Paddlers in the 2017 Chilkat Challenge Triathlon (Photo courtesy Gene Cornelius)
After a successful first race in 2017, the Chilkat Challenge Triathlon is back this summer. The nearly 40-mile race takes paddlers, bikers and runners down the Chilkat River, through Haines, to Chilkat State Park.
“The race, of course, is all about celebrating the river,” says Gershon Cohen. He’s the project director of Alaska Clean Water Advocacy, the organization hosting the race. “Aside from the fact that it’s going to be fun, it’s a way for us to appreciate as a community what the river provides to this community.”
The race consists of three legs. A paddle, a bike, and a run. At 37 miles, the course is a bit longer than last year.
Cohen says he expects the number of participants to at least double from 2017.
“We’re already about double our registration from last year and we have five weeks to go before the race,” says Cohen.
The course is changing slightly.
“We’ll still start the paddle on the morning of July 1 in Mosquito Lake,” says Cohen. “And this year the paddle will go from Mosquito Lake to Klukwan.”
There are a few more options for paddling this year. Participants can kayak, canoe, or stand up paddleboard.
“We don’t have any takers yet on that,” says Cohen. “I would personally love to see a stand up paddle board go down the Chilkat River.”
In Klukwan, racers will get out of their boats and hop on bicycles.
“At the parade grounds they will get off their bikes and start to run,” says Cohen. “The run is a little longer this year. The run will go all the way to Chilkat State Park.”
Organizers will be borrowing chip readers from June’s Kluane Chilkat International Bike Relay, to make transitions between race legs smoother.
Registration closes on June 15. Participants can sign up in teams, or do the whole thing alone.
Race day is July 1, during Haines’ July 4 festivities.
More information and registration is available here.
