Paddle at the Point - Break the World Record — Paddle at the Point - Break the World Record

1,619 Boats! We did it!!

admin — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 18:10:19 +0000

It’s official! We set a World Record! The Pittsburgh World Environment Day Partnership is pleased to announce that on last year’s WED on June 5, 2010, this region broke the world record for largest raft of canoes and kayaks! Guinness World Records recently notified Venture Outdoors of the accomplishment, staged as a key Pittsburgh World Environment Day Partnership event.

“We’re thrilled to have broken the world record,” said Erik Lingren, Venture Outdoors Executive Director. “Thousands of people devoted a great deal of time and effort to make this event a success. They can now officially celebrate!”

“Paddle at the Point,” as the event was called, served as a focal point for community engagement for WED 2010 and advanced the regional WED theme of Water Matters!. Reviewers determined 1,619 canoes and kayaks participated. Previously the record was set by 1,104 boats in Inlet, New York, and prior to that the record was held by Cleveland. Both of the previous record holders are attempting to reclaim their titles in 2011.

On display at the new Venture Outdoors’ office on the South Side are large photographs of the event from within the raft, a panoramic GigaPan taken from Mt. Washington and the official Guinness World Record certificate. These photos can also be found on the media only webpage: www.paddleatthepoint.com/media/.

Participants can order Paddle at the Point memorabilia via www.PaddleatthePoint.com, including stickers, t-shirts, and photos in a variety of sizes from the event. Photos can even be customized to feature a close-up inset of a participant within the larger GigaPan image of the flotilla.

WED serves to stimulate worldwide awareness of the environment and encourages political attention and action. It is celebrated annually on June 5 and coordinated on a global scale by the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP).

This year, once again embracing the theme of Water Matters!, the Pittsburgh World Environment Day Partnership is encouraging individuals to celebrate WED by bridging Earth Day (April 22) to WED (June 5) with programming and activities. Nonprofits, businesses, and other agencies are invited to add their events to the Pittsburgh World Environment Day website (www.PittsburghWED.com). The site, graciously supported by the Bayer USA Foundation, will be used as a central repository for events and activities tied to WED in the Pittsburgh region.

“Globally, Bayer has been a long-time partner of UNEP, and we are pleased to once again be part of our region’s celebration of World Environment Day,” said Rebecca Lucore, Executive Director of the Bayer USA Foundation.

Court Gould, facilitator of the Pittsburgh World Environment Day Partnership and Executive Director of the nonprofit Sustainable Pittsburgh, stated, “Our region’s environmental transformation has been recognized the world over. However the work must continue to advance environmentally friendly policies and practices that harness our innovation prowess and foster our region’s sustainable development.”

The theme Water Matters! relates to the many ways in which southwestern Pennsylvania identifies with, and is rich in, its abundant water resource—from the confluence of the three rivers to the role these rivers and others play in the region’s quality of life and economic vitality. Water Matters! also relates to water challenges in this region, including outdated sewer infrastructure, stormwater runoff, acid mine drainage, pharmaceuticals and agricultural chemicals, and industrial processes including natural gas development.

About the Pittsburgh World Environment Day (WED) Partnership
The United Nations Environment Programme appointed the Pittsburgh region to serve as North America’s host for World Environment Day in 2010. The then-formed Pittsburgh World Environment Day Partnership chose to focus on water as the regional theme. More information on the Pittsburgh WED Partnership can be found at www.pittsburghwed.com. For social media users: Follow Pittsburgh World Environment Day on Twitter: www.twitter.com/PittsburghWED and Facebook: www.facebook.com/PittsburghWED2011.

World Record Memorabilia!

admin — Tue, 29 Mar 2011 14:19:12 +0000

Remember the record breaking moment with a commemorative photo or a 1,619 sticker for your boat! If you’re a t-shirt kind of person, we have a variety of World Record t-shirts you can order. You pick the design and color!

For a low cost way to remember the record, print a free Certificate of Participation that you can personalize!

Click here to visit our Memorabilia page!

