Chattanooga Public Works employee Jack Evans picks up refuse and takes a look across the Tennessee River on Nov. 1, 2014, as high winds cancelled Head of the Hooch competition on the riverfront in Chattanooga.Mother Nature competed against the Head of the Hooch on Saturday and won.
High winds, whipping over the Tennessee River at speeds faster than 20 mph throughout the day, caused Saturday’s races to be canceled.
For much of the day Saturday, hundreds of boats sat on racks instead of being prepared to race in the river. Athletes dressed in windsuits and leggings walked with their teams around the riverfront at Ross’s Landing, listening to constant reports of delayed races, until the decision finally was made at 2 p.m. to cancel the day’s events.
“This is the first time in the past 34 years of the race that we have had to cancel it,” said Race Director Daniel Wolf.
Wolf said this is the 10th year the race has been held in Chattanooga and delays have occurred in the past, but a whole day’s race has never been canceled in the regatta. The Head of the Hooch is the second largest in the U.S., with more than 10,000 rowers from across the country.