NSR MMX – The Full Story

It was way back in 1782 that Nathaniel Sebastian Rodeo first suggested the idea of gathering together the greatest student minds in the country in order to go paddling, compete against each other’s academic institutions and generally have a marvellous time. At first it was little more than 3 men falling out of a coracle with a glass of sherry, however since then it has grown a little…

The fact that 900 people turn up and 680 competitors all go paddling is amazing enough, but what’s even more remarkable is that every one of those paddlers gets at least an extreme slalom run as well as a freestyle heat. Novice, Intermediate and expert classes run, and those who still want more can enter squirt, C1, Old Skool, Duo and Sofa-Cross too! On top of this there is a general abundance of shenanigans throughout the weekend, with all manner of home made craft taking to the water to entertain the carnage hungry crowds.

A new event for this year was the Old School rodeo; an open event, with only pre 2000 boats allowed. It saw good representation from team Palm, with plenty of vintage Palm gear on display and 2nd and 3rd places going to Nick and Tim respectively. A stunningly luminous Dave Burne took a well deserved gold medal.

Saturday Night brought with it the eagerly anticipated premiere of Dream Result; the new paddling film by Rush Sturges and Tyler Bradt. The film was truly stunning, finishing to a standing ovation from the 800 people present. If you haven’t already, then get yourself along to one of the premieres. Without doubt it represents a new standard for paddling films. To find out more , and to buy the movie, visit River-Roots.com.

The party kicked off straight after, bringing with it a plethora of amazing costume as always, this year’s theme being ancient civilisations. Check out our facebook page to see some of them, we’ll be awarding a Saffron Switch paddle jacket to our favourite later on this week…

Sunday morning arrived as always several hours too soon, and brought with it a heavy frost and some worryingly large icicles hanging from slalom poles. Paddlers were understandably slow to emerge, however once on site competitors seemed amazingly happy to throw themselves down the course wearing little more than a PFD and Helmet in the mass start 40 team inflatable sofa-cross.

The rest of the finals took place on Sunday afternoon with the carnage filled men’s and women’s novice categories proving as popular as ever.

Throughout the event, commentary, music and entertainment were provided along the length of the course by the guys at Extreme Events, however the standout hero of the event was without doubt the Rodeo Rabbit, who spent the spent Sunday afternoon getting chased up and down the length of the course for prizes and general entertainment.

When all of the finals were over, including the final spectacle in the form of the crowd pleasing Duo final, it was time for the final prize giving. Not content to simply wait for the final results to arrive the Rodeo Rabbit appeared once again to lead a mass participation dance off.

In the end the prize for winning uni went to event organisers Leeds, who kindly donated their prize, the custom NSR Dagger Axiom, to second place Sheffield uni.

A huge thanks must go to event organisers Andy and Peter from Leeds, as well as the guys at River Legacy for the party, and everybody else who helped out. This event is only as good as it is because so many volunteers put so much work in.

Thanks everybody, and we’ll see you again next year!

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