Paddlefish

by Christine Warren

On a sweltering summer day in 2010, Christine Warren stepped into a 24-foot canoe and paddled toward a goal that she never previously imagined possible.

The Texas Water Safari is a 260-mile paddle race from the Texas Hill Country to the Gulf Coast. Run continuously since 1963, the course follows the San Marcos and Guadalupe Rivers to the coastal fishing town of Seadrift. Paddlers must complete the race in 100 hours. While the exhausting pace and blistering heat are reason enough to bow out, it’s the ancillary hurdles that often eliminate racers long before the finish line: dam portages, water moccasins, logjams, mosquitoes, dysentery, alligators, sleep deprivation, and equipment failures.

Paddlefish is the first complete narrative ever published on The Texas Water Safari. With a mixture of humor, misery, history and triumph, Christine has written an engaging and entertaining memoir of her yearlong transformation from a mom, writer and fly fisher, to a viable competitor in “The World’s Toughest Boat Race.”

If you’ve ever wondered what extraordinary challenges lurk beyond your comfort zone, this book may help you discover what’s ultimately possible.

Genres: Nonfiction

296 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2011

About the author

CHRISTINE WARREN grew up in Texas and Tennessee before attending the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she studied Creative Writing and graduated with a degree in English. The richly layered cultures of the South and Southwest, both of which she loves and knows intimately, have profoundly shaped her as a storyteller. After working for fourteen years in marketing and consulting, Warren left corporate life in order to focus on her writing full-time. Her first book, Paddlefish, was published in 2011 and recounts her adventure competing in the The Texas Water Safari, a 260-mile river race. Her second book, Honky Tonk Debutante, is part music history and part memoir and was published in 2014.
With her husband and teenage daughter, Christine Warren lives in Austin, Texas and Mobile, Alabama. And they try to spend as much time in Montana as possible.

Reviews

[CYNTHIA · Rating 3 out of 5]

The 2014 "One Book, One Waco" book selection. Paddlefish is the first complete narrative ever published on The Texas Water Safari. With a mixture of humor, misery, history and triumph, Christine has written an engaging and entertaining memoir of her yearlong transformation from a mom, writer and fly fisher, to a viable competitor in The World's Toughest Boat Race. Great read! Not my usual type of book, but I really enjoyed it. Very motivational and interesting Texas tidbits along with the race details.

[Kristy McCaffrey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story follows Ms. Warren as she trains for a grueling 250 mile canoe race called the Texas Water Safari. I'd never heard of this competition until reading the book. What impressed me the most is that she's an average woman who set her sights on a giant of a mental/physical goal and takes us through the process of training and the race itself. Her prose is easy to follow and her tone engaging. Very enjoyable!

[Rolf · Rating 4 out of 5]

As someone for whom the Texas Water Safari is a definite bucket list goal, I loved how specific and real this was in its detail of both the lead-up training for the race and the race itself. I don’t think the author and I would have much in common other than our interest in the race, so ironically the more personal it got the less I was interested, but the detail on the race was enough to keep me engaged and reading.

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

An especially fun read after assistant captaining for my friend, ginsie! I only experienced the bank crew part of this race - fun to read a stop-by-stop explanation of the craziness that MUST be present for one to undertake this race!!!

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm a sucker for adventure stories, and I love hearing about people who take on an insurmountable goal and rise beyond expectation to achieve it. This book is a prime example of such an achievement, and I finished it feeling inspired (and wanting to learn to paddle!).

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this book by an Austin author on the Texas Water Safari canoe race down the San Marcos and Guadalupe Rivers. A page turner.

[Dawn Antilley · Rating 4 out of 5]

better thani expected!

[Beth Gouge · Rating 4 out of 5]

Couldn't put the book down. I enjoyed reading about her race adventure!

[Tina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This adventure was interesting enough to keep me engaged for some light bedtime reading. However, I wasn't so captivated as to blow a whole day reading it. Worth a light read.

[Michelle Markert-Porter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun book