You're doing WHAT?!?!?! An MR340 Primer.

We keep getting many questions about the MR340 so thought we'd take a minute to explain exactly what we're doing. The MR340 is an 88-hour canoe race on the Missouri River across the State of Missouri. This year the race will begin on July 24th at 8:00 a.m. We will have until midnight on July 27th to complete the race. Here are a few answers to many of the questions we've received:

1. No, we do not 'camp' along the way. There is no time for camping, but we'll catch some sleep when we can.
2. Yes, we paddle at night too.
3. No, this is not a fundraiser. Our reasons for doing this race might differ, but mainly we think: why not?
4. No, we are not dating. We've been friends for fifteen years.
5. No, we are not crazy (we think!). We will join up to 499 other boats on the Missouri River for this race.

So, what is the MR340? Here are some facts:

1. The first MR340 race was in 2006.
2. The race requires us to paddle 340 miles in 88 hours on the Missouri River between Kansas City and St. Charles.
3. One-Quarter of the boats that signed up will not show up on race day (125/500). One-third of the boats who start the race will not finish (124/375). If we finish, we will be one of about half of the boats who signed up to actually finish the race (251/500).
4. The record for a mixed-tandem canoe (which is us: woman and man in a canoe) was set in 2010: 41 hours, 26 minutes. We will not beat this record.
5. No one has died on this race, according to our research. (Jeffrey is a librarian and Danielle is an attorney - so the research is pretty solid) This is in part to all the rules and safety precautions!

What does the MR340 look like?  Watch this video and see!

Meet our Ground Crew Captain: Rebecca!

There are rules in the MR340 race. Since there will be up to 500 boats on the Missouri River at Kaw Point in Kansas City on July 24, 2018 when the race begins, the rules are in place to keep all paddlers and volunteers as safe as possible over the 88 hours of the race. Rule #8 states:

8. Ground support is required for all racers. It may be physical, virtual or a combination of both. A physical ground crew is present at checkpoints and knows with some certainty their racers approximate location and condition. A virtual ground crew is able to track a racer via electronic means and will know a relatively exact location. Both physical and virtual ground crews must be available 24 hours a day for phone contact with race officials seeking information on their racer(s). To clarify, if you have a virtual ground crew, you must also have an electronic tracking system which they can monitor at all times. 

A ground crew may assist with procurement of supplies, set up of tents and preparation of meals. Ground crew may not, in any way, assist with propulsion of the boat. They may only touch the boat when the boat is in contact with the shore or in knee deep water. Physical contact with support can only occur when the boat is grounded or in knee deep water. No contact on the water is allowed. No support provided from a support boat is allowed.

A physical ground crew is obviously much more helpful during the race than a virtual ground crew. It was important to us that we have a physical ground crew. But, where could we find someone (or someones) who would agree to accompany us on this crazy adventure? Enter Rebecca.

Rebecca works at school with Jeffrey, and she possesses qualities needed to be our Ground Crew Captain - she is reliable, hard-working, and quick on her feet. She also holds a valid MO driver's license.  Furthermore, she possesses an additional qualification that sets her apart from many others who might be interested in the job - she has the summer off.  And, when we offered her the position as Ground Crew Captain, she said "Yes."

The must-read book for all 340 paddlers, Missouri River 340: First Time Finisher, describes ground crews in the following way:

Ground Crews are a powerful advantage. Their role in this race was much more than holding warm-up sweats and cheering. Can you paddle the race without one? Absolutely. But as a first-timer, those things a Ground Crew does, like re-supply, assess, analyze, cajole, hydrate, feed and do Walmart runs, are things that are awfully hard to do from the boat. For us, to know we had someone at the next checkpoint, ready to get anything we need and help in any way, was an incredible advantage, not only from the physical sense of providing pizza and soda, but from the peace of mind it gave us knowing that if something happened, we had to make it to the next checkpoint and our magnificent Ground Crew would find a way to get us up and running again.

Rebecca joined us last weekend as we paddled 27-ish miles of the Missouri River. We want to include her as often as possible during our training paddles, so the MR340 is not the first time she is exposed to our craziness. We are incredibly thankful for Rebecca and her willingness to go on this adventure with us!

Rebecca - Ground Crew Captain

Rebecca recruiting more ground crew members!

