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FLASH RELEASE – 5:30 PM  July 27,2003

 

AuSable Marathon Finish Line – Oscoda, Michigan 

Complete Race Results & Release

 

 

REIGNING CHAMPS TAKE UNPRECIDENTED EIGHTH CONSECUTIVE WIN

 

AT 56^th WEYERHAEUSER AuSABLE RIVER CANOE MARATHON

 

MARGIN OF VICTORY IS NARROWEST IN 11 YEARS

 

Seven-time defending champs Jeff Kolka [coal-kah], 44, of Grayling, Michigan, and Serge Corbin [surge core-bin], 46, of St-Boniface de-Shawinigan, Quebec, held off a stiff challenge to take an unprecedented eighth consecutive victory Sunday, July 27 at North America’s richest, toughest non-stop canoe race: the Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon.  The pair claimed the $5000 first place prize from a total purse of $50,000, the richest in North American canoe racing.

 

The race started with a bang at 9 PM Saturday night in Grayling Michigan.  At the sound of the starter’s pistol, 65 two-person teams made a frenzied Le-Mans style 1/8-mile run with their canoes through the streets to the AuSable River for the start of this 120 mile, 14 to 19 hour non-stop race. 

 

Corbin and Kolka did not get a clean start; Corbin fell face first into his canoe at the start and several teams sprinted away from the defending champs and pre-race favorites.  At Burton’s Landing, the first official timing location and 43 minutes into the race, Andy Triebold [tree-bold], 27, of Homer, Michigan and Steve Lajoie [lah-zwah], 27, of Mirabel, Quebec, were holding first place.  The next three teams trailed by only 13 seconds and the defending champs held fourth place, 2 minutes behind the leaders.

 

Kolka and Corbin pressed hard and another hour into the race, at the third timing location - Wakeley Bridge – they had moved to the front of the pack, leading Triebold & Lajoie by just 3 seconds and the top two teams began to open a gap over the rest of the lead pack.  The defending champs kept the pressure on and by the mid-point of the 120-mile race had opened a lead of over 9 minutes.  Meanwhile, several other teams had caught Triebold & Lajoie and there was now a 4-canoe pack battling for second place.

 

However, Triebold and Lajoie were not done challenging the reigning champs yet!  After portaging Alcona Dam at dawn, 9 hours into the race, they poured it on and by the Cooke Dam portage, 12 hours into the race, had caught Kolka & Corbin and vaulted into first place.  The champs and challengers remained locked in a back & forth, then side-by-side battle over the last portage, at Foote Dam, and on toward the Oscoda finish line. 

 

Just 20 minutes above the finish line, Kolka and Corbin sprinted and were able to pull away from Triebold & Lajoie, crossing the finish line in 14:55:03 [14 hours, 55 minutes, 3 seconds] to take their eighth consecutive Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon win.  Triebold and Lajoie crossed the finish line 1 minute,  48 seconds later, with an elapsed time of 14:56:51, to take second place. 

 

The 1:48 margin of victory was the closest in 11 years, since the 1992 race when Serge Corbin and Brett Stockton beat Bruce Barton and Tim Triebold by 1 minute, 24 seconds.  Tim Triebold, the 1992 second place finisher, is 2003 second-place finisher Andy Triebold’s father. 

 

This year’s winning time of 14:55:03 is the first time that the 15-hour barrier has been broken since the 2000 race.  Though water levels were slightly higher than in 2001 and 2002, the winning pace for the race was relatively slow.  Kolka and Corbin’s elapsed time of 14:55:03 was the third slowest Weyerhaeuser AuSable Marathon winning time since 1978.  In 1994, Corbin, with partner Solomon Carriere of Cumberland House, Saskatchewan, set the AuSable Marathon record with a winning time of 13:58:08. 

 

Tony Short, 39, of Indian River, Michigan, and Denis Berthiaume [bear-tee-oom], 38, of Pre’vost, Quebec, finished third, with an elapsed time of 15:02:45.  The pair finished 2^nd in the 2001 Marathon.  Fourth were Rick Joy, 44, of Silverwood, Michigan and Ted Kolka, 37, of Grayling, Michigan, completing the Marathon in 15:13:16.  Ted Kolka is eight-time Marathon champ Jeff Kolka’s brother.  Rounding out the top five were the 2002 second place finishers, Matt Rimer [rhymer], 19, of Horton, Michigan and Mo Harwood, 24, of Grayling, Michigan.

