Shorts Anniversary Weekend Package – $26.00
This includes a 2011 Short’s to Short’s Paddle Tee, an Anniversary Party Tee and a Commemorative Paddle Mug. Valued at $31, but yours for $26! Both shirts will be the same size.
Though it was cold and rainy for several days before this year’s Short’s to Short’s, 128 brave paddlers gathered at the Bellaire boat launch early last Friday morning to participate in the 3rd Annual S2S Paddle. And, although it was raining and cloudy when we went to bed the night before, the morning of the Paddle dawned clear, cool, and calm. By 7:00 a.m., paddlers were streaming into Bellaire. Though we had a couple setbacks (the porta-potty to be delivered on Thursday night arrived just moments after all of the participants departed), everyone worked together to get ready for the paddle and, by the time we took the group picture at 7:30, almost everyone was ready to get onto the water.
The growth of this event from 25 participants in 2009, to 80 in 2010, and 128 this year, has been very rewarding to all of us at Short’s. We do not have verification of this, but have been told that this event is now among the largest (if not the largest) kayaking events in Michigan. However, we are most proud of the good natured, adventurous spirit exemplified by all of this year’s S2S Paddlers. We have several great ideas to improve the event for next year, and look forward to continued growth into the future!
While the S2S is not a race, we were fortunate this year that Denny Paull, an avid paddler and kayak racer, participated. While most of us finish the S2S in 8-10 hours, Denny finished in just 4 hours and 45 minutes, and that was stopping at each of the drop out points noted on the S2S map (not a requirement of the event). Denny reported that even in his long distance events, he had never paddled more than 20 miles and was not sure how his body and mind would hold up. No less, Denny beat his goal of finishing the 27.2 mile event in under 5 hours. We congratulate Denny on his awesome accomplishment and hope that he will return next year to turn in an even faster, self-timed course record!
Exemplifying the dynamic nature of Short’s events, the most talked about finishers of this year’s S2S Paddle were Dave Clapp and his sister, Anne Blount. Dave finished restoring his grandfather’s 1940s-era wooden rowboat just two days before this year’s event and decided that an appropriate way to christen this beautiful watercraft would be to paddle it “from Short’s to Short’s.” Setting out from Bellaire in the early morning and taking turns rowing all day long, Dave and Anne arrived at the Riverwalk at about 8:30 p.m. to great applause (most of us had been enjoying Short’s Brew on draft for a few hours and were in especially good sprits!).
Denny Paull’s race-pace, contrasted against Dave and Anne’s epic display of perseverance to honor a late relative’s hand-built boat, demonstrate the true “choose your own” adventure nature of the Short’s to Short’s Paddle. Both the first finisher and the last were, equally impressive, and equally appreciated! From all of us at Short’s, we thank everyone who participated in and volunteered to help make this year’s event such a huge success.
To view Joe’s photos from the event, click here. To view Matt’s photos, click here. And for those of you who attended Short’s 7th Anniversary Party on Saturday night, stay tuned for our recap of that event, which will be posted soon!
Doing the S2S Paddle Twice In A Week? Are we crazy?
Every year, about a week before the Short’s to Short’s, a small group of SBC employees embark on an “unofficial” version of the event. We do this to check the conditions, test our gear, and gather insight for the year’s “official” event. This year’s pre paddle was on Easter Sunday. We closed Short’s for the day, allowing our employees who will be working during this year’s paddle a chance to experience what it’s like to kayak from Bellaire to Elk Rapids. So, while many of you were having Easter dinner, we were paddling. We couldn’t complain too much, though, because it was a beautiful 60 degree sunny day with calm conditions. Don’t believe us? Check out these pics: Matt’s pre-paddle gallery here and Joe’s gallery here.
The whole day was clear and although it began cool, it eventually warmed up to about 60 degrees. However, we still saw snow near the water and the last ice on Elk Lake melted only about a week ago. We all dipped our hands into the water and, yeah, it’s unbelievably cold. Be cautious out there, fellow paddlers!
