A Tour du Teche paddler takes a break and refreshes Saturday morning at the New Iberia checkpoint in City Park on the second day of the 135-mile three -day race. The race will conclude today in Berwick.
A Tour du Teche paddler takes a break and refreshes Saturday morning at the New Iberia checkpoint in City Park on the second day of the 135-mile three -day race. The race will conclude today in Berwick.
Sarah Blanchard / The Daily Iberian
Toby Darden, 45, of Charenton, paddles into the New Iberia checkpoint during the fourth annual Tour du Teche boat race Saturday morning.
Sarah Blanchard / The Daily Iberian
Toby Darden, 45, of Charenton, walks up the ramp after beaching his craft Saturday.
Tropical Storm Karen did not stop nearly 80 paddlers in kayaks and canoes from making their way down Bayou Teche for the fourth annual 135-mile Tour du Teche boat race this weekend.
Participants faced strong winds and rain throughout the day Saturday, but a majority continued south, said Nicole Patin, Tour du Teche executive director. The current was moving upstream Saturday morning in New Iberia, likely making paddling a little harder, she said.
The three-day race was divided into stages where it began in Port Barre Friday, finished the first night in St. Martinville, stopped in New Iberia Saturday, finished the second night in Franklin and will end in Berwick today, Patin said.
Patin said the format of the race was changed after its inaugural year in 2010, which was designed as a marathon. The event began on a Friday and paddlers were working their way down the bayou without being able to stop along the way to enjoy the towns, she said.
“We had people paddling all day and all night and we realized we were missing something. We were getting these people in from all over the country, but they were missing out on the local culture and flavor,” she said. “We immediately began restructuring the race.”
The Tour du Teche race itself is 135 miles long, but there are races within the grand challenge, Patin said. Paddlers can choose to participate in shorter races, such as the 24-mile Hot Sauce race that began in St. Martinville and ended at the New Iberia checkpoint where the New Iberia Kiwanis Club volunteered.
“There are different breeds of paddlers. Thereare the ones who will go those long distances, but there are those who prefer the shorter races,” she said. “Even our shorter races are marathons in their own right, because our races are 24, 27, 34, 49 and 59 miles long.”
Toby Darden, 45, of Charenton was the overall fastest winner for the Hot Sauce race with a time of 4 hours, 22 minutes and 44 seconds. Darden said he has participated in other adventure races, but this was his first time paddling down Bayou Teche.
“This was just something new to do,” he said. “It’s a personal challenge that I’ve accomplished.”
Darden said he was determined to complete the race, so he remained focused on the boats ahead of him and kept his paddling steady. Seeing landmarks he knew inspired him to continue, he said. His family, including his sister Naomi Darden, sat at the New Iberia checkpoint to cheer him on. She said she was excited to see her brother not only complete the race, but be the first paddler to arrive.
“It was very exciting and I’m very proud of him. It’s awesome,” she said.
Patin said as the event grows, paddlers travel from throughout the nation to the Teche Area to participate. In the race this year there are paddlers from throughout Louisiana, Texas, Illinois and Wisconsin, she said.
“We have a really interesting racing community that has been a part of what we do here with Tour du Teche. Anybody who really races here becomes part of that family,” Patin said. “Everybody just comes in and concentrates on Teche country for this weekend and it’s fun.”
Patin said having the crowds along the banks of the bayou cheering at each stop is overwhelming. Seeing the community support the race and the paddlers is one of the best parts of organizing the event, she said.
“It was just kind of something to help get the Bayou Teche in a better shape and to raise awareness of it,” she said. “It’s just grown and it’s becoming really popular.”