Guinness Time Obstacles - 2001 Race
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001
We are Going the Extra Mile..... The Extra 2,348 Miles to Find a Cure!
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001
We are Going the Extra Mile..... The Extra 2,348 Miles to Find a Cure!
Written by Mary Potter, After the Race...
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 was designed by Clark Eid (Chairman and primary organizer) and Mary Potter (webmaster and event organizer) as an international charity event to raise awareness for their daughter, Amanda, who suffers from Rett Sydnrome. This idea began to be crafted from their kitchen table in 1999 after their family visited the headwaters with Tony Swenson earlier in that year. Two years and 5 teams later, the race began. This race was designed to be the world's longest unstaged canoe/kayak race in the world. It began at the headwaters on May 5, 2001 at 6 AM and ended at to Mile Marker 0 ( the finish line ) or May 31, 2001 at midnight.
We wanted to affiliated Rett Syndrome, a rare and almost unknown disease, to a large iconic American national treasure - and we did!
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001, was sanctioned by the USCA and ACA. All teams paid $2500 per team to Rett Syndrome Research Foundation, and all official team members paid a small required insurance fee due to sanctioning. All teams had to sign waivers and health forms prior to the race and agree to follow all Rules and the Safety program during the race. The judges and safety officer were selected and accepted by the USCA and ACA for sanctioning. An official time keeper was selected to be at the start and end of the race to log start/stop times for all teams. Official positions were not interchangeable nor changeable once the race started. The Rules and Safety Program could not be modified once the race started, for any reason. In any catastrophic situation we would have simply stopped the race rather to modify anything on the fly. Safety first was our priority above all else. The Guinness record attempt was solely the idea and responsibility of individual teams and not part of our race.
Two teams, Double Helix and Kruger, attempted to set a new Guinness World record for fastest time down the entire Mississippi River during this event. Their attempt to achieve this was their own choice, and not part of the official race. Those 2 teams were responsible for working out regulations/proof with Guinness on their own.
During the race these 2 teams were also forced to stop temporarily for 4 reasons. Three of the reason included Lock and Dam closures, River Closures and the Sheriff Department. One included a Safety Ruling by our Safety Officer during the race.
Having said all of that... I have looked over race safety calls and several logs to come up with a list of times that paddlers were temporarily forced off the river.... these numbers and dates and times are calculated to the best of my ability .... if you know better numbers, by all means, send me the data...
1. Team Kruger and Team Double Helix were stopped at Mile 860 on 5/10/01 because Lock and Dam 1 was closed. It opened earlier than expected the following day to let the teams through the following day. The portage around was quite difficult, teams decided to wait for the Lock and Dam to reopen. Their choice.
Please see the May 10 2001 report for more information. Teams are considered tied when stopped at Mile 860.
Arrival:
Team Double Helix arrived: Team Kruger's log indicates Team Double Helix arrived 2 hours 30 minutes after Team Kruger, so approx 6:10 PM, Stan Hanson clocked Team Double Helix arriving at or as late as 6:30 according to Stan Hanson's official time, so I'll assume 6:20 PM.
Team Kruger arrived: 3:40 PM May 10, 2001 (from the Safety Officer's note)
Teams left: 12 noon, May 11, 2001 (source Double Helix log says noon, Bob's/Kruger Log indicates 20 hours later from when they initially stopped..)
Stopped Time:
Team Double Helix: 22 hours, 40 minutes
Team Kruger: 20 hours, 20 minutes
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001, when they left together at noon on May 11, 2001.
2. Team Kruger and Team Double Helix were stopped at Lock and Dam 11 because the river was closed to all traffic. Team Double Helix arrived first and Team Kruger arrives about an hour later. Regardless of final time to lock through and arrive at the lower part of Lock and Dam 11, the teams were tied at this point and remained tied while they traveled together to St. Louis, Missouri. Teams were kept off the water first by the Coast Guard. Once the coast guard gave permission "only" if all teams in the race traveled together, Team Kruger and Team Double Helix had to wait until we could contact Team Alaska (about 12 hours later). Once Team Alaska said "go ahead without us" it was past 7 PM. At that point our Safety Officer, Elizabeth Tynan, stopped both teams until the following morning for safety reasons.
See May 14 and May 15 reports for arrival/travel at Lock and Dam 11.
Team Arrival:
Team Double Helix arrived: Sometime before 4 AM (near to 4 AM) May 14, 2001 and stopped because they knew the river was closed, and slept until about 7 or 7:30 AM. They started calling about the stopped river at 4:45 AM according to one log. They were officially told at 7:45 AM, but had been up for some time.
Team Kruger arrived: Around 5 AM, May 14, 2001, but had planned to stop until about 7:30 AM, some time in between they realized the river was closed.