During this year’s pre paddle, the water conditions were extremely calm, perhaps the calmest we’ve ever seen on Lake Bellaire, Clam Lake, and Torch Lake. But, as always, when we reached Lake Skegemog and Elk Lake, we were confronted with a brutal 10-15 mph head wind. The direction that we were trying to go was the exact direction that the wind was blowing from. In other words, the last few hours of the pre paddle were incredibly painful. Water was coming up over the front of my kayak and my spray skirt was essential, keeping a lot of ice cold water from ending up in my boat. The challenging aspect of this portion of the trip is reflected in the fact that Joe and I stopped taking photo and video footage during most of this portion of the day.
While we were paddling, we did a lot of thinking about this year’s event. We are super excited, but we were also reminded how big of a challenge this event really is. It should be taken seriously, and you should plan your day in advance.
Timing Is Very Important
Please arrive at the launch site (behind Fisher Insurance in Bellaire) by 7 a.m. After visiting the check-in station, we are going to ask that you self-stage your start time according to your kayaking skill level. We will have an area for novice paddlers, and area for intermediate level paddlers, and an area for expert kayakers. We would like less experienced paddlers to begin first. This will give them a little bit of a buffer and will help ensure that they are not left alone at the back of the pack. Also, this means that as more experienced paddlers come up from behind, they will be able to check on the less experienced paddlers to make sure they are doing okay and offer advice. We can’t emphasize enough that this is NOT a race. Rather, we want everyone to finish at roughly the same time. There are no points for finishing first. And, on the flipside, we don’t want folks lagging behind. We really want to keep everyone together as much as possible. Remember: this is a community event and we are interested in seeing how everyone works together to make this event a success, much in the way that everyone in our SBC family has pulled together to make the first seven years of our business a success. So please, help each other out. Use the buddy system. Make new friends. Lend a helping hand.
The updated event schedule for April 29th is as follows:
7:00 a.m. Pre-launch gathering and check-in
7:30 Photo shoot with all the paddlers
7:30-7:40 launching of notice paddlers and slower vessels (canoes)
7:40-7:50 launching of intermediate kayakers
8:00 a.m. launching of advanced kayakers
During the pre paddle, we left the launch site at about 8:20. It took us about 40 minutes to go from the launch site to the Grass River Natural area (far side of Lake Bellaire). About 45 minutes later, we reach the beginning of Clam Lake. We reached the Dockside Restaurant (where the river flows into Torch Lake) at 10:40. At that point, about half of our group packed up their kayaks and headed home for Easter dinner. They had seen some of the most beautiful scenery and simply had no interest in pressing on for another 7 and a half hours. So, if you want to have a really fun day, we suggest taking your time and ending at the Dockside.
We rested for about 20 minutes at the Dockside and then set out along the shore of Torch Lake, in ideal (glass-like) conditions. We made our way to Alden and reached there at about 12:45. We had a snack and our friend Dean decided to call it a day and head off to Easter dinner.
We departed Alden at just after 1:00, still in ideal conditions. We marveled at the crystal-clarity of Torch Lake and the Caribbean-like turquoise blue of the water. Simply breathtaking!
We arrived at the far south end of Torch Lake (Torch River) at 2:00 p.m. So, with a single stop in Alden, we spent about 3 hours on Torch Lake. This stretch is a lot more challenging if there is chop. Note: the Torch River Public Access Site (right before the Torch River Bridge) would be a great place to bail out and call for a ride. You could get a sandwich or a slice of pizza from Fabianos (just on the other side of the bridge) while you wait for your ride. Remember: if you decide to press on and enter into the Torch River, you have pretty much committed yourself to another 3-4 hours on the water. While there is a public access site on Lake Skegamog, it is quite remote and will require a decent amount of paddling to reach.
We had lunch on the beach at the Torch River Public Access site and shoved off from there at about 2:40. While everyone was enjoying a leisurely paddle (with the current), I realized just after shoving off into the current that my kayak foot pegs had fallen out of place and needed to be adjusted. Once in the strong current, however, it was a real challenge to find aplace to stop. I ended up paddling back upstream to the public access site, putting me several minutes behind the group. I then paddled like crazy to catch back up with everyone, rejoining them just before the Torch River enters Lake Skegamog. From there, Joe and I basically decided to haul ass, wanting to be done as soon as possible. The choppy conditions and headwind made it a real effort, and we were ready to be done. Everyone in our group finished between about 6 and 6:15, roughly 10 hours after we’d started. While we feel that this time is reasonable for anyone, we also note that you have to paddle with a certain amount of urgency all day long in order to stay on track. If your goal for the day is to relax and socialize, we strongly urge you to elect one of the drop out points and not try to go the entire distance. Trust us, we won’t laugh at you. We’ll probably envy your relaxed state of mind and overall sense of well-being at the end of the day!
