This weekend we entered the Texas River Marathon and the Barrier to Bay canoe races. The Texas River Marathon is also known as the Texas Water Safari Prelim race as it determines your starting point in the Texas Water Safari. The River Marathon race runs 40 miles from Cuero to Victoria.
This stretch of water is known to be some of the fastest water on the Texas Water Safari course. Of course the speed of the water is determined by the river flow and so far we have encountered a lot of low water. We averaged about 5.6 miles per hour on this stretch of the river. This is one of the longest section on the river between checkpoints when doing the Safari.
We had fun navigating the rapids and it was nice knowing we did not have any portages for this race. We have also learned the value of having a great team captain! Captain Brad not only fetches us water but he yells out encouraging words as we fly by. Brad came prepared with a spreadsheet tracking all of our times and he was excellent at estimating our arrival times at the various bridges. Brad and Colleen also graciously shared their sleeping quarters with us. It was wonderful having a place to change and rinse off after the race.
We entered into the Women's division for this race and ended up taking 3rd place out of 3 teams. We knew this would be the result because the other teams are paddling much faster and longer boats. To our surprise if we had entered the Novice division we would have taken 1st place in the Aluminum Novice. We had two other Aluminum boats chasing us for much of the race and we were bound and determined to keep the boats behind us. We only got out of the boat once during this race and we were back in the boat about 2 minutes later. I learned that I need to find shorts and tights with no seems on them to ensure I avoid any excessive rubbing or sores. We also learned it is a good idea to cut a V shape in the seat to keep it from rubbing. By looking at all of the other boats we also picked up a few more tips for rigging up the boat. We learned that it works great to use a hole punch and zip tie your GU so that it is within easy reach.
One of the biggest challenges is maintaining the right amount of food and fluids to sufficiently keep the body moving during the race. Every racer has ideas on what works for them. We are using an assortment of electrolyte drink mixes, GU and solid food to keep us going. Some boats have multiple spaces in foam blocks with various vitamins, energy drinks and fluids to keep the paddlers going. The River Marathon race was a good test of endurance and stamina. We did not stop paddling for the entire 6 hours and 50 minutes and we did not get a chance to stretch our legs. I found my legs cramped up after about 5 hours but I also figured out a few stretches that helped alleviate the cramps. We finished the River Marathon in 6 hours and 50 minutes and the Barrier to Bay race in a little over 4 hours. On the Barrier to Bay race we encountered very high wind with 2 to 3 foot waves coming directly at us, this was quite a challenge.
We constantly had waves crashing over the boat. The waves taught us that our cover needs extra water proofing and our bilge pump needs some work. We ended up paddling against the wind with a lot of water in the boat. Despite the challenges we finished the race with smiles on our face and a 3rd place trophy.
This stretch of water is known to be some of the fastest water on the Texas Water Safari course. Of course the speed of the water is determined by the river flow and so far we have encountered a lot of low water. We averaged about 5.6 miles per hour on this stretch of the river. This is one of the longest section on the river between checkpoints when doing the Safari. 
We had fun navigating the rapids and it was nice knowing we did not have any portages for this race. We have also learned the value of having a great team captain! Captain Brad not only fetches us water but he yells out encouraging words as we fly by. Brad came prepared with a spreadsheet tracking all of our times and he was excellent at estimating our arrival times at the various bridges. Brad and Colleen also graciously shared their sleeping quarters with us. It was wonderful having a place to change and rinse off after the race. 
We entered into the Women's division for this race and ended up taking 3rd place out of 3 teams. We knew this would be the result because the other teams are paddling much faster and longer boats. To our surprise if we had entered the Novice division we would have taken 1st place in the Aluminum Novice. We had two other Aluminum boats chasing us for much of the race and we were bound and determined to keep the boats behind us. We only got out of the boat once during this race and we were back in the boat about 2 minutes later. I learned that I need to find shorts and tights with no seems on them to ensure I avoid any excessive rubbing or sores. We also learned it is a good idea to cut a V shape in the seat to keep it from rubbing. By looking at all of the other boats we also picked up a few more tips for rigging up the boat. We learned that it works great to use a hole punch and zip tie your GU so that it is within easy reach. 
One of the biggest challenges is maintaining the right amount of food and fluids to sufficiently keep the body moving during the race. Every racer has ideas on what works for them. We are using an assortment of electrolyte drink mixes, GU and solid food to keep us going. Some boats have multiple spaces in foam blocks with various vitamins, energy drinks and fluids to keep the paddlers going. The River Marathon race was a good test of endurance and stamina. We did not stop paddling for the entire 6 hours and 50 minutes and we did not get a chance to stretch our legs. I found my legs cramped up after about 5 hours but I also figured out a few stretches that helped alleviate the cramps. We finished the River Marathon in 6 hours and 50 minutes and the Barrier to Bay race in a little over 4 hours. On the Barrier to Bay race we encountered very high wind with 2 to 3 foot waves coming directly at us, this was quite a challenge. 
We constantly had waves crashing over the boat. The waves taught us that our cover needs extra water proofing and our bilge pump needs some work. We ended up paddling against the wind with a lot of water in the boat. Despite the challenges we finished the race with smiles on our face and a 3rd place trophy. 
1 comment:
I am so proud to be associated with your effort. My job in this is easy and I am having a ball without having to do the work. Your description of the bay as, "quite a challenge" is a dramatic understatement. The wind was relentless and strong and directly in the paddlers' faces for almost 8 miles. Just getting to where you are is a fantastic achievement. I can't wait to watch you in "The Worlds Toughest Canoe Race"
Brad
Post a Comment