:: Kayak for a Cure ::

Most of team and many of the support staff and their families got together for some good food at Deano's house on Friday night. The evenings activities culminated in the presentation of a check for over $27,000 for the American Cancer Society. Way to go team!

10:10am EDT - Friday, Aug 19

News Links

8:40am EDT - Wednesday, Aug 17

Donation update and news

The team raised nearly $2,000 yesterday. Thank you to all the generous individuals that continue to give to our cause. We are a few more donations away from meeting our fundraising goal.
Video: Ragarding the dramatic events of yesterday afternoon, last night many of the local news stations had stories about the water spouts. Check out the WOOD TV website to see the video online.

5:37pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Update from Budd

I just got off the phone with Budd. He provided me with a much more acurate and dramatic explanation of what happened 19 miles from Muskegon. From Budd Bentley (paraphrase): "When the team was between 19 and 20 miles from the finish the team received a call from the Lake Express ferry with a warning about bad weather in the area. The captain described seeing water spouts nearby. The team gathered around the support boat and kicked it into second gear... not so easy after 23 hours of paddling. A few minutes later a small water spout formed near the team so they decided that they should get out of the water and into the support boat. Around that same time a huge water spout (Budd says 100 times the size of the first one) formed about 1/2 a mile away. The team ditched their kayaks and got into the support boat; there was no time to secure the kayaks. They left the kayaks and waited for the spout to leave. After it did they began to make their way back to the kayaks which is when another huge water spout formed just 30 feet from the side of the boat. Again, they left the kayaks and went full throttle due West for approximately 2 miles to get away from the spout. The team watched as a total of 5 water spouts formed under the storm cloud. After waiting out the storm, the team went back to find their kayaks, secured them to the support boat and headed toward Muskegon. The team got into their kayaks around 2 miles from the beach and paddled their way to the finish."
I smell a book...

3:17pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Final message

This will be the final update. All of us have been honored to be a part of this event and Brenda's message below is all that needs to be said. I will update the website with images of the journey once I have them all together. The guys were brave and strong and we are all proud of them.

2:54pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

THEY MADE IT!

The team had landed and all is well. Well done men!!!! A couple of messages I thought you might like to read.
From Brenda at Seals Skirts: Hi Jerry - I want to tell you that you guys are doing a great job!! The updates are great...the webcam is awesome! Good luck to the team! I spoke to Craig earlier in the spring about producing the skirts for your boats and told him of my son and his battle with cancer. Mike was 14 years old, and lost his battle in June. What these folks are doing right now is another example of strength and courage.....fight for a cure!!!!! Someday I hope there is one. Good luck to all!!! Kind Regards
From Joy Brasseur: Way to go guys! I couldn't be prouder of all of you! I wish I could be there to welcome you in. Say hello to my sister (Mary Shafer) for me. Great big HUGS to all of you and to the support team!

Live webcams of the beach in Muskegon

You might see the team...

1:45pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

10 miles away

The support boats are about 10 miles out and can be seen from the shore. The team will paddle their boats in the last couple of miles.

1:15pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Headed home

Word from the KFAC support crew on the beach is they expect arrival of the team around 2:30.

12:45pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Trouble update

Captain Mike's wife called to say there are water spouts on the lake so the team and their boats are out of the water on the support boats. Captain Mike, in his sail, boat is headed back to port. The support boats with kayaks and team are headed towards Muskegon. They may be able to put the boats back in the water if the conditions change. For those of you who don't know what water spouts are, Here is an expert decription from Peter Chan of WXMI Fox 17...

A weak upper air disturbance was moving east southeast across the area. This disturbance provided enough lift to produce a few widely scattered showers. The showers that developed west of Muskegon in the late morning were isolated and produced a series of waterspouts. These waterspouts are similar to ones that form in the Florida Keys or Gulf of Mexico during the summertime. This type of spout is not as intense as the tornadic waterspouts associated with severe thunderstorms or the cold air waterspouts that we get in the late summer and fall. Despite being weaker cousins to the ones just mentioned, a safe distance should be maintained by marine interests.

12:35pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Come meet the team

For those of you that wish to meet the team on their arrival at Pere Marquette Beach , KFAC is setting up a white canopy on the outside of the piers. Tony is there now setting things up.

12:22pm EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Trouble in the water

Based on a message that has been relayed from one of the support boats, the storm that was predicted to possbily reach the team has become a reality. Included in this storm were some water spouts (like a small tornado). For safety reasons, the team has boarded the support boat and is now slowing moving toward Muskegon. The team hopes that the storm will pass so that they can put in and finish under paddle power. Here is the radar image from the National Weather Service as of 12:16pm EDT. Notice the small storm directly over the team.

