Paddling together for over 20 years, Ken Rescott and Steve Miller are in the Great Race for fun and socializing rather than winning.

“We just like to compete in it,” Rescott said. “We don't take it too seriously, we practice probably once a year.”

As a matter of fact, the duo is so relaxed about participating in the race that just a matter of days before it, they still had not found a canoe in which to race in.

“I co-own a canoe with someone else who needs to use it with his family to participate in the race as well,” Miller said. “So we have been calling all around looking for a canoe to use this weekend, I think we have found one, I'm not too worried.”

The two friends met while working at Camp Columbus quite a few years ago, it was at camp when they got talked into competing in the race by other friends who were doing it.

Now that they have gotten into it, they have been the two constant members of their team even when Rescott competed in other parts of the race.

“I tried the bicycle portion before,” Rescott said. “I wasn't the best cyclist, lets just say that the last time I did the bicycle portion of the race the medical personnel had to put me in a wheelchair afterwards.”

Luckily, the next year the team needed another rower and Rescott was ready for the task.

“Ken (Rescott) is the steerer,” Miller said. “He tells us which way to go and I put my head down and paddle as fast and as hard as I can.”

Rescott, who works as a physical therapist, is also the teammate who gets them limber before the race.

“We always stretch first,” Miller said. “Ken (Rescott) knows how to stretch me out well since he is a physical therapist.”

Stretching is not their only pre-race ritual though, Rescott says that he and Miller start the morning of the race off with a 7:30 a.m. stop at Dunkin' Donuts for racing fuel. “We don't start practicing until like the week before the race,” Rescott said. “Usually the Friday before the race is when we finally get out there and get the wasps and spiders out of the canoe. We are in it for fun, we aren't highly competitive.”

“It is more casual for us,” Miller added. “We go out and try to do our best, top 100 is nice for us, the after party is the best though.”

Both Rescott and Miller are always looking forward to the social aspect of the Great Race with athletes and fans alike coming together for a weekend of fun.

“We talk about it all year,” Rescott said.

“It is something we always look forward to. You see the same people there every year and look forward to seeing the people that have been doing it along with you all these years. The companionship with my rowing partner and enjoying the afternoon with friends is why we do it.”

“It is a fun thing,” Miller said. “It is a tradition for us now, and we have met a lot of people by doing this race so it is good to see them and socialize with them afterwards because we don't all see each other during the rest of the year.”

These two may not take the competition seriously but they do take their devotion to participating in the Great Race very seriously.

“We will do it as long as they are still doing the race,” Miller said.