 

The first Mixed Team to finish was a father-daughter team from Grayling, Michigan, Tom Trudgeon [trudge-on], 44, and Mandy Trudgeon, 22.  They completed the course in 16:06:03, good for 17^th place overall.  Finishing in 18^th pace overall and the second place Mixed Team were Dwayne Barnes, 41, of Copemish, Michigan and Amy Solak, 38, of Traverse City, Michigan.  The third place Mixed Team finishers and finishing 41^st overall were another father-daughter team, Jon Webb, 43, and Cassie Webb, 16,of Hubbard Lake, Michigan

 

The first place Amateur finishers were the youngest paddlers entered in this year’s Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon, Donald Starks, 17, and Brian Borchers, 16, both of Grayling, Michigan.  They finished 47^th overall with an elapsed time of 18:16:

 

A favorite among Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Marathon fans – Amazing Al Widing, Sr., 78, of Mio, Michigan, and partner Don Brooks, 34, of Midland, Michigan, finished 29^th out of 49 finishers, in 16:40:58.  Widing has competed in the Marathon during six (6) decades, entering and finishing over thirty of these grueling contests during that time span and finishing as high as 2^nd on several occasions.  At the finish of this year’s race, Widing commented that he hopes to compete in two more AuSable Marathons so that can finish the race in the year when he turns 80 years old.

 

Rejean Huard, the Executive Director of Quebecs’ La Classique de Canots, the final jewel of the Triple Crown of Canoe Racing, was making his 5^th attempt to successfully complete the AuSable River Canoe Marathon.  Together with his partner Jason Snell, 32, of Gaylord, Michigan, Huard, 60, of Shawinigan, Quebec, were the last team to successfully complete the race, finishing 49^th with an elapsed time of 18:55:09, just 4:51 before the mandatory 19-hour official end of the AuSable Marathon.

 

Of the 65 teams that started the 56^th Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon, 49 teams completed the race within the qualifying time of 19 hours.  Sixteen teams withdrew from the race due to illness, injury, damage to the canoe or due to missing mandatory cut-offs at timing stations.

 

The Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon, the middle jewel of prestigious Triple Crown of Canoe Racing, is considered to be one of North America’s most extreme endurance events.  The two-person teams must paddle 120 miles and over 50,000 paddle strokes non-stop through darkness, inclement weather, and portage six hydroelectric dams while battling the sheer mental and physical torture of up to 19 hours paddling at 50 to 80 paddle strokes per minute. 

 

Not only are the eight-time champs, Kolka and Corbin, on a roll at the AuSable Marathon, they also won the Triple Crown of Canoe Racing championship in both 2000, 2001 and 2002.  The General Clinton Canoe Regatta, staged Memorial Day on New York’s Susquehanna River is the first jewel of canoe racing’s Triple Crown.  La Classique de Canots, a three-day race on the St. Maurice River, from LaTuque to Trois Riviere in Quebec over Labor Day weekend, is the final jewel of the three-race championship.   Cash and prizes awarded at the three races in the series total over $100,000. 

 

Extensive information including complete race results of and photographs for the Weyerhaeuser AuSable River Canoe Marathon is available on the at:        http://www.AusableCanoeMarathon.org

 

