Ear to the ground:

“Who is ‘Chur?’”
– Local child trying to make sense of the ’80s – and celebrities with one name – after seeing Cher on a tabloid cover

As the eddie turns

History has a way of repeating itself, but seeing a longstanding record fall – twice – in three days verges on Powerball odds. Then again, when you consider the re-circing eddie that is the boating world, the fact that two separate parties, unbeknownst to one another, crushed the Grand Canyon speed record within days of each other, maybe it’s not that strange.

The previous record for the 277-mile stretch was set in 1983 by three men in a wooden dory during an epic El Niño runoff, which was detailed in the equally epic book The Emerald Mile.  Strangely enough, that record stood untouched until modern adventurers aided by modern technology (think plastic and carbon boats and paddles, GPS trackers, and dry suits) began making a run for the title.

After a smattering of failed attempts in recent years, four boaters – including Durango brothers and Grand Canyon guides Nate and Matt Klema and fellow paddlers Ben Luck and Ryan Casey – made a run for the title last week. “Team Beer,” as they call themselves, shoved off from Lee’s Ferry at 4:30 a.m. Wed., Jan. 20, in plastic downriver boats. Thirty-five hours (and much chafing and blisters) later, Matt, soon followed by his group, passed under the Grand Wash Cliffs.

News of the run soon hit the blogosphere – but the celebration was short-lived. No sooner had Team Beer’s booties dried (*not from beer, alas – Team Beer reported not a single roll) they got word another paddler from Aurora was en route to Lee’s Ferry to do the same. Ben Orkin, who had nearly missed the record in 2015, was planning to set out on a solo mission in the wee hours of Sat., Jan. 23. Orkin had no idea of Team Beer’s run until he got an 11^th hour put-in text from Luck, according to a story on CanoeKayak.com. “It was incredible of (Luck) to let me know there was a new time to beat,” he told writer Zak  Podmore. “There wouldn’t have been anything worse than finishing in 35 hours and 30 minutes.”

Alas, at 2 a.m., Orkin, in his Epic 18X composite sea kayak, hit the water. crossing the finish line Sunday, 58 minutes ahead of Team Beer. “It’s good for everyone,” Matt Klema told Canoe & Kayak upon hearing the news. “(Orkin) gets the fastest time, and we got to break the (Emerald Mile’s) record.”

Luck concurred. “We knew that somebody was going to be faster eventually, so what’s the difference if our record lasted three decades or three days? We crushed what we went down there to do ... and we did it straight off the couch in true Team Beer style.”

For Orkin’s part, he was reportedly glad to be alive and looking forward to a soak in the hot springs. “I wanted to push myself to my own limits, and I achieved that goal. I’ve never been so sore though,” he told Canoe & Kayak.

Read more about both historic trips at www.canoekayak.com.