River level (Bolivar gauge): about 15 feet
Clear, 80° F
 

K-1W ³ 14 feet
1. Carol Lee Royer (Memphis, TN), 1 hour, 10 minutes, 8 seconds
 

K-1W <14 feet
1. Kathleen Griffen (Memphis, TN), 1:38:00
 

K-1 ³ 14 feet
1. Elmore Holmes (Memphis, TN), 52:14
2. Joe Royer (Memphis, TN), 55:01
3. Wim Nouwen (Memphis, TN), 55:27
4. Chris Metheny (Chattanooga, TN), 55:30
5. David Senter (Memphis, TN), 56:02
6. Wayne Lichliter (Germantown, TN), 1:07:00 (went off course)
7. Josh Headrick (Jackson, TN), 1:07:50
 

K-1 <14 feet
1. John Scheidhauer (Brighton, TN), 1:07:24
2. Chris Irving (Arlington, TN), 1:13:33
3. Gil Griffen (Memphis, TN), 1:38:03
 

OC-1
1. Ryoichi Teruyama (Memphis, TN), 1:17:36
2. Tani Hideki (Memphis, TN), 1:30:25
 

OC-2
1. Richard Wood (Memphis, TN) and Jason Wood (Memphis, TN), 1:15:40
2. Brenner McCormick (Humboldt, TN) and Jason Buchanan (Humboldt, TN), 1:16:36
3. Dick Fadgen (Oakland, TN) and Larry Sax (Oakland, TN), 1:28:39
 

OC-2 Mixed
1. Tom Roehm (Braden, TN) and Lee Anne Roehm (Braden, TN), 1:11:55
2. Chad Massey (Memphis, TN) and Sherri Watson (Memphis, TN), 1:21:27
3. Mike Goode (Memphis, TN) and April Goode (Memphis, TN), 1:28:39
4. Richard Berryman (Bolivar, TN) and Sandra Berryman (Bolivar, TN), 1:29:42
5. Bruce Moore (Bartlett, TN) and Schawana Stein (Bartlett, TN), 1:39:34
6. Carl Glanzman (Collierville, TN) and Lois Harin (Collierville, TN), 1:40:00
 
 

Open-water/marathon racers in the Mid South are used to traveling long distances. Although the city of Memphis plays host to a first-class race on the Mississippi River each May, paddlers traditionally have had to drive to the Atlantic, the Gulf, the upper Midwest, or the heart of Texas to fill out their race schedule for the year.

In a move that provided at least a partial remedy to this problem, the west Tennessee town of Bolivar hosted the first annual canoe and kayak race on the nearby Hatchie River on September 28. The Hatchie, a small, free-flowing stream with headwaters in north Mississippi, meanders in a northwesterly direction through dense hardwood forests in Tennessee as it makes its way to the Mississippi River.

The first edition of this race followed a course of about 7.5 miles, starting at the U.S. 64 bridge several miles east of Bolivar and finishing at the TN 18 bridge north of town. Although water levels are typically low in the late summer and early fall, racers got a break from the dreaded "bottom drag" this time as Tropical Storm Isidore dumped several inches of rain on the region two days before the race. Deadfall would now pose the greatest hazard, and the thirty-plus registrants had to wait at the start an extra half-hour as a crew worked from a johnboat to remove a fallen tree that blocked the riverbed. A passage eventually was cleared over a barely-submerged log, much to the dismay of paddlers with understern rudders.

At last the gun went off, and kayakers Elmore Holmes and Joe Royer took the lead with Chris Metheny, Wim Nouwen, and David Senter in tow. Holmes eventually pulled away for a 2-minute, 47-second win over Royer. Nouwen held off Metheny in a furious sprint to the finish to claim the bronze, then lost his breakfast in the Hatchie's muddy water. The fastest lady among the kayakers was Royer's wife, Carol Lee. All of the kayakers had elected to paddle sea kayaks (the Looksha II was most common) except Holmes, who raced an old "Apple Turnover," a rudderless wildwater/marathon hybrid. The racers agreed in retrospect that Holmes's boat was probably the best choice, given the small, meandering nature of the river and the potential for shallow spots and snags.

The fastest canoe was the mixed tandem of Tom and Lee Anne Roehm, who paddled a We-no-nah Kevlar/e-glass touring layup. Richard and Jason Wood won the men's OC-2 class about four minutes later, and Ryoichi Teruyama was tops among solo canoeists.

At the post-race ceremony in Bolivar's court square, an upbeat mood was in evidence. "We spend a lot of time out on the big Mississippi, and it was a nice change to get on this small, intimate river and just fly through the woods, like the Ewoks in Star Wars," said K-1 winner Holmes. "I'm just thrilled to have another race in this part of the country. I hope this event blossoms into something that attracts more good paddlers, and spreads the news about what an awesome sport paddling is."

Chris Berryman, executive director of the Hardeman County Chamber of Commerce, deserves much credit as the founder of this event. He received crucial assistance from Joe Royer and Lawrence Migliara, who have put on the Mississippi River race at Memphis for the last 21 years. Royer and Migliara also provided sponsorship through their company, Outdoors, Inc., a clothing and equipment store with three locations in Memphis.

The second Hatchie River Race will take place Saturday, October 25, 2003. For more information on canoe and kayak races and other outdoor sporting events in the Mid South, visit the Outdoors, Inc., website: www.outdoorsinc.com.