For the sixth year running, thousands of rowers and spectators have flooded into Chattanooga for the nation's second-largest rowing regatta, held this weekend on the Tennessee River.
During the two-day Head of the Hooch race -- the largest rowing race in the Southeast -- nearly 2,000 boats will take off from the starting line offshore from the Tennessee Riverpark. Rowers will compete in 79 races today and Sunday.
This year's race, organized by the Atlanta Rowing Club and Lookout Rowing Club of Chattanooga, will bring a record 9,248 rowers and coxswains filling 1,922 boats and making this the largest Hooch regatta yet.
"This is a world-class event," said Bob Doak, president and CEO of the Chattanooga Area Convention and Visitors' Bureau. "It's a great event that not only leaves a large economic impact -- it's a good match for our city."
Spectators are expected to line the river's shores from the Riverpark to the Chattanooga Pier to glimpse the teams grunting and pulling their way through the 5,000-meter course.
Tourism officials say the influx of 13,000 people, including rowers, into Chattanooga will generate an estimated economic impact of $4.75 million.
Throughout Hamilton County, hotels are approaching capacity, Doak said.
"I'm hearing anecdotally that Dalton might be the closest room" available, he said.
The number of regatta entries has ballooned by 86 percent since Head of the Hooch came to Chattanooga in 2005. Organizers credit a challenging but fair race course, easily accessible restaurants, hotels and amenities and a welcoming population.
Chattanooga is "one of the finest venues in North America" for regatta racing, said Paul Gaigelas, the event's announcer and organizing committee member.
"The ability for the teams to walk from their hotel room to the site is unique when it comes to rowing courses. I think [the location] is why the regatta's grown so much since we've moved here," he said.
Though cold weather has hit in earnest, it doesn't bother rowers, said Deb Farrell, event organizer with the Atlanta Rowing Club.
"We row in every condition," she said, adding that the meager rainfall in recent months makes for a slower current.
That will help rowers, who have to row upstream for about three miles to reach the starting line, she said.
"We're so happy the river is at a manageable flow this year," she said.
Rowers put their boats in the water at the Chattanooga Pier and make their way to the start line at the Tennessee Riverpark off Amnicola Highway. Starts are staggered at 10-second intervals. The course passes under the Walnut Street and Market Street bridges to finish at Ross's Landing, Gaigelas said.
RACE ROOTS
Originally called "Head of the Chattahoochee," the annual November regatta launched in 1981 in Roswell, Ga., on the Chattahoochee River with just 105 boats, Farrell said.
The regatta moved in 1996 to Lake Lanier in Gainesville, Ga., and to Chattanooga in 2005 to accommodate its booming popularity, organizers said.
This year, women comprise 55 percent of the competitors, Farrell said. It's the second year in a row that women outnumber men.
Four races will benefit the Susan G. Komen Foundation, and entries in those races have doubled from 2009, she said.
Rowers pull on oars connected at a pivot point to the boats, but much of their force comes from their legs, which propel their bodies on seats that glide on tracks, Gaigelas said.
That makes rowing the second-most-aerobic sport, after cross-country skiing, because it "uses the whole body," Gaigelas said.
The Tennessee River provides a strenuous course for the racers, regatta director Daniel Wolff said.
Spectators should keep in mind that the boats are racing against the clock, Wolff said.
"The first boat that goes through the finish line is not necessarily the boat that wins the event. Each boat is timed separately," he said.
But spectators can watch the boats' bow numbers to see if teams with higher numbers can succeed in passing teams that have left the gates earlier, Farrell said.
"We all start in order. It's a great venue here because you can see the last 1,000 meters and folks close to overtaking each other," she said.