Big Miles on the Big Muddy

After a few trips on Ozarks streams, we decided we need to get on bigger water. Danielle was in St. Louis for work at the end of the week so we made plans for Saturday to paddle a portion of the Missouri River in the area. This was our first time getting on the Missouri River - and it was nerve racking! The river moves much faster than smaller rivers, and the obstacles are larger (entire trees floating down the river, wingdikes that jut halfway across the river, and boats). We also knew that we would be on the water for 4-8 hours depending on our speed, so preparations took longer than anticipated.

Danielle arrived at Jeffrey's house around 6:00 a.m. on Saturday morning. We planned to be on the river by 8:00 a.m. Then, we planned to be on the river by 9:00 a.m. Then, we planned to be on the river by 10:00 a.m. Then, we forgot our paddles in Jeffrey's garage and had to turn around to get them, so we planned to be on the river by 11:00 a.m. We finally put in at 11:45 a.m. We checked in with our ground crew chief, Rebecca, every thirty minutes. Rebecca will play an important role during the MR340, so we will blog more about her in a future post.

We paddled 27.3 miles, putting in at the Klondike Access (Rivermile 56.3) and taking out at Frontier Park (Rivermile 29.0).  The weather was great, the river was beautiful, and paddling was easygoing. With the Big Muddy carrying us along, our average pace was about 6.0 mph and finished this trip in 4.5 hours. In July, when we compete in the MR340, we will have 88 hours to finish 340 miles. That's just under 4 miles an hour (if we make no stops and have no complications). Although we made good time during this initial trip, we are still learning how to stay in the current to maximize our speed and minimize our effort.

Using the restroom on the river is challenging. Since this inherently easier for guys than gals, modern technology allows the ladies a few ways to close the difficulty gap.  After researching many FUDs (female urination devices), Danielle settled on the Whiz Freedom. We also purchased a poncho to provide some level of privacy, but the wind made it difficult to keep the poncho in place. It took about twenty minutes to use the restroom, but the Whiz did was it was intended to do. With more practice using the restroom on the river should become easier.

We are happy to report that today (Sunday) neither of us is in too much pain and we successfully completed our first Missouri River paddle!

Laminated maps of the Missouri River to show wingdike and current locations

Honeybee got to shop at Saks for 40 minutes while we drove back for our paddles.

Donning smiles of excitement and nervousness before entering the Missouri River.

Off to a good start!

Now Danielle can keep an eye on activity back in the bow. #RearviewMirror

Obligatory paddle selfie.

Approaching the Daniel Boone Bridge, where "Highway 40" crosses the Missouri River.

Daniel Boone Bridge. Rivermile 44.

You don't get this view every day.

Just passed the Daniel Boone Bridge.

Whiz Freedom comes highly recommended by Danielle!

Howard Bend Treatment Facility. Rivermile 35.

We made it! Frontier Park.  Rivermile 29.0.

Springtime on the Niangua River

Saturday we paddled a 7-mile stretch of the Niangua River, near Bennett Spring State Park. Friday night we camped at Hidden Valley Outfitters, and Saturday morning we dropped off a car 6 miles up the road at Ho Humm Canoe Rental and Campground, where we planned to take out of the river.  With comfortable water levels due to spring weather, there wasn't too much risk of Honeybee scraping the rocks that create riffles in various places on the river. We would definitely camp again at HVO, and we would happily return to kayak or tube this stretch of river.

Saturday's trip went really well.  Simply making short trips is building our experience and helping us improve our skills. On the water, we're getting better at handling our boat and reading the river. Off the water, we are becoming more efficient with things like tying down our boat, packing our dry bags, and deciding what gear we'll need.

Springtime on the Niangua was beautiful - leafless trees let us see our distant surroundings, while blossoming spring flowers of redbuds, dogwoods, and bluebells caught our attention. We spotted lots of turtles basking, some heron, and a magnificent bald eagle!

Stay tuned to our blog for some very exciting news this upcoming weekend, the first weekend in May!

Honeybee's first trip on Danielle's car.

Campsite - Hidden Valley Outfitters

Niangua River 

Campfire, Cookies and Cribbage!

Rise and Shine!

River Selfie

Wildflowers  

Wild Sweet William and Virginia Bluebells. 

Bald Eagle 

Danielle and Jeffrey

Windy Day on the James River

On Saturday we paddled a few miles on the James River. We put in at Crighton Access, east of Springfield, and took out downstream at Lake Springfield - that's about 4 miles of paddling.

Distance was not the focus of today's practice - it was learning. Winter and early spring is a good time to learn off the water (from blogs, workshops and experienced paddlers), but it's time to put that information to practice on the water.  Some things we need to learn just by doing! We learned a lot this weekend because of all the headwind. We had to paddle the entire 4 miles against the wind; at one point the wind pushed us sideways and attempted to push us over. We were able to work on our turning skills - which can take time with a 17.5 foot boat!