Weather Forecasts – Don’t Bet Your Life On Em
With our apologies to meteorologists, Northern Michigan weather is tough to predict. On any given day, you might see rain, snow, thunderstorms, wind, sun, or anything in between. So please pack for any contingency. You can always peel away layers, stow rain gear, and put your gloves away.
Essential Tips
1. Bring warm gloves, several pairs. I used my winter mittens for the first half, and it totally made the 30 degree wind much more bearable and the ride much more comfortable and enjoyable.
2. Dress for the weather. This time of year, many days start around 30 degrees and finish at about 55 degrees with light wind (10-15mph near the end). We suggest base, moisture wicking layers underneath a gore-tex fleece or windbreaker. Fighting wet and cold is essential to really enjoy this adventure. So dress appropriately so you can be comfortable and have a good experience.
3. Make cockpit adjustments before launch day. Sit in your vessel and decide where the most comfortable position is going to be for your ride. It’s a long ways, and being comfortable will really improve your enjoyment!
4. Pack a complete set of back up clothing in a dry bag. In a previous year, an experienced kayaker took on water because his rear storage compartment cover wasn’t tightened completely. In that compartment was his dry bag with back up clothing. He took on so much water he eventually began to sink and had to be picked up by a safety boat. Once the safety boat had returned him soaking wet to the next drop point, we discovered his entire dry bag was also full of water, posing a serious problem. So the moral of this story:
a. Fasten your compartments completely
b. Pack your dry gear correctly, especially your phone and camera!
c. Paddle with a Partner. I can’t emphasize how important this is. As the kayakers make it into the bigger bodies of water they tend to disperse. This can make it challenging for safety boats to monitor several paddles strewn about over miles of lake. It’s worse when the lake is rough. So find someone to paddle next to that fits your pace or plan to have a partner. Prior to launching, you will receive a packet containing a map and the safety boat locations and the captains phone numbers.
5. If you want to stop and grab a bite to eat along the route, there are some good places we suggest:
a. The Dockside (Clam River/Torch Lake): good food and beer
b. Fabiano’s on the River (Torch River): great sandwich’s and pizza
c. The Riverwalk (Elk Rapids) – This is where we are having a post-paddle party from 4-8 p.m. For a reasonable price there will be a picnic-style dinner and 5 kinds of Short’s Brew on Draft
6. Bring Sun Screen and a Hat – The sun was very intense during the pre paddle. Although I had sunglasses on, it still wasn’t enough. Bring a hat and sunscreen for your face. Several of us pre paddlers look like raccoons with crispy foreheads, noses and cheeks!
7. Life Jacket – Wear one. Better safe than sorry! If you fall into the water for any reason at this time of year, your body will very quickly become hypothermic. You will be disoriented and will not have much energy. Your life vest will keep you afloat until help can arrive.
8. Water and Snacks – Whether or not you plan on patronizing any of the establishments along the way, I highly recommend that you bring snacks and water. It’s a long day and you’re going to be burning thousands of calories.
9. Finish Reception — The finish will be at the Riverwalk Grill in downtown Elk Rapids (106 Ames Street). As stated above, there will be a buffet and plenty of Short’s Brew on tap. We will let the Riverwalk know that early paddlers might start to arrive at around 4, and that we will plan to have everyone there by about 6:30. We will hang out until about 8.
10. Plan to team up with another paddler to arrange transportation. Alternately, Kevin Karpinski of Green Planet Adventure Tours is offering transportation for a small fee. He can be reached at: [email protected]. His website is www.greenplanetextreme.com.
Pre-Paddle Reception
We are going to have a Pre-Paddle reception at our pub in Bellaire on Thursday night, April 28th. Matt Drake, this year’s Paddle Coordinator, will be available from 6-9 p.m. to answer questions. Joe Short will be meeting with the Safety Boat Captains from about 6-7 p.m. This will be a great chance to meet other paddlers and plan for the next day!
