Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race

The first Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race is held on May 21, 1967. Thirty two boats are entered in the inaugural race with fifty one paddlers registered; Sam Stoddard and Jim Robbins finish with the overall best time of 2:52:53 in the 2-Man Canoe class.

Most paddlers bump into submerged rocks, logs or even other canoes. Walter Abbott reports that he and his paddling partner bumped into a different sort of obstacle during the 1972 race: the rotting carcass of a dead cow tangled up in a strainer on the stream somewhere in the vicinity of the Bullseye Bridge. "It was there pretty near all spring." (So where were the actual river vultures?)

Concrete canoes, built by University of Maine engineering students, make their debut at the Kenduskeag. Some of the canoes are relatively light, weighing in at a svelte 150 pounds. Personal floatation device required; hernia truss optional.

Tony Trafton, one of the participants in the 1967 inaugural race of the Kenduskeag among others, attempts to do the race in a bathtub. Yes, a bathtub. After finding the portages "too cumbersome", Tony attempts a clean exit by throwing in the towel for the remainder of the race. Or pulling the plug, depending on which bad pun you'd rather go down the drain with.

The 13th Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race sees participation top 500 for the first time in its history. (513 to be exact).

With exquisite timing that borders on the uncanny, two paddlers in a canoe somehow manage to precisely align their arrival at Six Mile Falls with a pizza delivery, which they lunch on before continuing down the stream towards Bangor.

Mainers are a hardy lot. While there have been at least four races held during cold and snowy weather since 1967, the Blizzard of 1988 stands apart. Paddlers described the snow-covered trees alongside the stream as "incredibly beautiful" but the conditions cause problems with frozen limbs, hypothermia, slipping and sliding on portages and problems with timekeeping. "It's hard to time a paddler's finish when you can barely see where they are."

Two paddlers portage their canoe the entire length of the race, according to Dale Theriault, a former director at Bangor Parks and Recreation. "They didn't put their canoe into the water once." The two hikers who burdened themselves by carrying a canoe between them for an arduous 16.5 miles are rewarded with a disqualification upon their arrival at the finish line in Bangor.

1994 sees the highest numbers of registered boats and paddlers of any Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race (as of this writing in 2022). 745 craft and 1,529 paddlers are registered. This tops the previous record set in 1992 with 745 craft and 1,476 paddlers registered. (See the Race Numbers page for a complete breakdown of race participation since 1967).

Robert Lang of New Brunswick, Canada sets the record time of 1:50:08 in a kayak. An overall top speed record which (as of this writing) still stands.

Testing the strength of the notion held by some that "only kayakers can succeed in this canoe race", Jeff Owen and Steve Woodard set a new 2-man canoe record with a smashing time of 1:52:30. As of this writing in 2022, this is the third fastest time ever recorded on the Kenduskeag. Owen and Woodard are roundly applauded for their showing on the stream by fellow racers, many of whom are kayakers.

William Stearns, paddler, boatbuilder and principle founder of Penobscot Paddle and Chowder Society (1931-2010)

(Also see the entry for Fern & Bill Stearns in Legends of Paddling)

2012 sees some of the lowest water levels ever recorded on the Kenduskeag Stream in springtime with just 104 cubic feet per second of water flowing by the stream gauge at Six Mile Falls on the eve of the race. But this doesn't dampen the spirits of paddlers - and the race goes on even it is described by some as "a slog".

The canoe race is shortened by 1 mile due to high water levels combined with a rising tide which causes clearance problems under the bridges in Bangor. The race ends before the Maxfield Mill portage. Paddlers do not run any of the rapids closer to Bangor which disappoints some race veterans. As one paddler put it, "shame really, looked awful sporty."

For the first time in race history, the Kenduskeag is postponed due to water conditions including ice in the stream. Originally scheduled for April 18, the race is held one week later.

For the first time since it began in 1967, the Kenduskeag Stream Canoe Race is cancelled. The COVID-19 global pandemic ends the streak of 53 consecutive races.