One week ago on what some are calling a history making day on Cleveland’s hard-working, scenic, and historic Cuyahoga River, many of you were part of the 3rd Annual Blazing Paddles Paddlefest. During a short vacation (and an exhilarating whitewater rafting trip down the Cheat Narrows) in Dryfork, WV we’ve had a chance to reflect on what transpired on that amazing Saturday morning and we wanted to share a few thoughts. And some background.

We’re grateful so many of you took us up on our invite to be a part of this year’s Blazing Paddles Paddlefest. We’re now seeing a lot of folks on social responding to photos from Saturday and writing "Wish I had known about this!” and we apologize for the “pop-up” nature of this year’s Blazing Paddles. Part of the reason we came out of the “six weeks out” gates so fast was our uncertainty with how our nation’s emergence from COVID's shadow would go. But once the NFL draft in Cleveland happened to great fanfare and reviews, it was go time and we picked a date that:

Filled a somewhat empty event calendar in northeast Ohio (the City of Cleveland had just begun permitting events and festivals so event planners were gearing up for events and festivals in August and September).
Wouldn't conflict with the July 31 American Canoe Association Ohio State Canoe, Kayak & Paddleboard championship on the Grand River at Lake Metroparks.
Wouldn't conflict with next weekend's Ohio River Paddlefest in Cincinnati.

The other reason for our late break out of the gates was our previous marine event permit had to go through a completely new review by the U.S. Coast Guard due to us pushing out more than three weeks beyond our traditional “third Saturday in June” date. Our “third Saturday in July” date is now solidly embedded as an annual marine event in the Code of Federal Regulations. We are extremely thankful for United States Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Cleveland and Sector Buffalo’s due diligence, professionalism, and responsiveness to our permit request. We’ll probably get in trouble for saying this but the U.S. Coast Guard is one responsive federal agency!

With our “six weeks away” date in hand we quickly turned to securing our event venues at Cleveland Metroparks Merwin’s Wharf and Cleveland Rowing Foundation. We’re especially grateful to Cleveland Metroparks for working with us as Cleveland waterfront, trail, and greenspace stakeholder interest in the Blazing Paddles Paddlefest’s “After Paddle” mushroomed. We’re also SO appreciative of Cleveland Metroparks Police for providing overnight security at Rivergate Park, ensuring our paddlers could rest easy after checking in their watercraft Friday night. Thanks also to Cleveland Police Third District and Downtown Cleveland Alliance Security for their additional patrols by the Rivergate Park site.

NO event with the scope and scale of Blazing Paddles happens without the support of sponsors and Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District, The Port of Cleveland, the Goodtime III, The Trust for Public Land, Environmental Design Group, Collision Bend Brewing Co., Flats Forward, & OHM Advisors were invaluable in helping make the 3rd Blazing Paddles Paddlefest a reality.

We’re especially grateful for the support of Cuyahoga River Safety Task Force members and, in particular, Lake Carriers’ Association (LCA). LCA didn't have to take a chance on us when we hosted the inaugural Blazing Paddles in 2018, a paddleboard only event with 80 entries. But they did, and their continued support is much appreciated. Please return their favor by learning how to responsibly share the river with commercial freighters and other maritime stakeholders. The Cuyahoga River’s industrial stakeholders also had skin in the Blazing Paddles game - when an industrial behemoth like Cleveland-Cliffs (North America’s largest producer of flat rolled steel and iron ore pellets) gives a nod to recreational users, that recognition serves as a national model for shared used of a Federal Navigation Channel.

Our founder, Jim Ridge, is fond of saying “Once you get past me I have a very professional organization” and while that may be overly simplifying matters, it is profoundly true when it comes to the substantial resources that were focused on ensuring our paddlers enjoyed a safe morning on the Cuyahoga River.

Capt. Drew Ferguson/PHASTAR developed and implemented our on-the-water safety plan (coming in especially handy when a morning hiccup occurred) They also had their PHASTAR 2543 fast response vessel and a rescue jet ski on the river, ready to respond at a moment’s notice.
U.S. Coast Guard Marine Safety Unit Cleveland deployed a marine asset at the Center Street Swing Bridge to enforce a five-hour safety zone.
Ohio Department of Natural Resources deployed a 27’ patrol boat providing both eyes, ears, and response capabilities on the river should an emergency have happened.
University Hospitals provided both on-land and on-the-water coverage with their emergency response trailer at Rivergate Park and an EMT on PHASTAR’s 2543 vessel, the areas first dedicated EMS/Rescue boat.
Cuyahoga Valley National Park deployed two river rangers and 4 volunteer river rovers (both thoroughly trained in river rescue techniques) on the Cuyahoga River during the Dave Vasarhelyi Memorial Recreational Paddle & Float.

Another pro working with us behind the scenes was Mickey Rzymek, the owner of North Coast Multisports, an Ohio-based endurance sports events and promotions company (those in the know know him as the man who helped bring the USA Triathlon Age Group National Championships to Cleveland in 2018 & 2019). Mickey’s been whispering in our ear since the 2017 Burning River Ramble and his over the horizon thinking, planning and wise counsel has been invaluable as we scale the Blazing Paddles Paddlefest into a major event on the northeast Ohio and the national paddling event calendar.

Speaking of pros, our kayak rental livery partners Burning River Adventures and River Cruiser Kayaking helped us break a record this year with 51 kayak rentals! Thanks also to Burning River Adventures for donating some swag for our recreational paddlers!

Finally, we were GREATLY encouraged to hear such positive feedback from many of you about our volunteers. From the check-in tables to assisting you with your kayak, canoe, or paddleboard, our volunteers made Friday night’s early check-in and Saturday’s load-in and take-out go as smoothly as possible.

Paddlers from Ohio and 9 other states traveled to Cleveland to be part of an amazing Saturday morning on Cleveland's Cuyahoga River. The winner of the coveted Marco Polo award is Maureen, who traveled with her family 8,456 miles from Mozambique, Africa to Cleveland. Her prize was a metal print of a fabulous photo creation of Cleveland;s riverfront by renowned landscape photographer Lawson Whitaker! Maureen says she and her sons will be returning for the 4th Annual Blazing Paddles Paddlefest on Saturday, July 23, 2022 and they are a wonderful pep-talk for what we believe the Blazing Paddles Paddlefest has become: an annual tradition for families and friends to make memories while having a fun time on Cleveland's hard-working, scenic, and historic Cuyahoga River. Check out the video for our interview!

As we look to improve the Blazing Paddles Paddlefest we’d welcome your feedback. We’ll be sending out a survey on Tuesday, August 3 so please keep an eye out for that e-mail. We know we still have a few kinks to work out, and we appreciate your insight on what we can do to make your experience more enjoyable. We’ll also be hosting a t-shirt reorder pick-up and in-person “hot wash” at Brick & Barrel Brewing during the week of August 8th. Details on the specific date will be shared shortly.

As our nation emerged from the shadow of COVID, we were cautioned to temper our expectations of substantial growth for our event ("Consider it a success if you get half of your 250 paddlers from 2019"). Incredibly, 364 northeast Ohio paddlers and paddlers from nine other states turned out for our inaugural Dave Vasarhelyi Memorial Recreational Paddle and Float and three races. We are SO grateful for your support, and we’ll be working hard with our partners over the next eleven months to make a bigger and better 4th Annual Blazing Paddles Paddlefest on July 23, 2022 a reality.

If you enjoyed your morning on the Cuyahoga River, please consider supporting Share the River’s continued 501(c)(3) efforts on behalf of Cleveland’s waterfront, trails and greenspaces by making your contribution today. With all that said, go out and have a fun day on your favorite body of water!

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