New paddle race series launches with sprint through San Antonio River Walk

Chris LeBlanc paddles his kayak along the San Antonio Riverwalk during a pilot program on Nov. 8, 2020. A new paddle race series will include an event on the Riverwalk. Pam LeBlanc photo

For those days when log jams, onlooking cows, and the quiet of a natural Texas river just don’t inspire you to load up the canoe, the San Antonio River Authority presents the Battle of the Paddle, the first in a new paddle race series.

The sprint race, two laps around the Historic San Antonio Riverwalk for a total of 5 frantic miles, will offer competitors the chance to slice through San Antonio’s favorite downtown destination, calling “huts” as onlookers watch from restaurants and shops along the river.

READ MORE: Texas Water Safari tests paddlers with 260 mile race from San Marcos to the coast

The 2022 San Antonio River Basin Race Series includes three other races:

• The Saspamco Showdown, a 12-mile dash from River Crossing Park near Elmendorf to the John William Helton-SA River Nature Park in Floresville, is set for March 19.
• The Mission Reach Rally on Sept. 25 covers 8 miles and includes 30 paddling chutes that can only accommodate one boat at a time. (Racers are to portage instead of waiting for clearance.) There is one mandatory portage – a 1,100-foot bypass of a dam. The Mission Reach Paddling Trail, part of the San Antonio River Walk, starts at Roosevelt Park and ends at low water crossing bridge at Camino Coahuilteca.
• The Remember Goliad Paddling Race is scheduled for Oct. 8. The 16-mile course covers the Goliad Paddling Trail and finishes in Goliad, offering the only rural experience in the series.

Awards ceremonies with prizes for the top three finishers in each category will be held following each race.

Categories include women’s unlimited solo, women’s USCA-C1 solo, men’s unlimited solo, men’s USCA C-1, mixed tandem unlimited, tandem unlimited, and USCA C2.