Next Up: Passy River Race!

The second chapter of Maine's all-too-brief whitewater

season begins near Belfast on Saturday, April 3rd at 11am.

Passy River Race - Saturday, April 3rd at 11am

at Littlefield Farm near Belfast

Registration: 8:30 - 10:30 a.m.

Cost: $20 per paddler

Race Location & Directions: Take Rte 7/137 NW out of Belfast. After about 3 miles, take a left on Shepard Rd. (Side note: about a half mile up Shepard Rd is where the race ends, at a spot where the river comes close to the road. You'll see lots of cars and paddlers and if in doubt, just ask someone where the start is!) Continue up Shepard Rd. At the stop sign, bear right onto Poors Mill Rd, then after about a half mile, bear right again. Continue across the bridge on Poors Mill Rd, and after about 1.5 miles, bear right onto Savage Rd (a dirt road). The start is about a half mile up Savage Rd where the river goes under the road.

Course:Race starts at the Littlefield Farm, first mile is flat water with many curves. Course passes under a cement bridge to another mile of flat water followed by a short stretch of Class II rapids. A two-mile stretch of flat water to the Rolerson’s bridge, then Class I, II and III whitewater for a mile and a half, leading to a flatwater stretch to the finish. According to race director Dale Cross, "...this river also finishes with about a mile straightaway, very wide. It’s like a stock car finish. You can see people all around you, so it’s really cool. Several boats wide could finish at the same time."

(Source for Dale Cross quote: Bangor Daily News article).

* * * * *
Stop by the Waldo County YMCA to register for the St. George or call (207) 338-4598.

More information can be found on the
Waldo County YMCA canoe race page.

St. George River Race Sees Nice Turnout

According to this Bangor Daily News article, over 100 paddlers took part in the St. George River Race earlier today. (The article also features a short video).

I've also posted my photos from the race here.

UPDATE: Full race results for the St. George have been posted! Download the document here. Courtesy of the Maine Canoe & Kayak Racing Organization (MaCKRO)

Baby, It's Cold Outside

A note from Jeff Owen, President of the Maine Canoe & Kayak Racing Organization (MaCKRO) on the eve of the season-opening St. George River Race:

Paddled the St. G with the clinic yesterday with a nice large group, experts and novices (and everything in between). The water level is awesome--most rocks covered, some really nice wave trains and eddy lines, but not too pushy. The race should be fun and fast.

BUT, please be extra cautious regarding proper clothing with the forecasted temperatures only in the teens or twenties for race time. Those are "dangerous cold" temperatures if you get wet anywhere where help is not immediately available. If you see paddlers on shore who have just swum, it'll be a good day to just automatically pull in and help (instead of the usual yell of "you okay?"). Let's be safe out there!

St. George River: A Paddler's Point Of View

Ray Wirth of Belfast (and Water Walker Sea Kayaks) has posted a nifty video on YouTube of his paddle down the St. George River on March 17th. The river looks good and hopefully our recent rains will have boosted the water levels a tad.



Update 3/25: According to this Bangor Daily News article, the recent rains have raised the river levels, and so the St. George is "...even better now. It’s so close to perfect it’s not even funny.”

New Facebook Page For Canoe Race

If you're one of the 400+ million users of the venerable social networking site known as Facebook, you can now become a fan of the newly minted Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race page.

Updates, comments and fan photos are welcome. Or you can just stick around here and haunt the blog. That's cool too.

Are You Experienced?

Tough sledding on the St. George - 2009

Certain traditions in March allow me to mentally check out of winter.

I can pinch someone on St. Patricks Day if they neglect to wear green and my chances of being slapped are at least 50% lower than if I tried to do this on any other day. Girl Scout cookies are on sale, certain types of which should be classified as habit-forming drugs. We set our clocks ahead one hour but the net effect is at least five times that, and many of us are grumpier than post-hibernation bears on Monday morning.

And John Holyoke interviews Dale Cross for the Bangor Daily News.
As far as I'm concerned, spring is officially here.

Dale Cross, the director of the season-opening St. George River Race on March 27th (as well as the Passy River Race which takes place the following week), offers sage advice for newcomers to paddling:

“...I think it’s wise for folks that are just getting started … that they go with other folks that may understand the sport a little better,” Cross said. “It keeps everybody safe. It’s important to back up two steps and make sure they’ve got the proper equipment...I think that what any paddler needs to do is just get in the boat...flat water, anywhere they can get in where it’s safe, to get their sea legs.. get some things straightened out with a partner, on flat water, before they get into the whitewater stuff."

Read John Holyoke's full article here from the Bangor Daily News. Cross briefly outlines each of the upcoming races. Highly recommended reading as we approach the Maine whitewater season.

2010 Whitewater Season Just Around The Bend

Captain Morgan cruises by during the 2009 race

The whitewater season in Maine is almost upon us, and this blog is officially out of hibernation for the next couple of months. Woo-Hoo!

I mean, Arrrr!

Lots to talk about in the near future, but here's a wee dram:

The St. George River Race opens things up in just a few weeks, and get this...the St. George River has already iced out. I'll have more on the St. George (including when & where) in about a week.

If you haven't pre-registered for the 2010 Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race, what in the name of Long John Silver are you waiting for??

Download the 2010 form here.

Whether you plan to go solo or assemble a motley-looking crew, pre-registration saves you time and money. $36 per paddler this year if you wait until race day to sign up, but only $18 per paddler if you beat the deadline (Friday, April 16th at 1pm).