2007 Newletter 01

By Stephen Lynn ~ Crew 300

He was called RJ and Jim, but if you were one of the hundreds of Scouts who came to know this man, you knew him simply as “Doc”. I first met Doc at the 1973 Buffalo River Explorer Scout Canoe Race. It was my first canoe race, and the canoe I sat in and the paddle I used were both provided by Doc. He seemed to be everywhere that weekend. He organized the race, provided nearly all the equipment for the teams, b rought mos t o f the participants, and he paddled in the race. His energy level never dropped, and I couldn’t say the same for myself. I was hooked on canoe racing after that weekend and have been involved in the sport ever since. Three Russellville Explorer Scouts in that race 34 years ago are now advisors for Venture Crew 300.

Doc was a man of many talents including swimmer, paddler, scuba diver, pilot, cook, outdoorsman, and of course an innovative practicing veterinarian. Doc didn’t just do things half-way either. He once broke a world record in a freestyle swimming event while at Oklahoma A&M (now Oklahoma State). As a competitive paddler, he never lost an Aluminum Class

event and he competitively raced until he was 53 years old. He was bow hunting before it became fashionable and hunted with the great Ben Pearson. He served as the Little Rock Zoo’s veter inar ian while he operated his own private practice, Cantrell Animal Clinic. He was the secretary/treasurer of the Arkansas V e t e r i n a r y M e d i c a l Examining Board for 10 years, and was named Arkansas Veterinarian of the Year.

D o c ’ s g r e a t e s t impact, however, was on Scouting. He was one of the early founders of the White River Canoe Race. Much of the great success the race enjoyed in the 1970’s can be attributed to his efforts. As the advisor of Post 8 in Little Rock, he traveled all over the country pulling his ten canoe trailer behind his Dodge truck to places like the Nantahala River in North Carolina and the Snake River in Idaho. There probably were not too many streams in Arkansas that he and his Scouts didn’t float or race on. When his group showed up for a race, you had a big event and competition to boot. Although our Explorer Post 300 from Russellville was normally competing

against his Scouts, Doc would be the first to offer assistance or equipment. Doc bought the first racing canoes that came to Arkansas and operated an outdoor store, Canoeland, out of the basement of Cantrell Animal Clinic. The canoe shop became so popular in canoe and kayak circles that he had to sell it because it had gotten too big to manage by a solo veterinary practitioner. In 1973, Doc received the Silver Beaver Award, Scouting’s highest service award for adult leaders.

In 2002, at the White River Canoe Race, a tribute was held for Doc in Mountain View. Scouts with ties to the race told stories about the race, their experiences, and about Doc, and presented him with an award for his founding the race and his many years of unselfish service to Scouting. Because of Alzheimer’s disease in his last 7 years of life, Doc did not get to see the resurgence of the White River Canoe Race. Because of his influence on Scouts and on others, you can rest assured that we will continue to build The White River Canoe Race into one of the greatest Scouting events in the country.

We will miss you Doc.

Dr. Robert James “Jim” Van Patter (1934-2007)

Scouting and Venturing

December 28, 2007

Volume 07, Issue 1

Schedule of Events 2

Letter from Race Host 2

Letter from Webmaster 2

History of the White River 3

History of Crew 300 and Crew 2117

4

2008 Pre-Registration Form

5

Word Search 6

Inside this issue:

List of Important

Registration Forms

Pre-Registration

Press Release (New)

Local Tour Permit

National Tour Permit

Medical Form

We are also trying to get a GPS system built-in to the website. This system will allow user from home to track the race from home. We had one last year but it didn't work as planned.

Many of you have been asking if you can use the information posted on the website for school projects or other education events. You are more than welcome. The more you use it, the

By Robert Latus ~ Crew 320 There are many changes

which will take place this upcoming year. One of the major changes is the way that teams pre-register on the website. This option will be available from January 1 to July 1, 2008. Since we may have a significant increase in the number of teams for 2008, we have changed the on-line registration to help streamline the process.

more our name will get out about the race.

