A steady rain didn’t dampen spirits at The Great Pachaug Canoe and Kayak Race, which took place Sunday, Sept. 27, at Hopeville Pond State Park in Griswold , Conn. The weather kept the participation numbers down this year, but the “hard core” racers who came out showed that tough paddlers aren’t stopped by just a little precipitation.

The added twist on this year’s edition of the race was the Le Mans-style on-land start.

C-2 and C-1 racers were penned up in a corral before being released to run down the beach and anxiously put their boats in the water as they roared off into the race. The team of Ken and Ryan Goodwin had the best put-in skills, as they put a healthy lead on the rest of the field and made it to the first turn buoy nearly two boat-lengths ahead of the rest of the field. The on-land start also made it possible to keep “starting-line creep” to a minimum. I've attached a photo of the start. More photos will be posted soon to the race Web site at www.greatpachaug. com.

The fasted tandem canoe team of the day was Tom Ellsworth and Del Cummings, with a time of 1:32:47. The fastest C-1 was Paul Dyka, with a time of 1:40:27. The fastest racing kayak was Ted Van Dusen, with a time of 1:27:02.

Special thanks to the many people who helped make the race a success, including Joan and Ted Kenyon Sr., who assisted with registration and timing, among many other tasks. Also thanks to Del and Vicki Cummings, who helped out with prize procurement. Vicki’s granola bars and zucchini bread were also much appreciated.