(I) Conquer(ed) the Current 2021
Yesterday I attended the 5th Annual Conquer the Current, a 9-mile downriver race on the Connecticut River, which starts in Eagle Landing State Park and finishes in Essex Harbor where the Connecticut River Museum is located. Father and son Peter and Jack Martin organize this race with Jennifer Carlson, executive director of the museum. Their race supports the Connecticut River Museum with the mission to lead in the study and preservation of the Connecticut River and its valley. While mostly a paddleboard race, the directors added a surfski division this year, instead of their previous offering of an “open/miscellaneous” class of “sit-down” paddlers.
Aside from my registration, several male surfskiers were also present, including the Madores, Mark Wendolowski, and John Redos who won yet again. I am very thankful for Dave Grainger who shuttled with me (racers are responsible for organizing their own shuttle, which is about a 15-minute drive between the launch and landing). As an interesting coincidence, a surfskier whom I’ve known by sight only at Round Valley Reservoir was also there: Yves Marcuard, whom I finally now realize is an acquaintance I met 12 years ago in a an entirely different context as he is a middle school French teacher whose class I observed. A newcomer surfskier, he was not quite ready to tackle the wind forecasted for the Toms River Race last weekend but we were evidently destined to meet again as fellow paddlers in a much more relaxing milieu than our French classrooms. In addition, I was glad to finally meet Michael Parkinson and his wife Helen as well as newcomer surfski racer Sean Cabrey enjoying the summer in New England from his winter home in Florida.
Last year’s race was so much fun as the experience of racing the entire course down current allows for a conservation of energy that is unknown in most races when at some point along the way one must battle the current and/or wind. But with the current being a loyal friend and the forecasted mild SW 7 mph breeze generating gentle starboard beam waves from the land, I was ready to try the v10L for the first time in a race. By a miracle—(I didn’t have access to Greg Lesher’s special app for telling me the boat I should have used)— the v10L with a 5’’ standard river rudder turned out to be the perfect choice. According to my rudimentary guesstimation, the current was easily between 2-3kts. I also sensed that water levels were much higher, since I never hit shallows that were present for a couple thousand feet in the race course encountered last year. Thus, with no “stumbling blocks,” I enjoyed the fastest race in my life: the scenery I contemplated on the west bank last year was a blur and all the paddleboarders, including the men, stayed well behind me. A single outrigger canoe and a Stellar kayak (the latter paddled by a local named Jeff Croyle as I learned at the finish) kept me motivated throughout the race. I was able to hold Jeff and the canoeist several strokes behind me except when I hiccupped occasionally: first, the darn string from the Lendal paddle leash kept wrapping itself around my bailer and second, the hammocking of beam waves from boat wakes threatened to make me dizzy for a few moments when I allowed myself to doubt my balance rather than to focus on the horizon. Nevertheless, after paddling through the last pillow fight of bouncy waves, I still had energy to charge toward the finish line a minute or so behind the outrigger canoe and Stellar kayak.
Although I aimed at minimum to finish one minute faster than my time last year on the v8 pro (at 1:39 and a pace of 5.5mph), I was stunned that I finished in 1:16 at an average pace of 7mph and 12 minutes behind John Redos, who set a new record for this course.
I felt guilty being the only female on surfski to pick up a beautiful prize for first place, but I hope that my accomplishment can serve as a benchmark for my competitive surfski friends next year. The directors of this race have a goal to reach 200 participants in 2022, and as I told them, I am happy to encourage the surfski community to put Conquer the Current on their calendar as soon as a new date has been set.
