Planning continues for canoe race May 16

A sample of the Canoe Race t-shirt logo, courtesy of Steelegrafix, Manchester.

submitted by Sybil Kolon for the canoe race committee

We have an update on the 55th Annual Manchester River Raisin Canoe/Kayak Race. Our committee is working diligently to get most of our outreach live this week. The registration site is almost ready; more information will be found at the end of the article.

The street banners have gone up on the Main Street Bridge. Other smaller banners will go up around town in the coming week. Stein Electric has kindly agreed to put up our large banner across West Main, near the Gazebo, within about a week, due to their already-busy schedule.

As usual, the community is stepping up to help. We will be promoting our sponsors leading up to and at the race, and on the back of our race t-shirt, which was again designed by Joy Matthews. T-shirts will again be $15. When registration is opened, you will be able to order your t-shirt online, even if you don’t enter the race.

Don’t forget, the single canoe class will return, and we have added a double kayak class, as we know they are in a class of their own! We need to have enough interest to continue these classes in future years. The sprint race in the Mill Pond after the other races will also return. Let your friends know.

We will be using the same protocols developed last year, to comply with CDC, state, and local guidelines. Launch times will again be scheduled with drive-through final check-in. This was instrumental in limiting unnecessary interactions near the starting area at Fellows Bridge last year.

To ensure your spot, we encourage everyone to register online by May 10. Participation is being limited to a total of 100 canoes and kayaks. We will use the RevTrack program made available through Manchester Community Schools for online registration. This is a secure method of online payment, and a big improvement over last year. We will post the live link to the registration on our Facebook page this week, and it will also be sent to everyone we have an email for from the last three years. The link can be accessed here. Paper registration forms will also be available around town this week.

We are looking forward to the 55th consecutive race, one of the great traditions of the Manchester community.

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.