Finally, if you have any last minute questions, please email [email protected]. Our Official Short’s to Short’s release is located here. And remember, if you are coming to the Paddle, you are going to want to stick around for the Anniversary Party on Saturday. It is going to be the most epic Anny Party ever, and it’s the perfect way to nurse a sore body! See the Anniversary Party post, below, for all of the details!
On Saturday, April 30, 2011 we are celebrating the fact that it’s been 7 years since we opened our doors in Bellaire, Michigan. It is no secret that Short’s and our loyal fans are taking over the Michigan craft beer scene and that we have a lot to celebrate! Since 2010 was the biggest year in Short’s history, we decided to make this year’s Anniversary Party more epic than ever before!
The party kicks off at 3 p.m. We will have about 30 beers on tap for you to try, including several new beers never served at our pub before, plus cask Anniversary Ale, Cask Golden Rule, and two other specialty casked beers to be announced! These special cask beers kick off of our Real Ale Program, and you will not want to miss them! Aside from the new cask beers, the beer list will include: Anniversary Ale, Huma Lupa Licious, Magician, Pandemonium Pale Ale, Soft Parade, Bellaire Brown, Autumn Ale, Village Reserve, Locals Light, Pontius Road Pilsner, Chocolate Wheat, Sustenance Black Ale, Rye Not, Belgian IPA, Black Licorice, Bludgeon Yer EyePA, Bananarama, Key Lime Pie, Curl, Hangin’ Frank, Carrot Cake, Mama’s Milk, Richard in the Dirt, Pineapple Side Down, Whiskey Sour, 2008 Black Cherry Porter, 2008 Chocolate Raspberry Shorter, 2008 Noble Chaos. In addition, Bourbon Sustenance, Bourbon Black Cherry Porter, Bourbon Wizard, and Good Samaritan will be available to those touring our brewery.
The party will also feature a special menu, a State of the Brewery Address from Joe Short, commemorative t-shirts, and live music by Reggie and the After Party, Valentiger, and Kieth Scott.
Over 200 people poured through the doors of Short’s Brewing Company on Saturday, April 16 in support of the Institute for Sustainable Living, Art and Natural Design (ISLAND). The annual benefit concert and silent auction, now in its fifth year, was the most successful yet, raising approximately $6,000.
“We are overwhelmed with the community support,” says Amanda Kik, ISLAND’s Co-director. “We are a small, bootstrap organization, squeezing every penny to make it go as far as it can.”
The lineup included musicians from across the state, including Airborne or Aquatic?, Gifts or Creatures, Samuel Seth Bernard, May Erlewine, Mike Shimmin, and Samantha Robbins.
Money from the benefit will be used to support ISLAND’s major projects: Throughout the year, ISLAND hosts both national and international artists through its Artist Residency Program, supporting writers, musicians and non-studio artists with time and space to create new work. The CRAFT Program (Collaborative Regional Alliance for Farmer Training) connects small farms and beginning farmers through a network of support, workshops, farm tours and potlucks. Chaotic Harmony is a new and original interdisciplinary performance commemorating the life and work of Gwen Frostic. ISLAND works with garden projects at Central Lake Elementary School and Rapid City Elementary School, including a new community garden.
More information about ISLAND may be found at www.ARTmeetsEARTH.org. View Short’s photos of the event, here.
Short’s has been recognized as one of the 2011 “Michigan 50 Companies to Watch,” an awards program sponsored by the Edward Lowe Foundation and presented by Michigan Celebrates Small Business. Short’s will be honored at an awards ceremony during the seventh annual Michigan Celebrates Small Business event, April 28 in Lansing. This award honors second-stage companies known for exceptional entrepreneurial leadership, creation of innovation or use of innovation in creative ways, and their sustainable competitive advantage. Winners were selected by Michigan-based judges from the banking, economic development, entrepreneurship development and venture capital communities. Short’s is very honored to have received this recognition! We thank all of our loyal patrons, our great staff, and all those who help make our company a success!
