Daily Updates and Pictures Tuesday, May 20, 2003 - Day 11 Starts at 6 AM
Mississippi River Challenge for Rett Syndrome and Leukodystrophy, 2003
Guinness Record Setting Event for 2 different rare diseases!
Bob Bradford and Clark Eid - Paddler Log Tuesday, May 20th, 2003
(BB) It was very dark above Hannibal and Clark was sleeping. Around river mile 314 a very strong tail wind came up out of nowhere. I was in the middle of the river following the main channel when my rudder control cable snapped. I had to wake Clark up so he could help me turn the canoe. It was bad enough that we chose to go to river right and pull up long enough to see what had happened to my foot control. The stainless steel cable had frayed and broke in two. Clark would have to stay up and help me get to the next feed point and get it repaired. When we pulled back into the river we decided to stay close to shore because of the wind. After about a half mile, we found a couple of trees that had snapped off and were in the river so we decided to move out from shore just far enough to keep from getting hit by falling limbs. The shore was lined with willow trees and they don't stand up well in high winds.
(CE) I could just hear Bob calling for me above the wind and rain. He said that something was wrong with his rudder controls. I was still in my paddle jacket so I sat up and started paddling. I didn't have time to pull off the sleeping bag but was still able to push against the rudder pegs to regain control of the canoe. The rudder control was stiff, but workable. We started to hug the right bank until we noticed some trees had been blown over into the river. The wind and rain continued from the rear, and soon we saw the rear of a southbound tug in front of us. It was the Star Fire and it was stopped along the right bank. We flew by it in the howling rain and tried to call it on the radio, but the radio stopped working. We continued on, hoping that the captain would stay put. I noticed on the GPS map that we were along a section called Monkey Run…how appropriate!
(BB) After passing Hannibal and making the slight turn to the southeast, we had a wind on our left side. Then it began raining pretty hard as well. By the Continental Cement light at river mile 305.7, we padded by a tug on our right called "The Star Fire". The tug was nosed into the right shore. He wasn't loading or unloading but just waiting out the storm there.
(BB) It was very dark above Hannibal and Clark was sleeping. Around river mile 314 a very strong tail wind came up out of nowhere. I was in the middle of the river following the main channel when my rudder control cable snapped. I had to wake Clark up so he could help me turn the canoe. It was bad enough that we chose to go to river right and pull up long enough to see what had happened to my foot control. The stainless steel cable had frayed and broke in two. Clark would have to stay up and help me get to the next feed point and get it repaired. When we pulled back into the river we decided to stay close to shore because of the wind. After about a half mile, we found a couple of trees that had snapped off and were in the river so we decided to move out from shore just far enough to keep from getting hit by falling limbs. The shore was lined with willow trees and they don't stand up well in high winds.
(CE) I could just hear Bob calling for me above the wind and rain. He said that something was wrong with his rudder controls. I was still in my paddle jacket so I sat up and started paddling. I didn't have time to pull off the sleeping bag but was still able to push against the rudder pegs to regain control of the canoe. The rudder control was stiff, but workable. We started to hug the right bank until we noticed some trees had been blown over into the river. The wind and rain continued from the rear, and soon we saw the rear of a southbound tug in front of us. It was the Star Fire and it was stopped along the right bank. We flew by it in the howling rain and tried to call it on the radio, but the radio stopped working. We continued on, hoping that the captain would stay put. I noticed on the GPS map that we were along a section called Monkey Run…how appropriate!
(BB) After passing Hannibal and making the slight turn to the southeast, we had a wind on our left side. Then it began raining pretty hard as well. By the Continental Cement light at river mile 305.7, we padded by a tug on our right called "The Star Fire". The tug was nosed into the right shore. He wasn't loading or unloading but just waiting out the storm there.
(BB) When we were a mile or two out from L&D #22, I tried to call the Lockmaster on our marine band radio only to find that the radio's batteries were dead. When we arrived at the wall along the lock, I pulled on the signal rope but I don't think it was even hooked up. Finally, a dock hand noticed us along the wall and asked if we wanted to lock through. It was starting to break dawn and it was still windy and raining.
