BUDE &045; When David Webb suffered a heart attack in the late 1970s, he got some sage advice from a close friend who happened to be a doctor.

The physician told the Franklin County Advocate owner he had to get from behind a desk and get active.

A lover of all things sporty, Webb established an annual four-mile canoe race down the Homochitto River.

Webb died from another heart attack in September. Yet the Homochitto River Race lives on, as it did Saturday as the town celebrated Bude Day with a 5K run and other activities.

&8220;Exercise prolonged his life. He just about didn’t make it&8221; after his first heart attack, wife Mary Lou Webb said. &8220;He always wanted to do something to Bude Day. He loved the Homochitto River. He knew a lot of people liked to canoe down it. And he came home one day and said, &8216;We’re gonna have a canoe race on the Homochitto.’&8221;

The race was &8220;berry, berry good&8221; to a couple Berrys. Jeb Berry won the men’s open division in a time of 35:22, while Wayne Berry finished second 42:15.

Kim Reinike and Alicia Campbell, both of Long Beach, won the mixed open category with a time of 41:38.

&8220;I took a break from coming up here for a while, but I’m glad I’m back,&8221; said Reinike, who has been paddling for 15 years. &8220;The people are so nice. The area is pretty, the river is clear and I love the attitudes.&8221;

Katie Johnson and Bobbie Ducker captured the women’s canoe in 53:57.

Kevin and Charlie Keating, of Explorer Post 313 in Bogalusa, La., finished first in the men’s canoe with a time of 39 minutes, while fellow troop members Daniel Miley and Emile Frey finished right on their heels at 41:02.

Colonel Bob Miller has brought his 313 group up to Bude for the race since its inception in 1979.

&8220;I’m not really sure who found who,&8221; Mary Lou Webb said. &8220;(David) came home one day and said, &8216;This colonel is going to help with the race. Better that that he has some kids who want to participate.’ He’s been there every year.&8221;

Miller first discovered the race in a Louisiana/Mississippi Canoe Association publication, which announced dates of races throughout the southeast during summers.

&8220;We’ve been up here every time they have it. We enjoy it.. (The kids) hate it,&8221; Miller joked. &8220;We call it the world’s longest sandbar. I tell them it builds character. They really get a kick out of it.&8221;

The post is very serious about its canoe racing. Later in the summer, it will compete in a 110-mile race that runs from McComb to Bush, La., down the Bogue Chitto River.

The following week they’ll participate in a 120-mile race from the Missouri-Arkansas state line to Batesville, Ark., on the White River.

They’ve won that race approximately 20 times since 1979 in the novice, experienced and open cruiser categories.

&8220;It gives them something to do during the summer,&8221; Miller said. &8220;We start practicing on the first warm Sundays in February and March. I get a lot of parent support. They help me out a lot.&8221;

Mary Lou Webb said she never considered canceling the event when her husband died in the fall of 2001.

&8220;To me, it’s not just a memory of (David), but a tribute to today,&8221; said Mary Lou, who enlists the help of family and friends since she does not swim. &8220;He was always so proud to see the kids involved in it. (The race) is sort of like a legacy.&8221;

The couple came to Meadville in 1962 after David bought the Advocate. In that same week, David received his degree from Southern Miss and he and Mary Lou, who graduated in 1961, were married.

The couple, Mary Lou from Simpson County and David from Winston County, didn’t have enough money to buy wedding rings at first.

&8220;(David) was a stringer (contributing writer) for the Clarion Ledger,&8221; Mary Lou recalled. &8220;Lord, they sent him a check for $28 and the ring cost $25.

&8220;I still have it on,&8221; she added, boasting of the gold band that wouldn’t be pried off her left ring finger with the Jaws of Life. &8220;We couldn’t afford a honeymoon either. But David had done some ads for a hotel on the Coast and they said to us, &8216;You can stay here free for a night.’

Mary Lou said it was the hospitality and warm hearts that showed herself and David that Franklin County was where they were meant to be.

&8220;(David) always used to say, &8216;If I could’ve gone anywhere else, I wouldn’t because this is home,’&8221; she said. &8220;Everybody finds their place. That’s the most satisfying thing in life, I think.&8221;