Coast Guard conditions were met by approximately 7:30 PM May 14, 2001
I'm going to approximate that the STOP time started around 7:30 AM since both teams were sleeping until then - it is clear that Team Double Helix knew the pool below Lock and Dam 11 was closed by 4:45 AM, or at least had started calling Kent about it at that point, but it's not clear that they didn't plan on stopping at that point regardless to rest/sleep for a few hours.
Stopped Time Both Teams: 12 hours.
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 at their departure time.
3. At approximately 7:30 PM, May 14, 2001, after Team Alaska indicated that Team Kruger and Double Helix should proceed with out them, Our Safety Officer, Elizabeth Tynan, decided both teams would have to wait until 7 AM EST to get back on the water (following morning).
Time Arrived/Stopped: Started at 7:30 PM May 14, 2001
Team Departure: both teams 6:10 AM CST May 15, 2001but could have left at 6 AM
Stopped Time Both Teams - 10 hours, 30 minutes
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 at their departure time.
4. Team Double Helix and Team Kruger were stopped also by the Sheriff's Department during the next evening, May 15, 2001. The Sheriff did not know both teams had permission to travel on the closed section of the Mississippi River by order of the Coast Guard and teams had to wait on shore until 8:15 AM the following day until the Coast Guard could be contacted. See May 15 and May 16 report.
Team Arrival, both teams: Double Helix Log indicates it was soon after 10:30 PM, Safety log indicates it was near midnight. I"ll assume 11 PM.
Team Departure, both teams: 8:15 AM May 16, 2001
Stopped Time Both Teams: 9 hours 15 minutes
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 at their departure time.
Guinness Discussion:
1989 Record:
Bill Perdzock and Mike Schnitska 23 Days, 9 Hours, and 51 Minutes
Team Kruger Final Time: 24 days, 17 hours, 51 minutes
Team Kruger forced "off water" time: 2 days, 4 hours, 5 minutes
Off water time subtracted from Final: 22 days, 13 hours, 46 minutes ( a little less than a day ahead of the 1989 Guinness Record)
(Stop 1 - 20 hours, 20 minutes Stop 2 - 12 hours Stop 3 - 10 hours 30 minutes Stop 4 - 9 hours 15 minutes)
Team Double Helix Final Time: 26 days, 6 hours, 40 minutes
Team Double Helix forced "off water" time: 2 days 6 hours 35 minutes
Off water time subtracted from Final: 24 days, 0 hours, 5 minutes (behind the 1989 Guinness record)
(Stop 1 - 22 hours, 50 minutes Stop 2 - 12 hours Stop 3 - 10 hours 30 minutes Stop 4 - 9 hours 15 minutes)
What does all this mean?
Team Double Helix, even with the stopped times subtracted, could not have beaten the Guinness record of 1989. Team Double Helix did set a record for fastest time in a kayak down the Mississippi River - all other attempts have been in a canoe.
Team Kruger's number indicate if they had not been forced to stop AND did not gain any rest/supplies by the forced stops, they may have beaten or come close to beating the 1989 Guinness record. However, we all know math doesn't tell the whole story.
During the forced stops, paddlers and road crew slept, recovered from injuries, got chores done, and most importantly rested. If they hadn't stopped 1 minute on their own during those times they were forced off (unlikely), the paddlers and road crew would have been more exhausted and would not have recovered as much during those forced off times. Verlen was having significant stomach pains throughout the race and had needed to stop many other times during the race. During one of the forced stops his family took him to a hotel. If you read through the subsequent logs from Team Kruger each day after the final forced time off by the Sheriff, it's clear the paddlers were pulling off to rest and sleep multiple times on their own. Verlen was hospitalized at the end of the race for dehydration. Team Kruger's log indicates that closed section was dangerous, and by the time Team Kruger was near Lock and Dam 12 they were paddling parallel to the levy to keep from going over to the point of being out of breath. If that had been night (dark) when they faced that challenge I'm not sure what would have happened (our Safety Officer would not allow teams to go back on the water until the morning after being stopped on a closed part of the river by the Coast Guard for 12 hours during the day) . Additionally, because the timing of when Team Kruger would have been on the river had changed, we don't know if this team would have hit additional obstacles or more favored conditions if these forced stops had not occurred.
What I do know is this -
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001, gave substantial credibility and legitimacy to all teams that they would not have had if they'd been on the river alone, and allowed them many perks, press, free food, a safe 2nd team to travel with at times. All team members had the chance to be a part of something far greater than a Guinness record (although that would have been nice). It is unlikely that a single team alone, simply running for the Guinness record would have been able to negotiate closed river sections at all as well, but we will never know.
