Plumpton College regrets that, very reluctantly, the decision has been made to cancel the Open Day on Saturday 12 May 2012.

The reason for this is that whereas the College can cope with the expected numbers of visitors around the College buildings, unfortunately the car parking fields are currently too wet. And although Saturday is forecast to be drier, there is a lot of rain forecast for Wednesday and Thursday prior to Open Day.

Public safety is the foremost concern and is reflected in his decision, which has been taken with great reluctance and is much regretted. The Principal, staff and students at Plumpton College appreciate all the efforts many people have put into this event.

They are very unhappy about having to make this decision, especially in a time of drought. Plumpton College has cancelled the Open Day a couple of times before in the past, and only because of ground conditions.

Plumpton College will have an Information Evening on Thursday 28 June, 4.30pm-8.30pm when enquirers can get careers advice and find out about Land Based courses available.

www.plumpton.ac.uk

PADDLE NEEDS YOU!

Volunteer and Help the Cause

Tickets are now on sale for the Paddle Party – a not to be missed event!

It’s the Brazilian Carnival in Hove – so the dress code is sequins, feathers, glam, wetsuits(?) board shorts and Brazilian head gear is absolutely essential! The madder, the better and of course prizes for the best/most outrageous/wackiest attire.

There will be:-

• Djs
• Bands
• Samba dancing
• Brazilian Cocktails
• Competitions
• Games
• And loads of general Paddle related fun and laughs.

Tickets are a snip at £10 and the venue is perfect as it’s at The View which is on the beach – so you can all paddle in to the party.

Entry is by ticket only.

For tickets email party@paddleroundthepier.com

Here is a clip from last year’s Paddle Something Unusual

Wille and the Bandits

Wille and the Bandits are confirmed to return to the Brighton shores all the way from Plymouth.

Jen Paddle LOVED these guys so much last year she begged them to come back

Don’t miss them, Sunday 8th July 2012

The Story of Wille and the bandits began when Wille decided to leave for his birthplace of Australia after he had finished school in the UK. Being young and naive it wasn’t long before he ran out of money and lying around the hostel he was in was an old battered guitar. Knowing his way around a few chords and being able to sing a little he embarked on a mission to see if he could make enough money busking on the street to cover his rent for that day. This saw the birth of a dream, an ambition and a journey that would take him and his band around the world playing music for a living.

The day was a success and he ended up busking his way from Sydney to Cairns, meeting many inspirational people along the way. One encounter that arguably made the biggest impression on the young Wille was witnessing a busker playing a lap steel guitar. Wille was so enamoured with the instrument that he ended up living in the buskers pocket and learning from him everyday and trying to master this great sounding instrument. Wille is how considered one of Europe’s finest Slide guitar players:

“Wille is a great Slide player, I love what these guys are doing”
Joe Bonamassa

With Wille’s new found slide guitar skills and natural gift of song writing he returned to the UK. Through a mutual friend he was then introduced to percussionist and drummer Andrew Naumann. They started to busk and were greeted by huge crowds trying to get a glimpse of this earthy original sound and off the back of this they were given their own gigs and decided to call the project Wille and the bandits.

Five years later the band recruited bass player virtuoso, Matt Brooks (hyper link to matts website) and a huge selection of Drums, guitars and effects pedals. They have played in some of Europe’s most famous Arena’s including the Olympia in Paris, completed two tours with Status Quo, opened for Joe Bonamassa and the John Butler Trio and received critical acclaim and a loyal fan base where ever they have performed.

“Outstanding”
Isle of Wight Festival

Wille and the Bandits cover a wide range of genres from Folk and World music to Blues and Rock. With the versatility of Wille’s lap steel and guitar playing, the rhythmic diversity of percussionist Andrew Naumann and the sonic range of Matt’s Upright bass and six string electric bass, they always keep audiences guessing. Often likened to the greats of the 70’s such as Led Zeppelin, Santana and Pink Floyd, this comparison, although bold, only scrapes the surface of the Bands influences and sound.

“Wille and the Bandits are taking roots music to a new level”
Rootstime Magazine

The band can often be seen busking in the day with Andy playing a vast selection of percussion, Matt on Double Bass and Wille playing just acoustic guitar creating a fusion of World music, Jazz and Blues, and in the evening be playing in an arena playing full on.

Psychedelic Blues Rock in support of a Major Rock Act. This versatility shines through on their albums and makes it very difficult to judge the band after a listen to just a single track. There’s a song for everyone on their albums and their approach to writing is second to none and includes a cross section of cultures and styles to keep all music tastes satisfied and wanting more.

