We did it!

And they are away....

Well we did it! Thanks to Gordon’s hard work the raft floated, and it was paddled down the river (which was moving very quickly) by Gordon, Kath, Colin, Meshell, Sarah and Tony. The plan was for the team to swap over half way down the river, but we had had so much rain that the river was quite high and moving far too quickly. We knew when we got to the halfway point that a swapover was not going to be possible, so unfortunately Cheryl, Blaine, Brook and Julia will have to wait until next year. The boat in front of ours actually capsized at Redbrook, where the changeover had been due to take place. Luckily no-one was hurt, but our team had a job avoiding hitting those that had gone overboard. We didn’t win any prizes but according to Kath that’s because there were no musical prizes on offer! Apparently they sang the whole way.

Everyone that went on the raft loved it and there is already talk of a staff canoe trip so that everyone can enjoy being on the river. Gordon is planning improvements to the raft for next year and I think we will have to field two rafts next year or at least build an extension to the current one. We hope it will become an annual event, and this year we expect to have raised more than £400 for St David’s Foundation Hospice Care. Our huge thanks to Gordon for building the raft, Kath for her organisation and Paul (Meshell’s husband) for organising the transportation of the raft. Here’s to next year!
You can still donate at:
www.justgiving.co.uk/tudortiddlers

Cheryl paints Kath's face before the race

Going past Redbrook and an overturned opponent

The Tudor Tiddlers

Monmouth Raft Race

Monmouth Raft Race Competitors

Monmouth Raft Race is in it’s 44th year, but it will be a first for us. The hotel has one raft racing this year, with 10 enthusiastic staff, including Colin, our deputy manager, Cheryl, and head chef, Blaine, competing. We can thank Kath, one of our chefs, for the idea. I’m not sure she envisaged a race when she suggested rafting as a good team building event! I’m not sure who to thank for the team name – the Tudor Tiddlers. I’m sure they will be visible for their t-shirts alone!

The race takes place on Sunday September 6th and is organised by the Monmouth Rotary Club. It starts at 12 noon at Monmouth Rowing Club and is paddled over 6.5 miles down the beautiful Wye Valley to Tump Farm at Whitebrook where there is entertainment and refreshments. (Please note that we will be shut for lunch on the day of the race.) All monies raised are split between St David’s Foundation Hospice Care (75%) and other charities supported by Monmouth Rotary Club (25%). St David’s Foundation Hospice Care is a Gwent based charity caring for patients who have been diagnosed with a life threatening illness. If you would like to sponsor us you can visit our fundraising page, where all of the money will go straight to St David’s Foundation Hospice Care:
www.justgiving.com/tudortiddlers