It is highly encouraged that you pre-register your team for 2008. Not only will you save $5 per entry, but you will help us streamline the whole registration process and speed up check-in at Bull Shoals.

Letter from the IT Support

Page 2 White River Canoe Race Volume 07, Issue 1

Schedule of Events

January 1 - Pre-Registration Starts

July 1 - Last Day to Register with

$5 off.

July 23 - White River Canoe Race

Bull Shoals - Registration


Bull Shoals - Norfork


Norfork - Allison


Allison - Batesville

These will be traveling

trophies that will be awarded

to the fastest team in the

division, regardless of class.

Example: Boy’s Aluminum

Advanced and Novice teams

would still be recognized for

the their place in their class,

1st, 2nd or 3rd. But it’s

possible for the 1st place

Novice team to be awarded the

traveling trophy for the fastest

canoe in the division if their

time is better than the Boy’s

Advance team. This should

m a k e t he r a c e m o re

competitive. Beginner teams

do not qualify, because they

canoe fewer legs.

By George Latus ~ Crew 320

As most of you are

finishing up the fall semester

with school, I hope you are all

doing well. Also, I hope you

can take a little time to enjoy

this special Holiday Season.

During this time of year, I will

begin to get awards and

trophies ready for the

upcoming 2008 Canoe Race.

Currently I’m trying to find

sponsors for first place

traveling trophies for all the

divisions: Boy’s Aluminum,

Gir ls Aluminum, Coed

Aluminum, Coed Cruising,

Girl’s Cruising and Open

Cruising.

The overall championship

will be awarded to the cruising

division as it has been in the

past. We still plan to recognize

all the classes 1st, 2nd, & 3rd

place in Advanced, Novice,

and Beginner classes (sorry for

the confusion last year).

Remember, if you plan to

win one of these traveling

trophies, you must plan to

bring it back the following

year. If you have any questions

or suggestions please feel free

to contact me. May each and

every one of you have a joyful

Holiday Season.

Respectfully, George

Letter from the Race Host

Relative Events

Buffalo Point to Rush

North Fork River Race

Calico Rock to Boswell Shoals

Aluminum Nationals

Online Registration

registration.whiterivercanoerace.com

region near Batesvi l le ,

Arkansas the river becomes

navigable to shallow-draft

vessels and its speed decreases

considerably. The final 10

miles of the river serves as the

f ina l segment of the

McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River

Navigation System; this part of

the channel is deeper than the

rest of the river.

Despite being much

shorter in length than the

Arkansas River, it carries nearly

as much water, over 8200 cubic

feet per second normally, and

as much as 40,000 ft³/s during

flooding.

A controversial plan

to deepen the navigation

channel of the river (above the

By: Wikipedia

The source of the

White River is in the Boston

Mountains of northwest

Arkansas, in the Ozark-St.

Francis National Forest

southeast of Fayetteville. The

upper portions of the river are

fast, cold, and clear and are

internationally known for

producing world-record trout.

The river flows northwards

from its source in northwest

Arkansas, loops up through

southwest Missouri near

Branson and then travels back

into Arkansas and on generally

southeast to its mouth at the

Mississippi River.

Once the river enters

the Mississippi River Delta

McClellan-Kerr segment) is

under consideration though it

is opposed by many Arkansans.

The lower portion of the river

contains a multitude of wildlife

species including bear, turkey,

songbirds, and over 160

species of fish. More mallard

ducks winter on the lower

White than any other place in

the world.

Many residents of

Arkansa s be l i e ve tha t

deepening the navigation

channel will adversely affect

the wildlife which is a major

source of tourism in the area.

However, many farmers along

parts of the White support the

proposal for economic reasons.

