My Story so far
boscombe
Well after the initial training early in the year I headed to Hayling Island for my first ever race experience, which I thoroughly enjoyed, it was a very well organised event, and it has been reported elsewhere
Six months into owning the Pin and being part of the Starboard Sup UK Race Team what has happened ?
Well quite a lot actually….
Hi All, I’ll be paddling the Ring of London on Sunday (June 13th). It’s about 45miles and I’ll be starting on the Thames at Limehouse in the am and I’m hoping to get back to Limehouse via the canals sometime in the late afternoon. I’ll post photo’s etc. It would be awesome to turn it into an annual race/challenge!!!
Hello from the Starboard Race Team’s northern representative.
Having spent the past 3 months working out of the UK or spending time on holiday with the family, I am finally back to the great North East UK coastline and getting as much time out on the water as possible. Three times out this week so far – flat, clear, glassy open seas and sunshine meant it was boots off and summer wetsuit on.
On Thursday evening this week I managed to fit in an intense 45 min workout paddle. I dropped my son at the running club next to the beach for his 1 hour club session, took the board off the roof and straight out on the water. This is why SUP is so good – You can get on the water at any and every opportunity in almost all conditions that we find up here on the North East coastline. Next time you think you don’t have time for a paddle, THINK AGAIN! From a training point of view, its great as you give it your all for that short time out on the water. It was just like going out for a 3 mile run; short, intense and very rewarding.
Looking forward to a South Shields to Sunderland costal paddle tomorrow, conditions permitting. This is quite a spectacular coastal cruise – I will take the GO PRO camera and try to get some good pics of the coastline to temp my southern team members into a trip up north.
The board I am riding here is the Starboard 12′6 PIN in a classic Star Touch finish – THE board for speed and cruising on the open sea.
Anyway I am really keen to try to get some North East racing [Competitive or just for fun] organised this summer. If your based somewhere S’up north and are keen to have a go on the flat water drop me a line on the Standup Paddle Surf forum – My username is ‘dave’.
See you on the water.
Dave
had a good week of training… getting out most days in between work shifts..and having good k15 conditions..with a warm sunny days… this sunday ibe doing a 14 hr work out on my sup board properly be on my 12 ft.. as it in aid for cancer research sun rise to sun set, which is a windsurfing event,but this year paddleboards are involved if there no wind..but in my case just use my sup wot ever conditions are on the day. hopefully should get a massive core work out which will help me improve me in race event in near future..build up me guns..lol…. but getting out allot now with my new job, im getting some good time slots for sup……awesome
The Starboard race team are heading to the first race of the Season at Hayling Island Sailing club on Good Friday. The forecast is calling for some challenging conditions, which will be a great experience.
The 2010 Starboard UK SUP Race Team has been launched – with a mission:
“To provide a platform to encourage and increase participation in SUP race events, locally, nationally and internationally”
Find out more about the team here:http://www.star-board-sup-team.co.uk/
Find out more about the race here
Tuesday and the forecast looked good for a paddle from Gosport to Fareham. High tide was around midday so i set off from Hardway slipway and paddled with the incoming tide.
Going north from Hardway
There were plenty of moored yachts to slalom around and I made good progress up the harbour and into Fareham creek. With assistance from the tide and a gentle breeze I covered four and half miles in 40 minutes.
Even though I was never far from the urban sprawl and the over stretched Fareham/Gosport roads it was a remarkably peaceful paddle. And the people I met were genuinely interested in what I was doing apart from the fishermen. Only joking!
Fareham ahead
Road bridges and railway viaduct
I paddled underneath the road bridges with inches to spare when laying down, and headed up the river into Wallington. I didn’t get far as the river became too shallow after half a mile.
End of the line!
Coming back was another matter. The wind picked up and I struggled to make decent headway. The return journey took about 1 hour 15 minutes but I guess that is added value paddling. The longer you are out and the more you have to struggle the better the workout!
Heading back in the general direction of the Spinnaker Tower against the wind
Total distance was 9.5 miles. If I had more time I could have headed over to Porchester Castle but father duties beckoned. I’m glad I started using the harbour for training sessions as it is an interesting paddle – always something going on - but I always check over my shoulder to see if another boat is trying to run me down….but that is another story.
meet up with old master stu ord-hume at minster for paddle,we paddle out mile post then to second mile post in a very sunny and warm day for once.. great 3 hr social sesh, talking about paddle lengths ect… also had few rookie guys out trying sup.. tomorrow i,m heading out on the k15 heading up from the coast minster to sheerness for a hard paddle and to test fins.. anyone free welcome to join me
Sunday dawned bright and breathless here in Wiltshire so it was with much joy that I headed for a stretch of the local canal. This time though Aless my daughter, who was home from Uni to see her mum for mothers’ day, joined me on the paddle, she was paddling my Ocean Kayaks frenzy. Unfortunately in my haste to get packed I forgot my camera….Doh!.. (more…)
Had i good weekend of Paddleing, on the saturday after work i did a paddle from one end of Hasting to the other with the light wind and small half a foot chopp behind me, ended up doing the paddle of 3 miles in 30mins. On the sunday i was back in land locked Westerham (not my favourite place to be), i decided to hit the river Medway starting at the lock in Tonbridge town centre, i decided to set a good pace to the next lock as i only had about an hour of light left. From start to finish it took me 35 mins for the 3 miles. Ive also worked out that there is an 18 mile route from the Lock at Tonbridge to a lock in Maidstone, i plan to do this i good few times before the Paddle Round The Pier event, if anyone up for joining me then you are welcome to do soo. Sorry theres no Pics
Cheers
James
Just Paddled to Westminster and back from Hammersmith. I got to Westminster at about 8.30am. It was pretty eerie outside the Houses of Parliament; It was really still and I was the only person around…pretty cool. It’s best doing it at low tide with light winds. Anyone keen on joining me next time? I’ll post when it looks good. Might be a last minute drive up to London.
