AuSable River Canoe Marathon Race Overview

Search “AuSable River Canoe Marathon,” and you’ll get a mix of old race recaps, half-updated pages, and the official site buried somewhere in the middle. Not exactly helpful if you want to know when it starts or how to sign up.

The short version: it’s a nonstop canoe race from Grayling to Oscoda, Michigan, held every summer, and it draws paddlers and spectators from well outside the state.

Here’s where the registration, schedule, and results pages actually live, plus how a late-night idea in 1947 turned into one of Michigan’s toughest endurance races.

AuSable River Canoe Marathon Official Resources

Anyone searching for canoe basics and the race usually wants one thing first: real information. Here’s a quick table of the official resources you’ll actually need.

Race dates, entry deadlines, and last-minute changes all get posted on the official marathon website before anywhere else. That site also links out to GPS tracking, the current entry list, and spectator resources, so it’s worth bookmarking if you plan to follow along on race weekend.

What is the AuSable River Canoe Marathon?

The AuSable River Canoe Marathon is a nonstop canoe race held every year on the last full weekend in July. Paddlers call it simply “the Marathon.” It’s the middle leg of the Triple Crown of Canoe Racing, alongside New York’s General Clinton Canoe Regatta and Quebec’s Classique Internationale de Canots de la Mauricie.

A few basics worth knowing:

• It covers about 120 miles from Grayling to Oscoda, Michigan.
• Teams paddle two-person C2 canoes.
• The race starts at night with a running start, where paddlers sprint from the street into the river.
• It finishes in Oscoda near Lake Huron, with leaders typically arriving by late morning and a course cutoff of about 19 hours for official finishers.

This isn’t a leisurely float down the river. Teams paddle straight through the night, and most finish somewhere between 14 and 19 hours after the start.

It attracts serious, competitive paddlers from Michigan, other states, and sometimes other countries, and it’s grown into one of the bigger endurance events on the Michigan summer calendar.

AuSable River Canoe Marathon Schedule and Race Week Events

Race week includes more than just the main event. Here’s what the schedule typically looks like.

Main Marathon Start and Finish

The Marathon has a few fixed traditions every year:

• It starts on Saturday night in downtown Grayling.
• Paddlers use a Le Mans-style start, running with their canoes before launching into the river.
• The race runs nonstop through the night.
• Teams finish in Oscoda, near where the AuSable River meets Lake Huron.

Events Before the Marathon

The days before the main race are busy too. Common race week activities include:

• Sprint trials, where teams line up their starting position for later races
• Spike’s Challenge and other shorter canoe races
• Paddle check-in and waiver signing
• Community festival events in Grayling

Exact dates shift a little each year, so check the current Paddlers Book for the confirmed schedule rather than relying on last year’s calendar.

How AuSable River Canoe Marathon Registration Works

Registration is handled entirely online, and a few steps are worth understanding before you sign up.

1. Review the rules first: The Paddlers Book covers eligibility, entry fees, and any new requirements for that year.
2. Complete the online entry: Both paddlers on a team need to finish their own registration and sign the required waivers.
3. Check the official entry list: A team isn’t considered fully registered until the race committee processes both entries and posts the team.
4. Watch for updates before race week: Canoe numbers and sprint positions are assigned after the early entry deadline passes.

A quick registration checklist:

• Read the current Paddlers Book and FAQ page
• Complete your entry through the official registration portal
• Confirm your team shows up on the entry list
• Follow official social accounts for last-minute changes

Entry fees typically increase at set deadlines throughout the spring and early summer, so registering early usually saves money. If you’re registering a paddler under 18, a parent or guardian has to sign the waiver on their behalf.

AuSable River Canoe Marathon Route From Grayling to Oscoda

The route is what makes this race so demanding. It’s one continuous overnight paddle, broken up by a series of dam portages along the way.

1. Starting Line in Grayling

The race begins with a running start in downtown Grayling. Paddlers wait along the street, then sprint to the river carrying their canoes once the gun goes off. Spectators pack the starting area early, since parking fills up fast.

