Ideal conditions greet paddlers in Fox River canoe race

The Fox River was a paddler's paradise for Sunday's 55th annual Mid-American Canoe & Kayak Race.

All the stars were aligned - the weather was cool, a north tail wind gave the boats a nice little push, there was no rain and even a canopy of clouds shielded paddlers from the sun's harshness, said Jeff Long, public affairs and communications manager for the Fox Valley Park District, which runs the race.

Long, a longtime paddler himself, said 600 boats were registered, but officials hoped that 700 ultimately would hit the water for the race that began by the Prairie Street Bridge in St. Charles and ended at McCullough Park in Aurora.

The field included not only competitive racers, but also families and friends just enjoying a day on the water.

At least one racer was in it for a reason that went beyond mere fun or competition. Paul Arnold of Antioch suffered a major stroke more than two years ago.

"I'm not supposed to be alive," he said. "(But) I'm stubborn."

Arnold entered his craft with the aid of a cane, before shoving off for the Aurora finish line.

Michelle Wilson and Joe Catella of Highland Park paddled together in separate kayaks.

Wilson said she not only enjoys floating on the water for 2½ hours or so but also likes seeing and hearing people along the shore cheering on the paddlers.

Nor did she forget: "There is a beer at the end," referring to the brewery near the finish line.

Tom Cassell of St. Charles and his dad, Martin Cassell, trotted out the Steampunk canoe, replete with prop boilers held together with gorilla tape, decorative gauges and a pilot's steering wheel. Tom wore a colorful hat with green goggles and a pinstriped vest.

Long ago, he said, he and his father decided they couldn't compete with speed, "So we started to get into decorating."

The first to reach the finish line was the 21-foot canoe commanded by Tave Lamperez of St. Charles and Dave Simon of Warrenville. Lamperez said their philosophy is to go hard and fast from start to finish.

So hard and fast that, he said, that he did not even have time to check his speed.

"I had a GPS, but I did not even have a chance to look down," he said.

Long said the Fox Valley Park District has been marketing the experience to families and younger paddlers, starting a rental program in 2009 and adding a second tier, with a 6-mile course starting in Batavia to augment the 10-mile course beginning in St. Charles, Many took the opportunity to rent boats for the event - upward of 300 boats were rented. In fact, he said, there were so many requests that vendors from Wisconsin had to be recruited to fill the demand.