THE GREAT RIVER AMAZON RAFT RACE 2007 - Page 3
BY A.J. Rivera
Race for the Finish
A good meal, a shower, and a bed to sleep in did wonders for us, but knowing that we had made it through the toughest day and had been able to hold our standing was inspirational. On the way down to the raft, I had stopped at the makeshift kitchen; the rice porridge was not ready and would not be ready until seven; we were all under the impression that the start time was at seven, so I was not happy. Our binding had come loose, so as I waited for the ladies and breakfast, I tied nylon cord over the natural fibers.
From the river bank, with a megaphone the announcer called out, “All foreign teams are to depart at 6:30.”
The blood rushed to my head. I yelled back, “Now is a fine time to tell us. Why did you not advise us last night? People sleeping in town are preparing for a seven o`clock departure. Your own staff will not even have breakfast ready until seven.” All the people on the bank stopped working to look and listen.
In a wimp of a voice the announcer responded, “All foreign teams can depart when ready. We will time you accordingly.”
I borrowed a saw and cut away the tail end of a log that was dragging like a speed break, and then I tied the raft in a way that I could jettison two logs to make a catamaran. The rules called for eight logs, but we had noticed that a couple of teams only had seven. I had a contingency plan just in case we need it. We never did.
The girls arrived without eating breakfast. We pushed off. I went to turn the GPS on and realized I had left it on the support boat in my backpack. Back to shore we went. I ran back on the clay and silt slope back to the boat, but in my hurry I stepped bare-footed on rebar protruding from a cement block. Yes, on the first day of the race my sandals had disappeared. The rod pierced the skin, but I did not say anything, not wanting to delay us any longer. We were already the last to leave. It was painful for everyone to watch the rafts disappearing before our eyes.
We struggled to catch up, but the competition was smarter now and was riding the current better than ever. Finally I stopped the crew to rest and eat breakfast. Again we watched the other rafts leave us behind, but the small break and the food helped us. We had become a new team. We could now control the raft with precision. Linda controlled the starboard side so whenever the nose drifted left she would turn it right. When ever we needed to turn to the portside, Claudine would take control. “Just call me lefty,” she would say with a self-satisfying grin on her face.
The sun was hotter than ever. Sonja’s face and back were bright red, even with Super Block, SPF 55. My legs, not accustomed to being exposed were frying and a large patch of skin peeled off. Sonja would jump into the muddy water of the Amazon regularly and Claudine and Linda poured water over themselves. Again we caught up with the trailing rafts. Two attempted to slow us down by blocking our passage-- all in fun—or was it? We got past them and gained on the next raft. We caught up to them but were in need of a break, so I asked the ladies to start talking to the other team. A second later Sonja was in the water, so was a member of the other team. We could now rest without loosing our position. We passed them a few minutes later.
Linda and Sonja took over the GPS and would call out our speed. Their stamina and competitive spirit took over. “We are not going to let anyone pass us,” they would say. An afternoon head-wind came up; now the other teams could not find the current, but we could. So we gained on another raft. The waves grew larger and heavier riverboats passed more frequently leaving large wakes. If hit broadside, a large wake had the potential of pulling our raft apart.
When a large boat approached I prepped the team. “We are going to turn sharp into the wake. On my command. Secure your gear. “The boat came near us. Linda was concerned. At the last moment, the boat veered a little giving us more space. “Now” Claudine dug her paddle in, Sonja and Linda paddled harder to swing the raft around and I pulled the nose. The wake hit us head on; all the logs rose up in unison on the crossbeams with no pressure on the binding. All the gear was pushed up and landed back on the raft. Our legs had been refreshed by the wave and our spirits rose again with joy. We were little children having a great time playing in the creek.
In the wind we passed one more raft, but this time the other rafters had changed their strategy. They no longer attempted to pass us. They just followed us waiting to make their move, but by then, our team was in high spirits and had rhythm. We ate our avocados and bread, drank our warm water, sang and laughed. One team got tangled in fishing net; another went into the wrong channel and had to come back out.
We finally made it to the mouth of the Nanay River and now had to paddle 500 yards up stream. The GPS went from 4.5 miles per hour to .9 miles per hour. What an ugly way to finish. The counter current pushed us back, we pushed back, the current never tires but we were worn out after three days and our final energy quickly drained. Then a trailing raft entered the Nanay, and Linda exploded like a firecracker. Sonja dug deep showing more strength and persistence than she had ever done. Claudine´s quiet demeanor now became that of an officer in combat. We paddled as if we were struggling for our lives. The rafts full of younger stronger competitors, that had followed us for half the day now started to pass us. “We have cumulative time,” I would say between stokes, we are still ahead. That last hour brought out everyone’s inner character and like steel under the forge became as sharp polished swords.
We came in ninth place that last day, but we were first in our minds and hearts. We had pushed our envelope. We were on top of the world, we were elated, and as Linda said it best for all of us, (we) “felt young and strong.”
We came in fifth place overall. We celebrated with the whole group. There were no losers in this group. No one got voted off the island.
But as quickly as we came together, as it is when traveling, we parted company. Claudine went into the jungle with a guide to visit a remote tribe. Sonja has also gone off into the jungle with new found friends to consult a Shaman. Linda has returned to her computer to respond to 558 e-mails from her students. And I have now concluded my adventure, returning to the States tonight on a flight out of Iquitos.
The blood in my veins has been replaced by the Amazon River’s *muddy water and its current will now run in my soul till I die.
* Editor's note = The Amazon River is Turbid, not muddy. It's due to high levels of minerals in the water making visibility about 2 or 3 inches at times and it's color is "muddy brown".