2. River Course and Checkpoints

From Grayling, the course follows the Ausable River past a string of bridges before reaching the six hydroelectric dams teams have to portage. Each portage means paddlers get out, carry their canoe around the dam, and relaunch quickly to protect their time.

Mio Dam draws the biggest crowds of the six portages, mostly because it’s the only one paddlers hit at night, and it’s usually the last spot where spectators can still catch every team passing through before the field spreads out.

3. Finish Line in Oscoda

The final stretch brings paddlers into Oscoda, close to where the AuSable River empties into Lake Huron. Good viewing spots near the finish include the area around Gilbert’s Drug Store on State Street and the Mill Street Bridge.

Leaders typically arrive here midmorning, and the traditional finish line splash is a moment spectators look forward to every year.

How to Follow the AuSable River Canoe Marathon Online

Not everyone can stand along the riverbank for 14 hours straight, so the race offers a few ways to follow along remotely.

You can track the event through:

• Live GPS tracking on the official website
• The live results page, updated as teams pass checkpoints
• Official Facebook and Instagram updates throughout race weekend
• Video coverage shared during and after the event

The Follow the Race Online page pulls most of these tools together in one place, which makes it easier to check progress from home instead of jumping between sites.

Finding AuSable River Canoe Marathon Results

Results are available in two stages. During the race, live results update as teams pass major checkpoints and dam portages, so you can track how far ahead the leaders are at any given point.

Once the race wraps up, we post final standings and finish times for every team that completed the course.

The official results archive also covers past years, so you can compare finish times across different races if you’re curious how current teams stack up against past champions.

AuSable River Canoe Marathon History and Origins

The Marathon started in 1947, and the story behind it is more accidental than planned. Two men working in local tourism, Howard Brubaker and Frank Davis, came up with the idea while trying to figure out how to draw visitors to the area after Labor Day. A canoe race down the AuSable River seemed worth trying.

Before committing to the idea, Brubaker and a partner tested the route in a canoe to see whether it could actually be paddled from Grayling to Oscoda.

It took them several days to make it, launching Monday morning and not arriving in Oscoda until Wednesday afternoon. Once they confirmed it was possible, the first official race followed, and it’s run every summer since.

The official site keeps a full stats and history section with past champions and race records, if you want to go further back than this overview covers.

Planning a Visit to Grayling and Oscoda During Race Week

Both host towns fill up during race weekend, so a little planning goes a long way.

1. Visiting Grayling

Grayling hosts the start line and the AuSable River Festival leading up to race night. Worth knowing before you arrive:

• Downtown gets crowded early, especially near the starting line
• Local restaurants and lodging book up fast for race weekend
• The Grayling Visitors Bureau keeps an updated list of lodging and race week events

2. Visiting Oscoda

Oscoda hosts the finish line and tends to draw a big crowd by midmorning. A few things to plan around:

• Parking near the finish fills up, so arriving early helps
• The Oscoda Area Convention and Visitors Bureau lists local accommodations and attractions
• Finish Line Park and the Mill Street Bridge are popular spots to watch the final stretch

Final Thoughts

If you’re entering, don’t wait until July to register; canoe numbers and sprint positions are assigned in the order teams sign up, and the fee increases at each deadline.

If you’re coming from the bank or from home, the live results page and GPS tracking are the two worth bookmarking now, since they’re the ones you’ll actually open on race night. Everything else, from the exact start time to any last-minute course changes, gets posted on ausablecanoemarathon.org first.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Long is the AuSable River Canoe Marathon?

Around 120 miles, start to finish. Teams cover that distance in one nonstop push, usually between 14 and 19 hours, depending on conditions and how fast the team is.

When Does the AuSable Canoe Marathon Start?

9 p.m. Saturday, on the last full weekend of July. It’s one of the few endurance races that starts after dark on purpose.

Where Can I Find AuSable River Marathon Results?

The official Live Race Results page. It updates during the race as teams pass each checkpoint, then switches over to final standings once everyone’s off the water.

How Can I Register for the AuSable River Canoe Marathon?

Through the official event website; both paddlers must register separately. A team isn’t actually on the entry list until both people have signed their waivers, so don’t assume you’re in just because you filled out your half.