Later, Team Kruger and Team Double Helix joined teams to form Team Hope during the Mississippi Challenge for Rett Syndrome and Leukodystrophy, 2003 and destroyed the prior 1989 and 1984 records by over 5 days. Read more....
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 was designed by Clark Eid (Chairman and primary organizer) and Mary Potter (webmaster and event organizer) as an international charity event to raise awareness for their daughter, Amanda, who suffers from Rett Sydnrome. This idea began to be crafted from their kitchen table in 1999 after their family visited the headwaters with Tony Swenson earlier in that year. Two years and 5 teams later, the race began. This race was designed to be the world's longest unstaged canoe/kayak race in the world. It began at the headwaters on May 5, 2001 at 6 AM and ended at to Mile Marker 0 ( the finish line ) or May 31, 2001 at midnight.
We wanted to affiliated Rett Syndrome, a rare and almost unknown disease, to a large iconic American national treasure - and we did!
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001, was sanctioned by the USCA and ACA. All teams paid $2500 per team to Rett Syndrome Research Foundation, and all official team members paid a small required insurance fee due to sanctioning. All teams had to sign waivers and health forms prior to the race and agree to follow all Rules and the Safety program during the race. The judges and safety officer were selected and accepted by the USCA and ACA for sanctioning. An official time keeper was selected to be at the start and end of the race to log start/stop times for all teams. Official positions were not interchangeable nor changeable once the race started. The Rules and Safety Program could not be modified once the race started, for any reason. In any catastrophic situation we would have simply stopped the race rather to modify anything on the fly. Safety first was our priority above all else. The Guinness record attempt was solely the idea and responsibility of individual teams and not part of our race.
Two teams, Double Helix and Kruger, attempted to set a new Guinness World record for fastest time down the entire Mississippi River during this event. Their attempt to achieve this was their own choice, and not part of the official race. Those 2 teams were responsible for working out regulations/proof with Guinness on their own.
During the race these 2 teams were also forced to stop temporarily for 4 reasons. Three of the reason included Lock and Dam closures, River Closures and the Sheriff Department. One included a Safety Ruling by our Safety Officer during the race.
Having said all of that... I have looked over race safety calls and several logs to come up with a list of times that paddlers were temporarily forced off the river.... these numbers and dates and times are calculated to the best of my ability .... if you know better numbers, by all means, send me the data...
1. Team Kruger and Team Double Helix were stopped at Mile 860 on 5/10/01 because Lock and Dam 1 was closed. It opened earlier than expected the following day to let the teams through the following day. The portage around was quite difficult, teams decided to wait for the Lock and Dam to reopen. Their choice.
Please see the May 10 2001 report for more information. Teams are considered tied when stopped at Mile 860.
Arrival:
Team Double Helix arrived: Team Kruger's log indicates Team Double Helix arrived 2 hours 30 minutes after Team Kruger, so approx 6:10 PM, Stan Hanson clocked Team Double Helix arriving at or as late as 6:30 according to Stan Hanson's official time, so I'll assume 6:20 PM.
Team Kruger arrived: 3:40 PM May 10, 2001 (from the Safety Officer's note)
Teams left: 12 noon, May 11, 2001 (source Double Helix log says noon, Bob's/Kruger Log indicates 20 hours later from when they initially stopped..)
Stopped Time:
Team Double Helix: 22 hours, 40 minutes
Team Kruger: 20 hours, 20 minutes
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001, when they left together at noon on May 11, 2001.
2. Team Kruger and Team Double Helix were stopped at Lock and Dam 11 because the river was closed to all traffic. Team Double Helix arrived first and Team Kruger arrives about an hour later. Regardless of final time to lock through and arrive at the lower part of Lock and Dam 11, the teams were tied at this point and remained tied while they traveled together to St. Louis, Missouri. Teams were kept off the water first by the Coast Guard. Once the coast guard gave permission "only" if all teams in the race traveled together, Team Kruger and Team Double Helix had to wait until we could contact Team Alaska (about 12 hours later). Once Team Alaska said "go ahead without us" it was past 7 PM. At that point our Safety Officer, Elizabeth Tynan, stopped both teams until the following morning for safety reasons.
See May 14 and May 15 reports for arrival/travel at Lock and Dam 11.
Team Arrival:
Team Double Helix arrived: Sometime before 4 AM (near to 4 AM) May 14, 2001 and stopped because they knew the river was closed, and slept until about 7 or 7:30 AM. They started calling about the stopped river at 4:45 AM according to one log. They were officially told at 7:45 AM, but had been up for some time.
Team Kruger arrived: Around 5 AM, May 14, 2001, but had planned to stop until about 7:30 AM, some time in between they realized the river was closed.
