This past saturday was the blackburn challenge. The blackburn has been my target race for the past 10 to 12 years. It's an open water race around Cape Ann in Massachusetts. It's 19+ miles (32 km). This year there were 226 boats entered. Everything from stand up paddle boards to 6 person fixed seat rowing craft. For the kayaking division, there are 3 categories. Sea kayak, fast sea kayak and high performance kayak. The divisions are based on the length to width ratios at the 3" waterline. There were 35 boats entered in the high performance kayak class. I wasn't aware of anyone who had flown in for the race (which has happened in the past) so it was unlikely to be a record setting year. The race starts in the Annisquam river and heads north to wingaershaek beach. I was able to do some very pleasant drafting off of a trio of surf skis headed out the river. Changing which boat to draft depending on which one chose the line closest to the line I wanted to take. Low tide was about 10:00, we started at 8:35. Which meant the river was fairly low, mandating staying close to the channel. It was nice having an outgoing tide. As I got to the mouth of the river I leaned forward to take a drink and realized I was dragging my camelbak hose. Since this isn't a short race I dropped out of the drafting "conga line" and threaded my water hose so that I could reach it without using my hands and resumed paddling. The pack I had been with was about 40 yards ahead - further than I was willing to sprint to catch up. That turned out to be my last bit of drafting for the day. I had to back up near Halibut point, when I did that a paddler who had been drafting me pulled past. We chatted very briefly. He was on a recently acquired Think Uno. He said it was quite tippy and that he was having trouble with the heat - it was almost 90 degrees (32 celcius). As I crossed Sandy Bay a fishing boat headed out of the harbor at full throttle, this was a pawerful boat as 2/3 of the hull was out of the water. The boat was polite and headed parallel to the racers for a bit until he found a gap, which happened to be between me and the boat ahead of me, then cut through the race. I didn't mind, it was nice to have the waves wash over the hull and cool me off. The people in a double outrigger canoe behind me were less enthusiastic and shouted a few choice comments to the boat captain. After passing through Straightsmouth I checked my gps. 10.5 miles in 1 hour 23 minutes. The record for a single kayaker is about 2:32, and I was in 8th place, so I knew that pace wasn't going to hold up. Paddling down the eastern shore we were blessed/cursed with a head wind. Blessed because with the heat hyperthermia was a real possibility, but the head wind would also slow things down. Low tide was also at about this time, so the current turned into on coming current. I had made the mistake of cooling my camelbak in the refrigerator the previous night. The water had an unpleasant plastic taste, so I didn't drink enough during the race. I got a little loopy from inadequate hydration/fatigue going past brace cove. A surf ski went cruising past me as I flailed along. The loopy feeling cleared but arm cramps kicked in as I rounded the dog bar and headed into Gloucester harbor. Ah pleasant tail wind and incoming tide made it a comfortable trip across Gloucester harbor to the finish at the greasy pole. Final time 2:57:15 - 19.6 miles on the gps. I achieved my goal. My first time below 3 hours. Between 1/2 mile into the race and the finish 1 boat had passed me, I had passed 2. Not too shabby. Ah the beach party afterwards. Massages, food from RedBones barbeque, and 3 beer taps from Ipswich brewery. It's nice to hang out on the beach and watch the beach fill up with boats. Kirk -- Kirk Olsen *************************************************************************** PaddleWise Paddling Mailing List - Any opinions or suggestions expressed here are solely those of the writer(s). You must assume the entire responsibility for reliance upon them. All postings copyright the author. Submissions: PaddleWise_at_PaddleWise.net Subscriptions: PaddleWise-request_at_PaddleWise.net Website: http://www.paddlewise.net/ ***************************************************************************
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