WEYERHAEUSER AUSABLE RIVER CANOE MARATHON
2003 FINISH LIST 7/27/03
Finish Place	Finish Time	Canoe #	Name	Age	City	State/ Province	Comments
1	14:55:03	16	Jeff Kolka	44	Grayling	Michigan	8th Consecutive AuSable Win and
1		16	Serge Corbin	46	St. Boniface	Quebec	1st Place Masters Team
2	14:56:51	1	Andrew Triebold	27	Homer	Michigan
2		1	Steve Lajoie	27	Mirabel	Quebec
3	15:02:45	81	Tony Short	39	Indian River	Michigan
3		81	Denis Berthiaume	38	St. Jerome	Quebec
4	15:13:16	11	Rick Joy	44	Silverwood	Michigan
4		11	Ted Kolka	37	Grayling	Michigan
5	15:16:50	3	Matt Rimer	19	Horton	Michigan
5		3	Mo Harwood	24	Grayling	Michigan
6	15:19:14	2	Jim Harwood	38	Grayling	Michigan
6		2	Matt Streib	39	Bristol	Indiana
7	15:22:22	82	Clark Kent	43	Lapeer	Michigan	2nd place masters team
7		82	Louis Berthiaume	44	Berthierville	Quebec
8	15:42:56	50	Tim Valko	34	Pickney	Michigan
8		50	Erich Podjaske	21	Grayling	Michigan
9	15:43:03	28	Steven Landick	50	Marquette	Michigan
9		28	Armin Lopez	30	San Ignacio	Belize
10	15:50:58	14	Bill Torongo	41	Roscommon	Michigan	3rd place masters team
10		14	Bruce Barton	46	Homer	Michigan
11	15:53:48	74	Tim Sheldon	38	Grayling	Michigan
11		74	David Teddy	29	Littleton	Colorado
12	15:55:50	8	Nick D'Amour	19	Grayling	Michigan
12		8	Matthew Ashton	24	Grayling	Michigan
13	16:00:51	65	Pierre Lapointe	61	Shawinigan	Quebec
13		65	Eric Gagnon	24	Shawinigan	Quebec
14	16:02:16	17	Nicholas Bauer	42	Spokane	Washington
14		17	Brad Bauer	29	Seattle	Washington
15	16:03:32	98	Sean Jennings	35	Stockbridge	Massachusettes
15		98	Joe Shaw	48	Worthington	Massachusettes
16	16:04:02	38	Wade Binion	24	College Station	Texas
16		38	Alex Lisbey		Belmopan	Belize
17	16:06:03	62	Thomas Trudgeon	44	Grayling	Michigan	1st place mixed team
17		62	Mandy Trudgeon	22	Grayling	Michigan
18	16:08:14	80	Dwayne Barnes	41	Copemish	Michigan	2nd place mixed team
18		80	Amy Solak	38	Traverse City	Michigan
19	16:13:02	87	Rodney Halstead	18	Grayling	Michigan
19		87	Ryan Halstead	16	Grayling	Michigan
20	16:17:11	45	Sylvain Greffard	37	LaTuque	Quebec
20		45	Yves Greffard	45	LaTuque	Quebec
21	16:18:52	36	Michael Garon	45	Washington Twp	Michigan
21		36	Doug Gillin	44	Adrian	Michigan
22	16:21:15	90	Robert Smith	29	Roscommon	Michigan
22		90	Doug Moggo	41	Grayling	Michigan
23	16:22:49	22	Pete Mead	22	Grayling	Michigan
23		22	Colin Hunter	22	Grayling	Michigan
24	16:25:46	34	Mike Packard	39	Otego	New York
24		34	Carrie Montgomery	33	Oscoda	Michigan
25	16:28:55	27	Dick Plumlee	50	Lawrence	Kansas
25		27	Dwight Walker	49	Hastings	Michigan
26	16:29:53	64	Blaise St. Pierre	63	Lac St. Charles	Quebec
26		64	Serge Page'	26	Shawinigan	Quebec
27	16:31:51	40	Fred Mills	49	Roscommon	Michigan
27		40	Joseph Seifert	51	Grayling	Michigan
28	16:40:38	69	Matt Smith	26	Roscommon	Michigan
28		69	Robert Stockton II	19	Roscommon	Michigan
29	16:40:58	9	Don Brooks	34	Midland	Michigan
29		9	Al Widing, Sr.	78	Mio	Michigan
30	16:41:27	18	Bruce Byrnes	51	Lapeer	Michigan
30		18	Russ Reker	39	Lapeer	Michigan
