Saturday, July 19…. An ideal day for all the rowers in this year’s Blackburn Challenge 20-mile race around Cape Ann (Gloucester and Rockport), MA, with near glass calm conditions, fair currents 80% of the way, and no wind to speak of; we surfski paddlers would of course have preferred a brisk north/northeast wind generating wave sets to surf down the long Atlantic side of the course. Still, conditions were considerably faster than average, and several divisional records fell. In the Surfski 20+ (20″ or wider) division, the lead four of us exited the Annisquam River together in a draft pack, overtaking the usual mix of sea kayaks, fixed seat rowing craft, and the ever growing field of paddleboarders– while the 6-man Hawaiian outrigger canoes, which had started 5 minutes later, eventually came powering by.
Veteran racer Ken Cooper separated from the pack off Lanes Cove and pulled ahead to a 100-yard lead, which he maintained around Halibut Point and most of the way down Sandy Bay– but by the Straitsmouth Gap (1/2-way point) I could tell I was regaining the lost ground. Once around the headlands south of the Gap, Ken took a somewhat inside line; I decided to stay well offshore of him rather than get back into a drafting situation, and see if I could keep gaining. Speeds on the GPS were great, 6.5 mph+ the whole way, so I sensed I was picking up a little current assist staying further out in the Atlantic. My rudder wasn’t working properly, though, and the boat kept veering to starboard (right), necessitating a lot correction with the left foot pedal, which led to left calf cramps; my hands would cramp as well any time I reached for the drinking tube. Cramps are the nemesis of all distance paddlers and rowers– particularly those in tippy boats– since you can’t just stop, get up and walk/stretch them out. I’d been drinking Power Ade every 30 minutes, which I upped to 15 minutes for the final third, in hope the added electrolytes would quell the cramps a bit (limited success).
I rounded Eastern Point side-by-side with a 6-person mixed crew from Boston Outrigger, couldn’t get by them south of the Dog Bar breakwater but got the inside line on the turn (with a little bit of lighthearted trash-talking in the process), and we pushed each other all the way to the Finish. Alas, the tide was still dropping out of Gloucester Harbor and my speed dipped down into the high 5s; I pushed as hard as I could to break 3 hours, but the foul current got the better of me…. a personal best of 3:00:24, and gold by exactly one minute over Ken Cooper, with friend Bill Kuklinski third in 3:02:17…. a fairly close finish proving we all were up to the 20-mile challenge!
While I’ve done minimal training for speed, all the long distance paddling of the past three months did prove adequate for covering the whole course at a competitive pace…. and the post-race beach barbeque with paddlers and rowers from all over the country, as well as abroad, added the exclamation point to a very happy day! 19:55 miles, 3:00:24, average speed 6.5 mph, max 8.6, blood sugar 96 at finish which is mid-normal range; no bonk!