Retired race chairman Jeffrey DeFeo said this is the 1st time in the 59-year history of the event that there is not enough water.
HUNTINGTON – A mild 2011-2012 winter will take its toll on the annual running of the Westfield River Wildwater Races this month.
A lack of snow melt and rain will force the Westfield River Canoe Club to cancel one of the two days of competition, organizers said.
The 59th annual race will be held April 21. It had been scheduled for April 21-22 with novices racing on Saturday and experts competing on April 22.
“We will consolidate everything into one day and do our best to accommodate all participants,” race chairman Edward A. Smith said Tuesday.
Retired chairman Jeffrey M. DeFeo said, “This is the first time ever there is not enough water. It may also be the first time in race history that the leaves are out.” DeFeo was referring to the early spring blooming of trees and plants.
Smith said the decision was made to consolidate novice and expert class races into one day of competition after being notified by officials at Knightville of the low water situation.
Water flow in the Westfield River is controlled by the Army Corps of Engineers at the Knightville Dam, and Smith and DeFeo said the lack of water will make it difficult to maintain the needed flow for two days of racing.
The canoe club was forced to cancel a scheduled paddling clinics last Saturday and another scheduled for this Saturday. Clinics are held each year on the two or three weekends prior to the race to introduce newcomers to the river.
Races April 21 will include the novice course that extends about eight miles from the state’s Department of Transportation yard at Norwich Bridge on Route 112 in Huntington to Strathmore Park in Russell.
Expert competitors will race a 12-mile course that begins at the base of Knightville Dam and continues to Strathmore Park.
“We still have to plan the logistics for the expert race and that information will be posted on our website as soon as possible,” Smith said.
The website is www.westfieldriverraces.com.
“It might get a little crowded on the river that day with both expert and novice competitors,” said DeFeo. “They will just have to deal with it and go around,” he said.
The race regularly draws upwards of 200 novice paddlers and at least 50 expert competitors.