The Naish Columbia Gorge Paddle Challenge (CGPC) is a Festival celebrating the sport of Stand Up Paddling in the beautiful Columbia River Gorge. The Paddle Challenge will feature a Distance Downwind Race, a Course Race, a Team Relay Race and a recreational, non-competitive Paddle for the Park, a fundraiser for the new Hood River Waterfront Continue Reading
I beat Dave Kalama at the inaugural Big Winds SUP race in the Columbia River Gorge at Hood River. Finished about five minutes ahead of him–long enough to get off my board, walk up to the deck above the river and take pictures of Dave, Robby Naish, and Michi Schweiger crossing the finsih line. So Continue Reading
So maybe you’re getting tired of hearing about Maliko runs, I think this is the last one I’ll write up for awhile. But this one was kind of special, and perhaps a little stupid. I called the usual suspects and no one seemed to want to go. Just about as i was about to give Continue Reading
Maliko run number four is in my official record book. Last guy to the beach again, but I improved my time over the last run (the Maui Canoe and Kayak club race) by 15 minutes. If I keep improving at this rate by the time I have Maliko 10 under my belt I’ll be whipping Continue Reading
I turned the corner onto South Kihei Rd and saw whitecaps. Big, fluffy spraying-off-the-top whitecaps, and chunky swells even with the short fetch from Maalaea Bay. Perfect for a fast downwinder to the Four Seasons beach. Diane was dubious as usual, she considers anything beyond a gentle zephyr to be life-threatening, but I couldn’t wait Continue Reading
We chose an odd day for our showcase–a Tuesday–but we were running out of time and Maui Canoe and Kayak Club had a race scheduled for the weekend that included Stand Up Paddle boards. We assumed most paddlers and some of the boards we wanted to test would be committed for the weekend. Alan (shapeshifter) Continue Reading
So you are ready to buy a high-zoot carbon fiber paddle and tweak it to make it all yours. Please don’t tell me you already bought one and it’s precut. If you did, skip way down to the taping section. This part will just make you uneasy. If you’re considering a wood paddle you’ll have Continue Reading
Dave Collins is at it again, another interesting (and heavily packed) SUP expedition. Last August we covered his last SUP adventure, a SUP expedition around Cape Scott, the tip of Vancouver Island (http://www.kenalu.com/2008/08/) . This time he’s in tropical waters, the coast of Mexico, but the amount of gear he’s crammed onto his ULI looks Continue Reading
I have a lot of waterproof cases–I love having music along when I do a distance paddle. So I have a H2O Audio case for my Video iPod. Then I wanted something smaller, so I got the H2O Audio iPod Nano integrated headphone/case designed for swimmers. Works great. But then I decided I wanted to Continue Reading
I gotta know. That’s my burden, probably comes from the ADD (Attention Deficit Disorder) that so clearly determined my career path (Motorcycle mechanic, nuclear reactor operator, PR flack, software entrepreneur, technology marketer, direct and interactive agency founder, surf bum). When I start looking at something critically, I have to have some kind of authoritative or Continue Reading
The folks at Maxfield Provisions provided us with some outstanding quality gear for the Cape Cod Bay Challenge. Shawn was an amazing guy to work with….so much enthusiasm for what he does….a true commitment to quality and a stoke level that goes off the charts. Very infectious too….I always had a big smile after each Continue Reading
I ordered a GPS training system to help me optimize my paddle workouts. After reading a thread on best GPS units on the Standup Zone I decided on the Garmin Forerunner 305. So far I’m very pleased. I tried it out today on the course I’ve been using to train for the Battle of the Continue Reading
Liam Wilmot of C4 Waterman submitted this interesting story of an Alaskan SUP adventure using a ULI inflatable SUP board. –ALASKA June 6th. Field Report. Being a surfer in a surf-orientated family that lives on the North Shore of Oahu, Hawaii, a trip to Alaska in the middle of summer may seem a strange choice Continue Reading
I’ve found a great use for SUP boards–entertaining grand kids. I attached a carrier to my Starboard 12’6″ recently, planning to use it for fishing and camping, but the grandkids who have been here for a week (God give me strength) took full advantage of it.
The Prolific Paddler and Paddlebuilder Ernie Johnson sent me two great photojournals for races he’s done recently. This makes three stories so far from Ernie (and makes all the rest of you look like slackers–how ’bout getting those stories to me–you can’t just be sitting around reading about this stuff!). Ernie Johnson and Tony Mueller Continue Reading