STANDUP PADDLING THE WORLD’S LONGEST RIVER RACE

Competitors in Missouri’s MR 340 have a reputation for being a friendly bunch, but not all of them were welcoming when they heard the rumor that a standup paddler was going to attempt the world’s longest nonstop river race this year. Before the October 11 start date, that paddler, Shane Perrin, noticed a particularly disparaging comment on the MR 340 forum: “It’s interesting, to say the least, to see folks attracted to a craft that is less comfortable, less maneuverable and slower on purpose.”

Instead of being deterred by his fellow racers’ skepticism, 35-year-old Perrin used their barbs as fuel, and became determined to make his mark in this grueling endurance event.

Over the past year, SUP athletes have attempted increasingly long and difficult paddles. Perrin finished the inaugural Kawnivore 100 (held on the Kansas River, aka The Kaw) in just 23:58 and last month, Jan Brabant, 62, became the first SUP racer to finish the Adironack Canoe Classic. Further afield, SUP magazine contributor Shelby Stanger and her team just paddled the Peruvian Amazon.

Contrary to expectations, Perrin not only finished the MR 340, but also came 31st out of 116—beating many of the canoeists and kayakers who had doubted his prowess and choice of craft. I caught up with Perrin after the race to ask him about this experience and the growth of SUP river racing in the Midwest.

Click here to read the full Q&A with Shane on the Standup Paddler website

Making Room for Beauty

We spend too much time focusing on the ugly in our culture: political partisanship, the latest celebrity "meltdown,"  and the fall from grace of the next disgraced politician. Most of us are (and I certainly have my moments) are also chronic complainers - about our jobs, our car that's going to cost a grand to fix, and that neighbor that leaves their car parked on the street right in our reversing path.

There's not much room among our cynicism and negativity for God-given beauty, is there?

That's why I love going to the local lake, which some would call a pond, to get out on my stand up paddle board. Mr. Laird Hamilton I am not (more's the pity!), but it's a great total body workout and, more importantly, the lake is a lovely, calm spot with no cars or concrete. I saw a heron in the flesh for the first time this week. Two actually, balanced on long spindly legs, nosing around for fish in the shallow water. I complain vigorously about the lack of natural beauty in Kansas, and yet I'm eight minutes' drive away from the sound of water playfully skipping under my board, a rainbow of wild flowers on the bank, and, of course, my new feathered friends. I should celebrate every opportunity to get out there by myself after work, or with my wife and kids at the weekend. The latter is a particular delight - the boys are unconstrained in their wonder and delight when playing on the tiny beach where we launch the boards.

I am also making an effort to bring more beauty into our home. My good friend Mr. Antony Spencer won the British Landscape Photographer of the Year in 2010, and I'm privileged to have two large prints - one of dawn light streaming through a forest onto bluebells, the other a panorama of a frozen lake in Norway - hanging in my house. I want to see the world through his eyes, to share his appreciation for the natural wonders on each of our doorsteps (a lot of his best shots are taken our home county in Dorset, England), and , most importantly, to celebrate beauty more while putting ugly out of mind.