| October
25, 2005
YUKON RIVER QUEST 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Registration opens for 2005 Yukon River
Quest
WHITEHORSE, YUKON – Registrations
are now being accepted for the 2005 Yukon
River Quest, the longest annual canoe
and kayak race in the world. The 2005
race dates are June 29 to July 3. The
740-kilometer (460-mile) paddling marathon
is held on the Yukon River from Whitehorse
to Dawson City in Canada's Yukon Territory.
Entry forms and other information for
the seventh annual event can be found
on the race web site, www.yukonriverquest.com.
Deadline for entries is May 26, 2005.
A record 51 teams started the 2004 race,
which saw teams from Australia, Austria,
Canada, England, Germany, Scotland, and
the USA. Thirty-five teams finished the
event. Water level was high during an
unusually hot summer, contributing to
six category records being broken. The
course record of 44 hours, nine minutes,
was missed by just 18 minutes by the winning
team of Steve Landick and Bruce Barton
of Michigan.
The race is open to recreational tandem
canoes, tandem and solo sea kayaks, and
voyageur canoes that may carry six to
14 paddlers. Boat specifications are listed
in the race rules on the website.
Entry fees are $600 (Cdn.) for tandem
canoes and kayaks, $300 for solo kayaks,
and $200 per person for voyageur teams.
The race is now accepting Visa credit
cards for entry fees to make it easier
for teams outside Canada to register.
A limit of 70 teams has been set.
Total race purse is $15,500 Cdn. Cash
prizes are awarded for the top 10 overall
teams, as well as in several bonus categories.
The first place team will receive $3,000
plus entry in the 2006 race to defend
their title.
After
a LeMans-style start in downtown Whitehorse,
teams race round-the-clock under the midnight
sun, stopping for just two mandatory rests
at Carmacks (7 hours) and Kirkman Creek
(3 hours). It is a grueling wilderness
adventure race that tests the stamina
of both professional and recreational
paddlers from around the globe. The prize,
for many, is just finishing the event
in world famous Dawson City, site of the
Klondike Gold Rush of 1897-98.
The race is organized by the Yukon River
Marathon Paddling Association, based in
Whitehorse. For more information, visit
the race website.
MEDIA
CONTACTS:
Yukon/Canada - Peter Coates, YRMPA president,
petercoates@sun.com
Alaska/U.S. - Jeff Brady, YRMPA vice president.,
dotjeff@aptalaska.net
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