In Saturday's race, as Jeb Berry and I were heading back toward the finish line, we saw a dolphin right before the Washington Avenue drawbridge. I had already seen several fish jump up out of the water and when the dolphin's fin broke the surface, I thought it was just another fish. But then the dolphin's body rose into view for about a second before diving back down below. That was pretty cool--something I'd never seen in the middle of a race before.
On Sunday morning I put in at the Ocean Springs beachfront and paddled for 60 minutes in Mississippi Sound near the entrance to the Back Bay of Biloxi. The nice thing about a recovery paddle is that I don't really have to "do" anything other than move my body and enjoy my surroundings. That wasn't hard to do on a day as gorgeous and sunny as Sunday was.
Back here at home I've had a sluggish Monday. I've had to address a list of assorted non-paddling-related chores today and it's made the whole day feel like kind of a bummer after a fun weekend of racing and visiting with friends.
One question I have to answer after any race is "What's next?" Well, here's a schedule of the races I'm aware of in the next couple of months:
April
1 Top of the Teche. Bayou Teche, Leonville to Arnaudville, Louisiana. A 7.7-mile race down a Class I river. Register
8 Bluz Cruz Canoe and Kayak Race. Mississippi River, Vicksburg, Mississippi. A 21-mile race down the Mississippi from Madison Parish Port to the Vicksburg front. Register
22 Pascagoula Run. Pascagoula River, Pascagoula, Mississippi. A 12.5-mile race finishing at Lighthouse Park in Pascagoula. Register
29 Bluegrass River Run. Kentucky River near Richmond, Kentucky. A 19-mile race down a scenic deep-water river. Register
May
13 Osage Spring 12. Osage River near Jefferson City, Missouri. A 12-mile race down a Class I river. Register
20 Chitimacha Race. Bayou Teche, New Iberia, Louisiana, to Chitimacha Nation. A 20-mile race down a Class I river. Register
It turns out I have conflicts the weekend of April 1 and the weekend of April 8, so I won't be making it to Louisiana or to Vicksburg. Each of the two races later in the month involves at least six hours of driving (one way), and because they are on consecutive weekends chances are I'll go to one of them, but not both. The same applies to the two races in May. With all the far-flung things I've got going on right now I have neither the time nor the energy to spend sitting in my car.
Right now the rest of the year looks like this (always subject to change, of course):
June
17 Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race. Mississippi River, Memphis, Tennessee. The 36th edition of this classic. A 5000-meter race down the Mississippi, finishing at Mississippi River Park in downtown Memphis. Register
29 Music City SUP and Kayak Race. Cumberland River, Nashville, Tennessee. A 6-mile flatwater race.
August
5? The Paddle Grapple. Fontana Reservoir near Bryson City, North Carolina. A 6-mile flatwater race.
10-13 U.S. Canoe Association National Championships. Mississippi River, Dubuque, Iowa. Flatwater marathon races in numerous classes sanctioned by the USCA.
September
2 Big River Regional. Mississippi River, Baton Rouge, Louisiana. A 12-mile race down the Mississippi.
9 Lower Atchafalaya Race. Atchafalaya River, Patterson, Louisiana. An 8-mile race on this major distributary of the Mississippi River.
October
7 Gator Bait Race. Barnett Reservoir outside Jackson, Mississippi. A 5.5-mile flatwater race.
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