New Zealand kayakers team up to win Yukon 1,000
New Zealand paddlers Ian Huntsman and Wendy Riach earned victory in the Yukon 1,000 Saturday, completing the world鈥檚 longest paddling race in just over six days.
New Zealand paddlers Ian Huntsman and Wendy Riach earned victory in the Yukon 1,000 Saturday, completing the world鈥檚 longest paddling race in just over six days.
The duo鈥檚 official time of six days, plus three hours, 47 minutes and 11 seconds was more than an hour and a half off the race record, said organizer Peter Coates.
鈥淭he times in the River Quest this year show how slow the river actually is,鈥濃�坔e explained.
鈥淭hey were very powerful paddlers to get through in that time.鈥�
This year鈥檚 race marked the third Yukon 1,000 in history. Held every other year, the 1,600-kilometre marathon sees competitors travel the Yukon River from Whitehorse to the Dalton Highway Bridge, located northwest of Fairbanks.
A tandem canoe team from鈥團inland 鈥� Jaakko Soivio and Heikki Hihnala 鈥� finished second, slightly more than two hours behind the Kiwis, setting a new race record for their class.
In total, nine teams finished the race with only one team withdrawing. No Yukoners competed.
A pair of American stand-up paddleboarders were the last to reach the finish line.
Ben Friberg and Kimberley Sutton travelled the river together, finishing in nine days, plus 12:27:14.
The two were the first to complete the race on a paddleboard.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a very lonely race once you鈥檙e out on the river,鈥� said Coates. 鈥淭here was really no serious drama out there, other than the north wind on the lake.鈥�
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