2001 Race - May 9, 2001, Wednesday
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!
Teams called in to Safety Officer between 5 and 7 AM
Date: May 9, 2001, Wednesday, Day 5
Webmaster writes: You can see detailed maps of where the teams are from the MN Dept of Natural Resources Maps -
Vermillion River to Palisades Palisades to Brainerd, MN Updates/Comments Received for May 9, 2001, Wednesday AM From Safety Officer Elizabeth Tynan
Between 5 and 7 a.m. (Mississippi River time) on May 9th, the teams made the following reports: Day five of the Great Race, and all is well. :) Here you go: Team Alaska: Kerm reported that his team had spent the night paddling, and that they were about five miles below Jacobson- river mile 1236--as we spoke, at 6:30. They saw Team Amazon camped at Jacobson sleeping, so paddled past very quietly. :) Team Amazons: When Tony called at 7:20, I didn't tell him the Alaskans had sneaked past them in their sleep. (Some things are better left unsaid.:) Anyway, the girls felt great after getting seven hours of sleep, and were just preparing to leave from river mile #1241. Team Double Helix: Tony, also exhausted after being up all night, reported at 6:00 that Clark and Tony were preparing to leave from the Hwy 6 landing--river mile 1033--after eating some breakfast. They had also paddled all night, with Clark getting some sleep under the "bubblewrap." Team Kruger: Stan called in at 6:15 to say that he had just fed Bob and Verlen some breakfast after they paddled all night, taking turns sleeping in the boat. They were just preparing to start the portage at the paper mill dam at Brainerd, river mile 1007. Stan had only an hour-and-a-half of sleep last night, as he was still negotiating with the dam personnel at 1:00 a.m. about how the teams might safely portage. This morning, an alternative route was decided upon. Team Rebels: At 6:20, Eric said that his team was rested and ready to take off from Jacobson, river mile 1241, after spending the night there. The team had a "gorgeous afternoon" of paddling yesterday, with tailwinds and sunshine, especially welcome after three days of miserable weather. END OF SAFETY REPORT Webmasters note - Shortcut taken in Aitken: It was reported to me that Team Kruger took the Aitken Diversion, which is 6 miles in length. To my knowledge (I'm not a judge), this shortcut is allowed under Rule 9 of Rules for the Great Mississippi River Race for Rett Syndrome, May 2001. To explain, you can view this map from the MN Dept of Natural Resources Palisades to Brainerd, MN.. The Mississippi River makes a horseshoe shape above the city. The diversion channel cuts across this horseshoe in an attempt to divert flood waters away from Aitkin. The inlet to the diversion is at River Mile 1064 and it dumps back in at River Mile 1040.5. So....if you paddle the Mississippi River thru the city Aitkin and around the long way....you have to go 23.5 river miles. However, the diversion channel is only 6 miles long (across the horseshoe, see the map). You save 17.5 miles by taking the shortcut. To my knowledge, Team Kruger took this diversion, Team Double Helix did not.
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