11:28am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Coast Guard

Eric Schmidt of the U.S. Coast Guard called. They will leave port about 1:00 and will meet the team to bring them on into Muskegon.

10:35am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

22 miles from the finish

Captain Mike is on his way out to meet the team in his sail boat and spoke to them via VHF Marine Radio. They are doing great and are about 22 miles from Muskegon. Exact location is: 43' 9.689", 86' 46.746" Everyone is doing great and averaging about 4 miles per hour.

9:28am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Pictures from yesterday

Support boat Captain Steve Deboer took some pictures yesterday (not sure what time) and sent them to me when he got back to Milwaukee. Notice the Lake Express ferry in the background. This gives you a little sense of how big a challenge this is. It's nice to know the Lake Express is involved in the crossing. At this point the team is still out of mobile phone range so we have no further position updates, but hopefully the Lake Express Ferry Captain can give us some information on the next crossing of the ferry.

8:48am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Donations continue to come in

Thank you to everyone who continues to donate to the cause. As of yesterday the team had raised just over $20,000 and by this morning we had received 5 more donations. We are close to reaching our $25,000 goal for the American Cancer Society. If you would like to make a Donation, click here.

8:32am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

No update yet

Some of us were able to get some sleep last night. I'm sure the guys are doing well and enjoying the fact that it is light again. At this point there are no updates available. The guys are in the middle of the lake where mobile phones are of little use. As soon as I hear something from the support team I will report it.

1:20am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

26 miles out

From Tony Christie: "Talked to Captain Steve from Milwaukee just now. Guys are ~26 miles out. Captain Steve left for the harbor in Milwaukee. Captain Charlie took his place. Charlie left from Michigan to meet with the guys. The lake is like glass and the paddlers are tracking at about 5 MPH and enjoying the trip. Guys are all going great. Had 1 small issue with Bill's peddle that controls his rudder. Took about 10 minutes to fix. Thanks Captain Steve for all your help!"

12:03am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 16

Thank you Lake Express

From Jill Miller: "The truck and trailer didn't make it on the ferry. Lake Express will send it over on the 6am route. I should mention Lake Express was AWESOME today. They treated us all like royalty. Kay was extremely accommodating. A special thanks should go out to her to for all her efforts. Additionally, the Holiday Inn Milwaukee City Centre donated rooms last night. A very generous contribution, considering Milwaukee was booked solid..... Rudi and I, and Pam and Luke, and John just came back on the 7pm ferry from Milwaukee. The ride was good. We saw the guys about 15-17 miles out. They weren't too far to the south of the ferry route. The ferry captain actually turned towards the boys a bit to get closer. We stood on the top of the ferry and waved and screamed while the ferry boat captain blew the horn. It was really something to see the guys out there waving their paddles in the air. At that point, Milwaukee is just a spec on the horizon....still a long way to go........"

11:48pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

Web Cam

During the daylight hours check out the Beach webcam in Muskegon. I believe this is where the team will alnd tomorrow afternoon. I just checked and it is dark our there right now.

10:15pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

Nightly News

I just caught the 10PM news on WXMI Fox 17. They showed a brief interview with Budd. Peter Chan (excellent meteorologist) said that the water should stay calm, waves 0 - 2 feet through tomorrow. He also said that the guys may get a bit of rain tomorrow morning or afternoon sometime, but nothing to worry about. Looks like the weather is going to cooperate. Thank you Peter for all the help!

8:30pm EDT- Monday, Aug 15

16 miles out

From Kay Collins at Lake Express: "Just spoke to Captain Mark during our turnaround – he saw the boys “making time” on the way in. Will make sure to point them out to the families taking the 1900 departure!" From Tony Christie: "I just talked to the Captain Cliff. Guys are on 10 minute break. they are about 16 miles out. the paddlers are in good spirits and seem excited about the night paddle." Additional from Tony Christie: Talked to Jill Miller (Rogers Wife) she is taking the ferry back to Michigan now with the truck and trailer." All is well, waves were 3 feet the past hour winds picked up the past hour or so. now are 1 foot or less and wind has died down. A couple of guys got out of their boats to stretch out a bit.

7:40pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

Pictures

Kay Collins from the Lake Express sent some images of the launch. I am going to include a couple in this update in hopes you can get a flavor of the launch. Kay said it was a beautiful day in Milwaukee, as you can see in the pictures. The first image shows the team getting ready to launch. Each team member was making an effort to carry everything with them on their boats and not have to depend on the support boats for supplies, food or water. Some team member have water filters, etc. I believe I was told they will burn 20,000 calories on the paddle, but I could be wrong. Notice the deck rigging and equipment on the decks of the team member's boats below. Most team members have handheld FRS radios and GPS units. After dark they will also have light sticks and special lamps on their vests that have directional lighting out to the side but not forward to interfere with their night vision.

