GRAND ISLAND RACE HISTORY
The Grand Island Canoe Race was the longest running Race in the state. Below is a brief history of the Grand Island Race.
This is normally the first race of each season. It is always a good test to see how well your "winter-conditioning" (or lack-of) will pay off. The weather conditions and water levels always add to the challenge. Through the years the Grand Island Race has been held on different sections of the Platte River and has even included some lake paddling and portaging.
The Grand Island Race was started by George Hassel and Wayne Bockmann in 1974. There were 48 canoes entered and something seldom seen at most MCA races -- hundreds of spectators. The race was well advertised and many people had never seen a canoe race and came to watch out of curiosity.
The race has gone through may changes since then. In the mid 70's canoe racing was a family oriented sport and bent paddles and kevlar were just appearing on the scene. There were many different racing divisions - mens, mixed, women's, juniors and also a lot of recreational paddlers in the aluminum divisions.
In fact, in 1980, we had over 20 canoes in the Men's aluminum class. Through the 80's the racing division grew and became more competitive, while the recreational divisions began to get smaller and were eliminated because of uncertainty in water levels.
In 1981 a new class was added, C-1. This class continued to grow each year (along with the number of serious racers). It peaked in '85 and '86 with 10 C-1s entered each year. The race in 1985 was one of the most competitive races ever. The top five finishers in C-1 were all within one minute and there were 11 C-2 cruisers with only five seconds separating 1st and 2nd place.
In the late 80's the race course was changed to a looped course starting at Mormon Island and has stayed close to the same course ever since. In 1992 a Pro C-1 race was held with laps on the lake and a portage to the river. In 1997 the Pro C-1 was started up again and a C-1 prize money payout has continued every year since. The 25th annual race, in 1998 , drew top racers from 6 different states. The 1999 race had the largest C-1 turnout ever with 13 C-1 canoes from 7 different states. The race continued to draw out of state paddlers thru the 2000s keeping it a competitive and challenging race.
The Grand Island race was held for 50 years and was the longest running and last active MCA race.
GRAND ISLAND RACE HISTORY
The Grand Island Canoe Race was the longest running Race in the state. Below is a brief history of the Grand Island Race.
This is normally the first race of each season. It is always a good test to see how well your "winter-conditioning" (or lack-of) will pay off. The weather conditions and water levels always add to the challenge. Through the years the Grand Island Race has been held on different sections of the Platte River and has even included some lake paddling and portaging.
The Grand Island Race was started by George Hassel and Wayne Bockmann in 1974. There were 48 canoes entered and something seldom seen at most MCA races -- hundreds of spectators. The race was well advertised and many people had never seen a canoe race and came to watch out of curiosity.
The race has gone through may changes since then. In the mid 70's canoe racing was a family oriented sport and bent paddles and kevlar were just appearing on the scene. There were many different racing divisions - mens, mixed, women's, juniors and also a lot of recreational paddlers in the aluminum divisions.
In fact, in 1980, we had over 20 canoes in the Men's aluminum class. Through the 80's the racing division grew and became more competitive, while the recreational divisions began to get smaller and were eliminated because of uncertainty in water levels.
In 1981 a new class was added, C-1. This class continued to grow each year (along with the number of serious racers). It peaked in '85 and '86 with 10 C-1s entered each year. The race in 1985 was one of the most competitive races ever. The top five finishers in C-1 were all within one minute and there were 11 C-2 cruisers with only five seconds separating 1st and 2nd place.
In the late 80's the race course was changed to a looped course starting at Mormon Island and has stayed close to the same course ever since. In 1992 a Pro C-1 race was held with laps on the lake and a portage to the river. In 1997 the Pro C-1 was started up again and a C-1 prize money payout has continued every year since. The 25th annual race, in 1998 , drew top racers from 6 different states. The 1999 race had the largest C-1 turnout ever with 13 C-1 canoes from 7 different states. The race continued to draw out of state paddlers thru the 2000s keeping it a competitive and challenging race.
The Grand Island race was held for 50 years and was the longest running and last active MCA race.
Here are a few old articles/results GI 74 and 77 GI 83 GI 85