- Galway Fest 2022 -
Find a vibrant city, invite kayakers from all around the world to compete in different disciplines, throw a few lively parties and you have just created a world class event. Add a few pints of Guinness, plenty of Irish banter and gorgeous seascapes and you get Galway Fest.
It was under a beautiful blue sky and bright sun that kayakers gathered again on the West coast of Ireland to celebrate the 10th edition of Galway Fest. The weekend started with a freestyle jam session in Tuam, Ireland’s finest freestyle feature. Despite the water levels not being optimal, huge tricks were thrown to impress the judges, as well as more innovative moves – like the famous Harry Potter – to surprise the crowd. The top eight female and male paddlers then faced each other during a night finals under flood lights. Freestyle finals have always been a highlight of the weekend for many people, but especially this year. Watching the best freestyle athletes sending ambitious moves in a flushy and shallow feature with the hope to grab top spot was truly inspiring. Congratulations to Ottilie Robinson-Shaw and Gav Barker for their win, and their mastery in holding the flares to celebrate.
After an early drive along the coast, gazing at the scenic Cliffs of Moher and Aran islands in the distance, everyone met again for the second event in Spiddeal. The Boluisce river is not a difficult run, but it is challenging to be fast on, particularly this year with a lower dam release than expected. More than 200 paddlers pushed hard down the river, avoiding rocks and ducking under branches, all the way to sea. Again, the top eight paddlers had to fight for the top position with a serious final race: a no-deck boater cross with a mandatory portage. Aoife Hanrahan and Andi Brunner managed to stay afloat and made it through the main and last rapid, Poll Gorm, in front of the others.
The evening followed with a tour of city, from pub to club, trying the local cuisine and beverages. Friends talked about their lines, told good stories and danced until the sun rose again.
The next day, everyone gathered in the heart of Galway City for the final events. Galway Fest is all about enjoying the river together, and what would showcase this better than a mass start boater cross? People fought, people laughed, but all made it down the river, ready for one last event, the unpredictable Boater X race. Finals saw the top athletes fighting once more, this time with a tight seal-launch into a shallow canal, through a narrow slide and off a drop – all under the eyes of an excited crowd. Ottilie Robinson-Shaw and Andi Brunner pushed their boat to the limits again to be the first to touch the banner.
In the end, it is the paddlers who perform the best across the whole event who get to bring home the trophy, with Heidi Walsh and Lucien Schreiber being awarded as Queen and King of Galway Fest 2022. Huge congratulations to Béibhin Butler for the well-deserved Alex McGourty memorial trophy and Calvin O’Brien for being awarded our dear friend David Higgins memorial trophy. Thank you to everyone that joined for the weekend, and to everyone who donated to the fundraiser: €2,888 were divided equally between the Free the River Funds, the Irish Red Cross, the Irish community Rapid Response and Ecuador Kayak School.
Galway Fest will see you again on the 10th, 11th and 12th of March 2023: save the date!
Words: Lucien Schreiber | Photography: Jack Ledwith
Published in Kayak Session Magazine #82 (Summer 2022)