The Quinault Indian Nation Canoe Race

Lining up for the start beneath Simpson Avenue Bridge

Facing the camera is race winner Todd Pickernell.

And they're off in the third heat!

Winner Todd Pickernell racing second around the turn

Saturday Hoquiam, Wash., held its 61st annual Loggers' Playday, a festival celebrating the town's roots in the logging industry.

The day included Quinault Indian Nation canoe racing on the Hoquiam River, which is the event that caught my attention, as I could hear the motors raring from inside my apartment three blocks away.

I hesitated going down to the races – not a big fan of festivals and crowds – but they were holding the races between our two bridges inside the Hoquiam River Loop, a walking trail I frequently photograph for the blog. It seemed like I should document this unique use of the area, so I finally convinced myself to go. I made it down there just in time to catch the final heat of the day.

It clearly takes some skill to navigate these canoes. According to two news reports I dug up from previous years (here and here), the hand-carved cedar canoes are two feet wide, 20-22 feet long, and powered by a 25 horsepower engine. They can reach speeds up to 50 mph, though this track on the Hoquiam is only 1000 yards long, so I doubt they reached top speed here. Still, the racers were using their bodies to steer around the corners as much as they were the tiller – it appears to be quite the athletic balancing act.

I was so busy photographing the action that I really didn't pay attention to the race. I had no idea who won. Through some Facebook sleuthing, I was able to track down Bina Sampson, who helped organized this year's event with her husband. She identified the winner as Todd Pickernell, the racer in the plain brown canoe (facing the camera in photo 4 of this series and racing second in photo 6).

This is the second year they've held the canoe races during Loggers' Playday, after a long hiatus beginning the the 1980s. Hopefully next year it returns and I'll get down to the river early and find a better angle for the photos.

For the best experience view this post on Liketu