5:09pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

7 miles out

The team is 7 miles out at a little after 5PM your time so they are keeping the 4 MPH they were after. Spirits are high. All is well.

4:00pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

3 miles out

Via cell phone they state all is well. 1 foot waves and they are about 3 miles out.

3:35pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

They are paddling!

I just spoke with Budd on the phone... from his boat! They team started paddling just after 2:00pm EDT. He didn't sound tired at all, in fact, I thought he was standing around. Go Team!

1:45pm EDT - Monday, Aug 15

In Milwaukee

The guys are in Milwaukee getting boats and gear ready and talking to the media. Projected launch is 3:00 EDT. Kay from Lake Express say "it is a beautiful day in Milwaukee."

10:30am EDT - Monday, Aug 15

Somewhere on the Lake Express

Budd just called Tony from the ferry and they are on the way to Milwaukee. Budd and Tony plan to test cellular coverage during the ferry crossing to determine if we will be able to get cellular updates when the Team starts the paddle back. Correction to Update # 6 - The Team plans to land at Pere Marquette Beach tomorrow around 3:00. I misspelled the name of the beach.

9:51am EDT - Monday, Aug 15

Team update

Team member Tony Christie dislocated his shoulder during training a few days ago and was not able to make the crossing. He is helping with communications and support and will be in Muskegon when the team arrives on Tuesday. We wish Tony a speedy recovery and a return to his boat.

8:38am EDT - Monday, Aug 15

We are a go!

The team plans to catch the Monday morning ferry to Milwaukee and will begin the paddle back around 3:00 Monday afternoon. Cliff and Kermit, support boat captains and their crews, left Holland around 7:30 this morning to travel to Milwaukee where they will meet with the team and begin the journey back. They expect to arrive at Pere Maruette Beach in Muskegon around 3:00 Tuesday afternoon. The following came from Vonnie Elhart in response to Update # 5 and with Vonnie's permission I felt I would pass it along since it speaks for all of us. "Thanks for the update - Our Prayers and thoughts will be with everyone involved, May God Bless each and everyone for a successful trip!! Will be awaiting any further updates along the way!!"

10:23pm EDT - Sunday, Aug 14

Here we go!

The KFAC team is in first stages of launch of the 2005 crossing of Lake Michigan. Peter Chan from Fox 17 News has indicated that the best time to paddle across the lake is Monday and Tuesday. At this time two of the team members (Dean and Roger) are driving to Milwaukee in a truck with the boats loaded on a trailer. Unfortunately there is no room on the car deck of the ferry for the boat trailer tonight. The remaining 6 paddlers (Budd, Craig, Dave, Jeff, Bill, Martin) will board the Lake Express ferry Monday Morning in Muskegon, bound for Milwaukee. The paddlers will launch their kayaks soon after they arrive in Milwaukee, bound for Muskegon. The paddlers project landing in Muskegon early Tuesday afternoon. Good Luck guys! Be Brave, Be Safe.

9:40am EDT - Wednesday, Aug 10

More waiting

Peter Chan from Fox News tells us there is nothing that gives us a 30-36 hour window until at best late next week. He is looking at models that indicate potential favorable conditions somewhere around 8/19. Keep in mind this is a long way off and lot's of things can have an effect.

8:10am EDT - Tuesday, Aug 9

Still waiting

We are still in a weather hold for a few more days. Peter Chan of Fox News is advising us daily on the weather status.

10:42pm EDT - Friday, Aug 5

Trying to be patient

Due to weather conditions the "go" for the crossing has be delayed and will not take place this weekend. According to meteorologist Peter Chan of Fox News the next window of opportunity is possibility mid week. Further details as they develop.

7:01pm EDT - Wednesday, Jul 27

Getting ready to go...

The "window" for the crossing will open on 8/7 and from then on the "go" will be determined by professional weather forecasters. When the "go" is given, at 8:00a on the selected morning, the team and support personnel will board the Lake Express for the trip to Milwaukee. Upon arrival in Milwaukee the Team and support personnel will ready gear and Team members for a launching the following morning at 8:00a. The Team will paddle 26 hours to land in Muskegon at 10:00a the following day. Of course weather, wind, current, etc, can effect this timing.

UPDATES

Team Party - Friday, Sept 16

Over $27,000 raised for the Amercian Cancer Society