As far as Warren Richey knew, his life was on course. A reporter with a beautiful wife and talented son, Richey couldn’t imagine how it could be any better....Then his marriage falls apart and he can’t imagine how it could be any worse.
The divorce leaves Richey questioning everything, while struggling to find a way forward. To get his bearings, he enters the first Ultimate Florida Challenge, an all-out twelve-hundred-mile kayak race around Florida.
The UFC is less of a race than it is a dare or a threat. The thirty-day deadline sets a grueling, twenty-four-hour-a-day pace through shark- , alligator- , and even python-infested waters. But those twelve hundred miles are only a fraction of a journey that pulls Richey back to when he was embedded with troops in Iraq, reporting on missing children, and hiking the mountains of Montana with his son, and shows him where he went wrong, where he went right, and how to do it better the second time around.
Warren Richey’s memoir Without a Paddle is a remarkable physical and emotional journey that cuts to the heart of what it means to be a man, a husband, and a father.
Without a Paddle
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Editorial Reviews
From Publishers Weekly
At its core, the idea of traveling 1,200 miles around the coast of Florida in a kayak sounds grueling--the organizers of the Ultimate Florida Challenge warn wouldbe entrants that "even if you are a wellprepared expert, you may die." But Richey, who writes for the Christian Science Monitor, shows in this fast-paced memoir that a persevering spirit can overcome all physical and mental exhaustion. Still feeling the effects of a divorce that threw his world into upheaval, Richey finds solace in his sea kayak and enters the competition, despite the objections of family and friends. Nearly every day and night, he encounters all possible obstacles: physical ailments (blisters, sore muscles, sleep deprivation), the threat of predators like alligators and pythons, and solitude while paddling through the night. On a diet consisting largely of bagels and Snickers bars, Richey travels on, battling himself and the biggest enemy of all: the clock, as the rules mandate the race be completed within 30 days. Much of the tale centers on his nautical journey, but Richey seamlessly weaves that with his heartbreak from divorce, the bond of a father and son, and moving on with a newfound love. By the end of this wonderfully uplifting book, Richey's trip has taken him well beyond the perimeter of the Sunshine State.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
Advance Praise for Without a Paddle
“As in the best of adventure literature, the physical journey in Without a Paddle is merely a portal through which Richey guides the reader on a voyage across the ocean of the heart. Read it. Go with him. It's a trip you'll never forget.”
—Mark Jenkins, author of A Man’s Life: Dispatches from Dangerous Places
“In his great paddle around Florida, Warren Richey braced for battle against sharks, pythons, and crazed drunken motorboaters, but his most formidable foe turned out to be middle-aged self-doubt. This book is for anyone who believes in the redemptive value of hard physical challenge, and who believes that age is just a number.”
—Mark Obmascik, author of Halfway to Heaven: My White-knuckled—and Knuckleheaded—Quest for the Rocky Mountain High, winner of the 2009 National Outdoor Book Award
“Warren Richey—engaged in a grueling long-distance kayak race—has laid a coastal map of Florida over his inner struggle for a new life after the disappointment of a divorce. In the course of these pages, Richey measures himself against his competitors and the sea, and he considers what it means to love and be loved.”
—Lou Ureneck, author of Backcast: Fatherhood, Fly-fishing, and a River Journey Through the Heart of Alaska
“This is the best kind of book; the kind that makes every day magical. I loved it for its humor and humility, its wonderful parables and pitch-perfect storytelling, its journey of discovery within and without, and its elegant ending. Bravo, Warren Richey. Florida is lucky to have you.”
—Kim Heacox, author of The Only Kayak: A Journey in the Heart of Alaska
“Warren Richey wields a pen like he maneuvers his kayak—rapidly paced, lively, dipping between Florida lore, the wake of a failed marriage, the promise of love ahead, and the innumerable challenges of a race that can only be described as insane. A fun and invigorating ride."
—Franz Wisner, author of How the World Makes Love
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing Race, Amazing Book,
This review is from: Without a Paddle: Racing Twelve Hundred Miles Around Florida by Sea Kayak (Hardcover)
Last night, I read this book about a 1,200-mile boat race around Florida without putting it down. First of all, I love the man against nature theme. The author, Warren Richey, is one cool-headed, thoughtful and courageous guy. Through tides, wild waves, dangerous water-dwelling beings, sun, darkness, exhaustion and fear, Richey comes as close as one can to the rhythm of nature and survive. All day I've been thinking about how on one of the last nights of this crazy race, he navigates the currents at the mouth of the Sewanee River only to plunge his sea kayak--in the utter dark--into the breaking waves of a stormy Gulf of Mexico. What guts and what an adventure! I enjoyed "experiencing" the watery geography (and history) of Florida, not the one we usually visit, but the seas, rivers, creeks and streams, even the oily, concrete-walled waters of the Intercoastal. I came away knowing the swamps, the mud, the uninhabited islands and the occasional manicured estate lawn where Richey hung his hammock, or fell asleep for a few hours after chomping down some food, somehow still able to distinguish reality from his nightmares. But this journey is far more than man against nature, it is the story of a deeply romantic man finding his sea legs after a failed marriage. He's ready to try marriage again, and in fact is dating the woman of his dreams, but has never let her know. Can he make it to the finish line, let alone win the race? Can he work through the pain and disappointment of one marriage to propose another? This book is a great ride all the way.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Loved the Adventure Parts,
By
This review is from: Without a Paddle: Racing Twelve Hundred Miles Around Florida by Sea Kayak (Hardcover)
I was a little concerned over the first third of this book, as it seemed to be more memoir-style ruminations on failed marriage and finding new love than about kayak adventure, but I stuck with it. I'm glad I did. Once the race begins and Richey spends more time telling us about his adventure, as well as personal and historical anecdotes about the areas he traverses, the book became much more exciting. I still found myself skimming the short chapters that seemed written directly for the benefit of his new love, but that's just me. Other readers might find it heartwarming, it just isn't my thing. I think if there were less of that I would give the book another star or two, but that's just my preference. The book I wanted to read wasn't necessarily the one Richey wanted to write, and there really isn't anything wrong at all with what he delivered. There was still plenty here for me to enjoy anyway, and it definitely makes me want to explore Florida.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fast moving, funny and thought provoking,
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This review is from: Without a Paddle: Racing Twelve Hundred Miles Around Florida by Sea Kayak (Hardcover)
Just finished Without a Paddle -- in a day -- could not put it down. My S.E. Fla kayak club has paddled many of the areas mentioned and it's fun seeing them through Warren's eyes. Have not had so many laughs reading a book in a long time. Even though I paddle frequently, there is no way I could possibly do the race. But, by Warren's laying out the different portions of the trip, my friends and I realize that we could do it in bits and pieces. This book allows an avid paddler or armchair-paddler to appreciate all the beautiful sights available from the water.
Went to a book review and reading by Warren and he talks just like he writes--very knowledgeable and likeable. Looking forward to another adventure and book.
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