On Saturday, I ventured down to Seattle University

These fitness (read: ‘voluntary torture’) machines can be calibrated in groups, synched up to a fleet of digital boats on a movie screen, and if it weren’t for the lack of salt-spray and seagulls overhead, you’d swear you were sculling for gold in the Summer Olympics!

My wife Heather and I added a Concept 2 rower to our quiver of training tools just before Christmas, when it was too icy cold to paddle a surfski. Over the past 6 weeks, I’ve grown to love the intense, full-body workout the machine delivers.

So when I heard there was an actual Ergometer rowing race in our backyard of Seattle, I was there. The NW Ergomania event has grown at a logorhithmic rate over the past few years, with this year drawing the biggest crowd ever. From freshman high schoolers to 70-year-olds and up, the sport draws a passionate and extremely fit crowd.

Over the course of the day’s races, my friend Dale McKinnon and I watched male and female athletes push themselves so hard as to literally collapse off their machines. We watched 71-year-old Luanne Mills break the world record for 2000 meters in her age group (one of two world record performances for the day, another occurring in the 20-29-year-old women’s race).

I raced in two events, the 30-39-year-old Men’s 2000 meter, and the Open Men’s 1000 meter. I credit a winter of weight-training, surfski and stand-up paddling, and the past six weeks of in-the-garage Erg training for my surprising (to me) victories in both events.

For access to my top secret “ninja race strategy” and other lessons learned, visit the story on our family adventure blog, Ultramarathonpaddling.com.

And treat yourself to the 43-second video of the start of Luanne Mills’ world record-breaking 2K race. Her form and strength are impeccable — a true thing of athletic beauty.

As many as 440 teams of 8 athletes cover approximately 90 miles of terrain on snow, land and water, from Mt. Baker to Bellingham Bay, while some 50,000 fans cheer them on. It is surreal in its awesomeness.

And for nearly 40 years, it’s been “owned” by the Bellingham Chamber of Commerce. The event itself has been orchestrated and executed by a team of 30-or-so passionate volunteer chairpersons, and literally hundreds of week-of and day-of volunteers. The Chamber has managed the financial components of the race. You can decide for yourself whether that arrangement caused some tension between the two groups.

But those days are over. After years of discussion and nearly a year of actual negotiation, the Ski to Sea has cut its ties to the Chamber and is now “owned” by a newly formed, non-profit entity called “Whatcom Events.” Whatcom Events was created by volunteer race director and RE/MAX agent Pete Coy primarily for the Ski to Sea, but also with the idea of bringing in other local events. Any profits generated will be channeled to committee-approved local charities.

Over the years, I’ve watched a number of events out-grow the capacity or spirit of their original founder or organizer and take on a life of their own. The Ski to Sea is perhaps the greatest example of this phenomena, and the “right thing to do” in my honest opinion, is always the same: “Get out of the way!” I am thrilled about this new development for the race. I have no doubt it will allow the Ski to Sea to bust out of its britches and become all it can be to the community in Whatcom County.

Best of luck, Ski to Sea. Congratulations on your new independance, and may you continue to grow and thrive forever!!!

It’s one of the most technically challenging pieces of water in Puget Sound.

This December, for the 4th year in a row, over 100 kayaks, outrigger canoes, surfskis, and because of today’s exploratory outing, now Stand Up Paddleboards (and “prone” paddleboards — the kind where you lay on your tummy or kneel and paddle with your hands) will line up and see who can make it from Bowman Bay, through the Pass and back to the beach the fastest!

Today was the exploratory outing to see if SUP’ing the Pass was feasible for the race. Heather and I and 7 other paddle boarders were joined by 10 safety sea kayakers for the 6-mile challenge. We feared conditions like last year’s race, which included head-high waves, heavy winds, near-freezing temperatures and an almost 50% racer drop-out rate!

What awaited us, though, was glassy calm water, blue skies, T-shirt friendly air temps and a specatacular day all around. Bellingham SUP racer Beau Whitehead set the pace and clocked a 1hr 14min finish time. It wasn’t a race, though, and the bulk of the group took their time, shot some photos, stayed together for safey and enjoyed the world class scenery in all its glory. It won’t necessarily mimic the conditions of race day in December, but it was enough to open the doors for SUP entry to the race — race day weather permitting!!!

IF YOU’RE A HIGHLY EXPERIENCED PADDLER and want to try the race, you can read more about it and sign up at the Outdoors Adventure Center website. If you’re not into mid-winter, extreme kayak racing but want to watch the intrepid souls who are, all from rock-solid grounds of the surrounding State Park, click HERE for plenty of info to get you there.

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What:

Oh, and the entry fee: A bag of canned or boxed food — or cash — to donate to the Whatcom County Food Bank.

The memorable result of the grass-roots get-together has collectively been voted the “Best paddle race in Whatcom County!” and is sure to grow to critical mass in no time flat.

Racers laughed and cranked their boats around the glassy Lake Padden waters, surrounded by trees ablaze in crayon-like, autumnal oranges, reds and yellows. Spectators and resting paddlers crowded the hand-off area, cheering their teammates on and laughing as water-bottle-batons got dropped and G-rated cursing mixed with laughter and more cheers.

To this day, it’s doubtful anyone could tell you which team “won.” But the efforts for the Food Bank were a smashing success: over 300 pounds of food was collected, and over $600 in cash donations!!! Peter Marcus loaded it all up in his SUV and drove straight to the Food Bank for the delivery. When I called him two days later to congratulate him on a brilliant idea and world class execution, he was still buzzing from the experience.

As of this post, we’re less than a month from the 2nd Annual Paddle for Food Relay. It’s scheduled for Saturday, October 17th, 10:00 a.m. in the West Parking Lot of Lake Padden . If you need more info, e-mail me at brandon@nwhomes.net or call me at 360-319-0696 and I’ll put you in touch with the mastermind, Peter Marcus.

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