With each trip (even short ones like this weekend) comes an opportunity to learn and practice all the skills we'll need during the MR340, like:  how our boat handles on the water, working as a team, paddling technique, using our gear, identifying gear we need, etc.

Here are a few pics of our trip!

Paddling!

What do you eat when paddling? PBJ - it's got everthing you need.

Danielle

A snag in our plans!  We had to portage around some fallen trees.

Strainer Danger!

Re-routing - and navigating with a rope.

Carefully pulling Honeybee to navigable water.

After the sun disappeared, things got windy and the water got choppy.

Waiting in the cold with Honeybee while Danielle swaps our cars after paddling.

Honeybee

This past weekend our new canoe took her maiden voyage. We decided to test the waters of Lake Springfield. Although the MR340 takes place on a river, getting started on a lake allows us some flexibility as we learned about our boat and each other. We really just wanted a chance to get to know our new boat.

Saturday morning was rainy and a bit chilly, but we were determined to get on the water so we came prepared with raingear. Our friends, Ashley and Dave, braved the elements to join us on their kayaks. They were invaluable with their feedback regarding the balance between the stern and the bow, stroking techniques, and general advice on communication. ;-)

Saturday taught us a lot about our strengths, weaknesses, and the challenges we face in preparing for the MR340. There's a lot more we could share about our first official paddle as the Paddle of the Sexes, but we're going to keep things positive in this post. Let's just say our friends had a chance to observe some frustrating paddling, yelling, and occasional fits of defeated laughter. Not all was bad, however, and we had a great day paddling with friends. Saturday was a success.

Also, we have a reason to celebrate - we named our boat!

Since finding our canoe in early March we have been tossing around lots of ideas for names. There were some front runners, but nothing that excited us. In one late night conversation Jeffrey finally said, "let's just get her on the water and let her speak to us." He was right!

We christened her with a bottle of Andre. According to a quick Google search, a christening is "a fun way to welcome your boat to the world, celebrate with friends, and ensure safe passages for a lifetime of adventures on the water." After her christening, we set sail on Lake Springfield. Within ten minutes, she spoke to us and told us her name: Honeybee. This name fits her beauty, personality, and grace.

Check out our Facebook page for the video of our christening (https://www.facebook.com/MR340Paddle/), and here are a few pictures from our adventure this weekend!

Jeffrey, Danielle, & Honeybee!

Ashley, Dave, Danielle, & Jeffrey. Thank you Ashley and Dave for your patience, feedback, and positive attitude!

Securing Honeybee to Jeffrey's vehicle. 

We survived! 3 miles, give or take... approximately 1% of the miles we will travel for the MR340!

Canoecopia

Earlier in March we ventured north to Madison, WI to attend Canoecopia - the world's largest paddling expo!  Between browsing the exhibit hall, talking to gear vendors, and attending workshops we gained a lot of helpful knowledge. Madison is a great city to explore, and we are fortunate to have friends and family nearby who tipped us off to some cool places to visit. Thank you to Danielle's aunt Kristy for hosting us! Thank you to Danielle's uncle Phil and aunt 'Lisbeth for dinner! and Thank you to our friend Christopher for your tips and tricks on endurance racing!

We arrived late Friday night and checked out a few vendors before dinner. We also first laid eyes on what would become our MR340 boat. On Saturday, we spent all day at Canoecopia attending educational sessions (paddling techniques, first aid basics, proper paddling attire, etc.). We revisited our boat, and after deliberating over a glass of cold Wisconsin beer, decided to make her our own. On Sunday, before we headed home, we stopped by Underground Butcher for some local cheese and Great Dane Pub & Brewing Company for some local brew.

On March 20, 2018 at 1:20 p.m. we became proud parents of a Wenonah Escape. She is beautiful. We'll share pictures of her Maiden Voyage very soon - along with announcing her name - but in the mean time here are some highlights from our trip to Canoecopia!

Bags are packed and our show guide is printed.

Danielle is planning our workshop schedule on the way up to Wisconsin. 

We made it to Wisconsin!

After dinner with Danielle's friend, Christopher. Thanks Chris for your tips on endurance and healthy living!

In the exhibit hall.

Mosquitoes won't be a problem in our Bug Shirts!

Tying down the canoe is easy in theory...

Quick lunch at Underground Butcher.

We tried some local brew at Great Dane.

Great way to accessorize your vehicle.