Competition is coming!

admin — Fri, 20 Aug 2010 15:50:46 +0000

The Quad Cities are shooting long for 2,010 boats this Saturday, August 21 at 2:00 PM. Our World Record attempt for the largest raft of canoes/kayaks faces a contender, Floatzilla: a paddlesports festival in the Quad Cities. The official count for our record is 1,619. Official word from Guinness still pending.

According to the Floatzilla Facebook page, 225 paddlers were signed up on August 2, just 19 days before the event. Venture Outdoors records show that two weeks prior to their attempt, 1,105 were registered—the exact number needed to break the record.

“We wish them luck, of course,” said Jon Lucadamo, Program Director at Venture Outdoors and one of the masterminds behind Venture Outdoors’ June 5 attempt. “But we also really wouldn’t mind if our record stuck on the books for a while.”

Floatzilla’s official website, www.floatzilla.org, features a shout-out to Pittsburgh for “raising the bar.” Linking to the time-lapse photography of paddlers merging together and scattering when the rain starts, the site author wrote,

“If you care to see what a world record attempt looks like just check out this video of Paddle at the Point.”

Darn right! Paddle at the Point and Floatzilla originally set out to beat the same record: 1,104 canoes and kayaks set in 2008 in Inlet, New York. Cross your fingers for the Midwest as they set out to raise the bar even further in the coming week!

Bird’s Eye View

admin — Tue, 15 Jun 2010 21:17:26 +0000

We can’t use these photos to count boats, but they sure look great! Check out these photos taken by photographer Stan Franzos of Pittsburgh. He captured these photos from Mount Washington. Very picturesque!

Taken right around the time of the World Record attempt

Just after the record attempt, just before the rain!

And there's the rain!

1 Minute Time Lapse

admin — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 16:23:32 +0000

This is our favorite. We can’t stop pressing replay. Check out this awesome time lapse video created by Randy Sargent and Paul Heckbert of the Carnegie Mellon University CREATE Lab. Be sure to wait until second 36 when everyone gets soaked in the rain!

It’s even better in HD, download the HD version here: http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~gigapan/timelapse/flotilla-timelapse-1080p.mp4

Paddle at the Point makes National Geographic Blog

admin — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 20:29:24 +0000

Who knew we had a National Geographic writer participate in Paddle at the Point, pretty cool huh? Christine O’Toole is a feature and travel writer based in Pittsburgh, PA. Her work has been published in the Washington Post, New York Times and online at National Geographic’s Intelligent Travel.

She participated in Paddle at the Point and sent a first hand account to National Geographic, who published it on their Intelligent Travel blog.

Check out the full post here: http://blogs.nationalgeographic.com/blogs/intelligenttravel/2010/06/christine-otoole-is-a-feature.html

Thanks Christine for joining the fun and sharing your perspective!

Certificate of Participation

admin — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 17:12:04 +0000

Paddle at the Point was a great day for region and city of Pittsburgh. Remember the world record breaking event with your very own frame-able certificate of participation!

For anyone who didn’t get their certificate, there’s how to pick one up:

1. Print your own at home. Download a pdf of the certificate to print.

2. Stop by the Venture Outdoors Office to pick yours up. We’re located in Downtown Pittsburgh at 304 Forbes Ave, Pittsburgh, PA 15222. Please bring your wrist band from Paddle at the Point to prove your participation.

3. Pick yours up at Kayak Pittsburgh Downtown. Stop by our kayak rental concession under the 6th Street Bridge, on the North Shore, next to PNC Park. Please bring your wrist band from Paddle at the Point to prove your participation. Certificates will be available here starting Wednesday, June 9th.

Estimated 1,800 Boat Flotilla

admin — Sun, 06 Jun 2010 00:37:33 +0000

Thanks for all who participated and helped out at today’s Paddle at the Point.

Here are links to two Gigapans of today’s event. They are high resolution photos of the big day.

GigaPan image by Paul Heckbert of the Carnegie Mellon University CREATE Lab:
http://gigapan.org/gigapans/51202/

GigaPan image by Dror Yaron of the Carnegie Mellon University CREATE Lab:
http://gigapan.org/gigapans/51206/

[UPDATE]
Another Gigapan popped up, and it may be the one we need to verify results.

