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Wisconsin Canoe Racing Association
Season Opener Race -- March 13
Thursday, 04 March 2010 03:44
Wisconsin Season Opener Race
March 13, 2010 – Start time is 2:00 p.m.
Tenney Park / Yahara River, Madison, Wisconsin
This is probably about the 7th or 8th annual running of this race. It’s a short, early season chance to blow-out some winter cob-webs. It is scheduled to coincide with, but is not affiliated with Rutabaga’s big Canoecopia event ( www.canoecopia.com ).
Additional Information: Contact Kevin LeRoy at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or cell: 608/712-0980.
Course: Start and finish is at Tenney Park in front of the canoe racks (a few hundred yards downstream of the Lake Mendota Lock and Dam) (off of Sherman Avenue). Some years, we’re able to go out onto Lake Monona – but more often than not it’s still frozen. Therefore, course will likely be multiple laps up and down the section of river that runs across the Madison Isthmus. It’s almost exactly 1 mile from the Mendota lock & dam to Lake Monona. For me in a C-1, it’s about an 18 minute round trip.
This stretch of river is mostly straight, narrow, and usually 3 to 5 feet deep this time year. The current can be pushy, but not excessively so. This river is completely safe for delicate hulls, understern rudders, and paddles if you stay in the middle of the channel. But be very wary if you plan on hugging the shoreline (especially under bridges!). Note that this is an urban river and has urban river hazards like old abandoned bridge pilings (especially under existing bridges), assorted garbage like discarded bicycles, lawn-mowers, and shopping carts, and a few stray rocks.
Gimmick: Every year, we try to set a course where the winning time in minutes is roughly equal to the day’s forecasted high temperature in degrees Fahrenheit. The average high temperature for March 13 in Madison is 41. The record high for March 13 is 71 degrees and the lowest high temperature on record is 17.
Prizes, goodie-bags, etc.: This is a free event and you get what you pay for. All we are providing are some buoys and somebody to shout, “GO!” – we’re never real certain that we will have accurate timing and officiating is pretty-much non-existent. It’s a casual event. Don’t even think about such luxuries like safety-boater support.
Along these lines, please take note that there are no restroom facilities anywhere near the start finish area (the park bathrooms are still locked for the season at this time) and none of the bushes have cover-providing leaves on them yet. You need to plan ahead.
Disclaimer: Every canoe / kayak race has some inherent dangers. This is especially true for this event because it will take place when the water is just a little above freezing. Further, this event is really no more than a casual gathering of friends. We are not in position to provide safety support for inexperienced racers. If you don’t have proficient skills & good knowledge of your limits, this is probably not the event for you.
After the Race: Julie and I will be hosting a little party at our home in Fitchburg. More details on this later. Please contact me if you have questions.
Previous Years: In recent years, this race typically draws between 15 and 20 boats. It’s an eclectic mix of marathon C-1s, marathon C-2s, surfskis, seakayaks, touring canoes, and the practice boats that the UW Concrete Canoe Team builds for itself. Nobody is really keeping track, but I bet Phil Taylor has been the overall winner more often than not the last few years. Rich Hodgkins has taken some really good pictures at this event. If you go to http://kayakracer.smugmug.com/ and then look at the list of galleries on the bottom of the page, you will find photo sets of this race from 2009, 2008, 2007, and 2006.
Going back even further, I guess I’d always been aware that there was a race on this same weekend at this same location in the 80s, but I’ve never known much about it. I recently stumbled across photos from those times. Looks like it was a slalom race back then. Go to: http://bobobst.smugmug.com/share/UCsDA727pe6Fg
Speaking of Canoecopia: I just took a look at the list of speakers and presenters. Is it just me, or is Canoecopia a little more race-oriented than previous years? I noted that three scheduled speakers have personally beaten me in races: Greg Barton, Dana Henry, and Ben Lawry. Further the speaker lists includes three other individuals who have established strong racing resumes: Eric Jackson (slalom), Brent Reitz (surfski), and Hailey Thompson (a quickly rising young star in slalom). Even though a number of the folks mentioned above will be speaking about things other than racing, I’m still very glad to see that well known racers are establishing a mark on this big paddling event that has traditionally had almost nothing to do with racing (and visa-versa).
Looking forward to seeing you on March 13.
September Wisconsin Canoeing Association Newsletter
Monday, 12 October 2009 20:07
Download the September 2009 WCRA Newsletter (pdf file)
Old WCRS News
Sunday, 11 October 2009 00:00
The March 14 Season Opener & Party in Madison, WI information is here (pdf file)
View the March WCRA Newsletter (pdf file)
The Wisconsin River Canoe and Kayak Race (Muscoda) has a new date and a new format! July 11th and 12th. Download the 2009 race forms (pdf file)