Dip Dip & Swing

(Pre-race, waiting to port in)

Brittany and I decided to dump our hubbys for the day and compete in the Buffalo Bayou Regatta, a fifteen-mile canoe race through the center of Houston...and for some reason we both thought that we could easily paddle 15 miles without training.

The Regatta is the largest canoe race in the State of Texas, this year was no different with close to 450 boats. There were several classes, but Inflated Expectations, my two person inflatable kayak landed up in the unlimited class (which was a good portion of the entries).

Our morning started with me walking back to the registration area and yelling to Britt “Hey you want a breakfast taco, some random guys jumped out of a moving truck and chased me down in the parking garage gave them to me”. And that is when we both stopped and just realized what I had said and then shrugged and took a bite...that’s what I love about outdoor events. In any other situation in Houston there are so many red flags in that short phrase, but on a day like today its really just a group of nice guys offering you non-dangerous food in a dim-lit musty parking garage.

Our boat was stamped “sea worthy” by the Navy Seals and we were ready to get started.

Team Renshaw ported in on a steep wooded slope, which was not really even a port area. We were luckily enough to be in a class that allowed an in-water start. The corporate competitive class (the big aluminum canoes) required bank start, which was hysterical. Imagine 100 large canoes being cast down a steep wooded banks, probably half capsized trying to get started.

(Long Kayak Division start)

The day was beautiful, but windy (and windy in the wrong direction). We had a strong headwind almost the whole race. Brittany saw the first banner and exclaimed “There is our half way mark (which in reality, much to Britts dismay was our 3.5 mile mark)”. By mile three our shoulders burned, by mile six, without current and the wind at our head our arms ached and by mile 12 we were having to put everything into it, my knees and back were killing me. The whole race we trailed a quad boat and our goal was to overtake them and we did in the last half mile. We crossed the finish line with a time of 3hours and 20 minutes (I thought it was 3:40 but they just posted the race results, yay!). It was all we could do to drag our battered bodies out of the canoe and onto the dock.

(Britt still looking strong even though we both wanted to die)

The run itself was beautiful. The thick vegetation drowned out the roar of the city and there were dozens of beautiful mansions that lined the bayou (may who cheered us on and played music) and lots of beautiful retaining walls (and some not so nice ones).

(Approaching the skyline)

The last three miles we approached downtown and my favorite part was rowing under I-45, weaving through the bridge pilasters. We went past the aquarium and crossed the finish line at one of the downtown plazas where they had live Zydeco music and lunch.

(Maneuvering under I-45)

(Lunch party on the plaza, we made it!)

Britt stayed and packaged the canoe, while I got to ride the city drunk bus back to the parking garage. It was 30 minutes of bad drunk entertainment, it reminded me of riding Cyride home on a Friday night in college, expect these guys (same ones that offered me the breakfast tacos) were like in their mid 30's (and cannot sing Lady Gaga for the record). They even invited me to a keg-er that night, a kind gesture to a mother of three :) What a way to end the day.

Notes for next year...1. Get a real canoe (I love my inflatable but its not race material), 2. no more pretending I have the body of an twenty year old, 3. legs require sunscreen even in March!.

Thanks Britt for being my partner in crime!