Austria 1999

Asked for their best and worst moments from the tour of duty the following comments were most memorable. Make of them what you will:

Watto:

Peaks: Finding seven people daft enough to come with me; surfing a mega fast wave and getting a great pop-out on the Inn from Tösen; Landeck Gorge; Dan saving me the embarrassment of being the only experienced hand to swim (thanks Dan); saving five pounds on petrol by strategically arriving in Luxembourg with an empty tank.

Troughs: Almost vomiting with nerves as I watched our probe turn turtle entering the Roofed Corner Rapid on the Sanna; having to buy everyone good quality ice creams to make up for a whole load of swims; not buying a temporary tax disc for Austrian roads; driving and navigating continuously for ten hours of the night on the way to Austria.

Dan:

Peaks: Excitedly discussing everyone's mini epics in the eddy at the bottom of the Roofed Corner Rapid; chopping up the fallen tree that made me swim on the Rosanna.

Troughs: Thinking I was a goner as I side surfed towards the raft-munching stopper on the Landeck Gorge; not quite making the toilet when I caught TB (Trevor Belly) and bouncing my stomach contents over the walls and toilet lid; having to pay a third of Watto's fine for not buying a temporary Austrian tax disc; driving/navigating continuously for ten hours of the night on the way to Austria.

Andy F:

Peaks: Bottom grade four section of the Schuls Gorge; Rolling after being pinned on the Trisanna;

Troughs: Getting pinned on the Trisanna; Trying to follow Watto's high speed night driving while he paid far too much attention to his talking book.

Trevor:

Peaks: The eclipse (canoeing was only a side line to the main event for me); finding just about the only clear patch of sky in Austria for the eclipse; reaching 81mph while skiing; not having to wash for a fortnight.

Troughs: Crashing at 70mph while skiing; forgetting my helmet on the Trisanna; sliding under a fallen tree without a helmet on the Trisanna; having to pay a third of Watto's fine for not buying a temporary Austrian tax disc; Only getting ten hours sleep in the back of the car while Watto and Dan drove me to Austria.

Claire:

Peaks: Grade four sections of the Schuls gorge on the Swiss Inn.

Troughs: Continuing back problems stopping me doing the booming big Landeck Gorge; being sick on the journey to Austria; being down-wind of Trevor (this wasn't the cause of the sickness); bruising my bits mountain biking and having to push the bike downhill because I couldn't reach the brakes; breaking down on the way home five miles from Calais.

Jonty:

Peaks: Rolling up half way down the grade four section and the bottom of the Schuls Gorge and thereby avoiding certain death; Losing sight of Watto on the drive to Austria and being able to proceed without following a maniac.

Troughs: Not being allowed to drink in the pizza restaurant after falling for Claire's, "We'll get a taxi," con; Following Watto at 55mph towards Luxembourg because he was worried about running out of petrol; breaking down five miles from Calais on the way home; Claire's back stopping her doing as much paddling as she would have liked.

Helen:

Please note: Helen does not normally swear and was under the most extreme emotional and physical stress at the point of the famous quotations and therefore cannot be held legally responsible for her conduct - Welcome to the SOC canoeing section.

Peaks: Surfing the biggest wave you've ever seen on the Imst Gorge - can't understand why everybody else did all they could to avoid it! ; the rocky, technical Trisanna; climbing the via ferrata to the 3000m summit of the Dachstein Mountain;

Troughs: Deciding that white water canoeing was, "Too stressful" and finding out I was mountain biking with, "A bunch of nutters".

Phil:

Peaks: Landeck Gorge; clearing the water with a pop-out on the Landeck Gorge; successfully completing the 4+ section of the Trisanna - my hands were trembling at the end (wonder why no-one else did it?); Going like a nutter on the downhill mountain biking.

Troughs: Seeing Helen go into the biggest wave and stopper ever and wondering whether a) I should have given her an introduction to white water canoeing before inviting her to Austria, b) would I be able to rescue my the boat that I had lent to Helen.

Epilogue

Everyone survived, everyone thought the eclipse was fab, Helen is joining the SOC (you just can't help some people).

	Search this site powered by FreeFind
	Swaledale Outdoor Club