"You're never too old" - Linden Porter's paddlesport comeback at Lee Valley White Water Centre
At 74, most people are content to slow down, but not Linden Porter. Having recently undergone treatment for cancer, Linden isn’t just getting back on her feet - she’s throwing herself headfirst into the swirling waters of the Legacy course at Lee Valley White Water Centre. And she’s doing it in style: not just any kayak, but a freestyle boat, widely considered one of the most technical and physically demanding forms of paddling.
“I didn’t quite realise what a big challenge it would be,” Linden said. “But there is a stubborn streak in me because hell, you’ve got to live life regardless of your age.”
Linden lives in Lane End, Buckinghamshire. She first discovered her interest in kayaking after spending time photographing freestyle paddlers at Lee Valley White Water Centre.
“In the first place it was taking lots of pictures at Lee Valley and suddenly deciding that it might be quite fun to try it rather than stand on the bank.”
She had just started learning to kayak when her cancer diagnosis changed everything. “Coming back into it after my cancer treatment seems a natural course of events,” she reflects. Rather than shy away from the physicality of paddling, she made the bold decision to pursue freestyle. “Nothing else is a challenge. You’ve got to have challenges in your life. Might as well make it a proper challenge rather than an easy one.”
Getting back into a boat after surgery and radiotherapy wasn’t easy, especially since her right side, the one operated on, needed rebuilding. “Of course it’s daunting. I had to get myself fit and get my right side working again. It’s been good though, I’ve come through better because I’m fit.”
She’s now working with coach Sam Wilson, taking on the rapids of the Legacy course. “Sam kindly took me down the course in a Hot Dog and when he asked me if I just wanted to go around or could he do anything he liked, I said anything he liked. So I went down backwards, forwards and sideways. Sometimes I think slightly upside down, but that was fine. It was phenomenal fun.”
“He’s an absolute sweetie. He listens, he makes sure you don’t get scared. He’s just an amazing coach.”
Emotionally and physically, the journey back has been transformative. “It’s stopped me feeling sorry for myself, sitting back and saying I was a cancer patient. That has been a huge step forward. Physically, wow. I’ve had to work really hard, and it was painful, but I’ve come through it stronger.”
Her rapid progress has impressed everyone around her. “They’re amazed, which is really good. I was only operated on 21st February, and I only finished my radiotherapy in May.”
Now, she’s using her kayaking journey to give back by raising funds for a new state of the art cancer screening unit in South Bucks. “The NHS had been so splendid in dealing with my prognosis. I really wanted to give back. It’s so important that women of my age get checked.
I was fine at 71. Three years later, I wasn’t. The more screening units we have, the easier it is for women to be seen.”
When asked why she chose Lee Valley, her answer is simple: “It’s just a friendly and lovely place. The water is clean, it's fun, and it’s safe. It was the obvious choice.”
Linden Porter’s current goal? “To stay upright, really. Having just gone down the course upside down, I’d quite like to remain upright and learn to roll so I can cope when I capsize. Right now, I have to get out and that’s tiring, especially after what I’ve just been through.”
When asked what she would say to others considering a challenge later in life, she doesn’t hold back: “Rubbish, you’re never too old. It’s an attitude of mind. I’m 74. I could have given up. A lot of people my age seem to have done so. But what’s the point? You might as well live life, especially when you’ve been through what I went through.”
And freestyle kayakers? Linden grins: “Mad, enthusiastic and just round the bend really.”
Linden Porter's goal is to complete the whitewater course at Lee Valley White Water Centre on Sunday 14 September 2025 at 11:00.
If Linden’s story has inspired you, why not take the first step by signing up for a Paddling Membership and starting your own journey?
Sign up at gowhitewater.co.uk or donate to Linden’s cause.