Sturbridge Lions River Race

This year the Sturbridge Lions Club is hosting their 38th Annual River Race on April 27, 2025. This is a timed race and is over six miles of the Quinebaug River. Racers start one craft each minute beginning at 11:01 at Turners’ Field (Route 20), Sturbridge, MA (registration startes at 9:00) and the race ends at Westville Dam Recreational Area on the Sturbridge town line for a total of over six miles. It should take an hour ot two to finish.

The Sturbridge Emergency Rescue Team will be on site to watch the rapids and we man the whole route with spotters from the HAM Radio Club. They keep us all safe and use the event as a training exercise. At the finish, the Corps of Engineers Westville Dam Recreational Area features plenty of parking, bathrooms and some nice trails with strategic viewing spots for your family and friends to see the crats negotiate the rapids and plenty of photo opportunities. This race is also eligible for the New England Canoe and Kayak Recreation Association’s (NECKRA) Downriver Point Series.

This event is one of the major fundraisers for our Lions Club each year. One hundred percent of all funds raised by the Lions Club are returned to the community. Our services includes eyeglasses, hearing aids, and fuel assistance for lower income residents and for scholarships awarded to seniors graduating from Tantasqua High. Some addittional funds are awarded to charity through the Lions International sight and hearing fund.