Here at Short’s, we have been hard at work planning the 2011 Short’s to Short’s Paddle. This year’s event will take place on April 29, 2011. This is an annual event to symbolize the efforts we put forth, here in Northern Michigan, to provide the entire Great Lakes State with Short’s Brew! The paddle makes several connections to honor our seven years of business and the link between our original Bellaire Pub and our Elk Rapids production facility. There is a lot of water between Bellaire and Elk Rapids! Twenty seven miles, in fact!
Pre-Paddle Reception
We are going to have a Pre-Paddle reception at our pub in Bellaire on Thursday night, April 28th. This will be a great chance to meet other paddlers and plan for the next day! Event details to follow!
Short’s to Short’s Location and Schedule
As with prior years, the launch site for this event is the public access site on the Intermediate River, which is behind Fisher Insurance in Bellaire. We will have a check-in station and you will need to bring or fill out a liability waiver before commencing the event! The event schedule for April 29th is as follows:
7:00 a.m. Pre-launch gathering behind Fisher Insurance in Bellaire (just down from the brewery) at the public launch.
7:30 Photo shoot with all the paddlers
8:00 a.m. launch
The paddle will take between 8 and 12 hours depending on your gear, skill level, and pace. The finish will be at the Elk River boat launch in downtown Elk Rapids. Plan to team up with another paddler to arrange transportation. We will be gathering at the Riverwalk Grill, located at 106 Ames Street in Elk Rapids, for a special post-paddle reception.
This map shows the route that the Paddle follows. If weather conditions are not favorable, please plan to change your final destination plans.
a. Clam Lake – the shortest run, but at least you get to go through the grass river natural area. It’s beautiful. Very little open water and you paddle with the current.
b. The Dockside – Located right before Torch Lake, this is where we advise you to stop if weather conditions are rough. This is a great place to beach your kayak and a great place to get some Short’s Brew or a bite.
c. Alden – After proceeding onto Torch Lake and following the shoreline to the south, you reach the town of Alden. This is a great place to rest.
d. Torch River – The route follows the Torch River from Torch Lake into Lake Skegamog. If you are fatigued after the Torch Lake stretch, this is an excellent place to rest or drop out of the event, as there is a public access site at the entrance to the river and restaurants nearby.
e. Skegemog – The Torch River provides a nice cool down and a chance for you to re-evaluate whether or not you want to finish the open stretch on Lake Skegemog and finish on Elk Lake. Safety boats are still an option for bailing here.
f. Downtown Elk Rapids – Congratulations if you make it this far! But even if you don’t, please stop by at the Riverwalk Grill in Elk Rapids for the Post-Paddle reception!
Safety Considerations
We cannot emphasize enough the importance of safety. This event covers vast distances of water, which is still very cold in late April. Wearing appropriate gear and being skilled is important. We do not recommend attempting to complete this event if you are a beginner. (Consider attempting the only the early river stretches but not the large lake sections).
Remember: Keep it simple, safe, and fun. Do your research, have a plan. Know your limit and anticipate a drop out point if needed. If it’s windy and cold, the open water stretches may change your final destination plans or vessel choice. We do not suggest proceeding across the open water stretches if conditions are rough.
A few things you might want to consider:
a. Paddle with a partner. Stay together and with the rest of the group. Look out for each other.
b. Water – should be in plastic bottles, those should remain with you until you finish or find an appropriate trash receptacle
c. Food – If you don’t plan on patronizing any of the local check points, then you might want to bring a snack or several. Keep your trash with you – keep our precious waters clean!
d. Change of clothes in waterproof container and clothes for shedding or adding depending on the weather. GOOD GEAR IS ESSENTIAL FOR SURVIVING A WINDY DAY
e. Headlamp or flash light
f. Tow rope
g. Life jacket/wet suit/dry suit
h. Walkie talkie or cell phone
i. Tell someone where you are at and what you are doing that day
There will be safety boats offering support to paddlers. Of course, these boats will be manned by volunteers and do not ensure your safety! You are on your own to plan ahead, know your route, and judge whether you are skilled enough to participate!
What Kind of Boat Should I Use?
We use sea kayaks with spray skirts. This type of kayak allows you to cruise at a decent speed all day and provides the best stability in open water stretches. Spray skirts keep your boat from swamping in waves. Again, if you are not experienced at kayaking, we do not recommend participation in the open water stretches!
