Forth Canoe Club Newsletter
By 1973, Forth Canoe Club was 50 years old, and had produced “The Spraysheet” news and also CANews, but it was then decided to make a club magazine.
The inspiration came from the “Edinburgh Schools Newsletter”, published by Edinburgh Outdoor Pursuits Centre and Boroughmuir High School, who ran weekly Wednesday afternoon canoeing trips for school pupils.
So, a Club newsletter started in April 1973 and published 5 editions on Foolscap (8”x13”) paper finishing with the April 1974.
| 1973 | April | July | October | |
| 1974 | January | April |
Kayak Magazine
On the suggestion of Andy Morton, the Club Newsletter expanded into ‘Kayak Magazine’ which was sold to several hundred canoeists in Scotland.
It was produced on the new European A4 paper (297mm x 210 mm. The “A” Series is scaled such that L/S = √2 (Where L=the long, and S =the short dimension)
The production team was Jack, Betty, Gordon and David Cuthill, supported by many other members of Forth Canoe Club and other Scottish clubs. The first edition was published in July 1974 and the magazine ran until 1983.
These were the days before affordable photocopiers, and of course there were no mobile phones, computers or internet. If you couldn’t get to a competition you had entered, you had to write to the organisers by posting a letter.
The pages were typed by Betty Cuthill on to Roneo waxed silk stencils and reproduced on the dining room table using an electric Gestetner duplicator on to paper. Advertising was brought in from August 1975.
A larger cover using A3 paper (420mm x 279mm) was used from January 1976. This allowed photos to be printed on the cover. This was funded by more advertising sponsorship.
Lendal Products Ltd, Prestwick
Pyranha Mouldings Ltd, Warrington
Trylon
Tulloch Boat Centre at Canonmills, Edinburgh
Strand Glass
Graham Tiso
Afton Canoes
David Cuthill did the early cover drawings by scratching the Roneo Stencils with a pin. After that he was responsible for photography and developing the black-and-white images.
The A3 cover printing was done by a local printer using Web-Offset Lithography
We have been given permission by David Cuthill and Forth Canoe Club to publish searchable copies of the original ‘Kayak Magazine’ which can be found in the table below.
Since December 2016, the Canoeing Results and Canoeing Photos website have been diligently maintained by a dedicated member of the archiving group, with generous support from a small number of donors. These websites are entirely non-profit and solely dedicated to preserving precious data and photographs that chronicle our rich canoeing heritage.
Recently, Paddle UK (formerly known as British Canoeing and the British Canoe Union) has been actively exploring the establishment of a comprehensive archive for all canoeing memorabilia. In support of this vital endeavour, Paddle UK has offered to fund the licensing costs for the Canoeing Results and Canoeing Photos websites, ensuring their continued operation and safeguarding the valuable data they contain.
While Paddle UK’s support is invaluable, ongoing operational costs remain. These include:
- Postage expenses incurred while collecting and returning materials from contributors.
- Investment in essential equipment, such as scanners, to digitize and preserve valuable data.
- Maintenance costs for equipment and specialized software used to process and present information.
We kindly invite you to consider supporting the continued growth and maintenance of these invaluable historical resources. Your generous donations will directly contribute to preserving our canoeing heritage for generations to come.
We extend our heartfelt gratitude to those who have already shown their support. Your contributions are deeply appreciated.