31	16:49:12	61	Chuck Hewitt	44	Bay City	Michigan
31		61	Ray Quick	48	Millington	Michigan
32	16:56:03	85	Kevin LeRoy	35	Fitchburg	Wisconsin
32		85	Neil Hanks	44	Mequon	Wisconsin
33	16:56:26	83	Ray Bauer	46	Cincinnati	Ohio
33		83	Tom Ackemyer	38	Cincinnati	Ohio
34	16:56:33	10	Jeff DeFeo	48	Chester	Massachutes
34		10	Karen Levitt	35	Keene	New Hampshire
35	16:59:03	54	Debbie Perry	45	Traverse City	Michigan	1st place womens team
35		54	Lynne Witte	49	Mt. Clemens	Michigan
36	17:14:23	56	Todd VanDeVen	31	Grayling	Michigan
36		56	Chris Kucharek	25	Grayling	Michigan
37	17:22:48	73	Greg Nelson	46	Marquette	Michigan
37		73	Amado Cruz	15	San Ignacio	Belize
38	17:24:09	31	Jim Laurent	34	Grayling	Michigan
38		31	Sean Casey	24	Grayling	Michigan
39	17:26:17	79	Brian Royce	31	Roscommon	Michigan
39		79	John Funderburg		Amherst	Ohio
40	17:29:22	19	Timothy Feldkamp	37	Ann Arbor	Michigan
40		19	Doug Heady	45	Ann Arbor	Michigan
41	17:41:59	57	Jon Webb	43	Hubbard Lake	Michigan	3rd place mixed team
41		57	Cassie Webb	16	Hubbard Lake	Michigan
42	17:48:00	55	Andre Parenteau	60	Asbestos	Quebec
42		55	Luc Parenteau	31	Asbestos	Quebec
43	17:56:44	43	Mike Hartman	27	Roscommon	Michigan
43		43	Ray Trudgeon	21	Grayling	Michigan
44	18:03:43	46	John Lucey	39	Grayling	Michigan	4th place mixed team
44		46	Cheryl Lucey	41	Grayling	Michigan
45	18:06:59	37	Allan DuBois	69	Cottage Grove	Minnesota	5th place mixed team
45		37	Kate Ellis	47	Minneapolis	Minnesota
46	18:07:28	84	Tim Chapple	29	Interlochen	Michigan
46		84	Nate Winkler	31	Interlochen	Michigan
47	18:16:53	131A	Donald Starks	17	Grayling	Michigan	1st place Amateur team
47		131A	Brian Borchers	16	Grayling	Michigan
48	18:54:26	20	Brett Addis	20	Vicksburg	Michigan
48		20	Andrew Addis	22	Ann Arbor	Michigan
49	18:55:09	99	Jason Snell	32	Gaylord	Michigan
49		99	Rejean Huard	61	Shawinigin	Quebec
DNF		6	Dragan Olajdzija	43	Toronto	Ontario	Shoulder Injury - Loud Dam
DNF		6	Doug VanMeter	34	Homer	Michigan
DNF		12	Chad Brandt	29	Hale	Michigan	Fatigue at Cooke Dam
DNF		12	Mike Thomsen	35	Hale	Michigan
DNF		13	Dave Skillman, Jr.	35	Waterford	Michigan	Illness at Parmalee Bridge
DNF		13	Garth Greenan	48	Traverse City	Michigan
DNF		15	Tad Hill	25	Grosse Ile	Michigan	Unknown reason at 4001 Bridge
DNF		15	Bill Schmitz	49	Commerce Twp	Michigan
DNF		26	Brad Taggett	36	Mayville	Wisconsin	Injury - 4001 Bridge
DNF		26	David Timmerman	45	Dubuque	Iowa
DNF		42	Hank Feldhauser	49	Grayling	Michigan	Fatigue at Loud Dam
DNF		42	Jon Thompson	46	Lewiston	Michigan
DNF		48	Mark Church	31	Roscommon	Michigan	DQ - over time limit at Mio Dam
DNF		48	Gabe Williams	28	Roscommon	Michigan
DNF		70	Linda Taber	50	Lowell	Michigan	DQ - over time limit at McMasters Bridge
DNF		70	Frank Taber	53	Lowell	Michigan
DNF		71	Jerry Brown	42	Carrollton	Texas	Fatigue at Loud Dam
DNF		71	Richard Steppe	45	Irving	Texas
DNF		77	Chris Scully	43	Lincoln	Michigan	Fatigue at Five Channels Dam
DNF		77	Rod Matthews	48	Oscoda	Michigan
DNF