Berkeley Paddling and Rowing Club had a very successful showing at the recent Petaluma River Race (September 5, 2021)!

The weather was nearly ideal – cool and hazy at the start turning into a 70’ sunny day by the finish.  There was hardly any breeze (0-3 mph), and the race started at the end of the ebbing tide and finished with the beginning of the incoming tide. Besides twisting and turning, the course presented many obstacles to avoid – mudflats, buoys, barges, safety boats, competitors’ boats…

The awards ceremony followed a potluck lunch in a small grassy park adjacent to the launch area.  A good time was had by all!

There were 167 racers in 69 boats divided into 26 categories.  Times below are adjusted by handicaps based on age and (elapsed time).

Course records were set by BPRC athletes in the following categories:
Half Marathon
1st pl: Brandon Caesar with Bella Schiros set a record of 1:37:36 (1:37:43) in the Open Water 2x.
1st pl: Don Hunt set a record of 1:24:59 (1:41:14) in the Men’s 1x.
1st pl: Samuel Packman set a record of 1:30:21 (1:30:21) in the Men’s 2x.

Full Marathon
*John Dye, set a record of (3:39:20) in the Surfski.
1st pl: Lisa Raffel and Frederika Horton set a record of 2:56:26 (3:03:14) in the Women’s 8+.

Other BPRC racers came in as follows:

Half Marathon
3rd pl: Georgiana Orgrean and Stephen Schaffran, Mixed 2x, 1:35:43 (1:41:47)
1st pl: Jean Hayward and Jane Toro, Women’s 2x, 1:35:59 (1:47:32)
3rd pl: Nobue Nobematsu, Women’s 2x, 1:49:07 (1:53:29)
8th pl: David Williams, 1x, 1:42:15 (2:01:39)
1st pl: Paul MacIntyre, K-1, 2:03:24 (n.a.)

Full Marathon
*Carla Jourdan and Heather Krakora, Women’s 4x, 3:04:26 (3:12:32)
2nd pl: Denise Martini and Rhonda Nelson, Women’s 8+, 3:06:11 (3:16:26)
*unopposed, no medal given

Submitted by Jane Toro