After a month delay due to extreme weather and flooded riverways, the 2019 Meramec Marathon Paddle Race put its best paddle forward on Saturday, July 28 with both the traditional marathon distance and the approximate half-marathon option.
More than 70 paddlers participated in the race which was originally scheduled for June 22. With the Meramec River still at flood levels after a spring of historic flooding in the area, the starting line of the Marathon was moved back Robertsville State Park in Robertsville, Mo. Half-marathon participants took on 13.9 miles, many on the Big River, from Rockford Beach near House Springs, Mo. Both distances completed their journeys at Route 66 State Park in Eureka, Mo.
Thien Le, from St. Paul, Mo., took home the overall win with a total time of 3 hours and 36 minutes, beating second-place paddler, Jeff Behrns (St. Louis), by a total of one minute and 36 seconds. The co-ed tandem team of Scott and Dotty Merritt (St. Charles, Mo.) finished with the third-best time of the day in 3:43:25
Updated Full Results can be found here. (Updated August 5, 2019)
Photos from the event can be found here.