn't attempt any of the gates -

'at least not intentionally, anyway.'

So, let's see how the experts do it for real.

It's time for the Men's K1.

Huw Swetnam is one of the favourites for today's race.

He's in his mid-30s and has been paddling since 1993.

He's more used to artificial courses

and a natural river like this poses particular challenges.

The gates here are so far apart,

and to judge how fast the water's going

is really difficult, with it rising and stuff.

So, it's very different.

A lot of the upstreams we do on the artificial courses are all about

just getting the head around the gate, really tight around the pole.

And here, there's rocks underneath.

It's a bit more shallow, so it's quite a different style.

I guess I like... I like it all.

I like the variety of it.

It's nice to come here and race on the natural stuff.

We're picking up the action now,

as Bradley Forbes-Cryans starts down the river.

Very exciting young paddler.

Celebrated his 21st birthday yesterday.

Whilst he's now based in Lee Valley

at the British Performance Centre, he's originally from Edinburgh,

so he spent a lot of time training here on Grandtully.

He's going off deceptively early.

Bib 32 isn't at all reflective of his actual ranking in Great Britain.

It's more a function of the fact that, last year,

he missed a lot of British races due to being on international duty,

and, as we've seen so far, he's really taking the...

taking charge to this course.

Hopefully, he's got enough in the tank for the bottom section,

cos it is a very physically demanding course.

Bradley's already selected for the GB senior team next year.

He finished third in the selection series that was held last October,

and that was unusually early, to give the Olympic team the

best chance of accessing the course in Rio as much as possible, so...

Olympic selection happened last year, but today, we're racing

for the first British national series race of the year.

Two penalty seconds, but still a great run for Bradley.

His total time is 96.67.

He's set the time to beat.

Next up is Zachary Allin, who came second in C1.

So, Zack Allin, a very good prospect.

Been in the GB team for a couple of years now. Junior paddler.

And Zach in the number eight bib, beautifully done.

A good high line there.

Very strong paddler.

And a good line.

Tall enough and kept himself sitting upright,

so he could get through there with the bad crest of that wave.

Through the rough water, crossing the fastest part of the river again.

And definitely, a fine run there from Zach.

No penalties on that run and a time of 96.50.

Slower than Bradley's,

but his clean run means Zachary's currently in first place.

This is Christopher Bowers, he's a Under-18 paddler

and a member of the GB team for quite a few years now.

So, for one so young, he has lots of experience

competing on the international stage.

And he's an impressive paddler.

He's got such a lot of power, this fella.

And he's just... He's getting himself in the right place, as well.

It's so important, on these natural rivers, to make sure you pick

the smoothest and the fastest line through these gates.

The course is designed to make life difficult for you,

but the person who wins is the person that chooses the best line

and obviously avoids the time penalties.

So Christopher Bowers looking pretty good, actually, I would suggest.

On this run, can he keep it going

and keep the power on at the bottom half of the course?

It's a tough old course in an ever-rising river.

Another clean run, so no penalties for Christopher Bowers.

97.52.

It's slower than both Bradley and Zachary,

so that means he's in third for the moment.

Next up is James Bailey from the Stafford & Stone club,

and he's really attacking

the top part of the course.

In five, James Bailey.

Poles swinging on gate two for him,

so it looks like he might have collected a time penalty already,

but we'll defer to the judges for that one.

Keeping it neat through gate six, squeezing into seven.

James, another very tall paddler.

Very technically gifted.

And likes to race on the ragged edge of control, so there's been many,

many races where it looked like James was about to win and then he

unfortunately collected a devastating penalty.

But, so far, it looks like things are going well.

Gets on the surf, ten to 11.

Having to work a little bit for it and spinning out a little bit there.

Losing some precious time and also having to burn some energy

getting it back online, but that was a really quick break out on 12.

Down into the bottom part of the course,

the long, hard crossover to 17, cleanly through.

This is a solid run.

Perhaps not the fastest, and he's hit one gate.

Down through 18, and James powers on to the finish.

Two penalty seconds, so that makes his total time 102.75.

So, number three here - Ciaran Lee Edwards.

Junior Under-23 from Wales.

And Ciaran looking good.

Oh, that's very nicely done.

Nice and quick, up over that stopper.

And Ciaran coming across.

And a very, very good line, just reading the water well.

Nice and tight.

And as we go, and the water comes in,

this little channel that was there just maybe half an hour ago is

slowly disappearing as the character of the river changes all the time.

It's all about efficiency on the red gates.

You want to be nice and tight.

Cross the river as high as you possibly can,

so you're not expending too much energy

catching up on a gate which is too far up the river for you,

and then a quick twist and down into 18 to finish.

A clean run for Ciaran Lee Edwards, and his time is 97.72.

Not enough for a podium spot.

He's currently in fourth place with just one man still to race.

And now, approaching gate one, we've got Huw Swetnam -

bib number one, the winner

of the Prem rankings last year

and one of the key dangermen for the win today.

Very, very nice around gate three

and carrying his speed back to the flow.

I think that's the best we've seen it done so far

and he's being careful there through the staggers.

It's interesting, because it is a one-run race today.

Sometimes, you'd see athletes maybe play it safe on first runs

and then go harder on second, or vice versa,

but here, you've got to combine those two ideas into one run.

Let's see what Huw's able to do.

Oh, poles moving on gate ten.

We'll have to see what the judges make of that.

Still on a fast pace, though,

and Huw is an athlete in fantastic condition.

Been training full-time for many years,

so he is unlikely to be fazed by the physical nature of this course.

Charging down to the bottom, he's keeping up a good tempo.

Nice around gate 15.

A bit of a tricky course across here. You need to surf the wave,

chill a little bit through 16 and then really

put the power down again now to battle all the way into 17.

We can see Huw managed to maintain the momentum on his boat

all the way there, so I think this is going to be a really fast time.

Just a sprint to the finish.

Two penalty seconds brings Huw's total time to 94.20,

making him the fastest man down the course today.

So a confirmation of those final results...

In third place, Bradley Forbes-Cryans

had a great run and finished on 96.67.

Second went to Under-18 paddler Zachary Allin

with his time of 96.50.

But over two seconds faster, the clear winner today was Huw Swetnam.

A odd day, when you're sort of preparing for one course

and the water's going up,

and you're preparing for a slightly different course and then

it's cancelled completely, but good outcome and good fun, as well.

Well, that's it for The Adventure Show this month.

Next time around, we'll be in Fort William

as the creme de la creme of the mountain bike world

converge for the World Cup.

Until then, from all of us here in Perthshire,

thank you so much for your company. Bye for now.