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| Mir
Pace International's 4th Annual Kayak Race Hull, MA 
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| "They were the nicest group of people of I've ever met," were the first words spoken to me by the Hingham Harbormaster following this year's event. I couldn't agree more! Many of our race participants were new to the event, while others returned (including our two pirates) excited to defend or beat their titles. Whether first time or repeat, it was clear that all had a spectacular (albeit competitive at times), morning. We added a new element to our short course this year: armed with colorful nets (generously provided by Adventure Products), paddlers raced around the inner harbor competing to "save" as many Mir Pace ducks as they could. And they did an outstanding job as all 150 little yellow rubber ducks were saved! Des MacIntyre was our top lifesaver, rescuing 19 ducks! Maria and Kristen Sacchitella followed closely behind with a total of 18 ducks, and Tom Ricciardelli managed to rescue 14 of our little yellow friends.
 The long course was a challenging, but picturesque 6 mile trek out of the inner harbor, around Bumpkin Island, and back. Some highlights include John Karoff holding onto his 2nd place title for two years in a row - we've challenged him to return next year to claim 1st place! For Steven Rosenberg, it was his first time in a kayak and the first time we've had someone unintentionally take a dunk! Something must have been in the water because Robert Mahoney also unexpectedly went for a swim. Next year's challenge will be to find his sunglasses! The top three finishers in each of the single and tandem categories were:
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| Long Course Men | Long Course Women | Long Course Tandem |
| J. Scott Mackel (60 min.) | Eleanor Coleman (1.16) | Natalie Dignam and Greta Shwashman |
| John Karoff | Kristen Feeley | Sam Fortin and Andrew Wesson |
| Billy Green | Susan Gaffney | Caroline Davis and Amanda Daley |
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Throughout the day, our friends from Java Jungle and Del's Lemonade provided hot and cold refreshments. The event concluded with a raffle of items donated by many very generous sponsors. Raffle items included a paddle and PFD donated by REI, a PFD donated by Eastern Mountain Sports, a year's supply of Front Line Plus from All Pet's Animal Hospital, tickets to Blue Man Group and the New England Aquarium, gift certificates to Saporito's Florence Club Cafe, the Square Cafe, Dinero's Restaurant, the Ocean Club, Schooners Restaurant, Java Jungle, and many other local establishments, a makeup party for five offered by Beauty and Main, workout mats from lululemon athletica, and classic T-Shirts donated by Johnny Cupcakes. To our wonderful and very generous sponsors, thank you as our raffle was a tremendous success! We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Ellen and Dave at the Lincoln Maritime Center. You so graciously welcomed us and went above and beyond to help make this event successful, fun, and safe. We wish to also thank Scott and Judy Plympton of Nantasket Kayaks for their continuous and very kind support. And finally, we give a very special "thank you" to Harbormaster John Souther and his team for their diligent service on the water, insuring safety (with a touch of good spirited heckling) to all race participants. Without the kind accommodation, care, and assistance from each of you, this event would not be possible. Thank you! We at Mir Pace International would like to extend a heartfelt thank you to all of our sponsors, volunteers, friends, and race participants for coming out to support our 4th Annual Paddle for Poverty. Your kind and generous support on Saturday was so very important to our efforts in bringing life-saving solutions to the poor where we work. Your spirit and enthusiasm was amazing and inspiring! We look forward to seeing you next year! Please click the duck |
