Registration opens Sunday for 2010 Yukon River Quest

Registration for the 12th edition of the Yukon River Quest opens Sunday, and space is limited for solo canoes and kayaks for the 2010 race.

The Yukon River Marathon Paddling Association, who organize the race are urging those wishing to enter the race solo to get their registration in as soon as it opens on Sunday, as there are only 23 solo kayaks and seven solo canoes allowed.

“Those usually fill up fast, even before the Nov. 1 deadline,” said past president of the Yukon River Quest and board member, Jeff Brady.

“Usually at the day of the registration we get all those solo groups in,” said race president Jean-Francois Latour.

Latour says 10 to 15 people have already expressed their intention to sign up.

Registration for the event always happens this early.

“We start the registration early because of the planning involved,” said Latour.

Registering early allows international competitors to prepare their trips knowing they have been accepted.

A total of 100 teams are allowed this year. If that number is reached the over-flow will be waitlisted.

Paddlers will be assigned numbers based on when they signed up.

“Number one is reserved for the winning boat from last year,” said Latour.

The Yukon River Quest is the world’s longest canoe and kayak race at 740-kilometres held on the Yukon River from Whitehorse to Dawson every year. The 2010 race will run from June 30 to July 4.

The race is known as the Race to the Midnight Sun, because that time of year the sun never goes down, allowing paddlers to stay on the river until the finish except for two mandatory lay over times. The paddlers must stop in Carmacks for seven hours and Kirkham Creek for three.

The race will begin in Whitehorse at Rotary Peace Park again, where it was moved from downtown this year.

Paddlers will begin with a 100-metre run to their boats starting from the gazebo at noon.

Brady says numbers were down a bit this year, causing this year’s registration fees to go up slightly to cover the loss in revenue.

“We ran a little bit in the hole (last year),” said Brady. Only 73 teams signed up in 2009, after record breaking numbers in 2008.

Fees have gone up to $850 for tandem canoes and kayaks, $475 for solo canoes and kayaks and $250 per person for the popular voyageur canoe teams of six paddlers or more.

Interest is still high amongst international competitors though, Brady says.

“We’ve had anywhere from nine to 12 countries represented here,” said Brady.

The race has received international exposure after videos of the event have surfaced on the Internet.

“It’s all over YouTube now,” said Brady.

The race has also been featured on NBC-TV, the BBC and CBC. The National Film Board filmed River of Life about the race, and it has also appeared in many adventure magazines and websites.

Despite low numbers in 2009, the race was successful, with good weather and broken records.

A total of 56 teams finished this year. The voyageur team Texans finished the race first for the second time in three years with a time of 40 hours, 52 minutes.

Canadian team Kisseynew’s record of 39:32:43 in 2008 still stood after this year’s race, but records were broken elsewhere.

In the women’s canoe division, Dawson Before Dusk, made up of Veronica Wisniewski of Washington and Liz Bosely of Whitehorse set a record finishing in 48:53 and Oxford Hopefuls made up of Lou Maurice and Hilary Greaves from the U.K. set a record in the women’s kayak division at 51:48.

In order to be in contention for prize money, teams must finish within 60 hours.

Many teams finish the race for their own personal goal, and do not worry about the time limit. All participants get a finisher pin at the finish line in Dawson.

This is Latour’s second year as race president. Elections are coming up in about two weeks, but he expects to take the job again.

Registration is available online at the Yukon River Quest’s website, http://www.yukonriverquest.com. Registration opens Sunday and closes April 15.

Even though the registration time is long, organizers urge teams to sign up as soon as possible to secure their spot. Registration is first come first serve, said Latour.

All boats used in the race must meet the specifications that are defined on the website. This year a few changes have been made to encourage faster times, Latour said.

“We tweaked a little bit the specifications for the solo canoes,” said Latour. The new specifications were made with the paddler’s in mind. “The first priority is always the safety of the racers.”

Each team that signs up will have their biography posted on the website once the team captain submits all relevant paddler information.

This year the purse has been increased slightly to $36,500, after a $500 prize was added to honour the top First Nations team.

This year the YRMPA is adding the first nations prize to recognize that the race goes through five different first nations territories.

“In an effort to recognize the fact that we are travelling down the river through the traditional territory of five first nations, we have decided to partner with them in celebrating this great race,” said Latour.

“This recognizes this unique way of transportation that preceded the European appearance in this country.”

Besides the $500 prize, Latour hopes to have other involvement by first nations.

“We will have a little more first nations presence this year,” said Latour. An announcement on that involvement is forthcoming.

There is a cash prize for each class; tandem canoe, tandem kayak, solos and voyageur canoes; prizes for the top three in each division; a $500 prize for the top Yukon canoe and kayak team and special awards donated by local businesses.

More information on individual prizes can be found on the website.

The YRMPA is holding its annual general meeting at sport Yukon on Nov. 12. They encourage anyone interested in volunteering to contact them at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) or by calling 333-5628.

A fund raiser is being planned for Nov. 28 at the Old Fire Hall. More information will be available on the website closer to the date about entertainment for the evening.

“Sunday night we will be glued to our computers watching the online registration,” said Latour.