Cheers
Bobby
http://www.trailguru.com/wiki/index.php/Track:BOYE
I’ve been picking up quite a lot of river debris on my K15 fin recently; which means I have to keep stopping to clear it. I was thinking of swapping the fin to more of a curved surfing fin rather than the long straight one. Maybe the curved fin won’t hold as much debris…? Has anyone played around with this?
I went for a paddle this evening on the Thames. I was heading from Hammersmith to Putney. I didn’t realize but Fulham were playing at home. I paddled past the ground about 20 minutes before kick off. There were loads of Fulham fans watching me go past; all really friendly, taking pictures and asking questions. I paddled a little further to Putney Bridge where a large group of Spurs fans were crossing. Obviously they had never seen an SUP before and they were very inquisitive. About 100 Spurs fans started to sing me a question all at the same time (to the tune of Bread of Heaven) ‘what’s it like to be a C*nt,? wh-at’s it li-ke t-o b-e a C*nt’?
Living in Winchester is great but I wish it had a beach ! Round trip to Calshot, Avon, Bournemouth or Hayling is normally at least an hour or more.
hi.. just short blog…meet up with scotty at monster bay , on a another very cold easterly (-3) with sea very choppy and a shore dump.. we had couple hours playing in the chop and showing young scotty how to launch in shore dumps,and other info he has missed from the team meets as he works most weekends. scottys second time out on his pin..not the greatest sesh he had but still had a good work out on the water.. When this cold weather going to end, think next thursday we head for the river medway if its to rough as im ok paddling around in it..but need to get scotty paddling hard building his sup guns.
I’ve been using the trailguru app on my iphone to track all my paddles over the last month. It’s a pretty handy thing to use. When you finish your paddle you upload it from your phone to the website (by pushing a button). Not only does it map where you’ve been, it also tells you your distance, time, average speed, min/max speeds. If you click on the reports/graphs button, it gives you monthly breakdowns of your paddles.
Here’s a Hammersmith to Chelsea Harbour (and back) paddle I did the other week: http://www.trailguru.com/wiki/index.php/Track:BD3F
It’s well worth using and gives you something to compete against if you’re on your own.
I couldn’t deny myself a paddle today.It’s not a lack of motivation, just trouble finding the time. Having finished work at 9am, I checked the weather – force 1 – and high tide around midday; I decided to try out Portsmouth Harbour. Launched from Hardway in Gosport and paddled across to Porchester Castle. It’s only a couple of miles but it was a good warm up and the view was fantastic. Blue sky and mirror flat water, plus the sun was out and it was hot! Must be Spring?
Most of todays paddle was based on the training session at Studland last Saturday. It was a really good session; a mixture of distance and racing, plus some excellent advice from Steve West. Studland in Dorset is a stunning place to paddle, and what Portsmouth Harbour lacks in scenery, it makes up for with history. At times I found myself forgetting that I was here to train by cruising leisurely looking at the landmarks such as the chalk cliffs at Portsdown Hill, Spinnaker Tower, Porchester Castle and HMS Victory.
Back to reality, I paddled in the general direction of Fareham but turned south after half an hour. I tried to keep up a good pace but I also tried out different stroke rates and board trim. I continued down towards the mouth of the Harbour and immediately regretted this due to the sudden increase in traffic. The Royal Navy were heading out for sea trials and with the big tugs pulling and pushing the warships the chop started to build up. It was a real contrast to the north of the harbour. Next time I will stick to the northern end.
As I wobbled around and headed back to the start, the tide started to push against me. I got caught in a tidal race as I passed ‘Rat Island’ and had to paddle hard to make any headway. I then slalomed past the moored yachts (which are everywhere) and after ducking under a couple of piers (I was aware of the Police launch watching me as these are MOD property) I made it back to the slipway.
Tired, hot and thirsty, I must start wearing my hydration backpack and maybe it is time to ditch the wetsuit? I did peel it down so I’m half way there?
The paddle was about 10 miles, I didn’t paddle too quick as I was enjoying the experience but I did manage some good training. I know I need to get out paddling more often especially with the Hayling Island Race in a months time. I think that is all the motivation I need!
A great coaching day was had yesterday. Steve West took the us through some strategies for for event training and some expert advise on paddles and how critical it is to get the right one. On the water we did some technique practise which consisted of a hard paddle across the bay in a side wind and then some killer sprints to finshing.
Another great coaching day, thanks Steve. Check out the pics at the following link http://s670.photobucket.com/albums/vv65/10tozover/Coaching%20Day%20Middle%20Beach%20Studland%20Dorset/
Bobby Thatcher putting the hammer down – with some tide and wind assitance. Looking good Bobby.
Today I met up with Tony Mackaller for a short training paddle session. We paddled on the River Dart (the location for the Head of the Dart Race at the end of April – check out the Races page for event info).
We launched our K15’s in the pouring rain at Old Mill creek and headed out to the main river, turning right we paddled against the tide down the river past Dartmouth, before turning round and cruising back to the creek. We are unable to make the Team Training day on Saturday so we thought we’d get some training in ourselves. Depsite the rain it was a good session, focussing on paddle stroke execution and board trim.
I only took one picture as it was raining too hard and I didn’t have a waterproof cover for my phone so it stayed in my pocket most of the time.
