A short report on the Hawkesbury Canoe Classic
The South Australian paddling fraternity had a good representation at this years Hawkesbury event. The event is an annual paddling event which helps raise funds for The Arrow Bone Marrow Transplant Foundation.
Regular Murray 200 paddlers Bill Robinson and Gill Gibson paddled a Mirage 730 and Bernie Craggs paddled with a K4 team.
Infant kayak club, Encounter Paddling, sent 3 double kayak teams to New South Wales to participate in the Classic. The Encounter Paddling entries all paddled in the Brooklyn or Bust Long Recreational Double Class. Joh Tokarski partnered Cathy Venning, Peter Thiele paddled with Justin Turner and Brad Butler partnered the VH Times very own field reporter, Drew Evers. Each double kayak was supported by a dedicated support person.
The support teams this year were also Encounter Paddling members with Christina Jarvis, Michael Anderson and Renee Stanley all staying up through the night just to assist their team mates on the water.
The Hawkesbury is a beautiful river, adjacent to the town of Windsor a sleepy hamlet and one of the oldest European settlements in Australia.
The first start is 4pm with staggered starts fifteen minutes apart until 6pm. Yes, thatÕs correct, you paddle 111km through the night.
The race was originally run overnight to take advantage of the calmer weather conditions and the lighter traffic on the river. It also allowed the slower paddlers to make those last painful strokes in daylight. What the organisers did not realise when they made this decision was that the beauty and magic of paddling beneath the full moon would far outweigh any of their practical reasons for running the event overnight.
The race started at 4pm with the slowest of boats heading off down river. The Encounter teams started paddling in the third start at 4.30pm.
The 3 teams paddled together for 500m until the bridge but it quickly became obvious that the Butler/Evers team had secured the use of a faster craft.
Latching on to the tail of the lead group Butler and Evers arrived at Checkpoint A in quick time and steeled themselves to stay with the leaders until the 32km mark. Meanwhile the Turner/Thiele and Tokarski/Venning teams worked together to support each other with alternate teams breaking water.
A quick 10minute break for Butler and Evers at 32km allowed the other teams to catch up and the three teams took a 15 minute break at 41km together.
The major checkpoint and last opportunity to meet support crew is at beautiful WisemanÕs Ferry, the 65km mark. It was here that Butler and Evers took nearly an hour off the water to rejuvenate and change clothes. Landing at WisemanÕs shortly after the other Encounter Teams also had a warm meal and changed clothes before tackling the final 46km of paddling.
The tide was now running out and thankfully the teams found a little assistance.
A final stop at the aptly named SES pitstop for a quick cuppa and scone gave energy to all and then it was only a short 20km to the finish line at Mooney Mooney.
The Encounter teams finished in the upper midfield in a strong field of 500 entrants. Butler and Evers secured a credible 12h2min time. While the Thiele/Turner and Tokarski/Venning finished with excellent times of 12h30min.
Brad Butler quotes it as one of his most satisfying events, ÒYes, there was sleep deprivation and tiredness but then there were highlights like the many fish jumping out of the water and the amazing luminescent wake and splash from both kayak and paddle. Sharing the experience was great also and paddling with a long time friend over such a long distance was a genuine pleasure.Ó
