Escaping the gators

When I woke up this morning I was still feeling some discomfort in my right lat muscle.  I had breakfast and did some stretching in my motel room before heading to the race site.

Fortunately I felt good in the boat as I paddled around for a warmup.  As the 9:30 AM start time approached I found myself a spot on the starting line and waited.

The course had been about 8800 meters (5.5 miles) long in previous years, but today it had to be modified a bit because of low water, and the result was a circuit some 1000 meters shorter (4.75 miles or so).

The gun fired, and paddlers set off across an expanse of open water.  To my right Joseph DiChiacchio of Rising Fawn, Georgia, grabbed the early lead, flowed closely by Shane Kleynhans of Brandon, Mississippi.  I sensed the presence behind me of Rick Carter of Eutawville, South Carolina, and Jeb Berry of Gulfport, Mississippi.

Over to the left I saw the Pellerin triplets (Conrad, Carson, and Peyton) looking strong.  I've been seeing these kids at races down along the Gulf Coast for a few years now (they are from Breaux Bridge, Louisiana) and now, at the ripe old age of 13, they are showing some real progress.  The boys were in one of those hybrid team boats you see in ultra-distance races like the Texas Water Safari and the Tour du Teche, and were paddling it as a K3.  As we approached the entrance to the narrow channel that would take us behind a couple of islands and into the dreaded lily pads, it was apparent to me that they were setting the pace to beat, so I sprinted hard to get on their stern wake right at the end of the open-water crossing.

Knowing I would need energy for a strong finish later on, I sat on the triplets' wake throughout this "back stretch" portion of the course.  By this time we had opened a lead on the rest of the field, but as we entered the lily-pad-infested area that stood between us and the return to open water, I could see a paddler out of the corner of my eye, working hard to join our lead pack (it was Rick Carter, I would learn later).

Work crews had cut a decent channel through the lily pads for us to follow, but there were plenty of stray plants here and there, and I hoped the weed guard just fore of my rudder would be equal to the challenge.  The water was also quite shallow here as a result of the low lake level, subjecting us to a brutal bottom-drag effect.

Finally we emerged from the mess and crossed open water toward a buoy.  After rounding this buoy we would have a final approach to the finish line of maybe 2000 meters.  I held my position on the triplets' stern wake in the meantime, with Rick Carter hanging in there some ten meters back.

As we made the right turn around the buoy I took advantage of the slower turning ability of the triplets' long boat to move up onto their starboard-side wake.  The race was on in earnest now.  It was a long finishing stretch and I didn't want to move too soon, but finally I threw in a surge... and the triplets responded immediately.  I had heard they had spent a lot of time in the boat together this summer, and it was showing now as all three brains were on the same page.

I dropped back onto their side wake to regroup.  I tried a couple more surges, and the triplets hung tough each time.  Finally, with about 600 meters to go, I knew I would have to take control for good or (figuratively) die trying.  I began to surge, and this time I refused to stop, even as my internal tachometer soared into the red zone.  The triplets responded again, but little by little I continued to gain.  By the time I entered the cove where the finish line was, they had disappeared from my peripheral vision, and I crossed the line to claim one of the more satisfying victories I've had in a while.

Experience beat youth this time around, but of course youths don't stay youthful forever, and I think I'd better savor every day I'm still able to beat these kids because those days are probably numbered.

Now, at the end of the day, I'm back home in Memphis.  My right lat muscle still feels sore, but no worse than before.  I believe an easy recovery paddle is in order for tomorrow.

My time was 42 minutes, 32.1 seconds.  The triplets were eight seconds back.  Rick Carter took third place overall, followed by Jeb Berry in fourth.  Myrlene Marsa of Rising Fawn, Georgia, was the top female finisher with a time of 50:05.6.  The complete results are posted here.  The triplets' boat is listed as a K2 under the name Carson Pellerin, but it was in fact all three of them paddling that boat.

Race director Michelle Blair and her crew of volunteers deserve props for a well-organized and thoroughly enjoyable event.  I hope the Gator Bait race will remain a fixture on the calendar for many years to come.