Green River Narrows Race –

A Veteran Racer’s Perspective on the First Time Racing the Green

Every year in early November, the infamous Green River Narrows Race (aka The Greatest Show in All of Sports) takes place, challenging the skills of the many paddlers that compete. The Green is a fantastic Class 5 run in itself and presents one of the (if not THE) most challenging race courses currently being used. I first ran the Green back in the late 90’s and have been talking about competing in the race ever since then. Every year, I tell myself that this will be the year that I go down and race but, every year, I find some excuse not to go. Being a teacher, the school year is hitting a busy time in November and that has deterred me in the past. However, this year, I decided that I was going to stop talking about it and actually go down and race. It has been a dry fall in the Mid-Atlantic and I had hung up the kayak in favor of my mountain bike for the majority of September and October. However, two weeks before the race, I dusted off my paddling gear and did a few attainments to re-acclimate my muscles for kayaking.

I woke up at 3:30 a.m. on Friday morning and loaded my car for the trip. Chris Kyle and Abed Borsa met me at my house and we got on the road around 4:30. We drove straight to the Green and arrived in early afternoon with plenty of time for a practice run. It had been 2 years since I had run the Green so I wanted to refresh my memory of the course. We made a leisurely run from Frankenstein to the bottom of Rapid Transit, testing out different routes with varied results. I wanted to try to fix a couple lines that needed some altering so we carried up to the top of Boof or Consequences to make another run of the lower part of the course. I had some good lines, a few sloppy lines, and learned a great deal about what to do better the next day in the actual race.

After a leisurely morning hanging out with other racers, I made my way to the start line. My start time was 2:31 so I was one of the last competitors to go. Finally, I was in the eddy and the time keepers were counting down. I took off downstream, wanting to make sure to start off well in Frankenstein. I zipped through the channel and nailed the boof. That allowed my confidence to rise as I knew I had easy water for the next bit. The problem was that I hadn’t totally familiarized myself with this section and I got hung up a little in some of the shallower parts.

Soon, Boof or Consequences came into view. I ducked right and shot cleanly through the faster sneak channel. I zipped through and headed quickly through some fast water to line up for Go Left. My practice runs here had been sloppy so I drove a little harder across toward the slot. I lined up well and shot through cleanly but got pushed right in the pool below. I had to cut back left for the next rapid and then lined up for Zwick’s Backender.

I jumped the hole at the top of Zwick’s and tried to head straight down the shallow slide but misjudged where to enter it. I ended up drying out on the rocks and losing some time before dropping into the left channel. I charged into Chief, determined to run angled right and not get pushed into the left bank. As I drug my right blade, I got knocked off balance and flipped. I rolled quickly but knew that I was going to have to fight off the left bank to get back in the flow.

As I headed downstream toward the crux of the run, Gorilla, I could hear the horns and cowbells and see the massive crowd staring down on me with their carnage-hungry eyes. I boofed over a kicker on the left and headed for the Notch. A sloppy run through here the day before made me overzealous and I shot across the channel, almost to the right bank. I had to turn and head back left before going off the launch pad and falling 15 feet, landing cleanly on the slide below. I hit the Speed Trap and got flipped. I rolled quickly but got shoved into the eddy, costing me more time.

Once out into the current again, I rode the next several slides well, as they transitioned into each other. Finally, the tree at the top of Rapid Transit came into sight. I ducked it on the right and headed quickly down the cascade. I charged across the pool and reached the finish line, elated to have completed the race! I must say that the Green is by far the most challenging race course I’ve run and it was awesome to be a part of it. My race time was 5 minutes and 39 seconds, good for 37^th place in the men’s short boat category. Although I wasn’t near the top, I was happy with my race and have learned a lot of valuable lessons to apply for next year. Here are my recommendations for anyone thinking about competing in next year’s race for the first time.

• Know the exit tendencies of the major rapids! The Green is challenging enough in itself and, while I am familiar with the lines through the rapids, I was not familiar with the exit currents in the rapids. Many of the rapids will want to push you to one side or the other on exit and this can cost you large chunks of time either by forcing you to take a slower line or ferry back to a faster line. Plan to exit the rapids heading in the direction that will line you up for the next line. Some rapids that gave me trouble in this regard were Go Left, Chief, and Nieces Pieces.

• Don’t take the boogie water for granted! The boogie water between Frankenstein and Boof Or Consequences can be tricky to keep speed through and not having intimate knowledge of this area can really hurt your race time. Knowing where all the little hang-up rocks are, as well as the fast chutes, can save valuable chunks of time come race day.

• Practice the entire course several times at race pace! You can’t get an idea for the actual degree of challenge until you actually go out and run the river full tilt. The guys and girls who continually finish near the top are experienced with running the river fast.

• Kayak a lot! There is no substitute for good conditioning. If you are serious about racing the Green, I would recommend paddling as much as you can the month before, specifically focusing on going fast or attaining to build stamina and muscle.

• Harden the F up! This is ALWAYS Rule 5! Anyone contemplating this race should meditate on this rule!

I will leave you with one of my favorite quotes, never more appropriate than in this context. “Training is like fighting with a gorilla. You don’t stop when you get tired. You stop when the gorilla gets tired!” Until next year’s race, train hard and be safe!