Registration open for Rivière Rouge, 410 & Tour du Teche

PHOTO: Kayakers John Bienvenu and James Bienvenu of Lafayette come into a checkpoint on placid Bayou Teche in the Tour du Teche 135. The 275-mile Tour de la Riviere Rouge, with no checkpoints, no mandatory overnight stops, will be a lot more challenging for one- and two-paddler teams. (Ron J. Berard/Tour du Teche)

Effective May 1, early registration is open for all Tour du Teche paddle races, including the exciting new ubermarathons being launched from Shreveport-Bossier City, the Tour de la Rivière Rouge and 410 de Louisiane.
And for the first time, online registration is available through Webscorer.
The two new races are Rivière Rouge, 275 miles from Shreveport-Bossier down the Red and Atchafalaya rivers and into Bayou Courtableau to Port Barre, and the 410 (miles), which is a combination of Rivière Rouge and the Tour du Teche 135, down the entire length of Bayou Teche to Berwick on the Atchafalaya.
Early registration includes varying discounts on fees. Check on Webscorer for a specific race. Early registration ends May 31.
General registration is from June 1 to Sept. 12.
To register online, go to www.tourduteche.com and click on the green stopwatch icon, which brings you to the Webscorer site and a comprehensive chart of events catalogued by Webscorer worldwide. At the upper right, click on “Any Sport,” which produces a dropbox of different categories. Click “Clear all,” then scroll down, check “Paddling,” and search by date: May 16 for the Chitimacha (another new race), Sept. 27 for Rivière Rouge and 410, and Oct. 2 for Tour du Teche 135 and its many side races.
Racing canoes and kayaks from north to south Louisiana presents a whole set of new challenges. Unlike Bayou Teche, which historically served as Main Street for its many communities, the Red River and the Atchafalaya are rural and far less accessible. Consequently, Rivière Rouge teams are required to have a coureur de bois, or bank runner, and to continually broadcast their position via a SPOT Gen3 unit, available at Bass Pro Shops, Cabela’s, West Marine and other specialty retailers, or from a variety of sources online.
Those requirements are lifted (albeit still highly recommended) once the TDT racing community departs Port Barre for the Teche.
Here are the races conducted in the Teche Country:

•Chitimacha – New Iberia, La., to the Chitimacha Indian Reservation, Charenton, La., May 16, 20 miles;
•Tour du Teche 135 – Port Barre, La., Oct. 2-4, to Berwick, La., 135 miles over three days;
•Crawfish – Port Barre, La., to Breaux Bridge, La., Oct. 2, 34 miles;
•Acadian – Port Barre, La., to St. Martinville, La., Oct. 2, 49 miles;
•Hot Sauce – St. Martinville, La., to New Iberia, La., Oct. 3, 24 miles;
•Sugar – St. Martinville, La., to Franklin, La., Oct. 3, 59 miles Saturday;
•Black Bear – New Iberia, La., to Franklin, La., Oct. 3, 35 miles Saturday;
•Oil & Gas – Franklin, La., to Berwick, La., Oct. 4, 27 miles.

For more information, visit www.tourduteche.com, e-mail info@tourduteche.com or call (337) 394-6232 and ask for Ken.