(CE) I had a hard time keeping the canoe still while Bob pulled uselessly on the signal rope. We were lucky a dock hand noticed us and let us through. Soon we arrived at the boat launch below, and found our crew asleep. They were sure surprised to see us. The weather was poor, and both of us were really tired, so we elected to grab a couple hours of sleep. It was a good call.
(BB) Our road crew was just below the lock on river right at the boat launch. They were still sleeping when we arrived. They had their marine radio on but of course they never heard us call because ours was not working. Clark and I decided to crawl into the van and trailer to catch a couple hours of sleep ourselves. This would give Bill, our mechanic, time to repair the rudder cable and give us time to dry out. We were both tired and Clark had been woke up during his time to sleep so that he could steer.
(BB) We left L&D #22 after about three hours. It was light and it had stopped raining and the cable was repaired. We had eaten and were ready to go. At Cotton Wood Island light, mile 290.0, we overtook "The Star Fire". We stayed ahead through L&D # 24 (there is not L&D #23 on the Mississippi River.)
(BB) At L&D #24, we pulled into river right at Clarksville boat ramp. The people of Clarksville Boat Club wanted us to come in and eat at their club. It was just after 11 am. Julia and Alex O'Blein gave us hats from their boat club. According to my schedule, we were 20 hours behind although we were still very much ahead of the world record.
(BB) At 4:00 pm, we came to L&D #25. The Lockmaster knew that we would be coming because our road crew had talked to him. The Lockmaster said that the lock was backed up with a northbound tug but we could shoot through the third opening in the dam. He said it was about a 6 inch drop and that we should be fine. When we went through we found some turbulence and our speed got up to 10 mph. After we went through we had a bit of a problem getting to the right side of the river to meet our road crew. We had to pass below the northbound tug that had his engines revved up a little and then we had to paddle up into a bayou.
CE) L&D #25 was backed up with traffic, so the Lockmaster said we could go over the dam. “Over the dam.” That was a surprise to hear him say that! This area had been affected by localized flooding so the drop was only a few inches. I took some picture of us going under the "Danger" signs in front of the dam. Soon we were through, but now had to dig hard to get back to the river right. Worse yet was that we had to pass the rear wake of a northbound tug in order to access the little bayou where our road crew was waiting.
(BB) Our road crew was just below the lock on river right at the boat launch. They were still sleeping when we arrived. They had their marine radio on but of course they never heard us call because ours was not working. Clark and I decided to crawl into the van and trailer to catch a couple hours of sleep ourselves. This would give Bill, our mechanic, time to repair the rudder cable and give us time to dry out. We were both tired and Clark had been woke up during his time to sleep so that he could steer.
(BB) We left L&D #22 after about three hours. It was light and it had stopped raining and the cable was repaired. We had eaten and were ready to go. At Cotton Wood Island light, mile 290.0, we overtook "The Star Fire". We stayed ahead through L&D # 24 (there is not L&D #23 on the Mississippi River.)
(BB) At L&D #24, we pulled into river right at Clarksville boat ramp. The people of Clarksville Boat Club wanted us to come in and eat at their club. It was just after 11 am. Julia and Alex O'Blein gave us hats from their boat club. According to my schedule, we were 20 hours behind although we were still very much ahead of the world record.
(BB) At 4:00 pm, we came to L&D #25. The Lockmaster knew that we would be coming because our road crew had talked to him. The Lockmaster said that the lock was backed up with a northbound tug but we could shoot through the third opening in the dam. He said it was about a 6 inch drop and that we should be fine. When we went through we found some turbulence and our speed got up to 10 mph. After we went through we had a bit of a problem getting to the right side of the river to meet our road crew. We had to pass below the northbound tug that had his engines revved up a little and then we had to paddle up into a bayou.
CE) L&D #25 was backed up with traffic, so the Lockmaster said we could go over the dam. “Over the dam.” That was a surprise to hear him say that! This area had been affected by localized flooding so the drop was only a few inches. I took some picture of us going under the "Danger" signs in front of the dam. Soon we were through, but now had to dig hard to get back to the river right. Worse yet was that we had to pass the rear wake of a northbound tug in order to access the little bayou where our road crew was waiting.
