Only 190 more days to the Blackburn Challenge. That is when people row or paddle from Gloucester High School Parking lot up the Annisquam around Cape Ann and then finish by calling out their boat number as they cross under the Greasy Pole.
Saturday, July 17, 2010. I am telling as many people as possible that I am going to do it in a kayak so that when it comes time I will not be able to weasel out. Last year I caught a wee bit of bronchitis and bailed. Not this year.
I have made a page with some links to info about the race, Howard Blackburn and a google map I made of the circumnavigation of Cape Ann. Check it out.
If anyone wants to try out a chunk of the race in the spring or anytime before the race I might be looking for someone to paddling with. Give me an e-mail. My goal is to finish in time before the beer runs out on Pavilion Beach. I don’t care if granny is ahead of me.
Good Morning Gloucester 
Sounds great. I’ll be at the Fort playground watching for you! I’ll bring my tent and plenty of supplies for a few days.
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Instead of supplies for three days have a cell phone to dial 911. If I am not at the greasy pole by 3 PM I want a boat looking for me with a keg on it. I’ll need it by then.
But I assure you if I bail crossing Sandy Bay and land up at Top Dog with a wiener in my hand I will call in.
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We will be cheering you on from Wheeler’s Point! Make sure your kayak has some length to help you deal with the ocean current.
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At Wheeler’s Point I will be at least a mile into a 21 mile jaunt. I will be in the green kayak and I can take on a beer from starboard if you can lean out far enough.
As for the length, I got the length. (Is that what she said?) But my kayak is not a super carbon fiber fiberglass racing machine. I may be slow but it will be sure in my long plastic Clorox bottle.
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I did the Blackburn Challenge in 1991 & 1992.
It was fun. It took me a little over 4 hours. I was in the middle of the kayak group. Thankfully the weather was good. I had a 17′ Hydra Sea Runner kayak. (plastic)
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4 hours, not bad. If I did it in less than five hours I would be happy and I am sure there would be some beer left. My plastic kayak is a 16 foot 6 inch Wilderness Systems Sealution II that I got about 12 years ago. It’s been strapped to a car roof in hot South Carolina sun a few times so it has a few dents in it but it should get me around the Cape. Or I could win the lottery and upgrade to fiberglass. Too bad I don’t play the lottery.
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I had planned on paddling last year, but I hardly got on the water to train. This year will be the year. I have an OC1 and once it gets relatively warm I’ll be on the water. More then happy to paddle with you in the Spring. Email me anytime.
I might put on my 6 mill wetsuit and head out this winter. Or I might sit back with a dark beer and wait until March.
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I’ll be posting the countdown every once and a while. When it gets closer to 100 we should put out a notice to get a couple of paddlers with wetsuits and we can paddle around Thatcher Island.
83 days to Opening day at Fenway Park
186 days to Blackburn Challenge
51 days to Spring training first pitch. That’s March 3rd. Maybe after that.
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I will try to BC this year as well. So email me if you want to practice.
I paddled the counterclockwise direction on Thxgiving day with stopping and in drysuit so it was little too much for race but still fun to do. It took like 5 hours all together. Unloading, loading from the car, break for 30 minutes or so at Milk Island
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Only 170 days left and I am having dinner at Duckworths this weekend. Not good for the diet trying to get me in my kayak.
I will put a word out when we get those first nice weeks in March. Not too long. Bak Beach Rockport to Thacher, around and back.
8 mile round trip from my house to Thacher is 8 miles.
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