Pushing the River: A Conversation with Frank Bures & Judson Steinback | Pearl Street Books
April 22 @ 6:30 pm - 8:30 pm
Join us for a conversation with author Frank Bures and his friend Judson Steinback about Frank’s new book PUSHING THE RIVER.
About the book:
A collection of true stories as varied as the waters, weather, and rhythms of a canoe trip. From the terror of two kayakers who barely escaped the 2011 Pagami Creek Fire in the Boundary Waters to two young campers who experienced a supernatural scare in Canada’s Quetico Provincial Park in the 1970s to the author’s own miraculous rescue, Bures shares varied takes on what happens when you push the river.
The heart of the book is a telling of the lost history of the Paul Bunyan Canoe Derby, an annual 450-mile race run on the Upper Mississippi in the 1940s and 1950s that gave canoe-racing legend Gene Jensen his start—and which changed the course of modern canoeing. The tale includes the dominance of racers from the Leech Lake Indian Reservation, including many members of the Tibbets family, and the unacknowledged contributions of Ojibwe canoe builders Jim and Bernie Smith, whose design features are now part of the modern canoe-racing landscape.
Frank Bures is an award-winning author whose work has appeared in many publications. Originally from Winona, he now lives in Minneapolis and works as the editor of UNDER PURPLE SKIES: THE MINNEAPOLIS ANTHOLOGY. He has also served on the support crews for the 2021 and 2023 Guinness World Record teams for paddling the the Mississippi River.
Judson Steinback developed his love of paddling while fishing with his family and friends as a child. He has competed in and won numerous paddling races throughout the world, and is currently one of four teammates who hold the Guinness World Record for the “Fastest Team to Paddle the Length of the Mississippi River.” Judd organizes the Goose Island Grind, a local paddle race in La Crosse.