(CE) Somewhere after this pit stop, I was paddling alone in the dark, and someone on a bridge put a blinding spotlight on us. I called on the radio but just listened to static. The light went out and there was no further problem.
(BB) At dark, we stopped at Afton marine Boat Ramp on river left under the bridge just above Mel Price lock. This was our first meeting with the crew members Jon Young and Dana Hanson. They had both been on my 2001 road crew and it was great to have them join us. Under the bridge, we met "Riverman" Charles Smith. He had been fishing under the bridge before we came. He had given our crew $3 to benefit our cause. Our crew gave him hot dogs that they had left over. Charles said he had been working on the river and bridges for most of his life.
(CE) We spotted the laser signal light just below the bridge, and talked with Andrew on the radio. He said that we had to go back upstream to reach the boat ramp. We passed a little marina and found the ramp. I didn't recognize Dana until we were back at the trailer. There was pizza and hot dogs waiting for us, and I dug into the salty potato chips as well. We departed with the Stan's video camera on the stern, and the mini-CD recorder turned on.
END OF PADDLER LOG BY BOB BRADFORD AND CLARK EID, MAY 20 2003
(BB) At dark, we stopped at Afton marine Boat Ramp on river left under the bridge just above Mel Price lock. This was our first meeting with the crew members Jon Young and Dana Hanson. They had both been on my 2001 road crew and it was great to have them join us. Under the bridge, we met "Riverman" Charles Smith. He had been fishing under the bridge before we came. He had given our crew $3 to benefit our cause. Our crew gave him hot dogs that they had left over. Charles said he had been working on the river and bridges for most of his life.
(CE) We spotted the laser signal light just below the bridge, and talked with Andrew on the radio. He said that we had to go back upstream to reach the boat ramp. We passed a little marina and found the ramp. I didn't recognize Dana until we were back at the trailer. There was pizza and hot dogs waiting for us, and I dug into the salty potato chips as well. We departed with the Stan's video camera on the stern, and the mini-CD recorder turned on.
END OF PADDLER LOG BY BOB BRADFORD AND CLARK EID, MAY 20 2003
Approximate Location - Green Circles
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Text Updates from our Race Web Log During the race, May 20 2003
posted by Desiree at 7:02 AM My day started out just great yesterday thanks to a phone call from Stan. Made me want to quit work and join the road crew. Sounds like spirits are great for everyone. Ya'll are my inspiration these days. We have a good group of New Orleanians who are faithfully watching your journey and admire your stamina and courage. Go Team Hope! Today I sent the first of 5 billboard size tarps to a high school for the kids to paint. Expect some really nice signs out there once you hit Baton Rouge along the river. I also met 2 more Rett families over the phone yesterday. Really nice people who will be happy to join the fun once you come this way. Bob and Clark , keep up the great work! Desiree __________________________________________________ Mary, I talked to my dad this morning. The wind kicked up pretty hard last night. They pulled out at around one this morning and decided to take an on-shore rest. They were getting ready to head out again around 7:30am. They are all doing good I think. Talk to you soon, Angie Phelps posted by Mary at 8:42 AM __________________________________________________ posted by Mary at 8:42 AM Stan just called. They are below Hannibal - "below lock & dam 24" I think he meant L&D 22, which is just south of Hannibal. That's all I got before the sat phone disconneced us. I'll let you know next time I hear, too. Once the sat phone disconnects, you usually have to wait for several minutes for the sat to reposition itself so you can properly send & receive calls. If L&D 22 is all the farther they are, considering they were at Quincy last night at 9;45, they had to have stopped. Probably for storms & sleep! Mary Potter ___________________________________________________ |
posted by Angie at 8:45 AM
I talked to Dad (Bob) this morning. He says the wind was gusting pretty hard last night. Clark was trying to get a few winks in but had to get back up and paddle. The bow rudder cable wasn't in commission so they had to paddle extra hard to get out of middle river. They switched the rudder to the stern cable and then continued to their meeting point on land. They decided it would be wise to rest on shore untiol the gale winds died down. They were getting ready to re-launch their boat at seven-ish this morning. I don't know how, but he makes it sound like they are having fun. It seems that they are even crazier than I first thought.