History of the White River

Special Offer

Pre-registration will begin January 1, 2008 to

July 1, 2008. During this period teams will be

allowed to register and get a $5 discount for each racer or advisor

registered. After July 1, 2008 the discount will expire and you will

have to pay the full entry fee of $35. The entry fee includes a

T-shirt, four evening meals, and camping. This is quite a bargain

these days!"

To register please visit our website at:

www.whiterivercanoerace.com or call Stephen Lynn at (479) 885-1037

$5 Off


White River near Flippin, AR

Comments:

Tell us how we did.

Overall Race (Boating

Categories, Timing System,

Meetings)

Excellent

Normal

Need Improvement

Food (Gaston, Pizza Night,

Batesville Dinner)

Excellent

Normal

Need Improvement

Camping (Bull Shoals,

Norfork, Allison, Batesville)

Excellent

Normal

Need Improvement

Activities (Talent Show,

Ham Radio Night)

Excellent

Normal

Need Improvement

Name

Address

Phone

Name

Address

Phone

Canoe Joke A lovesick canoeist wrote to

a dating service explaining

that he had specific criteria

for a potential mate and

would not accept anyone that

doesn't meet his standards.

He went on to explain the

young lady must be cute,

short, enjoys cold water and

paddling.

He received a reply the

following week. It contained

a picture of a penguin.

Mail to George Latus or Email: [email protected]

By Stephen Lynn

Russellville began competing in

the National Invitational White River

Canoe Race in 1971 as Explorer Post 300

and had teams in the race every year until

1975. Our biggest year during that span

was 1974 when we had a Boys Cruising

team, a Girl’s Aluminum team, and a

Boy’s Aluminum team. The top teams in

those days were from Las Cruces, New

Mexico and Little Rock, Arkansas. In the

1970s it was not uncommon for over 50

teams to participate in the race. Post 300

was also active in backpacking and sailing,

but when the water was up, they were

usually on one of the area’s creeks or

streams such as Big Piney, Illinois Bayou,

Mulberry, or the Buffalo. The post

gradually dissolved as members got older

or relocated and no new members filled

the void. The White River Canoe Race

was the highlight of the year for us and it

was always the talk when some of the old

scouts got together. During the 1990

race, an unofficial reunion of past

participants was held bringing in 20

ex-scouts from all over the country to

paddle and hang out. Several of the

scouts from Post 300 continued canoe

racing throughout the 1980s and 1990s

placing well in National and International

competitions.

By the year 2000, the race had

fallen on hard times. After a low water

cancellation in 2000, the race only had 9

teams show up for the 2001 race. For the

many of us that had such great memories

of the event, we decided that we needed

to get involved to help save this fantastic

and unique event. The next year

ex-scouts participated in an Old Timers

class at the race and it was then that talk

started about forming a new Post from

Russellville and bringing back the

“Glory Days” of the race. Russellville

Crew 300 was formed in 2002 and

entered one Novice Boy’s Aluminum

team in 2002. Over the last four years,

Crew 300 has had the largest number of

scouts paddling in the race. Crew 300

organized the race in 2006 and shared

that responsibility with Crew 320 from

Batesville for 2007. This past year, 38

teams completed the race showing that

the race was back on track to a

successful future and new crews would

add their own chapter to the “Glory

Days”.

what ever way I could .At this time we

enjoyed a fierce yet friendly rivalry with

Post 313 from Bogalusa Louisiana (who

also has a long tradition at this race). In

the late 90's Post 301 was sending only

one team to Arkansas and attended the

race for its last time in 2002.

The history of these two teams

and the fun I had participating in the race

has fueled my desire to once again see

Minnesota involved. My ultimate dream is

to see Minnesota fill all the classes in

Arkansas and to be as competitively tough

as we have been in the past. In 2005 we

brought a co-ed cruising team, then again

in 2006. This past summer we had a girls

cruising and a boys cruising team

compete!

