New 410-mile paddle race combines two events

Staff Report
For the first time this October, paddlers will have the option to participate in a 410-mile kayak and canoe race set to end in Berwick. The race combines two separate races, according to a news release from Ken Grissom of Teche News.
The 410 de Louisiane, is set to start in Shreveport on Sept. 27, and end in Berwick on Oct. 4, the release said. The event consists of two separate, stand-alone races, Tour de la Riviere Rouge and Tour du Teche. The combined 410-mile race is designed to attract the attention of serious canoe and kayak racers around the world, foster low-impact outdoor recreation, and give Louisianians a better appreciation for the great natural beauty and riverine heritage of the state, the release said.
Tour de la Riviere Rouge is a round-the-clock adventure race for accomplished long-distance paddlers, the release said. It goes from Shreveport to Port Barre in St. Landry Parish via the Red River, Atchafalaya River and Bayou Courtableau 275 miles to be paddled inside of 100 hours, according to the release.
Tour du Teche 135, a race now in its sixth year, is a three-day staged race with finish lines each day and times accumulative. On Oct. 2, paddlers will go from Port Barre to St. Martinville. On, Oct. 3, the race travels from St. Martinville to Franklin Saturday, Oct. 3; and finally from Franklin to Berwick on Sunday.
The town of Berwick holds an annual festival in conjunction with the race. “It shows how popular that the event has become adding that much more mileage to the total race,” Berwick Mayor Louis Ratcliff said. “Hopefully, that’s going to attract more people to attend the race.”
Since the Tour du Teche began, Bayou Teche has been designated a National Paddle Trail by the U.S. Park Service and a National Water Trail by the U.S. Interior Department, the release said. The Chitimacha Nation is building a new park on the bayou. The route features commercial kayak liveries on Bayou Teche, and government-funded kayak launch pads at various spots, the release stated.
The TECHE Project, which spawned Tour du Teche, conducts periodic clean-ups of the bayou. The city of St. Martinville created a bayou-side park as a venue for festivals as well as a finish and start for the tour, the release said.
For more information, visit www.tourduteche.com; email ken@techetoday.com; or call 337-394-6232 and ask for Ken Grissom.