Angie Phelps
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Posted for Dana Hanson:
Stan just "completed" his phone call. As Angie mentioned below, they stopped at 1am last night because of high winds. Although the winds were at their backs, it was extremely cold. They'd had enough and wanted in the trailer for a short while. In addition, a cable on the canoe had snapped. It was expertly fixed by Bill Pullen and Bob. Got a good 4 hours sleep before they hit the water at 7:30am.
The crew is now passing thru Louisiana (Missouri, that is), and on their way to Clarksville (where the last train was going to). [I know, I know ... humor was never my forte.] Their next meeting stop will be Lock & Dam 24, which is 27 river miles away. Once they get to L&D 24, St. Louis will be only 93 river miles downstream.
posted by Mary at 9:13 AM
ST LOUIS WATCHERS -- this means that the current best-guess as to when they will arrive at the Arch is somewhere between 10am and 2pm on Wednesday. By the end of today, we hopefully can narrow down that window a bit. I hope we have a good turnout to greet them!
Mary Potter
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Forwarded to the race log by Mary Potter, from Lock and Dam Master 24:
Good luck in the remaining journey, with clear sky yet brisk winds they (Bob and Clark) safely went through Lock 24 today at 11:05. They said they are still ahead of time. The river is up and the current is on the move yet luckily we do not have much floating drift in our area. Tow traffic was light this morning as they were able to paddle right in and with only a 6 inch drop in the chamber, it was only minutes when they departed the lower end. The land crew called by radio that they were waiting below the Lock to meet them.
I hope the rest of your trip goes as well. I sent these pictures to the remaining Lock's below me to give the Lockmaster's a heads up so they will be looking for them.
Christopher J. Morgan
Lockmaster
Lock & Dam 24
posted by Mary at 12:43 PM
_______________________________________________
posted by Mary at 12:45 PM
I heard Clark on the recorder when I came home today - he called sometime around 11:30 AM CST, said they were through Lock and Dam 24 and that went well. He said last night they were kicked by a storm and the cable broke. He said he slept 5 hours while it was being fixed. He said they have very strong winds today, and are lucky the winds are from the back, but it is making for rough paddling.
Mary Potter
I talked to Dad (Bob) this morning. He says the wind was gusting pretty hard last night. Clark was trying to get a few winks in but had to get back up and paddle. The bow rudder cable wasn't in commission so they had to paddle extra hard to get out of middle river. They switched the rudder to the stern cable and then continued to their meeting point on land. They decided it would be wise to rest on shore untiol the gale winds died down. They were getting ready to re-launch their boat at seven-ish this morning. I don't know how, but he makes it sound like they are having fun. It seems that they are even crazier than I first thought.
Angie Phelps
________________________________________________
Posted for Dana Hanson:
Stan just "completed" his phone call. As Angie mentioned below, they stopped at 1am last night because of high winds. Although the winds were at their backs, it was extremely cold. They'd had enough and wanted in the trailer for a short while. In addition, a cable on the canoe had snapped. It was expertly fixed by Bill Pullen and Bob. Got a good 4 hours sleep before they hit the water at 7:30am.
The crew is now passing thru Louisiana (Missouri, that is), and on their way to Clarksville (where the last train was going to). [I know, I know ... humor was never my forte.] Their next meeting stop will be Lock & Dam 24, which is 27 river miles away. Once they get to L&D 24, St. Louis will be only 93 river miles downstream.
posted by Mary at 9:13 AM
ST LOUIS WATCHERS -- this means that the current best-guess as to when they will arrive at the Arch is somewhere between 10am and 2pm on Wednesday. By the end of today, we hopefully can narrow down that window a bit. I hope we have a good turnout to greet them!
Mary Potter
__________________________________________________
Forwarded to the race log by Mary Potter, from Lock and Dam Master 24:
Good luck in the remaining journey, with clear sky yet brisk winds they (Bob and Clark) safely went through Lock 24 today at 11:05. They said they are still ahead of time. The river is up and the current is on the move yet luckily we do not have much floating drift in our area. Tow traffic was light this morning as they were able to paddle right in and with only a 6 inch drop in the chamber, it was only minutes when they departed the lower end. The land crew called by radio that they were waiting below the Lock to meet them.
