WCC Races
WCC Annual Races
Race details can be found on PaddleGuru. Search for the Washington Canoe Club to find all club sponsored races.
Spring
Kumu'ohu Challenge
May
WCC's season-opening home small boats race. In addition to outrigger and SUP, classes will include surfski, sea kayak, and ICF sprint canoe/kayak. Come celebrate the spring thaw with a great day of paddling and camaraderie in the Nation's Capital.
Fall
Middle States Regatta
Mid-October
This race is open to all ages and all categories of small paddle craft (ICF canoe/kayak, OC1/OC2, SUP, etc.), the morning races include 500m and 200m events and in the afternoon is an ECORA point series 10K.
Frank Havens 10K
End of October
Annual Frank Havens 10K honoring the amazing WCC Gold Medalist Frank Havens. Race is for standard canoes only. Many Classes to choose from including Short Boat classes (up to but not including 17’ long) and Long Boat (17’ and up) All canoes must be fat, slow, non-racing, open canoes made from non-racing materials (ie., no Kevlar, carbon canoes).
10K race course on the Potomac in honor of Frankie’s Gold Medal World Record win in the C-1 10,000m distance at the Helsinki Olympics of 1952.
The Marcy Race
Late November
LAST RACE OF THE SEASON!
Race for the fun of it! No entries... no prizes (except bragging rights). This 13K race is in honor of Marcy Garland, a longtime WCC member and prior club president who LOVED hosting and helping to run races at WCC.
The WCC Mile Rock Challenge
by Meredith Brandt
The Washington Canoe Club is renowned for encouraging and producing high caliber athletes. It’s home to scores of national champions and over two dozen Olympic paddlers, including two gold medalists.
But, there’s another thing the Washington Canoe Club is known for: its community of like-minded water enthusiasts and ambassadors. And, as our water sports grow more and more competitive, there’s one longstanding race that reminds us that camaraderie on the water is what’s most important.
The event began in the 1990s as a 5k fun race to get members of all paddling skills together to gain racing experience. While it’s clear that the Club’s race team members didn’t lose momentum, the Mile Rock Challenge did. By the early 2000s the race disbanded, but was soon revived by a former WCC sprint coach in its current format: 2 laps to Mile Rock and back (1 lap if you’re on a standup paddle board)
Today, the Mile Rock Challenge is run by the Aquatics Committee and is not only a good opportunity for WCC team members to log training hours, it’s also as a way for Club members to get exposed to other types of paddlesports, introduce kids to paddling, and promote camaraderie among WCC members.
The Mile Rock Challenge is only open to WCC members. In the warmer months, the Mile Rock Challenge occurs on the first Sunday of each month, from May through the final race in September. Mandatory scratch meeting at 10 am so race organizers know who is there and we can begin to seat the groups. The first group goes off at 10:30 with the remainder in different groups soon after; fastest boats go last. Register for free the morning of the races and refer to the WCC Facebook page for any updates or changes.
Not race ready? Volunteer with the Aquatics Committee and gain experience in regatta timing. Contact aquatics@washingtoncanoeclub.org for more information.
Will we see you at the next Mile Rock Challenge?
