LOCALadk Magazine

LOCALadk 30 We didn't aim to be competitive that year, and it's a good thing: We made the cut-off times each day, but usually not by much. The Queen Jean crossed the finish line with a final time of 18:46:44. We definitely didn't set any speed records, but we did record one of the most memorable trips to date in our family histor y. Despite the circumstances, with these ups and downs, I've come to appreciate that, more than where you are going and how fast you get there, it's who you are with matters most. This memor y holds new mean- ing for me today. As a parent of two, I am eager to share my pas- sion for the water with my own kids. I look for ward to the day I can join the other parent/child boats in Old Forge at the start of Day 1. I want my kids to experi- ence the highs and lows of pad- dling 90 miles. Even more, I want to share with them the close- ness that each race has brought to my family. We are a close family who talk often (we may have a 14-person family text titled "All in the Fam- ily," led by Grizz). However, in this day and age of 24/7 access and connectivity, it can be hard to find the time and space to bring ever yone together in person. Aside from holidays, cel- ebrations, and less jovial reunions, it's rare that we are able to gather for any significant amount of time, let alone for three days. I always look for ward to that second weekend of Septem- ber knowing that several of us will be together again, freely sharing funny (usually somewhat embarrassing) family mem- ories, often with ver y little filter. I'm pretty sure Mom learns something new from our childhood each year as stories are told around the campfire. These stories are proof, time and again, that memor y is falli- ble and notoriously unreliable. Even so, there is something spe- cial about sitting around after a long day on the water compar- ing stories of embellished tales that no one can truly confirm or deny. Even (documented) past race times tend to miraculous- ly improve as the evening pro- gresses. These shared memories told aloud are our experiences; they are what make us family. They belong to us and bring us back to happy days and simple times. They would be harder to find without The 90 bringing us together each year. As with all things in life, change is inevitable. This year marks the first that Mom will pit crew rather than paddle, but she'll still have three boys in the race and Grizz will still be calling the shots off the water. You can take the woman out of the canoe, but you can't keep her away from the race.

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