I hope the rest of your trip goes as well. I sent these pictures to the remaining Lock's below me to give the Lockmaster's a heads up so they will be looking for them.
Christopher J. Morgan
Lockmaster
Lock & Dam 24
posted by Mary at 12:43 PM
_______________________________________________
posted by Mary at 12:45 PM
I heard Clark on the recorder when I came home today - he called sometime around 11:30 AM CST, said they were through Lock and Dam 24 and that went well. He said last night they were kicked by a storm and the cable broke. He said he slept 5 hours while it was being fixed. He said they have very strong winds today, and are lucky the winds are from the back, but it is making for rough paddling.
Mary Potter
posted by Mary at 1:02 PM
When I checked the Where Are They Now? page is see that Bob and Clark were 190 miles ahead of the 1984 record, even with their 5 hour stop last night! I suspect they will make very good time with the strong wind today.... Hope everyone sees them in St. Louis but sounds like that may be some time during the night hours.... we shall see.....
Mary Potter
__________________________________________________
posted by Jean Pullen at 2:03 PM
I decided on my lunch hour today that I would walk information about the race to a couple of news stations here in downtown St. Louis and put information physically into a person's hand. So I printed material from the Website, highlighted the Website name, and walked the material to NBC (KSDK Channel 5) and CBS (KMOV Channel 4).
I took the material into Channel 5, explained everything to the Security Guard, and he said he would walk the information up to the newsroom for me. He put a yellow sticky on it explaining that this event would be taking place tomorrow morning. He seemed very nice and accommodating, and I believe that he will take the info up to the newsroom. Where it goes from there - we'll see.
On an even MORE exciting trip to Channel 4......I was explaining everything to the Security Guard at Channel 4, and when I finished with my explanations of the race, I asked him if there was someone I could give these documents to (hoping - but knowing full well - I'd never get past the guard). All of a sudden, a man walked up to me and said "I'll take that." He ended up being the News Producer for Channel 4! So I tried to quickly explain everything to him. He told me that he would put the information I gave him into tomorrow's file! He asked if I had a cell phone # they could call - he explained that they get so many requests like this and then people don't show up when they say they will. I told him I would get the cell phone number for him and call him back (the phone numbers were back at my desk). He gave me his card and number to call to leave info on the cell phone #. So you guys may get a phone call tomorrow morning from Channel 4! Better yet, here's his name if you want to call him too in case you're ahead of schedule: Steve Perron, News Producer (314) 444-6372 (6333). I found this very exciting and encouraging!! GO TEAM HOPE!!!
Jean Pullen
__________________________________________________
posted by Tammy at 4:01 PM
Wow, these guys just amaze me every day. Even with a 5 hour stop they are still hours ahead of the record........way to go Team Hope!
about a week before the race started I sent out close to 50 letters to our family and friends asking for a donation to RSRF (Rett Syndrome Research Foundation) in honor of Rachel for the Mississippi Challenge, well today I received an email and so far we have raised $1655.00 from those donations. There are more coming in and I am still selling t-shirts also!
- Tammy Hanson
__________________________________________________
posted by Mary at 5:50 PM
Heard from Clark about 5 PM CST. They just finished coming through Lock and Dam 25. They went right over the spillway, with permission of course. He said they did this "last time" he went down the Mississippi River too..... He said today the wind was freaky - when they paddled in a certain direction, the wind stayed at their back, and when they had to turn (as the river turns quickly at times) the wind would die down. He said they made great progress today. When I check our Where Are They Now page it seems they are 220 miles ahead of the 1984 record. He is expecting to be in St. Louis between 10 AM and 2 PM tomorrow. I wonder if Dana and Jean will be meeting the guys and gals for lunch? Clark sounded great, no injuries, no problems reported at this time. Team is holding together well.... Good luck everyone! Mary Potter
__________________________________________________
posted by Mary for Dana Hanson at 6:46 PM
Well, after I just emailed Dana Hanson (road crew captain Stan Hanson's wife) that Clark said they'd be at the St. Louis arch tomorrow between 10 AM and 2 PM she wrote me this note basically saying NOT!
