FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

GRAYLING, MICHIGAN

JULY 17, 2000        

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT:

KATE SOUTHARD or STEVE SOUTHARD

RACE OFFICE (517) 348-4425

CELL PHONE W/ VOICEMAIL (517) 370-9843 FAX (517)348-2258

 

 

 

A RECORD FIELD  &  MORE THAN 50,000 FANS EXPECTED

AT NORTH AMERICA'S RICHEST, TOUGHEST CANOE RACE !

SUPERSTARS OF CANOE RACING COMPETE FOR A SHARE OF OVER $50,000

AT WEYERHAEUSER AuSABLE RIVER CANOE MARATHON JULY 29-30

 

The greatest marathon canoe racer of all-time, Quebec’s Serge Corbin, and Michigan’s top long-distance paddler, Jeff Kolka, are clearly the team to beat as they go after an unprecendented fifth-consecutive championship and a share of North America’s richest canoe racing purse in the 53rd Annual Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon July 29-30.

 

Corbin, 43, of Shawinigan, Quebec, who has 13 AuSable Marathon victories, teamed with Kolka, 41, of Grayling, Michigan, to win the past four AuSable Marathons by large margins. Last year they took the AuSable title by 18 minutes over the father & son team of Ken Kolonich, 54, of Eaton Rapids, Michigan and son Steve Kolonich, 28 of Lansing, Michigan.  Corbin and Kolka also won New York’s General Clinton Canoe Regatta in May. 

 

The General Clinton race, Michigan’s AuSable Marathon and Quebec’s La Classique de Canots, staged on the St. Maurice River over the Labor Day weekend in September, are recognized as the top three canoe races in North America.  The three races are often referred to as The Triple Crown of North American Canoe Racing. For more than 20 years, Quebec’s Corbin has dominated marathon canoe racing to an extent unmatched by competitors in any other sport.  With a variety of partners, he has amassed 57 victories in 24 years at the three major races that make up canoe racing’s “Triple Crown”.  His amazing record of victories has been compared to a single athlete winning nearly 60  major PGA golf tournaments or Grand Slam tennis tournaments over a 20+ year time span.

 

With several days remaining before the July 24 AuSable Marathon registration deadline, a record 66 teams from 17 U.S. states and Canadian provinces teams are already entered to compete in the 53rd Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon.  This year’s field also includes a record number of women.  Since its inception in 1947, this unique race, widely known and recognized simply as THE Marathon, has been one of the most grueling sporting events on this continent.  The Marathon covers 120 river miles and over 50,000 paddle strokes, non-stop from the start in Grayling to the finish line in Oscoda. 

 

In the early years, the contestants used the standard recreational canoes and paddles of the day.  The winners of that first AuSable Marathon in 1947 were Allen Carr and Delbert Case of Grayling, in 21 hours, 3 minutes (21:03).   In 1956, a trailblazer of modern marathon canoe racing, Ralph Sawyer, of Oscoda, began a run of 8 AuSable Marathon victories in 13 years.  During the late 1950's and through the 1960's, Sawyer and other top  racers and canoe designers changed the look and function of racing canoes forever; they became longer, sleeker, lighter.......faster.  Modern materials and what were then considered "radical" design concepts were tested and improved upon.  During this period the winning times for the Marathon dropped to 15+hours. 

 

During the last twenty years, cedar-strip and fiberglass canoes have given way to high-tech Kevlar and graphite/ composite canoes that weigh less than 30 pounds and cost $2500-3500 or more.  Graphite paddles that weigh ten ounces or less and cost $150-$250 each are the norm.  With the advent of increased prize money, better media exposure and improved event organization by the all-volunteer committee, the level of AuSable Marathon competition has stiffened. Serge Corbin and Solomon Carriere, of Cumberland House, Saskatchewan, broke the 14-hour barrier in 1994 to set the current AuSable Marathon record time: 13:58:08 [13 hours, 58 minutes, 8 seconds].