A number of participants choose to use river kayaks and participate in the first half of the event, finishing at the Dockside. This is a great way to participate even if you are a beginner or do not have a sea kayak.
Each year, a number of folks also attempt the event using canoes! This is fine, but paddling a canoe for 27 miles is a serious undertaking!
Transportation – Choose Your Own Adventure
Short’s is not able to provide vehicle transportation for paddlers. You must arrange transportation with your paddle partner or group. We encourage fellow paddlers to network with each other to determine a transportation plan.
Drinking
We are Short’s so, of course, we enjoy a good beer! However, we do not encourage the consumption of alcohol during this event. Obviously we cannot police your alcohol use, but we suggest refraining from consumption of alcohol during the event.
Are you interested in serving as a Safety Boat Captain? Please sign up here! If you do not have a boat, but would be interested in serving as a boat crew member, feel free to indicate that on the sign up form!
Lodging
Shanty Creek Resort has generously extended a $99 room rate special for the Short’s to Short’s Paddle/Anniversary Party weekend. Use promotional code SHORTS to redeem this offer. This is a great deal and, for those who don’t know, Shanty Creek provides shuttle service to and from our pub!
Other Accommodations
As always, we anticipate the help of our local commerce to commemorate this by opening their doors and selling food and Short’s Brew along with other provisions. We will continue to provide updates as the Paddle date gets closer!
Applesauce Inn 7296 S. M-88 Hwy Bellaire MI 49615 (231) 533-6448 $75 must book 2 nights (usually 99.00 for the spring madness). In order to receive this special pricing you need…
Don’t forget that Short’s is having an 80s Prom on April 2nd, starting promptly at 7 p.m. DJ Humify will be spinning all of the 80s classics. While not required, we are excited to see lots of 80s era costumes and dresses. A prom King and Queen will also be announced. Check out our flyer here for all of the event details.
Suds & Snow is so much fun! This year was especially cold and windy, but that didn’t stop people from all over Michigan from coming out to Timber Ridge Resort to experience the best “under the radar” beer festival in Michigan. Since proceeds benefit charity, we feel especially good about the large numbers of attendees and how much fun everyone was having. It’s great when being outside and drinking great beer benefits a good cause.
Check out our video documentary featuring an exclusive interview with Joe Short at the event:
I caught on fire at this event (seriously), but unfortunately we didn’t get any pictures of that. The photos we did take are located here. Thanks to all of the Short’s fans who made this event a success.
We have been humbled and amazed by our reception at this weekend’s Extreme Beer Fest in Boston! When we travel around the country to attend events celebrating the best and most envelope-pushing beers in the land, we’re always amazed at what a great community of people craft beer bring together, including other brewers and the fans of great beer.
We will continue to update you on EBF over the next couple of days. Yesterday, (Friday) we went on a tour at Sam Adams, and being total beer geeks, got lost at the back of the pack. Sam Adams brewer Bob Canon saw us, recognized us, and invited us to crack open some specialty beers with him! Needless to say, it was an incredible experience!
The EBF is going very well for us. The beer advocate forums are bustling with feedback about our beer, like “Shorts, as always, is bringing their A-Game…,” “Shorts looks amazing again this year….,” and, “[a]s always, Short’s. They seem to enjoy EBF so much – why don’t they just come to MA already? 🙂 ”
It’s so fun to bring our beer to people who appreciate our efforts! Thanks again, Boston!
Have you ever wanted to friz-out your hair and relive the Big 80’s? Like, seriously, now’s your chance! We’re having an 80’s prom on Saturday, April 2nd!
Here’s your prom planning checklist:
Circle April 2nd on your calendar! You won’t want to miss this party.
Ask the person you have the biggest crush on to be your date. Girls, you can ask guys.
Girls, break out those 80s prom dresses! The crazier the better!
Grow out your bangs, because we’re going to have an on-site stylist creating 80s hairdos.
Get ready to dance like a cool kid, because we’re going to have DJ spinning all the 80s classics.
This is going to be an event like no other at Short’s. And the best part about going back to the 80’s this time around is that you’re old enough to drink and you’re at Short’s! Keep checking our website for more 80s prom updates!