_____________________________________________
Dana Hanson writes:
That's what Clark thinks! Was talking with Stan when your email came in. He said they are absolutely FLYING! Bob and Clark are between L&D24 (river mile 273) and 25 (RM 241). They went thru L&D 24 about 4pm. But instead of locking thru, they shot over the dam! Saved time again.
L&D27 (a/k/a Mel Price L&D) is at River Mile 199. Stan thinks that at this rate, they'll be at L&D 27 between midnight and 1am. L&D 27 is only 19 river miles from the Arch, so that means they'd be arriving at the St. Louis Arch somewhere between 2:30am and 4am.
Their next scheduled meet-and-feed spot is at L&D 27. Stan is supposed to call me & Jon Young (who just arrived 10 minutes ago) when they're at 27. Then Jon & I will get ready & get over to the St. Louis Arch. But before then, we'll have to email or call (might be better--could do in the car) all the TV stations who I emailed earlier today.
_________________________________________________
posted by Tony Swenson at 9:28 PM
Great paddling Bob and Clark! You guys are doing great, you're flying!
How's the road crew doing without the help of Angie, David, Jessie and Jacob? I know how much help they were for the first week and I'm sure they are all missed greatly.
To the current road crew - Keep up the great work! Without your help and support of Bob and Clark they would not be able to be pushing themselves to the finish line!
Miss everyone, wish I could be with you all!
Tony
__________________________________________________
Mary,
Love the picture of Bob and Clark you've added to the Heading of the Home page. You're doing a great job on the web site!
-Tony
posted by Tony at 10:02 PM
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posted by Angie at 10:45 PM
I just read that Jon is in St.Louis. He was on team Krugers pit crew in 2001 and it will be great to have him with us again. Last time we both had to be home before the finish so it will be awesome to be there this time. I have called Mom about five times today. I hope she has many minutes with her cell phone plan. She laughs at me every time she answers the phone. I think they are making bets on when I will call next. She patiently listens to a few questions and then says: " Here, I'll let you talk to Andrew." Mom handles the food and drinks for the guys. She helps Cap'n Stan cook and clean and makes sure that all of the drink bottles, boost, and protein bars are in the boat. When I ask questions, they are about river miles and distances to the next stop. Andrew is great, he answers all of my questions very patiently. He'll probably beat me with a stick when I get back there but for now, at least I know what I want to know.
Angie Phelps
End of Text Updates from our Race Web Log During the race, May 20 2003
When I checked the Where Are They Now? page is see that Bob and Clark were 190 miles ahead of the 1984 record, even with their 5 hour stop last night! I suspect they will make very good time with the strong wind today.... Hope everyone sees them in St. Louis but sounds like that may be some time during the night hours.... we shall see.....
Mary Potter
__________________________________________________
posted by Jean Pullen at 2:03 PM
I decided on my lunch hour today that I would walk information about the race to a couple of news stations here in downtown St. Louis and put information physically into a person's hand. So I printed material from the Website, highlighted the Website name, and walked the material to NBC (KSDK Channel 5) and CBS (KMOV Channel 4).
I took the material into Channel 5, explained everything to the Security Guard, and he said he would walk the information up to the newsroom for me. He put a yellow sticky on it explaining that this event would be taking place tomorrow morning. He seemed very nice and accommodating, and I believe that he will take the info up to the newsroom. Where it goes from there - we'll see.
On an even MORE exciting trip to Channel 4......I was explaining everything to the Security Guard at Channel 4, and when I finished with my explanations of the race, I asked him if there was someone I could give these documents to (hoping - but knowing full well - I'd never get past the guard). All of a sudden, a man walked up to me and said "I'll take that." He ended up being the News Producer for Channel 4! So I tried to quickly explain everything to him. He told me that he would put the information I gave him into tomorrow's file! He asked if I had a cell phone # they could call - he explained that they get so many requests like this and then people don't show up when they say they will. I told him I would get the cell phone number for him and call him back (the phone numbers were back at my desk). He gave me his card and number to call to leave info on the cell phone #. So you guys may get a phone call tomorrow morning from Channel 4! Better yet, here's his name if you want to call him too in case you're ahead of schedule: Steve Perron, News Producer (314) 444-6372 (6333). I found this very exciting and encouraging!! GO TEAM HOPE!!!