 

Three-time Marathon winner Carriere, 43, will be challenging Corbin at the AuSable Marathon this year together with three-time Marathon 2^nd place finisher Bruce Barton, also 43, of Homer, Michigan.  Several teams join Carriere-Barton in being rated as having a chance to knock off the defending champs.  Last year’s second place finishers, father Ken Kolonich & son Steve Kolonich, will be trying to break into the Marathon winner’s circle for the first time.  The 1999 third place finishers are returning to challenge the champs again this year as well.  Ted Kolka, 34, of Grayling, Michigan, and Tim Valko, 31, of Pinckney, Michigan, will try to top their 1999 course time of 14 hours, 47 minutes, in their bid to move into the winner’s circle.  Ted Kolka is Champ Jeff Kolka’s younger brother.

 

Bill Torongo, 38, of Roscommon, Michigan, has consistently been a top AuSable Marathon finisher, including four Marathon 2^nd place finishes with Jeff Kolka.  Torongo is paddling with a tough competitor from Quebec, teaming with Denis Berthiaume of Provost, Quebec.  Rick Joy, 41, of Silverwood, Michigan, regularly a Marathon top five finisher has teamed with Dave Jensen, 36, of San Jose, California.  Matt Rimer of Horton, Michigan, surprised many fans by finishing the Marthon 9^th last year at age 15.  Rimer and his partner “Turbo” Tim Triebold, 47, of Concord, Michigan, are also expected to be among the leaders at the finish line on Sunday.

 

Many of the more than 50,000 fans expected to be on hand for the Marathon will be cheering on Al Widing Sr., 75, of Mio, Michigan.  Widing, who started racing the Marathon in 1955, is looking to add to his long list of AuSable Marathon accomplishments.  He has entered and finished more Marathons than anyone else and finished as high as 2nd three times. In 1999, Widing and partner Bob Bradford, 56, of Lapeer, Michigan (combined age 130!) finished in 15^th place, topping 31 other teams and completing the 120 mile course in 15 hours, 21 minutes!  Fans absolutely marvel at Widing as he beats paddlers a quarter his age. This year Widing will be racing with a relative “youngster”, Joe Pollock, 41, of Edmore, Michigan.  In contrast to the veteran Widing, 47 paddlers….over 1/3 of the Marathon field… will be attempting to finish the Marathon for the first time.

 

The gun will sound for the 2000 Marathon at 9 p.m. on the 29^th, with its famous LeMans-style running start to the river from the Post Office to Ray’s Canoe Livery. Over the course of the 120-mile race, paddlers maintain a rate of 60 to 90 paddle strokes a minute. During the eight hours of nighttime paddling, they often receive little assistance from moonlight in avoiding the river's natural obstacles.

 

The darkness, any inclement weather, portaging six hydroelectric dams and the sheer torture of up to 19 hours of non-stop paddling will all combine to play on the contestants' physical and mental capabilities.  The contestants will receive no outside assistance except food, drink, clothing and other necessities passed to them by their team of "bank runners" or "feeders" who meet them at locations along the race course. The function of these support teams is often compared to that of pit crews in auto racing and can be just as important to the outcome of the race.

 

Many of the teams entered in the Marathon arrive in Grayling a week or more in advance to prepare for the race and will compete this coming weekend in the Spike’s Challenge, a “warm-up” to the Marathon.  The Spike’s Challenge, sponsored by Spike’s Keg O’Nailes tavern in Grayling, will start at Ray's Canoeing at 9 a.m. on Sunday, July 23, and will end at McMasters Bridge, covering about 20 percent of the AuSable River Canoe Marathon course.  Ray’s Canoeing is located on the I-75 business Loop at the AuSable River Bridge in Grayling and McMasters Bridge is 16 miles east of Grayling, approximately four miles north of M-72 on McMasters Bridge Road.

 

Citizens Bank, Grayling Holiday Inn, Transnation Title Insurance / Milltown Title & Escrow Company, Timco Aviation and the Grayling Area Visitors Council are associate sponsors of the Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon. CellularOne, the official cellular communications provider of the AuSable River Canoe Marathon, is providing communications for the event.

