A fine day and a fine little local race! Starting at noon 12 km. upriver (@ Munster Road) from the finish line in Richmond, 139 self-propelled watercraft of varying seaworthiness – everything from plastic, sit-on-top, tub-like kayaks to sleek, expensive, pampered, carbon racing hulls - competed in categories from Pro-boats to Men’s, Women’s, Mixed & Family Recreational Canoes, to the Sans Espoir old fogies club. Crazy costumes & prow-head decorations contributed to a festival-like atmosphere. More info on the race and the Jock can be found at:

http://www.jockriverrace.ca/

Club members contributed to the day by: 

Laco Kovac enlisted Bill Pollock (Club friend and 74 years young) to stern him to Gold, a 1^st Place Finish  in the Men’s Rec division, with a time of 1:10:07, a solid minute and 4 sec. ahead of the pros who took second place.

Sonja Hirsig and Lynette Chubb, in spite of their silly “Pippi Longstocking” hairdos, claimed 3^rd Place in the Women's Rec category with a time of 1:13:54, losing 1^st place by 1 min. 23 sec. to ex-Olympic paddlers and 2^nd place by a mere 14 sec. to a sleek Kevlar racing hull.

Anthony and Miranda Brethour claimed 5^th Place in the Adult/Child Dvision with an impressive time of 1:21:24.

Phil Feuerstack placed 8^th in Men's Kayak with a respectable time of 1:16:54

Don Haines and  Dot Bonnenfant  provided sweep service to the race by following the last contenders down the course and making sure everybody arrived safely.

Raisin River Race, Apr 19

Another fine day with a similarly colourful crowd of 188 boats of every description.

Low water levels forced a shortening of the race – usually 27 km. and about 3 hours – to a start line just 16.8 km. upriver of the finish line. Water levels were low, meaning possible boat damage in the few R1 rapids and shallow spots to be encountered during this race, so many of the expensive pro racing hulls didn’t dare register (no scratches allowed on those shiny streakers!), but hung around to cheer on the brave at the many points along the race where the audience could gather to hoot. A popular feature of the race is the shooting of the dam (if you choose not to portage it) and the mayhem (= yard sale) which can ensue. More info on the race & the Raisin can be found at:

http://www.rrca.on.ca/canoe.htm

 Sonja and Lynette Win Gold at Raisin River Race - 19 April 2009

Club members achieved: 

Sonja Hirsig and Lynette Chubb, in spite of their silly headgear, claimed Gold, 1^st Place  in the Women’s Rec category, with a time of 2:06:12

Carol Grant and Emily Edwards, (new members this year), in spite of their heavy ABS canoe, claimed 4^th Place in the Women’s Rec category, with a time of  2:20:14

Don Haines and Laco Kovac, despite the distraction of their two busy-beaver passengers, claimed 4^th Place in the highly competitive Men’s Rec category, with an awesome time of 2:01:33!

Dot Bonnenfant provided one-woman shuttle driving, camera juggling and cheering section service to the Y crew. Her bum knee kept her out of race contention this year.

Max Finkelstein (Club friend and one of our heroes), in spite of a slow solo portage around the dam, still claimed Gold, 1^st Place, in the Men’s Rec category, with an awesome time of 1:55:09  as a solo paddler! After passing him on the portage, Lynette and Sonja had to watch him power by us on the river a second time. Max’s time also netted him Gold, 1^st Place, in the Masters category.

  Start Line Raisin River Race: Don, Lester, Max, Sonja and Lynette - 19 April 2009 

Moira River Race, Apr 26

A short (6-7? km) easy (class 2) downriver white-water race, the Moira is a bit more of a drive (2.5 hrs), so we make it worthwhile by running the race section at least twice while we’re there – once for time & once or twice for fun!  More info can be found at http://www.whitewaterontario.ca/index.php?option=com_jcalpro&Itemid=37&extmode=view&extid=28

Club Members filled 3 of the 5 Mixed OC2's in contention(this is mostly a K1 race), the first 3 boats coming in within 3 seconds of eachother:  Cathy Polk & Mike took 1st place (wood was awarded rather than gold!), Lynette & Lester took 3rd & Dot & Stefan took 4th.

Mattawa River Canoe Race, Jul 25 2009

This one-day race traces 64 km of historic Voyageur route from North Bay to Mattawa., covering lakes, river, rapids, and 5 mandatory portages.  The family event traces just the last 13 km of the route. The fastest time ever was about 5 ½ hours, but most participants paddle hard for 6 to 10 hours, so this race is not for the faint-hearted! More info can be found at http://www.nbmca.on.ca/site/indexd.asp?id=123

In 2008, YCCC members Wanda & Yannick Lockhead captured 1^st place (GOLD!)  in the Recreational Mixed B category, with a time of 8:43:03.  Wanda & Yannick are still shaking their heads after that thunder & lightening storm!

In 2009, YCCC members Lynette Chubb & Laco Kovac captured 1^st place (GOLD!)  in the Recreational Mixed B category, with a time of 9:12. We had headwinds, no competition & everybody who's time was longer than 8 hours had a crazy thunder & lightening storm to contend with in the late afternoon.