Jean Pullen
__________________________________________________
posted by Tammy at 4:01 PM
Wow, these guys just amaze me every day. Even with a 5 hour stop they are still hours ahead of the record........way to go Team Hope!
about a week before the race started I sent out close to 50 letters to our family and friends asking for a donation to RSRF (Rett Syndrome Research Foundation) in honor of Rachel for the Mississippi Challenge, well today I received an email and so far we have raised $1655.00 from those donations. There are more coming in and I am still selling t-shirts also!
- Tammy Hanson
__________________________________________________
posted by Mary at 5:50 PM
Heard from Clark about 5 PM CST. They just finished coming through Lock and Dam 25. They went right over the spillway, with permission of course. He said they did this "last time" he went down the Mississippi River too..... He said today the wind was freaky - when they paddled in a certain direction, the wind stayed at their back, and when they had to turn (as the river turns quickly at times) the wind would die down. He said they made great progress today. When I check our Where Are They Now page it seems they are 220 miles ahead of the 1984 record. He is expecting to be in St. Louis between 10 AM and 2 PM tomorrow. I wonder if Dana and Jean will be meeting the guys and gals for lunch? Clark sounded great, no injuries, no problems reported at this time. Team is holding together well.... Good luck everyone! Mary Potter
__________________________________________________
posted by Mary for Dana Hanson at 6:46 PM
Well, after I just emailed Dana Hanson (road crew captain Stan Hanson's wife) that Clark said they'd be at the St. Louis arch tomorrow between 10 AM and 2 PM she wrote me this note basically saying NOT!
_____________________________________________
Dana Hanson writes:
That's what Clark thinks! Was talking with Stan when your email came in. He said they are absolutely FLYING! Bob and Clark are between L&D24 (river mile 273) and 25 (RM 241). They went thru L&D 24 about 4pm. But instead of locking thru, they shot over the dam! Saved time again.
L&D27 (a/k/a Mel Price L&D) is at River Mile 199. Stan thinks that at this rate, they'll be at L&D 27 between midnight and 1am. L&D 27 is only 19 river miles from the Arch, so that means they'd be arriving at the St. Louis Arch somewhere between 2:30am and 4am.
Their next scheduled meet-and-feed spot is at L&D 27. Stan is supposed to call me & Jon Young (who just arrived 10 minutes ago) when they're at 27. Then Jon & I will get ready & get over to the St. Louis Arch. But before then, we'll have to email or call (might be better--could do in the car) all the TV stations who I emailed earlier today.
_________________________________________________
posted by Tony Swenson at 9:28 PM
Great paddling Bob and Clark! You guys are doing great, you're flying!
How's the road crew doing without the help of Angie, David, Jessie and Jacob? I know how much help they were for the first week and I'm sure they are all missed greatly.
To the current road crew - Keep up the great work! Without your help and support of Bob and Clark they would not be able to be pushing themselves to the finish line!
Miss everyone, wish I could be with you all!
Tony
__________________________________________________
Mary,
Love the picture of Bob and Clark you've added to the Heading of the Home page. You're doing a great job on the web site!
-Tony
posted by Tony at 10:02 PM
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posted by Angie at 10:45 PM
I just read that Jon is in St.Louis. He was on team Krugers pit crew in 2001 and it will be great to have him with us again. Last time we both had to be home before the finish so it will be awesome to be there this time. I have called Mom about five times today. I hope she has many minutes with her cell phone plan. She laughs at me every time she answers the phone. I think they are making bets on when I will call next. She patiently listens to a few questions and then says: " Here, I'll let you talk to Andrew." Mom handles the food and drinks for the guys. She helps Cap'n Stan cook and clean and makes sure that all of the drink bottles, boost, and protein bars are in the boat. When I ask questions, they are about river miles and distances to the next stop. Andrew is great, he answers all of my questions very patiently. He'll probably beat me with a stick when I get back there but for now, at least I know what I want to know.
Angie Phelps
End of Text Updates from our Race Web Log During the race, May 20 2003