Rain not a problem for paddlers

By Michael O'Connor
Herald Staff

Most years, at least a few paddlers in the Run of the Charles end up in the river.  Every one of the almost 2,000 competitors looked like they had gone for a drink yesterday.

That’s because the annual springtime celebration of paddling and promoting the Charles River takes place rain or shine- and there was plenty of the former, as well as gray, chill skies and a stiff headwind, during this, the 20^th anniversary Run.

“Hey, at least it’s not snowing.  We’ve been out in a lot worse,” Jeff Pedersen of Gilbertsville, NY, said at the MDC Herter Park finish line in Brighton.

Pedersen, 41, and his canoe partner, Albany’s Brian Young, 42, are solo paddlers who teamed up for this race, which they had never previously entered.  Starting at Riverdale Park in Dedham, they paddled and portaged for 19 miles.

“The race ended up pretty good for us, since we started way in the back,” said Young.

Out of their boats and into warm clothes, they looked satisfied and happy.  The same could not be said for 26 year old Sylvia Lee, who looked soggy and cold after meeting the rest of her team from MWH engineering consultants, which competed in the 24-mile corporate relay.

Beginning off Great Plain Avenue in Needham, the 10-member teams were divided into five pair, each paddling a leg.

“Pretty miserable, but fun,” said Lee, nibbling a chocolate chip cookie as rain streamed down her face.  “Sure, I’ll do it again.”

The Run is organized each year by the Charles River Watershed Association, a river watchdog that monitors the health and promotes the well-being of the state’s premier suburban/urban waterway.  When informed that even the soggiest competitors were looking forward to next year’s races, CRWA executive director Bob Zimmerman said: “They’re a hearty bunch, our paddlers.”

Perhaps the heartiest were Quebec canoe legend Serge Corbin and his partner, Jeff Kolka of Michigan who defended their title in the 26-mile professional flatwater marathon (with a purse worth $16,6500.

Zimmerman noted that despite the challenging weather, only a handful of cancellations resulted, and almost 500 canoes and kayaks hit their starting marks at Needham, Dedham, and at CRWA headquarters near the Newton Marriott on Rte 128.

Striding through the finish area with a paper bag protectively covering his trophy, a lovely canoe “half-hull” on a wooden plaque, was Dana Gaines of Edgartown, who won his 9-mile kayak division. 

When it was noted there are few paddlers on Martha’s Vineyard, Gaines said, “No, but there’s plenty of pen water,” and the ocean conditions he paddles certainly prepared him for yesterday’s windy, choppy environment.

Heavy rains and winds had been forecast for earlier in the day, but the worst held off until the races were well underway.

CRWA director Zimmerman said he again relied on his secret weapon to help ensure that yesterday’s wet event came off relatively smoothly.  It had to do with the fact that his wife was among the field of paddlers.  “My mother-in-law’s rosary,” he said.  “Wilma Dempsey’s rosary comes through again.”