What is Marathon Canoeing?

Although not formally referred to as marathon canoeing, the sport dates back to the voyageurs. These men and women paddled long hours as a means of exploring and opening up our great country. They portaged their canoes over a variety of terrain, around water falls, fast moving water, or natural obstructions. They canoed on all sorts of water, ranging from lakes to streams, creeks to rivers and even the oceans. Today, the sport retains some on these traits, by offering races ofvarious lengths, under many conditions. Recreational canoeists form the largest class at most marathon races. This allows for participants to use their own recreational boats rather than specialized canoes or kayaks.

The Sport

More serious racers in marathon use specialized canoes and kayaks which are built according to a standard set of rules. Racing classes at this level are single person canoes (C1) and two-person canoes (C-2). Canoeists in the C1 and C2 classes use bent shaft paddles which have proven to be more efficient for racing than straight shaft paddles. Paddling techniques for marathon racing also differ significantly from traditional recreational tripping methods. Racers switch sides every eight to twelve strokes at the command "HUT", usually given by the sternman. This avoids energy-wasting J-strokes and rests alternating muscle groups in shoulders and arms. The paddling pace, set by the bowman, and is usually 55 to 75 strokes per minute, depending upon the team and race conditions. Marathon canoe racing uses almost the same upper body muscle groups as cross country skiing. Many racers use ski loppetts to stay in shape during the winter months, and similarly many cross country skiers have taken up canoe raci in the summer. When you consider that over half of the races involve one or more portages, it becomes evident that the overall exercise potential in marathon canoe racing is surpassed by few other sports.