Cheltenham has its own canoe club. That may come as a surprise to some because although the River Chelt runs through the town, it is after all only a small tributary of the River Severn.

Cheltenham Canoe Club have, in fact, been going for some 36 years having been formed in 1983 and these days boast some 90-100 members.

They don’t canoe on the River Chelt, of course, but they are, nonetheless, a very active club.

They meet at the Lido every Thursday evening in the summer from 7.30 to 9pm. That’s where they do their training.

The club compete in canoe polo and slalom events – canoe polo is like water polo only with canoes – and Cheltenham Canoe Club organising their own national annual two-day slalom on the white water rapids at Symonds Yat in October.

The summer pool season is the main event where most new members start their paddling adventure – it gets under way properly in April and finishes at the end of August. After that the white water paddling season takes over.

The club meet up at the House in the Tree pub just outside Cheltenham in the winter to discuss which rivers to paddle that weekend. That’s the reason why a lot of people don’t really know about the club because they haven’t got their own clubhouse.

That hasn’t stopped the club’s members from getting out and about and enjoying themselves over the years though.

The slalom contingency take part in slaloms all over the country. They compete in the national slalom league and the club have had three members that have been a part of the Great Britain squad.

So what exactly is canoe slalom?

It’s an individual sport which is against the clock. Competitors go in and out of the poles – known as gates – down the rapids on a section of river.

But where the slalom is an individual event, the canoe polo is very much a team sport with five people in a team.

The club’s adult polo team won their division last season although it’s fair to say the senior team could be considered a victim of their own success. Having competed locally, their promotion meant they would be competing nationally this summer. That would have meant too much travelling so they decided not to compete this season but plan to return next season.

Happily, their youth team are still competing in the South West region where travelling to matches is not so far.

The youngsters are an important part of the club – they are of any club of course – and anyone who joins Cheltenham Canoe Club will certainly have plenty to fill his or her spare time.

“We go to Europe every summer,” said club captain Steve Slater. “We go off to the Alps and canoe on the Alpine rivers.

“This year we’re off to Bovec in Slovenia. We have links with Munich Canoe Club and Annecy Canoe Club, and we’re meeting up with some Austrians friends in Slovenia.”

The club’s members can be as young as five or six and a couple of the oldest are well into their 60s.

And quite apart from the sheer enjoyment, the fresh air and exercise, there are other benefits as well.

“You get out and see places you wouldn’t normally see,” said Slater.