Yukon River Quest - report #2

Yukon River Quest - Report #3 - Mike Aprea, videographer and sometimes replacement reporter (from Policeman's Point)

The 10th Yukon River Quest is under way. Internet access in this remote area is very scarce, so apologies if these reports are late. At 12:30 p.m. today, 240 athletes sprinted down Main Street to a fleet of 90 canoes and kayaks lining the banks. There were fifteen 6 to 10 person "voyageur" canoes lined up first, followed by 75 kayaks and canoes (solos and tandems) arranged in numerical order according to registration dates.

The much anticipated duel between the top two voyageur teams has not disappointed. Team Texas, comprised of seven Texas Water Safari veterans and one YRQ veteran from Washington, blasted off the side by side with the 6-man Team Kissynew, a team comprised of four Canadians, one American and one Australian. They immediately distanced themselves from the rest of the field in their carbon fiber voyageurs. These same boats battled last year, with the Texans taking the win. Most of the Texas team returned intact to defend their title, but the majority of the Kissynew crew is new. Team Texas reached the end of Lake Laberge first at 7:23 p.m., followed by Kissynew at 7:26 p.m. Team Hatchet Lake (voyageur) from Saskatchewan crossed Laberge in third place at 7:44 p.m.

The mixed tandem canoe division also has several elite teams battling for the win. Derek Crook (British Columbia) & Pauline Frost (Yukon Territory), Gary Aprea (New York) & Gloria Wesley (Massachusetts), and Barry Leslie & Helen Currey from British Columbia each have a chance to win their division as well as top 10 overall.

Another anticipated contest is between Stephen Mooney and Brad Pennington. Mooney (Yukon Territory) won the YRQ in 2004 and 2005. Pennington (Texas) finished 4th last year in his first YRQ attempt. Both of them flew off the starting line, with Mooney reaching his boat a few seconds before Pennington. Both were ahead of all other boats except for the first half-dozen voyageurs as they entered the water.

For the first 35-kilometers to the entrance of Lake Laberge, Mooney and Pennington appeared to be working together. At the bridge at the Takhini River (24 km), Pennington was drafting Mooney, and vice-versa at the entrance to Laberge (35 km). By Takhini, they had passed all but the top 3 voyageurs. Both boats stopped at the entrance, probably to eat, refill hydration bladders, etc. The 4th-place voyageur, Team Adirondacks from New York, caught Mooney & Pennington here, and all three boats formed a pack as they faded from view going up the lake.

They likely stayed together for the entire 5-hour crossing, as they were listed as reaching the end of Laberge at 8:19 p.m. (7:49 in elapsed time), nearly an hour behind the Texas and Kissynew voyageur teams, but with a substantial lead over the rest of the field.

The other 80-something boats are now spread out across an unusually calm Laberge.