Q:  It's so hot and humid, how am I going to stand wearing a PFD the entire time?

A:  Consider buying a waist/ belt pack PFD.  To inflate, pull the cord and a CO2 charger inside the pack will immediately blow it up in front of you, and then you just need to put your head through the hole.  Remember that if you need to deploy your waist pack PFD during the MR340, you'll have to rearm the PFD with a new CO2 charger.  So it might be a good idea to bring an extra charger or two with you.    Also, if it's possible to look at the PFD inside your pack (uninflated) check and make sure the thing will fit over your head.  Mine had a very small headhole and so what a surprise for me while being swept rapidly downriver to find I had to hold my inflated PFD against me like a surfboard.

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RookinIraq-- bless your heart and be sure to introduce yourself to everyone.  As far as the wing paddle, you're going to hear over and over to use a small wing for marathons.  A week before my first MR340 I got a mid-wing and taught myself to use it and it was just fine.  And I bet you are ten times stronger than I am!   If you want tips on how to paddle with a wing, do a search in You Tube and you will find a treasure trove of videos on techniques.  This will give you a really general idea of the different stroke needed with a wing.  Then, with that basic technique, let the paddle teach you the rest.  Be sure to test it on both flat water and rougher water so you can get both a good smooth speed stroke going as well as a solid brace with your wing.  Paddle your wing in wind to get a feel for how a wing feels in headwinds.  Don't forget you need a spare paddle for the race.  If you can't get a second wing, train with both just to be sure. 

The QCC600 is an awesome boat.  It is rated as an intermediate to advanced user boat by QCC Kayaks, most likely cause it's only 21 inches wide.   The Dagger Axis 12 is 27 inches wide so it's going to be more stable, but because it's only 12 feet long it will likely be a lot slower on the water than the 16 1/2 foot long QCC 600.  Hopefully you'll have a chance to paddle before you borrow a boat and see what feels best to you.  Wish you the best and hope you have an awesome experience and make a lot of new friends.

The Dot It 2 puck lights...red/green electrical tape available at Wally World Automotive...

Goldfishgoddes: Thank you I will be sure to introduce myself to everyone. But I am sure I will be the only one with a very bad Famers tan and white legs. Thanks to all of the encouragement I think I will go ahead an buy a mid wing. Have no idea how much time I will have on the water to practice. But I think after about 30 some odd hours of straight paddling I should start to get the hang of it. 

Thanks Everyone else for the lighting Ideas and the clear sunglasses for the bugs.

http://rivermiles.com/forum/YaBB.pl?num=1278767666

There is an attachment to click in the first post of the thread.  It's good stuff.

Should be Katfish Katy's instead... seems like Derek came out with a Katfish version later... but I can't find the link.  Once someone finds it, I'll repost it and clean this all up on the FAQ thread.

army corps of eng. has a great map- you can buy one at moriver.org for $5

Thanks for the leads on the map. Look forward to meeting everybody in July.

Steve

Another rookie type question.
I presume that every checkpoint must be reached by the cutoff time???

Steve

Thanks Scott

Quote:


I just found this site after searching the Internet for a month!  Is it too late for me to sign up for the race?  And just how do I sign up for the race?