The 13th annual La Ruta Maya Belize River Challenge kicked off Friday March 5th from San Ignacio at 7 a.m at the Macal River. Since its start in 1998 the race has grown into a popular event which is looked forward to and attended by many Belizeans and tourists alike. This year the race featured teams from all over Belize as well as other countries. 
This year NICH participated by placing a canoe team to compete. The NICH team comprised of paddlers, Manuel Rodriguez, Oscar Cardon and Jimmy Valdez. The first leg of the race covered San Ignacio to Banana Bank while day two covered Banana Bank to Bermudian Landing and third day involved paddling from Bermudian Landing to Burrell Boom. The last leg of the race was from Burrell Boom to Belize City which completed the strenuous 179 miles.
Each stop was well attended by visitors, locals and the large fan base and supporters of the various teams. As well each stop featured a variety of entertainment, food and for at least a day introduce the rest of the country to some of the lesser seen areas.
When the race was over the NICH team place 5th out of the 86 teams that registered, with 1st place going to Zipliners, 2nd place to Belize Bank, 3rd place to CPBL, and 4th place to Reagan International. An award ceremony was held at the Civic Centre in Belize City on Monday March 8th after the race where the paddlers of the team were recognized and proudly received their award and medals.
The first Perseverance Award in honor of Belize National Heroes was given to the 4-H team who was chosen based on their dedication to the race each year. This award was donated by the Belize National Celebrations Commission which is chaired by the President of NICH, Ms. Diane Haylock.
Congratulations to all teams!
