Being out on the water paddling for a few hours is enough to wear your arms down more than working out at the gym. But what about paddling for 24-hours straight? Not many people I know, and I know a fair number of paddlers, could do that. But last May, Brandon Nelson not only paddled for a full day, but he paddled farther in those 24 hours than anyone in history has without the benefit of current. Oh, and then he collapsed.
Nelson kayaked 146 miles around a two-mile course on Washington’s Lake Whatcom to complete a new world ultra marathon kayak racing record. The 34-year-old hard-core paddler was out not just to set a new record, but also to raise almost $20,000 for a local hospice foundation. The effort honored Nelson’s mother, a Hospice worker who recently died from ovarian cancer. Looks like the previous world record was 137 miles, set by South African kayaker Marinda Hartzenberg in 1991.