 

The Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon is held in conjunction with Grayling's AuSable River Festival, featuring a host of events throughout Marathon week.  The River Festival recognizes the unique importance of the AuSable River to these northern Michigan communities.  A number of events are also planned in Oscoda, including a pancake breakfast prior to the finish of the top teams late Sunday morning, July 30.  For more information on AuSable Marathon-week activities in Grayling & Oscoda, or for information about tourism and recreational opportunities in the AuSable River Valley area, contact:

              Grayling Area Visitors Council  (517) 348-2921  (800) 937-8837     www.grayling-mi.com       

                Oscoda-AuSable Chamber of Commerce (517) 739-7322   (800) 235-4625      www.oscoda.com 

 

Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon competitive action kicks off with the AuSable Marathon Sprints for Position at Penrod's Resort [Maple Street Bridge in Grayling ] on Thursday, July 27, from 5:00 to 8:30 P.M. and  Friday, July 28, from 2:00 to 6:00 P.M.  The Sprints are much like "Indy 500" qualifying:  Each team paddles a short looped course and their lap time determines their starting row position for the LeMans style run to the river on Saturday evening.

 

The official canoe measuring at Citizens Bank in Grayling at noon on Saturday, July 29, is followed by Grayling’s impressive AuSable River Festival Parade at 3 p.m.  Racing action continues with the AuSable Challenge Events, staged in Grayling on Saturday afternoon, July 29,  which offer both novices and more serious competitors the opportunity to challenge the AuSable in shorter races.

 

The $50,000 Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon starts with a LeMans-style run to the river at Ray's Canoe Livery at 9:00 P.M., Saturday, July 29.   Fans begin to claim prime viewing locations Saturday morning for the pre-race program that begins at 6:00 P.M. and for the frenzied running start to the river at 9:00 P.M.   Thousands of fans will view all or part of the race, driving to public access sites, bridges, dam portages and other viewing locations along the AuSable River race course to cheer on the teams through Saturday night and on to the finish line in Oscoda on Sunday, July 30, where the winning team will arrive at about 11:00 A.M.

 

The American Canoe Association (ACA) sanctions the Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon.  The ACA’s mission is to promote canoeing, kayaking and other paddle sports as safe and enjoyable lifetime recreational activities, while working to protect and preserve the recreational waterways on which those activities depend.   For more information about ACA, contact the national office at:     American Canoe Association

                            7432 Alban Station Blvd, Suite B-226; Springfield, VA   22150

                                phone:  (703) 451-0141     www.acanet.org     email: acadirect@aol.com

 

Extensive information, photographs and frequently updated race results for the Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon is\will also available on the world-wide web at:                www.ausablecanoemarathon.org

 

Canoe#	Competitor	Age	City	State/Province
0	John Nemeth	58	Grand Blanc	Michigan
0	Robert A. Bradford	57	Lapeer	Michigan
3	Erich Podjaske	18	Grayling	Michigan
3	Mo Harwood	21	Grayling	Michigan
4	Bruce Barton	43	Homer	Michigan
4	Solomon Carriere'	43	Cumberland House	Saskatchewan
7	Chad Swander	32	Grayling	Michigan
7	Connie Swander	53	Grayling	Michigan
9	Al Widing Sr.	75	Mio	Michigan
9	Joe Pollock	41	Edmore	Michigan
11	Rick Joy	41	Silverwood	Michigan
11	Dave Jensen	36	San Jose	California
14	Bill Torongo	38	Roscommon	Michigan
14	Denis Berthiaume			Quebec
16	Jeff Kolka	41	Grayling	Michigan
16	Serge Corbin	43	St. Boniface	Quebec
17	Dan Cruser	48	Crosby	Minnesota
17	Dick Rayman	51	Ely	Minnesota
18	Al Duckworth	45	Kalamazoo	Michigan
18	Doug Grosso	44	Bellevue	Michigan
21	Dale Bissonnette	28	Hale	Michigan
21	Mike Mc Kulsky	30	Hale	Michigan
22	Kai Hansen	38	Bellville	Wisconsin
22	Fritz Hansen	59	Union Grove	Wisconsin
23	Ken Kolonich	54	Eaton Rapids	Michigan
23	Steve Kolonich	28	Lansing	Michigan
24	Jeff Tetrault	40	Grand Rapids	Michigan
24	Wade Mackay	41	Belmont	Michigan
Canoe#	Competitor	Age	City	State/Province
26	Mike Packard	36	Otego	New York
26	Lori Roseboom	34	Mt. Vision	New York
29	Dan Czuk	46	Scotts	Michigan
29	Brandon Smith	21	Scotts	Michigan
31