More than 200 competitors are expected on the Woronora River when round five of the 2016 PaddleNSW Marathon Series gets underway this weekend.
The event, part of a nine-round state championship, is being hosted on Saturday, June 25, by the Sutherland Shire Canoe Club, with the start line under the Woronora Bridge near the clubhouse.
There are four events within the event, with distances of 20k, 15km, 10km and five kilometres all run over a 10km starting at the Bonnet Bay boat ramp and turning just downstream of The Needles, behind Engadine.
Racing starts 10:45am with the first paddlers tackling the 20km. As the races are run on handicap, these are effectively the slower paddlers and they are expected to take around two-and- a-half hours to complete the course.
The main event kicks off with the division one paddlers at 11am. They’re expected to cover the 20km distance in around 90 minutes, depending on tides and conditions, paddling at speeds of 16km/h-plus.
Once the 20km divisions are off, the paddlers contesting the other distances (15km, 10km and five kilometres) will start. These events are for paddlers working up to, or retiring from, the main 20km event.
The first paddlers are finishing the five kilometres by around midday. The balance will have crossed the line by 1:30pm.
The club has hosted marathon events since it was founded 44 years ago – it is older than PaddleNSW, the sport’s governing body in this state, and the Marathon Series.
In 2015, there were 203 boats on the water, which was a record turn out for Woronora and for the Greater Sydney area. Most paddlers are from NSW, anywhere between Canberra and Newcastle, and some travel for four hours to compete.
The ‘locals’ to watch are Darren Lee from Wollongong and Sasa Vujanic and Michael McKeogh from Cronulla Sutherland Kayak Club in Greys Point.
They’re all in division one and very competitive. Lee and Vujanic have represented Australia overseas, as have most of the division one paddlers.
While around 10-12 of the club members will be competing, the rest will be involved in some aspect of the day, manning the BBQ, directing traffic and assisting on the SES safety boats.
“There’s a wonderful diversity in kayak marathon,” says club president Steve Dawson, who will be racing in division two and, he says, hoping for a respectable time after being freshly promoted from division three.
“While there are elite competitors, it is not an elitist sport,” Steve says.
“You only need to look at division 12 where Coralie Burns, our youngest and newest member will be racing over five kilometres against our most experienced and decorated, Bert Laurendet (84).
“And we don’t expect Bert to go down easily!”
Traffic will be heavy, and parking at a premium in the area. If you are going to spectate, be prepared to park some distance from Burnum Burnum Reserve, Woronora, and walk to the riverbank.
The remaining events in this year’s series will be hosted at clubs including Wagga Wagga, Newcastle and Brisbane Waters.