Great Montana SUP marks third year
"If you’re gonna be a bear, be a grizzly," is an old saying that means, "If you are going to do anything, do it the right way."
The Mineral County Rec Club may not know about the saying but they certainly do everything better than people can imagine, especially in a rural western Montana town. The third annual Great Montana SUP (Stand Up Paddleboard) Sprint on Saturday, has brought younger volunteers to the table since their inception that think outside the box and have a get ‘er done attitude as an event of this size takes committed helpers that do not make excuses.
Bessie Spangler is the Chairperson of the MCRC and shared a couple of new categories for paddleboarders.
“We are offering two new races this year to encourage some friendly competition,” she smiled. “Better Together is a new race that was inspired by a volunteer's family member. They asked if they could race with their children on their board and we decided, why not? So, we designed this race as a two for one; two on one board. You choose who your second is, whether that's your child or a well-behaved dog, you're better together!”
The other new race is called Kings and/or Queens of the Clark Fork Relay.
“This new relay race is inspired by the high school members of our volunteer board. Four teammates will compete to win the Kings/Queens of the County title. The race starts with one paddler, who will paddle across the river to pick up the second paddler. The two of them will paddle back to the start to add their third paddler to the board. The three will now paddle back across the river to add their fourth paddler to the board and continue down the river to finish the race. The teams must cross the finish line with all four members touching the board in whatever manner they're able to.”
These are in addition to the established sprints for pro’s, over 50, Super-Hero, Youth, etc.
Spangler shared that there is a pre-event clinic the night before the races. If a person feels that they have wobbly legs or their balance is off or they’d like to improve their skills. Or, if someone has never ever even touched a paddleboard before, this might be for them. Tricia Lyons is the SUP representative for the USA SUP Northwest Region and will take a limited number of people on a shuttle leaving Riverside Soups & Sandz at 5:30 p.m. for training and pointers. If you don’t own a paddleboard, they can fix you up with a loaner for the weekend. Register at app.jotform.com/251684972760165.
Aside from the main event of the SUP Sprint, Superior will be buzzing the entire day. “We have a kids zone again this year funded by the Family Collections Collaborative grant the Mineral County Health Department administers, opening at 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. in the Old School Lawn,” she shared. “We will also have squirt guns for sale as we expect it to be another hot day. And the 1.9-mile fun run starting at 9 a.m. that morning. Please visit paddle406.com to register for the fun run, sign up as a vendor, or sign up as a participant.”
The Saturday Morning Market vendors are invited to stay longer and joining them around noon will be the Pool in the Park Burger Booth, TaCow St. Regis Taco Truck, Sid's Lemonade, with more still registering. Chase's River Floats and Mellen Patch Soaps will also have booths and more are signing up to attend.
Derby Ball tickets will not be sold on the day of the event but can be purchased today at Backstreet Salon, The Nugget Lounge and River Side Soups & Sandz at 2 bucks each or 3 for $5.00. Guessing the time it takes for the Derby Ball to Float from the Lozeau Crossing Bridge to the Veterans Bridge has a first place prize of Split the pot, 2nd place is a St Regis Gift Shop Gift Basket & 3rd Prize of a Gift Card and here is the history: Aug. 19, 2023, it took 4 hours, 59 minutes and 1 second. July 13, 2024, it was about an hour faster at 3 hours, 57 minutes and 11 seconds.
Final organizing is still taking place as they need more volunteers (a very-cool free T-shirt for helping!) and exact times for certain portions of the day haven’t been set. "The beer garden will open around 3pm the day of the event; The Nugget Lounge will be selling alcohol later that afternoon and evening in the back of the sandwich shop,” she explained. “The awards ceremony will be in the back of Riverside Soups & Sandz with a beer garden, music and air conditioning. We will also draw the winning ticket for the paddleboard we are raffling off, the 50-50 winner and the Derby Ball winning time guesses.”
And don’t forget about the flotilla on Sunday. “This is a fun community float that will start on Sunday at 1 p.m. beginning at Big Eddy Fishing Access to Dry Creek Fishing Access. Please arrange your ride prior to the float! Last year there were over 50 people on the river,” Spangler shared. “I'd like to add that we received a generous donation from Women in Timber this year that will help with the prize money for this event. They really do so much for our community and we are so proud to have them as a sponsor this year!”
The 3rd Annual Great Montana SUP Sprint is this Saturday. (Monte Turner/Mineral Independent)
The 3rd Annual Great Montana SUP Sprint is this Saturday. (Monte Turner/Mineral Independent)