Coast Guard conditions were met by approximately 7:30 PM May 14, 2001
I'm going to approximate that the STOP time started around 7:30 AM since both teams were sleeping until then - it is clear that Team Double Helix knew the pool below Lock and Dam 11 was closed by 4:45 AM, or at least had started calling Kent about it at that point, but it's not clear that they didn't plan on stopping at that point regardless to rest/sleep for a few hours.
Stopped Time Both Teams: 12 hours.
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 at their departure time.
3. At approximately 7:30 PM, May 14, 2001, after Team Alaska indicated that Team Kruger and Double Helix should proceed with out them, Our Safety Officer, Elizabeth Tynan, decided both teams would have to wait until 7 AM EST to get back on the water (following morning).
Time Arrived/Stopped: Started at 7:30 PM May 14, 2001
Team Departure: both teams 6:10 AM CST May 15, 2001but could have left at 6 AM
Stopped Time Both Teams - 10 hours, 30 minutes
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 at their departure time.
4. Team Double Helix and Team Kruger were stopped also by the Sheriff's Department during the next evening, May 15, 2001. The Sheriff did not know both teams had permission to travel on the closed section of the Mississippi River by order of the Coast Guard and teams had to wait on shore until 8:15 AM the following day until the Coast Guard could be contacted. See May 15 and May 16 report.
Team Arrival, both teams: Double Helix Log indicates it was soon after 10:30 PM, Safety log indicates it was near midnight. I"ll assume 11 PM.
Team Departure, both teams: 8:15 AM May 16, 2001
Stopped Time Both Teams: 9 hours 15 minutes
Teams are tied for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001 at their departure time.
Guinness Discussion:
1989 Record:
Bill Perdzock and Mike Schnitska 23 Days, 9 Hours, and 51 Minutes
Team Kruger Final Time: 24 days, 17 hours, 51 minutes
Team Kruger forced "off water" time: 2 days, 4 hours, 5 minutes
Off water time subtracted from Final: 22 days, 13 hours, 46 minutes ( a little less than a day ahead of the 1989 Guinness Record)
(Stop 1 - 20 hours, 20 minutes Stop 2 - 12 hours Stop 3 - 10 hours 30 minutes Stop 4 - 9 hours 15 minutes)
Team Double Helix Final Time: 26 days, 6 hours, 40 minutes
Team Double Helix forced "off water" time: 2 days 6 hours 35 minutes
Off water time subtracted from Final: 24 days, 0 hours, 5 minutes (behind the 1989 Guinness record)
(Stop 1 - 22 hours, 50 minutes Stop 2 - 12 hours Stop 3 - 10 hours 30 minutes Stop 4 - 9 hours 15 minutes)
What does all this mean?
Team Double Helix, even with the stopped times subtracted, could not have beaten the Guinness record of 1989. Team Double Helix did set a record for fastest time in a kayak down the Mississippi River - all other attempts have been in a canoe.
Team Kruger's number indicate if they had not been forced to stop AND did not gain any rest/supplies by the forced stops, they may have beaten or come close to beating the 1989 Guinness record. However, we all know math doesn't tell the whole story.
During the forced stops, paddlers and road crew slept, recovered from injuries, got chores done, and most importantly rested. If they hadn't stopped 1 minute on their own during those times they were forced off (unlikely), the paddlers and road crew would have been more exhausted and would not have recovered as much during those forced off times. Verlen was having significant stomach pains throughout the race and had needed to stop many other times during the race. During one of the forced stops his family took him to a hotel. If you read through the subsequent logs from Team Kruger each day after the final forced time off by the Sheriff, it's clear the paddlers were pulling off to rest and sleep multiple times on their own. Verlen was hospitalized at the end of the race for dehydration. Team Kruger's log indicates that closed section was dangerous, and by the time Team Kruger was near Lock and Dam 12 they were paddling parallel to the levy to keep from going over to the point of being out of breath. If that had been night (dark) when they faced that challenge I'm not sure what would have happened (our Safety Officer would not allow teams to go back on the water until the morning after being stopped on a closed part of the river by the Coast Guard for 12 hours during the day) . Additionally, because the timing of when Team Kruger would have been on the river had changed, we don't know if this team would have hit additional obstacles or more favored conditions if these forced stops had not occurred.
What I do know is this -
The Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001, gave substantial credibility and legitimacy to all teams that they would not have had if they'd been on the river alone, and allowed them many perks, press, free food, a safe 2nd team to travel with at times. All team members had the chance to be a part of something far greater than a Guinness record (although that would have been nice). It is unlikely that a single team alone, simply running for the Guinness record would have been able to negotiate closed river sections at all as well, but we will never know.
Later, Team Kruger and Team Double Helix joined teams to form Team Hope during the Mississippi Challenge for Rett Syndrome and Leukodystrophy, 2003 and destroyed the prior 1989 and 1984 records by over 5 days. Read more....