When Chris Metz showed up to the Chilkat Challenge Triathlon with an inflatable Costco paddleboard no one knew how the eight-mile journey across Mosquito Lake and down the Chilkat River would turn out.
But, as it turns out, though it was Metz’s first time in Haines and on either body of water, the paddleboard turned out to be a good choice for the slow-moving water and shallow silt layers over sandbars that snagged other racers.
“Through the siltier sections [it was] a lot easier for me to jump off and run in one section and then hop back on,” he said.
He shocked race coordinators by being the third person to get to the river pullout – though boaters had been released in waves and he was given a head start, so his overall time of 1:50 was slower than the average time it took to get through the leg, which was just over 1:38.
“I stayed ahead for most of the time,” Metz said. “[But] the leading kayakers definitely caught me and I couldn’t keep up with them.”
Still, Metz said he thinks he might have been the fastest one through most of the narrow slough connecting Mosquito Lake to the Chilkat River where some longer kayaks get hung up on sharp turns.
He carried two paddles, using a kayak paddle through most of the lake and slough – and then kayaking on his knees through much of the heavily silted sections.
“About halfway, I switched to standup,” he said.
Metz, who was part of a Juneau team, said he’d like to do it again.
“It was a ton of fun, especially when I came out of the slough. I was all alone on the river for probably 15-20 minutes. I saw a lot of swans [and] had a beverage,” he said.
Race organizer Gershon Cohen said he has been waiting for someone to do that portion of the triathlon on a paddleboard for years.
“I tell you what, I wanted to check his paddleboard for a motor. I was just really, really surprised,” Cohen said. “I was joking the night before that he should have left the night before. He did great.”
Beyond the novelty of Metz’s paddleboarding, Cohen said he thought the race went smoothly this year, particularly given that it hasn’t been held since 2019. It included a nine-mile paddle, 22-mile bicycling portion and a 5.5-mile run.
Cohen said about 30 people volunteered, helping keep the race running smoothly for about 60 registered competitors. He estimates that there would have been 75-80 people except that ongoing tension between the U.S. and Canada caused people to withdraw – including seven whose race-entry fees were refunded..
“There were a number of people who have done this race before, who I am sure would have done it again if it had not been for this Canada issue, the border issue,” he said.
Still, Cohen said the event felt successful.
“It was wonderful to see so many people come here to celebrate the Chilkat River and what it means to this community to have a healthy, intact river in the valley,” he said.
Editor’s note, Rashah McChesney and Chilkat Valley News reporter Will Steinfeld competed in the triathlon this year on the team Die Tri-ing. McChesney came in dead last in the kayaking portion of the race, while Steinfeld was the second fastest runner overall.