St. George race features swift water, blue skies

. SEARSMONT – These are the times for opening days in Maine’s great outdoors.

The state’s open-water fishing season began Sunday – at least where there was open water – one day after the region’s competivive canoe and kayak racing schedule opened in Midcoast Maine, where 83 canoes and kayaks raced the 6 miles from Searsmont to Appleton in the 28th annual St. George River Race on Saturday.

“It was a pretty easy level,” said 19-year-old Nick Lunt of Tenants Harbor, who navigated the St. George with next-door neighbor Quincy Berglund, placing seventh overall and fourth in the OC2RM (rec medium) class with a time of 44 minutes, 12 seconds. “It was the first time with a new partner, but it was a pretty easy, clean run.”

The near-perfect day – sunny, air temperature near 40 and a swift water level – were in stark contrast to a year ago, when dry weather forced cancellation of both the St. George and the following weekend’s Passagassawakeag Stream Race in Waldo.

“The water conditions were average, I guess; pretty good today,” said octogenarian solo kayaker Earl Baldwin Jr. of Orrington.

Not that the water level negated all the hidden challenges along the course.

“Some of the rocks stay the same place all the time,” said Baldwin, who finished the race in 52:50, “but sometimes they’re buried, sometimes they’re on top, and sometimes they’re just underneath.

“I went right over the top of one boulder and fell down the other side. I was OK, though, but I scratched up my new paint job.”

Seventy-nine watercraft finished the event, with veteran solo kayaker Fred Ludwig of Houlton posting the fastest time of the day, 38:23.

The fastest canoe was Dan Wagner of Belfast and Matt Dingle of Carmel with a time of 41:23 in the OC2RM class, followed by Jeff Owen and Cam Rose of Orono (42:47) in the OC2 Jr./Sr. Rec class, Bob Martin of Dedham and Richie Bartlett of Newburgh (43:34) in the OC2 short class, and Dale and Aaron Cross of Morrill (43:49) in the OC2RM division.

Winners were crowned in 19 divisions overall, and Chip Loring of Old Town was presented with the Warren Greeley Award, an annual tribute to the “racer whose joy is not just tied to the place of finish, but comes from a love of paddling and a camaraderie shared with fellow paddlers.”

That spirit of camaraderie was shared by virtually all who competed in the St. George race, the shortest event on the early-season schedule but long enough to test the conditioning of those who plan to follow up this event with the longer events scheduled throughout April.

Next Saturday’s Passagassawakeag race covers approximately 8 miles, as do back-to-back races April 14 and 15 on the Souadabscook Stream in Hampden and Marsh Stream in Frankfort that lead up to the 16.5-mile Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race on April 21.

“This was just right today,” said Baldwin. “You come out of the woods not in very good shape, and you have this race and the Passy and the [Souadabscook] and Marsh Stream to get you going.”

And while last year’s dry start left the region’s white-water paddlers playing catchup for the rest of the spring, Saturday’s race left competitors looking ahead to some fast rides in the future – particularly if the April showers cooperate this year.

“It bodes well for a good season,” said Dale Cross, the St. George race director.