A very tentative 2021 race schedule

In the past I've enthusiastically posted my race schedule for the year in January or February.  But we all know what happened very shortly after I put last year's schedule up.  For that reason I've been hesitant up until now to post a 2021 schedule, and a number of events that have been staples of my schedule in the past have yet to announce their intentions for this year.

However, this year it seems pretty likely that the races listed below will go forward on some level.  To be clear, the threat of COVID-19 is not yet over, but with vaccine distribution underway the future is looking brighter than it has in many, many months.  What's more, race organizers now have a much better idea of what they're dealing with than they did a year ago.  I've heard many of them say that in retrospect they wish they'd gone forward last year, but there was so much uncertainty swirling around that it just didn't seem possible at the time.

It'll probably be another month or two from now that I and my fellow generally-healthy quinquagenarians will be eligible to receive a vaccine in my community.  Regardless of that status, I intend to wear a mask and practice social distancing pre- and post-race for all the events I attend this year, and I encourage all other participants to do the same.

For each event whose registration is live, I have included the link.

Finally, the usual disclaimer: this schedule is a work in progress, even in non-Pandemic Times.  I might not make it to every event that's listed here, and there are events not yet listed here that I might end up going to.

March

27  Battle On The Bayou.  Old Fort Bayou, Ocean Springs, Mississippi.  An 8.5-mile (13-km) race on a flatwater coastal bayou.  Register

April

10  The Paddle Bender.  Murray Reservoir, Prosperity, South Carolina.  An 8-mile (12-km) flatwater race.  Register

June

19  Outdoors, Inc., Canoe and Kayak Race.  Mississippi River, Memphis, Tennessee.  A 5-kilometer race down the largest river in North America.

July

15-17  Gorge Downwind Championships.  Columbia River, Stevenson, Washington.  A race (course yet to be determined) in the legendary downwind conditions of the Columbia River Gorge on the border between Oregon and Washington.

August

Ohio River Paddlefest.  Ohio River, Cincinnati, Ohio.  A 9-mile (13.5-km) race down this major artery of the Midwest United States.  Register

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