“This incredibly talented band excels in playing not just one or two musical styles but in fact focus on performing several genres to an extremely high quality. The main difference with this band though, is that when they showcase their extraordinary craft by performing several styles, they do it with such ease.”
Maverick Magazine

Wille and the Bandits are on a journey which has so far been miraculous. All achieved through hard work and a true passion for making music. Playing over 200 shows a year these guys are really tight. So please do not miss the opportunity to see one of the most impressive live acts of this generation.

“This band could be one of the most influential bands of the decade”
Independent

Paddle Round the Pier is chuffed to bits to annouce that this year the acclaimed Letz Zep will be returning to the festival.

After their mind blowing performance in the Big Top marquee in 2009, Jen Paddle has been pestering them to return and finally they’ve given in;)
Sunday the 9th July 2012 will definitely be a day you don’t want to miss.
To find out what time each act will be on please come down to the festival and pick up one of the festival programmes.

Letz Zep are critically acclaimed as the leading tribute to the music of Led Zeppelin, and Baby they aint foolin’
2011 saw the band perform in twelve countries on four continents. The World Tour continues into 2012, starting with 12 dates in Spain, 9 in France, before moving to Benelux and South America.
Making Letz Zep a truly global act.
Letz Zep are rated as The Most Popular and Top Rated, Led Zeppelin tribute act in the UK today, as rated by the authoritative Ticketmaster organisation.
Even legendary Zep frontman Robert Plant commented it was like watching himself onstage, after he came to a Letz Zep concert. His comment in Q Magazine in an interview was :- “I walked in, I saw me”
Both Jimmy Page and Robert Plant have attended gigs by Letz Zep, and we’re suitably impressed, so much so that they invited Letz Zep to perform at their prestigious official launch party for Led Zeppelin’s ‘Mothership’ CD, In Soho, London.
The band received the ultimate accolade by being praised by Led Zeppelin themselves.
Warner Music Ltd naming the band as ‘Europe’s best tribute act to Led Zeppelin’ and they should know, being the record lable for Led Zeppelin themselves!!
Letz Zep are the most successful and best known tribute act to Led Zeppelin, having been featured on BBC1, BBC2 and ITV1, The band had a full page feature in Rolling Stone Magazine, Classic Rock magazine’, they also received a glowing full page review in Kerrang! magazine. The band have also featured on Planet Rock Radio, naming them ‘The Very Best of tribute bands’
Letz Zep have also been reviewed in The Sunday Times by Top Gear presenter Jeremy Clarkson. He said of the band –
“If you closed your eyes you really could imagine that it was Plant and Page up there. And if you opened them again the illusion didn’t really go away’

Slacklinz at Paddle

Recently if you watched the Madonna half time entertainment at the Superbowl you would have seen slackline pioneer Andy Lewis performing tricks while wearing a toga.

Slacklinz owner Matt Dunn has been looking forward to this event ever since he packed up the equipment last year.

“We really didn’t know what to expect when we turned up last year, but it wasn’t long before the crowds appeared. We even had people stopping to have their lunch in front of the line so they had a little entertainment too.

If you were at the event (if not, why not!) then you would have seen an amazing range of ages on the line. We had some children being supported by their parents from two years old, right up to an elderly gentleman of over 60. It was used constantly for two days.

All of us can’t wait to be part of it once again and we thank Dave for the opportunity to get this activity out in front of thousands of people.”

If you want to check out slacklining, just look for the crowds of people and listen out for laughing and cheering. If you were one of the people who gave it a go last year you can check out all the pictures from the slackline gallery

James runs the local website Sharkbait and has provided pretty good surf predictions for our local spots since last century. In a town of transients and generally erratic surf his website has formed the hub of a lively surf and watersports community. He has also been a keen and active member of the Paddle Crew for many years.

He has recently developed, with a friend, an iphone app which takes this community feeling to a new level – if the web is all about sharing this is the tool for surfers.

In an exerpt from his website :

The Sharkbait Surf Reporter App allows users to find out about surfing conditions by sharing real-time surf reports, check out where their friends are getting the best waves and upload photos and messages. Available from the App store on iTunes, the Sharkbait App is priced at just £1.49.
It has been developed by two surfers and best friends from Brighton, James and Ian. James has been uploading daily surf reports for the South Coast for the last 12 years, with one of the first ever surf report websites Sharkbait.co.uk.

James, when we spoke to him said that he had really just developed the app for himself, but it is available at Surf Iphone App as the more people who share surf reports and upload eyeballs the better.

Download it Here

More Information is available here : http://www.sharkbait.co.uk/app/