Friday evening check-in for the TWS is an event in itself. With everything from 30+ft five- and six-paddler Kevlar missiles completely customized to minimize effort and movement to aluminum canoes with gear tired to the gunnels, it's all on display.
The veteran teams, some with dozens of races completed, are efficiently rigging up. The novices are still trying to figure out where to put everything, much less if they brought everything.
One very cool aspect of the TWS is how helpful most of the experienced paddlers are, as if they remember their first time vividly. There's far more concern for overall safety and success than sneering or ribbing the new guys.
And the officials are real serious about gear check. Nobody leaves without required safety equipment.
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| We have checklists for the checklists. |
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| Our official, Holly, has ten races experience and was offering insight to the end. |
Ours is one of three teams being sponsored and filmed as a promotion for Yeti coolers, so there were interviews for the stars, some swag, and Go Pro cameras to rig. Anxious to see how the final product looks. They'll follow a fast team and then come back upriver for us, so I'll have some company at the checkpoints.
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| Sealed and secured for the night. |
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| Spring Lake, where it will all begin. Mile 0.0 |
Little bit of shopping and some carb loading last night, final route research, some restless sleep, and the fun is about to begin...
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