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Originally a means of winter transport between the islands and shores of the
Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawrenc ...
, ice canoeing is now a sport. Crews of five athletes alternately push their canoe across the ice on the frozen parts of the river, and paddle in a river with currents of four knots, tides of over 15 feet, and ice blocks weighing a few tonnes blown by the wind. Shoes with bolts screwed to the bottom are worn to keep their traction on the ice.


History

Ice canoeing has been practiced since the beginnings of
New France New France (, ) was the territory colonized by Kingdom of France, France in North America, beginning with the exploration of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence by Jacques Cartier in 1534 and ending with the cession of New France to Kingdom of Great Br ...
in the 1600s, as the only way to cross the
Saint Lawrence River The St. Lawrence River (, ) is a large international river in the middle latitudes of North America connecting the Great Lakes to the North Atlantic Ocean. Its waters flow in a northeasterly direction from Lake Ontario to the Gulf of St. Lawrenc ...
when there is too much ice for ferries, but not enough to form an
ice bridge An ice bridge is a frozen natural structure formed over seas, bays, rivers or lake surfaces. They facilitate migration of animals or people over a water body that was previously uncrossable by terrestrial animals, including humans. The most signi ...
. In the 1860s more than 200 canoers, mostly at
Lévis Lévis () is a city in eastern Quebec, Canada, located on the south shore of the St. Lawrence River, opposite Quebec City. A ferry links Old Quebec with Old Lévis, and two bridges, the Quebec Bridge and the Pierre-Laporte Bridge, connect we ...
, provided transportation for passengers and goods. Ice canoeing was practiced in
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
from the early 1800s. The advent of
steamboat A steamboat is a boat that is marine propulsion, propelled primarily by marine steam engine, steam power, typically driving propellers or Paddle steamer, paddlewheels. The term ''steamboat'' is used to refer to small steam-powered vessels worki ...
s capable of breaking through the ice put an end to icecanoeing as a means of transportation in the late 1800s. In 1894, the first race was organised between Lévis and the
Port of Quebec The Port of Quebec () is an inland port located in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It is the oldest port in Canada, and the second largest in Quebec after the Port of Montreal. History In the 19th century, the Port of Quebec was one of the most im ...
at the first
Quebec Winter Carnival The Quebec Winter Carnival (), commonly known in both English and French as Carnaval, is a pre-Lenten festival held in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. After being held intermittently since 1894, the ''Carnaval de Québec'' has been celebrated ann ...
. In Montreal races were held during the Fête des Neiges de Montréal from 1988 to 1992. In 2013, Héritage Maritime Canada relaunched the race as the Défi canot à glace Bota Bota. Since the 1990s races have also been held at
Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...
,
Windsor Windsor may refer to: Places *Detroit–Windsor, Michigan-Ontario, USA-Canada, North America; a cross-border metropolitan region Australia New South Wales *Windsor, New South Wales ** Municipality of Windsor, a former local government area Queen ...
,
Gatineau Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in southwestern Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, directly across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region of Quebec and is also p ...
,
Trois-Rivières Trois-Rivières (, ; ) is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice River, Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence River, Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Sain ...
,
Chicoutimi Chicoutimi ( , ) is the most populous borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, Canada. It is situated at the confluence of the Saguenay and Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and ...
and the
Isle-aux-Coudres L'Isle-aux-Coudres (), is a municipality located on island aux Coudres, in the St. Lawrence River, in Charlevoix Regional County Municipality, Capitale-Nationale region, Quebec, Canada. Variations of the official name are: La Baleine, L'Île-au ...
. Women have competed since 1987. Ice canoeing is still utilized as a means of travel for those that live on
McKenzie Island, Ontario Mackenzie, Mckenzie, MacKenzie, or McKenzie may refer to: People * Mackenzie (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Mackenzie (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * Clan Mackenzie, a Sc ...
. During the “break up” and “freeze up” the local ferry can not run due to ice breaking up in the spring, and forming in the fall. This necessitates the need for other modes of transportation, or finding alternative accommodations for the locals affected during this time.


Competition

The Association des Coureurs en Canot à Glace du Québec (ACCGQ) was formed in 1984 to organise and standardise races. Six races are accredited by the ACCGQ: La Grande Traversée Casino de Charlevoix, La Course en canot du Carnaval, La course de la banquise de Portneuf, Trois-Rivières Extrême, le Défi Canot à Glace Montréal, and le Grand Défi des Glaces. The latter is the biggest event. It is run during the
Quebec Winter Carnival The Quebec Winter Carnival (), commonly known in both English and French as Carnaval, is a pre-Lenten festival held in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. After being held intermittently since 1894, the ''Carnaval de Québec'' has been celebrated ann ...
, at
Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...
every February. More than 40 teams compete (78 boats in 2025), struggling with the powerful current, large chunks of ice and cold water. The Quebec City area is the centre of ice canoeing activity, but there are teams elsewhere in the province of
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
. A crew from
Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...
has competed in the race for at least 41 years. The race has also seen teams from
Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
and
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. Athletes compete in three classes: elite men, elite women, and sport, the latter comprising crews of men, and crews of mixed men and women. Originally wooden, canoes are now made with
epoxy Epoxy is the family of basic components or Curing (chemistry), cured end products of epoxy Resin, resins. Epoxy resins, also known as polyepoxides, are a class of reactive prepolymers and polymers which contain epoxide groups. The epoxide fun ...
and
fibreglass Fiberglass (American English) or fibreglass ( Commonwealth English) is a common type of fiber-reinforced plastic using glass fiber. The fibers may be randomly arranged, flattened into a sheet called a chopped strand mat, or woven into glass c ...
with an internal metal frame. The minimum weight of a canoe is for the sport and elite men classes, and for elite women. The length of the boat must be between and . Boats must contain 100 litres of flotation material, and it must be possible to float the boat with 700 litres of water on board. Canoes must be brightly-coloured and not painted white.


References


External links

*
Ice Canoe Racing Association
* {{in lang, en}
Quebec Winter Carnival
Canoeing disciplines Sports in Canada