Registered or Premium Member? LOG IN | Become a Member: TRY PREMIUM FREE
|
SEA PADDLE NYC
Lopez, Doerner, Malloy and friends brave the Hudson to raise autism awareness
By:
Tim Donnelly
Photos: Photos: Donald Cresitello/ESM
|
August 20, 2008
9454 visits
|
|
They dodged sea planes, cruise ships, bridges, currents and commuter boats with jet propelled engines.
They maneuvered around dangerous decrepit piers that were centuries old while working their way through headwinds that were brutal enough to even slow down legends like Gerry Lopez and Derrick Doerner.
The paddle started in the East River, just north of the South Street Seaport, with participants jumping in the water or we say here, "da watah." Yeah, you read it right, some of the hearty jumped into the "no-go H20." |
|
As the paddling band moved north with the aid of a swift current and wind at their back, they travelled at a steady pace. Tom Curren quickly joined in after being delayed in Monday morning traffic as fabulously legendary women like Jericho Poppler and Peggy Munoz traded shifts on their inflatable stand up paddle board. The sight of them and all the others literally walking on water in front of such global landmarks like the United Nations and Yankee Stadium was as awe inspiring, as the horn honks from speeding vehicles on the FDR Drive and "Hey, yo's" from the locals in Spanish Harlem when the paddlers entered the Harlem River. "It was heavy, especially going past the ferry terminals, where those jet engines just want to suck you in. I had to keep moving."
-- Keith Malloy.
It was the last of the fun as the group rounded the bend into the Hudson River. It maybe known as the Hudson River to the rest of us, however it is known as the "North River" on nautical maps, but to the paddlers, it was "The S.O.B. River." So imagine this sight, a gusting headwind and sun beating the participants in the face, making the remainder of the trip along the skyscraper laden West Side, "The No Fun Zone." With the aid of a half of a Jersey-made tuna sub sandwich I handed over to him in the Harlem River for energy, Keith Malloy kept pushing himself through the spray, making dockworkers along the water's edge put down their tools long enough to cheer Malloy and the rest of the now not-so-merry paddlers on. "It was heavy, especially going past the ferry terminals, where those jet engines just want to suck you in. I had to keep moving," he said. Malloy finished strong when end point of the 28-mile journey, the North Cove came into his sightline. "When we made it to the Hudson, I hit the wall," said Gerry Lopez. "But, no matter what, I was not to going to lay down. I was going to stand, even if I was the last to finish." Of course Gerry Lopez didn't finish last, but Derrick Doerner's lifeguard instincts kicked in whether he knew it or not, as the pace slowed to a crawl and fatigue set in. "I stayed in the back of the pack. It was a little chaotic around with ferries running across. It wasn't easy, for anyone," said Doerner. "Of course it was worth it. But doing it again, I rather not think about that right now." Special Thanks to the Jersey City Fire Department's Marine One crew for their hospitality. MORE SURF NEWS SURFLINE HOME PAGE |