Matt Kisasonak is the creator
http://www.gigapan.org/gigapans/51215

Logistics Info Sheet

admin — Sat, 05 Jun 2010 02:04:29 +0000

Here we go!

Thanks for participating, along with your boat, in Paddle at the Point, the region’s celebration of its watershed on World Environment Day. You and more than 2,300 of your friends and neighbors are about to shatter the Guinness World Record for Largest Raft of Canoes and Kayaks!

Here is the complete scoop on the day’s events:

Schedule

Parking
Check in
What to bring
Record attempt
Weather

Schedule
Saturday, June 5

9 – 10 am – Arrive at Heinz Field Gold Lot #1
11 am – Staging and safety briefing
11:15 am – 12:30 pm – Boats launch and raft up at the point
12:30 – 1 pm – Record attempt!
1 pm – Return to your launch point
2 pm – Rivers reopen to motorized boat traffic

There’s tons of great stuff happening downtown that day. Enjoy the rest of your day in Pittsburgh!

Parking
You can park for free in Heinz Field Gold Lot #1. Click here for directions. Follow the signs toward Heinz Field. Venture Outdoors volunteers will help direct you. Venture Outdoors staff and volunteers will be there to check you in and help you get your boat and other gear and get on the water on time.

Please arrive when the parking lots open at 9 am. If you arrive later than 10 am, you are not guaranteed to get on the water in time for the record.

Check in
Everyone must check in! It’s a simple, quick process of telling us your name so we can check the roster and give you a wristband. The wristband is your entry for raffle prizes, including tickets to Steelers, Penguins, Pirates, Symphony, Opera, Ballet and season passes to Kayak Pittsburgh!

Checking in also helps us accurately count you for the world record, and later you’ll use your wristband to redeem your certificate of participation. After we set a new world record, we’ll include your name on a commemorative website. We’ll likely have commemorative t-shirts for sale in the weeks after Paddle at the Point, too.

You will check in at the Heinz Field ramp as you get your rental boat, paddles, and life vests.

NOTE: ALL boaters must wear a life vest. The high density of boats requires that everyone follow best practices for safety.

If you have not already paid for your boat, bring cash or a check. Exact change is appreciated. Credit cards will not be accepted due to time constraints.

What to bring
Porta-Johns will be available, but there won’t be vendors selling food or drink.

Bring:

Rain jacket or poncho!
Water and snacks
Sunscreen, hat, and sunglasses
Anything else you need to be comfortable out on the water

NOTE: ALL boaters must wear a life vest. The high density of boats requires that everyone follow best practices for safety. Rental boats include life vests and paddles.

Record attempt
To form a raft, we’ll be assisted by ropes to stay in place. Once everyone is gathered together in the raft, we’ll announce the beginning of the record attempt and release the ropes. According to the rules, the flotilla must be free-floating and held together only by hands. No boats can be lashed together by ropes.

The flotilla must free float on the water for at least 30 seconds. A helicopter will take a photograph for verification.

The announcer will let you know when the record attempt is complete.

Weather
If you don’t like the weather in Pittsburgh, you just wait for it to change! As of now, we are a “Go” for the record attempt. Any decisions to cancel the event will be made just prior to launch time. We’ll be watching the weather closely. If there are unsafe conditions on the water because of high water or lightning, we will cancel the boat launches. So please bring your rain gear, patience, and good cheer.

Registration is closed, we’re ready!

admin — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 18:01:27 +0000

It’s time to break a World Record! As of 10:00 AM on Friday, Paddle at the Point registration closed with over 2,200 boats registered to take part in the record attempt tomorrow. Thanks to everyone who helped spread the word! We had an overwhelming response.

He’s a quick look at the time-line for tomorrow’s event.

Participants should arrive when the parking lots open at 9:00 am. If you arrive later than 10:00 am, you are not guaranteed to get on the water in time for the record.

9 – 10 am – Boat renters arrive at Heinz Field ramp, check in, and get gear

9 – 10 am – Boat owners arrive, unload boats, check in, and prep gear

11 am – Staging and safety briefing

11:15 am – 12:30 pm – Boats launch and raft up at the point

12:30 – 1 pm – Record attempt!

2 pm – Rivers reopen to motorized boat traffic