CAT Race Cancelled. Possibilities for 2012.

Today the organizing committee for the inaugural Cannonsville Adventure Triathlon decided to cancel the event for this year. Low registrations with only three weeks left to hit minimum targets, and large financial and time commitments, that needed to be made in the next few days, were the main reasons for the cancellation. The CAT Race was planned to be an adventure type triathlon featuring run and bike legs, with the swim replaced by a paddle.

The Cannonsville Adventure Triathlon organizing committee wants to thank the numerous volunteer efforts from the staff of the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce, Delaware County Economic Development, the town and village of Hancock, local and state highway departments, the Delaware County Sheriff’s office and Emergency Management Service, New York State troopers, the Hancock Chamber of Commerce, Hancock Partners, as well as the New York City Department of Environmental Protection and the Catskill Watershed Corporation.

"It is unfortunate that all the parties involved with the first inaugural Cannonsville Adventure Triathlon had to make a decision to cancel the event for lack of participation. I believe the overall economic condition in our region at this time have made possible participants very cautious when it comes to spending their entertainment dollars." stated Jim Eisel, Chairman of the Board of Supervisors of Delaware County.

Glenn Nealis, Director of Economic Development for Delaware County, sees promise in a future reincarnation of the CAT Race. “Our goal is to promote this access to the Cannonsville Reservoir and the recreational opportunities in Delaware County. We will take another look at what type of race we can hold here that will highlight those assets and be easy for racers to participate in. What that will look like for 2012 will be decided over the coming months – be it a true triathlon, biathlon, paddle only event or adventure race with different components.”

“The cooperation between all these organizations must be applauded.” stated Mary Beth Silano, Executive Director of the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce. “Everyone was incredibly professional, accessible, and thorough in putting together their portion of the event. While we are all disappointed we could not start it this year, we are eager to put what we learned to work for a great event next year.”

In 2009, the DEP launched a three-year pilot program to expand recreational boating opportunities at Cannonsville Reservoir, which meant that kayaks, canoes, rowboats and small sailboats were allowed on the reservoir. The Cannonsville Reservoir features nine boat launch sites that ring the shoreline, all outfitted with parking areas and port-a-johns. During the first year, 185 permit holders requested 407 boat tags. Last year, about 160 permit holders requested 344 boat tags. (Each tag is valid for one week with the requirement that the boat be kept on reservoir grounds.) All person in the boats using the Cannonsville waters must acquire an Access Permit from DEP. Permits are free and easy to obtain online at www.nyc.gov/dep. DEP boating access rules require that the canoes and kayaks be steam cleaned prior to going out on the water. There is a fee for the boat cleaning.

The reservoir is open for recreational boating from Memorial Day weekend through Columbus Day weekend, from dawn until dusk. The waters, while flat, do have currents and good winds, providing a great boating or sailing experience. Bald eagles nest along the eastern portion of the reservoir and can often be seen scouting the waters for fish. A free map with rules and regulations for boating on Cannonsville Reservoir is available by calling 866-775-4425, emailing info@greatwesterncatskills.com, or stopping by the Delaware County Chamber office at 5 ½ Main Street in Delhi.

To stay informed of future plans for the race, participants should bookmark the race blog at cannonsvilletriathlon.blogspot.com.


Contact:
For more information, please contact Mary Beth Silano at msilano@delawarecounty.org.

The CAT Race is cancelled.

We are sorry to announce, but the organizing committee for the inaugural Cannonsville Adventure Triathlon has decided to cancel the event due to low registration numbers.

We will be posting a joint press release here shortly to explain the reasons and future possibilities. Thank you for your interest.

If you would like to stay posted about this race for the future, please send an email to cannonsvilletriathlon@gmail.com and we will put you on a list for future news.

Teamwork: Making the CAT a Fun First Race

When we created the CAT Race, we envisioned it as a great team event that would allow racers to participate on a more recreational level. There are amazing folks who do these adventure races who have the ability to load not only a bicycle on their car but a kayak or canoe as well (we want to see a photo of that!!). But it's a lot easier if one person drives here with their bike and other with their boat and they race as a team.

Teams can be 2, 3 or 4 people (2 person canoe leg).

Make it a great weekend to get the team together and hang out in Hancock. Have some great warm up rides or paddles on Saturday and a great dinner in town Saturday night. Choose from a local campground, motel, cabin rental or B&B for your stay. Remember your NYC DEP access permit lasts for 3 years so this could be your inaugural trip to the western Catskills and the first of many as you'll want to return again and again!!

Winners Purses Announced for CAT Race

Woo Hoo!! Purses for top finishers have been announced for the CAT Race. Fastest finishing male, female and team will each receive $500. This should make for quite a competitive race!

There will be more classes of racers and the bragging rights that go along with winning your class. Besides gender divisions (male, female and team), classes will be set by type of boat (regular or pro), and then age groups (in ten year increments). If there are not enough racers in a category they will be combined with the nearest class.

All racers will receive a beautiful bluestone medallion comemmorating the race, a complimentary Inaugural Race T-shirt as well as a meal voucher and drink ticket (beer or non-alcoholic beverage) for after the race.

Why Steam Clean My Boat?

We know it seems like a burden. Why do I have to show up a day early and have my boat steam cleaned? Welcome to the Watershed!

The responsibility for providing clean drinking water to millions of people every day is a task the New York City Department of Environmental Protection (NYC DEP) takes seriously. The Cannonsville Reservoir alone holds 96 billion gallons of water and covers miles and miles of shoreline. It is part of one of the largest unfiltered water systems, being used by 9 million consumers. Up to 800 million gallons of water are allowed to be taken out of the Delaware System each day - just imagine if that had to be cleaned because an invasive species or two got a foothold in the waters or shoreline.

Invasive species such as Zebra/Quagga Mussels, Japanese Knotweed, or Rock Snot are known to all public water system managers. A nonindigenous species is one that "threatens the diversity or abundance of native species or the ecological stability of infested waters, or commercial, agricultural, aquacultural, or recreational activities dependent upon such waters" says the NYState DEC website.

We appreciate that all you racers will have to jump through this hoop, but hope the lure of racing around the Cannonsville and hospitality of the folks in Hancock will make it all worthwhile. The Google map for the race course also shows the locations of the boat cleaning businesses. We highly recommend and oh so strongly urge you to make an appointment at one to ensure your boat is cleaned by Saturday evening and dropped off at the transition area. Folks who register later will likely have to get a boat cleaning appointment earlier in the day on Saturday or possibly even on Friday. The entire process of cleaning a boat takes about 20 minutes.

Allowing for recreation on their reservoir is one way the City pays it back to the local communities and business and greatly appreciated by them. Additional recreation is allowed on designated City lands such as hiking and hunting.

While these regulations exist, the lands around the reservoirs are kept in pristine condition and that is no exaggeration. The DEP has their own police force that patrols them. Likewise the lands that filter the water and moves it to the creeks and streams that flow into the reservoirs are equally protected. Farms work with the City to manage livestock and runoff, which keep the farms in good working condition and attractive to drive by. While the topography of the mountains will keep development at bay, the regulations add to that by having strict guidelines for development. Large projects can happen but with higher standards for roads, runoff, spectic, impervious surfaces. The City also buys land outright or purchases development rights from landowners,keeping even more land undeveloped and open space protected. When you talk about how green an event is, it really doesn't get any greener than this!!

The Western Catskills do have a different look about them in the Watershed lands. It is uncrowded and beautiful. A paradise for those that like four seasons of weather and being out in Mother Nature's playground. We hope that once you've been here for the CAT Race you'll come back again and again!