With countless hours of practice and several local canoe races behind them, local Explorer and Venturer Scouts are set to compete in the 49th Explorer/Venturer 120-mile Bogue Chitto Marathon Canoe Race which begins tomorrow in McComb, Miss. and concludes Saturday in Bush.

The annual three-day, six-leg event covers a 110-mile stretch of the Bogue Chitto River from the Mississippi Hwy. 98 bridges south of McComb to Lock No. 2 of the Pearl River Navigational Canal south of Bush.

The local Bogue Tuchenna Scout District, encompassing Washington and St. Tammany Parishes, hosts the event which is sponsored by the Istrouma Area Council of the Boy Scouts of America, headquartered in Baton Rouge.

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Registration is tomorrow from 8 – 8:30 a.m. at the bridge. The race begins at 9 a.m.

Competition in the race includes boys and girls aluminum canoe, a coed and an open cruising racing division. There is a novice division for first-time canoers in each of the racing divisions.

The first leg of the trip down the river is from the bridge to the Walker Bridge Waterpark in Tylertown, Miss. There will be a “quick-change” for the paddlers to the second leg which ends in Warnerton.

Following a lunch break, the third leg begins at 1:30 p.m., proceeding to Franklinton where contestants are expected to arrive at Franklinton/Kentwood VFW Post 7196 at approximately 4:15 p.m.

Concluding the first day of competition, an evening meal will be provided by Post 7196.

The fourth leg will begin at 8 a.m. Friday, running from Franklinton to Enon where canoers should arrive at about 10:45 a.m. at Wayne’s World Canoe and Tubing Center.

After a lunch break, the contestants will continue on the fifth leg at 1:30 p.m. to conclude at approximately 3:45 at 5-Lakes Campgrounds, located three miles west of the Fifth Ward School on Hwy. 40 west of Bush.

The scouts will be treated to a dinner hosted by the Washington Parish Sheriff’s Office.

The sixth and final leg will begin Saturday at 9 a.m. and conclude at approximately 11:30 a.m. at Lock No. 2.

On this last leg, the Explorer/Venturer Scouts will be joined by a special division of former competitors, the alumni of Explorer/Venturer canoers, competing for the “Spot Bankston” Memorial Trophy named for a dedicated supporter of the race who passed away in 1996.

Team and individual awards will be presented following the conclusion of the race at noon.

During the race, the Washington and St. Tammany Parish Sheriff’s Departments and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries will provide safety patrol boats as the paddlers traverse the sometimes treacherous Bogue Chitto River.

Very low water and extreme heat has made race practice difficult for local canoers. However, spirits are high and the local participants are looking forward to next week’s National Explorer/Venturer 120-mile White River Race which begins in the Ozark Mountains of northern Arkansas on July 29.

Bogalusa Venturer Crew 313, sponsored by the Daily News, will be defending its titles won in last year’s Bogue Chitto and White River races.