Year after year, the Chili and Bean Downriver Race brings together an already tightly-knit paddling community.

Twenty-one canoers and kayakers left Rotary Park to start the 18.5-kilometre paddle to the Takhini River bridge Wednesday evening.

On the collective conscious: chili at the finish line.

"It's all about getting here as fast as possible to eat the food at the end,” said Tim Laprade, a solo kayaker who finished third overall with a time of one hour, 31 minutes, six seconds.

Fellow solo kayaker Tim Hodgson won first overall with a time of 1:28:22.

Tandem canoe team Pam and Jim Boyde took second in 1:30:25.

Many of the participants had either raced in the Yukon River Quest earlier this summer or are preparing to compete in the Yukon 360 on Saturday. Or both.

The Chili and Bean simply gives the paddling community another reason to get together.

"It's a great, strong paddling community,” Laprade said. "It really is a community. Everybody is out helping each other out, giving each other tips.

Nobody's out for themselves; they're out for the community.”

Pam Boyde agreed.

"The paddling community is such a fun bunch, good camaraderie,” she said.

"We're just good friends, encourage each other, helping each other out.”

Hodgson hasn't paddled much since the River Quest, he said.

"It's a fun event. There's always really good food when you're done. And there's some really good racing, some good local competitors. I just like canoeing and I like competition.”

Last night marked Hodgson's eighth Chili and Bean Downriver Race.

His winning time was slower than his previous attempts, he said.

"There was a strong headwind the whole way,” Hodgson said. "I'm just trying to stay fit and healthy because there's the 360 this weekend. I was kind of aware of working too, too hard and getting hurt when I haven't been training.”

This was Laprade's second Chili and Bean.

He's gotten a better hold of his kayak, improving from seventh overall last year to third.

"It was nice to come back and actually have a few hours in my kayak,” Laprade said. "It was a great race. I followed Jim Boyde pretty much the whole way here, and he's a legend in the paddling community, so it's great to be able to come in behind him.”

Laprade trailed the Boydes up until the finish line, separated only by a minute.

"I'm a little bit tired,” Laprade said. "My finger's locked in one place right now, a little bit of tendonitis. But it was fun. I love this race.”

Like Hodgson, Laprade competed in this year's River Quest.

He scratched from the River Quest due to back spasms at Policeman's Point.

"I haven't been on the water since then, so I'm happy to be able to get back out on the water,” Laprade said. "I'm used to this route. Sometimes I paddle home from work and I just live not too far from here, so I usually paddle home, put my kayak on my little cart and pull my kayak home, which is about one kilometre away.”