Estonians win first place in the world’s longest paddle race

It’s not just business, though. As Anette Baum — who won this year’s Yukon 1000 race with her friend Linda Tetsmann — explained, the steam also inspires athletic feats. She says, “The most challenging and outstanding ideas are born when women meet in a sauna after another river marathon. That’s how our journey started!”

They were going to compete in the Yukon 1000, the world’s longest paddle race.

It’s dubbed a “paddle race” because the Yukon 1000 reviews the applications of canoers, kayakers, and stand up paddlers alike, for a 1,000 mile (1,600 kilometre) race down the Yukon River. From a beach in Whitehorse, racers follow the wild course of the river to the Gold Rush town of Dawson City, over the border into Alaska “until the Dalton Highway Bridge, in the Arctic Circle...” And this year was a fantastic result for Estonia. Three Estonian kayaking teams either won or were among the top eight competitors of 15.

In eighth place were Martin Ilumets and Hillar Irves from the World of Kayaks team (completing the race in seven days, four hours, and 36 minutes). In fourth place were Rait Hutrov and Marek Lindmaa from the Estonian Adventurers team (seven days, one hour, and 58 minutes). In first place were Linda Tetsmann and Anette Baum of the HUUM Sauna Kayak Team, blazing across the finish line in six days, nine hours, and 12 minutes. 16 minutes behind them were Carmen Gustafson and Crispin Studer, the Canadian “Not a Crisis” canoe team.