Onancock Challenge Kayak Race Sept. 10 2011

SouthEast Expeditions’ 14th Annual Onancock Kayak/Canoe Challenge has some new divisions and pre-race clinics to give you a competitive edge. The race is Saturday, Sept. 10, 2011, at 9 a.m. during Onancock’s Harborfest, a festive weekend of food, music and water fun on the Eastern Shore of Virginia.

The weekend starts on Friday with two pre-race clinics led by Chuck Conley, instructor and winner of last year’s race. The morning session, 8 a.m. to noon, features racing strategy and boat control. The Forward Stroke Clinic (with video critique) will be from 1-5 p.m. Cost for each session is $55 with your own kayak (add $20 to rent one), or both sessions for $95 (add $30 to rent a kayak)

Afterwards, relax during Onancock’s Second Friday Art Stroll, 5-8 p.m. and the kick-off of Harborfest with live music on the wharf at 7:30 p.m.

The 9 a.m. race on Saturday has 5 & 10 KM courses on beautiful Onancock Creek. There will be new divisions this year for Kids 8 years and up and Stand-Up Paddlboards. It is a great event for paddlers who are serious about enjoying their time on the water as well as those who want to test their skills against the best racers in the region, including the legendary Olympic Champion Frank Havens, fastest octogenarian on the water!

Pre-registration is $15; $20 the day of the race and includes a T-shirt. Some rental kayaks will be available by reservation. Download the registration form for both the race and the clinics, print and mail in to save time on race morning.

For more information, call SouthEast Expeditions at Onancock Wharf: 757-354-4FUN, email mary@southeastexpeditions.com., and sign up for updates on Facebook.

How old is too old to kayak? Never!

SouthEast Guide Bill just took out our most senior customers ever! Bernei Burgunder, 89, and his wife, Amelie, a sprite 82. They came to Onancock, VA from Bethesda, Md. for the Kick-off of the Birding & Wildlife Festival and signed up for one of Bill's bird-watching tours on Onancock Creek.

Results of the Onancock Challenge Kayak Canoe Race

Held at Harborfest in Onancock on Sept. 12, participants ranged in age from 7 to 85! The race, sponsored by SouthEast Expeditions, featured a 5K and 10K course on Onancock Creek.

This photo shows the start of race and coincidentally, the winners of both the 5K (Will Cumming, left), and the 10K (Frank, age 85, and Dan Havens in the canoe).

Race Results:

5KM

First Place: Frank & Dan Havens

Second Place: Jack Chandler

Third Place: Susan & Charlotte Olmsted

10 KM

First Place: Will Cumming

Second Place Scott Williams

Third Place: Nancy & Craig Vogt

Winner of the Kayak Raffle was Craig Vogt. Kayak donated by SouthEast Expeditions

Steph Ramsay of Onancock designed a really cool race T-shirt for this year, and there are plenty left! Visit SouthEast Expeditions' Sunset Beach location (just north of the Chespeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel Tollbooth) or call 757-331-2680.

Thanks to all the contestants, volunteers and the US Coast Guard Auxiliary for being on the water!

Octogenarian kayakers!

We may have had SouthEast's most senior customers ever this weekend on the Onancock Creek Tour! Connie & Bud Bernton, 82 & 83, came down from Bethesda, MD to celebrate their 59th wedding anniversary in Onancock. They'd never been kayaking before, and they loved it!

Onancock Kayak Tours begin for the season!

SouthEast's guides on the "upper shore", Bill and Mary Burnham, are offering something new this year:

An Onancock Historic Creek Tour at 10 a.m. every Saturday! Of course, folks can still book a trip for any time that suites their schedule from SE's growing itinerary of cool paddling places like Saxis, with a visit to a soft-shell crab shed, the Great Machipongo River from Quinby, the seaside barrier islands, the Eastern Shore Wildlife Refuge, and SouthEast's signature Kayak Winery Tour!

Call (757) 331-2680 to book a trip.

See you on the water!