River racers take welcome break at JC landing

340 miles in 88 hours

Kelly Kasten helps get Team Third Wheel back on the water and ready to continue the MR340 race Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2014, at Noren's river access in north Jefferson City. The team, from left, Dwayne VanHoose, Scott Reeves and Rob Smith, still had 140 miles to go to finish the 340 mile race.
Kelly Kasten helps get Team Third Wheel back on the water and ready to continue the MR340 race Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2014, at Noren's river access in north Jefferson City. The team, from left, Dwayne VanHoose, Scott Reeves and Rob Smith, still had 140 miles to go to finish the 340 mile race.

The Missouri American Water MR340 is a 340-mile race across the state of Missouri that started at 7 a.m. Wednesday in Kansas City, continued today in Jefferson City and will conclude in St. Charles.

Participants have 88 hours to complete the course and must endure the weather and wildlife while dodging whatever the river water can send their way. They are accompanied with numerous safety boats that patrol and run the course to make sure things go swimmingly.

"We sponsor the entire race from start to finish," said Dave Treece Missouri American Water operations manager for Jefferson City. "You will see some of our elite athletes finish in under 40 hours and also under 50 hours is really good. And you will see other people finish all the way up to the last minute."

This is the ninth year for the race, but it was postponed for flooding and debris - dropping number or racers from 400 to 235.

"Jeff City really is the best check point in the whole state for the race," Treece said. "Everybody here goes through a lot of trouble to make sure that the beach is in good condition and you have good facilities here, it is close to the city and it is just kind of the gem of the whole race."

This check point is 200 miles into the course and 140 way from the finish. If racers don't make it to the checkpoint by 7 p.m. tomorrow then they are disqualified. On average, a third of the racers don't finish the race, Treece said.

Many racers were warned that the next leg of the race that ends in Hermann is considered the hardest part of the course, because the river widens and slows.

"The next section is the slowest part of the race," said Dwayne Van Hoose, member of Team Third Wheel. "It is all mental though, you just got to keep it in your head that you are going one to two miles per hour slower than you are use to."

Hoose's teammates include Robbie Smith and Scott Reeves, who finished building the boat two days before the race was supposed to start. The team is fueled by fruit, juices, shakes, trail mix and sandwiches dropped off at the check points by their one-woman support team, Kelly Kasten. They do whatever they can to consume at least 6,000 calories per 12 hours of racing, Hoose said.

"Most people drop about 10 to 12 percent of their body weight by the end, because you just can't keep it on," Reeves said.

The team was all smiles when they pulled in, but others needed help just to get out of their boats. Some racers would rise, then be partially carried while bent and twisted in pain. One man stopped and slept for about an hour before getting back on the water; he was plagued by a border of blisters on the bottom half of his back. His condition was treated with a generous application of tape.

Some who could not continue the race watched and helped others. Dave Tlusty, from Wisconsin, was taken to shore by a safety boat after his broke down. The large, broad-chested man now is hanging around the Jefferson City check point taking pictures and trying to find ways to help. This was his fourth attempt at the race; last year was the first time he finished.

"It just didn't pan out," said Brian Brooks, who dropped out of the race after injuring his back. "It is kind of one of those things. You got to know when to throw in the towel before you do to much damage."

This was Brooks' fourth attempt at the race after finishing each of the previous three times. He first heard about the race on the radio during the flood of 2010, he said. The report stated that there was a lot of water damage and the statewide canoe race had to be postponed and Brooks grew excited when he heard the about the race.

As people like Tlusty and Brooks congregated with other support teams and Missouri American Water officials, more canoes drifted in and tents were erected to provide respite from the summer sun. Officials also set up a shower and stacked fire wood for the night so the racers could get a little bit of comfort before heading back into the current, paddling or peddling ceaselessly into victory.