Surfski Knowledge Base

Kevin Olney
06/13/18 #23217

Before I get into details of the event I want to thank everyone for the tremendous support leading up to, during and after the race. Big shout out to Peter, Brandon, Kirk, David and Dennis for all the cheers along the course and the welcome at the finish. Pretty awesome getting high-5s and hugs from your buddies at 3:00 AM after a 9 1/2 hour paddle. I can’t thank Paul C enough. He hauled me and my gear all around the Sound, chatted with me for hours about race strategy, force-fed me chicken teriyaki for 24 hours before the start, and ensured us front row parking everywhere we went with his fancy parking pass. My wonderful girlfriend Amber deserves the most appreciation. Many date nights were sacrificed so I could go paddling but she remained 100% supportive the whole time. You are awesome baby!

On to the race:

We arrived in Tacoma Sunday afternoon to check in and have our boat inspected. Afterwards we attended the pre-race meeting and got the specifics about start/finish course and all the usual stuff. There was a short Q and A where important questions were posed, such as:

“If I go on shore and get a pizza do I need to bring my SPOT tracker with me?”

And,
“Do you have any recommendations about currents or wind?”

I’m not sure either question was answered but you could tell it was going to be an interesting race…

The start wasn’t until 5:30 Monday evening so we had plenty of time to fuel up and rest. The Foss waterway was bustling by 3:00 when we arrived to set up the boat. It was like a giant mutant Sound Rowers race with every imaginable human powered craft lining up in a 50’ wide channel waiting for the start. Thankfully the racers were very courteous and allowed the competitive boats to line up at the front of the pack.

Greg described the details of our race:

“The inaugural Seventy48 Race did not disappoint.
The first couple hours of the race was relatively calm, going up the sheltered west side of Vashon Island. Team “Way Two Close” comprised of Greg Spooner and Tyler Peterson were the fastest boat on the water. They pulled into the lead shortly after the start and I dropped behind to ride their wake. And then they stopped rowing! I’ve gained a reputation at Sound Rowers events of drafting a fast rowing shell for most of the race, and then sprinting past in the last 2 kilometers. Greg and Tyler did not want to see a repeat of this and simply slowed down or stopped rowing each time Kevin and I got onto their wake.

So we played a game of cat and mouse for about 3 hours. We’d drop back onto their 2nd, 3rd or even 4th wake or just paddle on our own out to the side. Then Greg & Tyler would make a push to drop us. We’d sprint to catch them and then they’d slow down once we made it back onto their stern wake. Meanwhile the unlimited OC-6 team “6 by 600” was right in the mix with us.

Two hours into the race the 3 teams were dead even, spaced about 20 meters apart laterally. This continued for several minutes, until a small head wind chop started to build. At that point, the double scull began slowly dropping back until they were several boat lengths behind the 2 lead teams.

A little while later the water flattened out and Greg & Tyler made a bold move. They moved far out to the east (right side), at one point as much as 500 meters to the side. With an extended hard push, they pulled ahead. When we came back together on the same line 20-30 minutes later they had moved from several boat lengths back to several boat lengths ahead. The advantage was short lived as the wind chop was picking up again. Surfskis and Outriggers have the advantage over rowing shells when the water gets rough. We quickly caught and passed Greg and Tyler.

From that point we slowly pulled out on the other 2 boats, trying to keep a steady pace that we could maintain to the finish.

We hit Point No Point after more than 6½ hours of paddling and decided to briefly step out of the boat onto the beach. This allowed us to put on some warmer clothes, briefly stretch our legs and pee. I also reset the Navigational GPS which had not been working up to that point. We spent nearly 5 minutes, but I think we made it up in the last part of the race by being warmer, fresher and more confident of our line in the dark.

Kevin and I finished in 9 hours 39 minutes (at 3:09 am) followed by the OC-6 team “6 by 600”, “Way Two
Close” and the double ski of Heather Nelson and Tracy Landboe as “Go Mamas Go” in 4th and the first female finishers. “

Afterwards we were completely spent. We both had to lay down for a few minutes to recover. It was a punishing experience on the body but at the same time an elated feeling of accomplishment to have achieved our goals. There were press people there asking questions and I said some stuff I don’t really remember. One question they kept asking was “Will you do it again?” It was hard to say yes at the time when the last thing you want to do is get back in the boat. Regardless of whether we participate again the race will likely be back, probably with a bigger field and a bigger pot. My advice if you want to contend next year: start training now! (or just get in a boat with an Olympian)

KO

Reivers Dustin
06/14/18 #23220

Just way more of an event than I expected. Reminds me of that crazy San Juan Challenge idea.

A bunch of race groupies circled around Heather and Brandon last night at Wed Niter. So many stories within a race this big. One favorite is about the finish line approach. Heather and Traci didn't know there was a really strong team right behind them: The Henry brothers. They set a record for a big crossing and one brother holds the solo, unsupported circumnavigation record for Vancouver Island. These guys are heavy hitters. So the Henry parents are at the finish line with all the “Mamas” team support crowd. Everyone is cheering and yelling, but wait … which team is ahead? As Heather tells it, “It got suddenly very quiet.” The girls are thinking, “uh oh, is something wrong?” Then out of the quiet they hear Brandon doing the special Nelson call of the wild. So Heather answers … and the dock explodes with yelling because now everyone knows.

This thing might become a thing.

rd

Nicholas Cryder
06/14/18 #23221

Was driving south yesterday to Hood River, and while passing through Seattle happened to tune into NPR who had some coverage of the race, also had one of Olney's fabulous quotes that went something to the effect of “It's really hard to paddle for 70 miles and keep up with an Olympic Gold medalist”. Lol.

Nicholas Cryder

Michael Gregory
06/14/18 #23222

Super race report. Thanks.

David Hooper
06/15/18 #23226

Congrats Greg and Kevin! What an awesome effort, and what a cool race. I think I probably would have been with the guy going to get a pizza…

Dave H.

David Hooper
06/15/18 #23227

And of course, congrats to Heather and Tracy – you all rocked!! I haven’t heard from the other B’ham paddlers who participated. I’d love to hear their stories and strategies too. Seems like anyone who participated in this had a full-on adventure.

Dave H.