I heard about the great Amazon River Raft Race soon after coming to Iquitos in 2006. People came from many parts of Peru and the world to build a raft out of logs and paddle downriver from Nauta to Iquitos. The event grew to have over fifty four-person teams enduring hard adventure and competing for prize money.
Some years back, I connected on Facebook with the adventurous Kate Hagstrom from Canada who was a regular race participant. We just missed meeting about 4 years ago when the race concluded on the outskirts of Iquitos.
COVID halted the race for 2 years, but it was back on this year. The number of teams joining the event had steadily shrunk since the government took over sponsoring the event, but 12 teams seemed ready to join this year.
I joined Kate, her teammates from England, Switzerland and Peru and an all British team for dinner last night. It was fun to finally meet a virtual friend in person. It was an interesting dinner, because the company co-organizing the event shared the disturbing news that the government had told him an hour before it was pulling its financial support for the event. More funds would be needed to secure the support boat for the rafters. The discussions that followed were understandably very emotional. Ultimately new agreements were reached that would permit the event to go ahead.
No prize money would be available this time, so it was neat to hear the group agree to recast the event as a joint adventure instead of a race. They would stay close together to support each other in case of groundings (the river level in this intense dry season is very low) or deal with storms. Kate spoke passionately about the importance of havng fun and paying attention to the genuine perils of this trip. Paddling down the Amazon should not be taken lightly. The government may have been hesitant to support the raft event because it was criticized for poor support for a triathalon two months ago when one swimmer drowned.
I appreciated the group was interested in my work so some of them may visit a native village partner with us in the future.
It was great to learn that Kate's team won the international division of the race!
We saw a wide variety of tiny tetras, angel fish, arawanas, pirañas, electric eels, spotted stingrays, striped catfish, beautiful discus and other popular ornamental species. They also had sabalo whose export for the aquarium trade is banned since it is a vital source of protein and income for fishing families in the region.
The Marca Loreto gives Garza Viva the right to use the brand for two years. Its benefits include officially recognizing the quality of our products and certifies they were genuinely made in Loreto. This seal can increase their appeal and prestige at local, national, and international levels and create opportunities to participate in national and international events and fairs to increase visibility and sales.
"I had heard about marketing before, but didn't I didn't quite understand what it meant. Now I know how it can help us share the story behind our crafts and reach more people." - Angelica - artisan from Ancon Colonia