By Kjell Peterson

Post 301 from Faribault

Minnesota first attended The White River

National Invitational Canoe Race, also

known as the Arkansas race, in 1985. By

1988 they were dominating the race,

winning all seven classes which at that

time included a class for open aluminum.

With the untimely death of their head

coach Sumner, they continued under the

helm of Bruce Sanborn whose children

raced on the team.

During that time I took up

paddling and raced in `95 and `96 on the

open cruising team. By 1997 I was too old

to race in Arkansas, but loving the sport I

continued to be involved with the team in

Our team is now called Crew

2117 and is based out of Duluth MN.

The greatest challenge has been

generating enough interest with kids

from Duluth, so we decided to draw

from a larger state-wide pool. Our

growth has been slow, but I think we

are starting to see the possibility of

filling each class in the near future. It's

been a big thrill attending this race again

and it is great to see Bogalusa still

running strong! There are also new

faces such as Russellville. We are

excited to see this race continue to grow

and be around for future generations of

young paddlers to enjoy its traditions

while creating memories of their own.

Crew 300 ~ Russellville, Arkansas

Crew 2117 ~ Duluth, Minnesota


Come and join us in one of the most unique,

challenging, and fun scouting events in the

country. The National Invitational White River

Canoe Race will take you down some of the

most scenic country in America. The race is

an adventure of over a hundred miles from

the heart of the Ozark Mountains near Bull

Shoals Lake to the foothills of Batesville, Ar-

kansas. The event is more than just a race

though. There are many special activities for

everyone.

Race Director Stephen Lynn P.O. Box 99 London, AR 72847 (479) 885-1037

Crew 300- Russellville, AR Email: [email protected]

Race Host George Latus P.O. Box 91 Sulphur Rock, AR 72579 (870) 799-3690

Crew 320 - Batesville, AR Email: [email protected]

We’re on the Web!

www.whiterivercanoerace.com

2007 canoe race had 38 boats racing over 120 miles

White River Canoe Race

Official’s Addresses

Canoe Race Word Search

Words to Find:

Advisors Allison Aluminum Arkansas Awards Batesville Bogalusa BuffaloCity BullShoals Bush Bryan CalicoRock Canoe Captains Clockout Cotter Crews Cruising Duluth Flippin FortWorth Guion

Heats Legs Locks

Louisiana Meetings Minnesota Norfork Paddlers Race Spaghetti Pocahontas Russellville Sylamore TalentShow Texas TimeKeeper Troops Troy WhiteRiver

J U J B K L V K M P A T E H E A T S K R O F R O N

B S R E L D D A P L H H B P R M Q Q F B Q M F O H

U S L G U S D O R S G S P A G H E T T I K C S S G

N F Z B P X T C T U H U P C U S F C V D E I V A U

M C E D C Q R H R V S J N A F V Z L T J L Y F T I

G S Y S N I A T P A C S I I X O S W I L F P P N O

I N W T U S T B S A D D E L W N R R A P V N M O N

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Z E Q Z K V R R A N O V O B S N I L L R S T D P J

G N Y B H C A C A F W Y U U J A Y N L Y O I H A E

B N T B O Z O C V O F L Y O G S S S U E A L A K R

A I A T F G S L H D L U Z F G K O D D M I T L N I

T M L V R P A S C S L J B L F K N U L R H N J S A

E D U U O O T L H R Z T E X A S S M O U A W H G J

S U Z O C N Y O U R E V I R E T I H W E F W N E N

V A R A E M A I O S O Q N D U L U T H L T C A L P

I T R L Y L S L W G A M O J W O N I V K U O R Q B

L P A K S V J O Q H X W O D E A L G A G V T Q E B

L T T F B J C I N A Y R B W E C A R R H P T S H F

E U H L J C A L I C O R O C K S G N I T E E M C X

U X N J M R Q Z F E R O M A L Y S H L I W R N I U

A O T K U J C R E W S V B A F T I M E K E E P E R

Documents

2007 Newletter 01