The Battle around the rock: Race Report for Round The Rock SUP race

I'd been working a lot through the week before the race, commuting a ton, working outside and with people, and then trying to throw in some fun with friends..I was tired and was very pleased to be able to sleep in on Saturday. Andrew was away for the weekend road biking up mt baker, so I had the apartment to myself. My goal was to RELAX and get some stuff done around the house. I managed to relax some but I couldn't help myself and went out for a little run, did a little yoga, and some exercises... but all in all it did make me feel good and it was nothing compared to what I usually get up to... so I was pleased with myself. I was definitely feeling run down.... not so young as I think I am I guess:)

photo by Kelvin Humenny. Finish of RTR SUP race

The race: Round The Rock
I had some trouble deciding what board length to race. I originally wanted to paddle the shorter board length and try  and beat out the longer board lengths but then for some reason I was switching my mind... I wanted more practice on the length that I normally would race and thought that would be good but then I couldn't figure out if I should paddle something longer because it was a longer race?!? As it turned out I ended up racing on what I originally intended to race... a 12'6 board. I was happy with this.I raced the BOP 12'6x26.5 Carbon Starboard race board. I had a Starboard Enduro paddle, and wore Andrew's Oneill neoprene booties. I drank Nuun as my hydration and ate nothing but was STARVING half way through the race:)

It was choppy out there..Unlike when I am in a kayak, I actually really don't mind the chop in a SUP race and sometimes even pray for it:) Its strange but I am good at it. I feel balanced on the board, and am able to power through strokes where others might be loosing some time in more of a balance stroke. Maybe its 'cause I am little or maybe its because I am focused and sometimes don't even notice, or maybe because I have broad shoulders and strong lats?...not sure.... but I like that I like all conditions! I am still working on learning to read water a little better for downwinders.  Anyways, after a very early morning ride to Seattle, we arrived with plenty of time to spare... it was chilly and windy...

The race started with a knee deep water start.... I think that is my least favorite way to start as of right now. It is hard to get good momentum for me as usually people's knee deep in my hip deep so jumping up onto the board and getting those first few strokes always seems to take me a little longer than most... it is something I am hoping to practice more!
 We headed into a headwind to begin with... I was okay with this, it wasn't too tough and I am surprisingly good at head winds... I raced in the 12'6 board length category which is a slower one than 14ft board category... this race had a twist to it though. If someone from a shorter board category beat someone from a longer board category in the the first three places than they won their prize ($$). So I had my challenge ahead of me. My ultimate goal was to try and go for the overall title on the shorter board and my intermediate goal was to at least beat out 3rd place in the longer board category. From the start of the race I could see the first two ladies on the longer boards. They were out ahead battling it out. I had my eye on them around the island. As we turned around the first corner around the island we got out of the head wind and had a slight downwind with random side chop thrown in there. I had no one around me so at times I had to look up and find the first two ladies in front of me and remind myself that I was racing and trying to catch them! Some motivation to keep me paddling hard...it is sometimes hard for me to keep the intensity when I don't have anyone close to me to catch or someone chasing me.  It felt like I was sometimes falling farther behind and at others like I was slowly making progress towards them. About 3/4 of the way around the island I was pretty sure I couldn't catch them but I never truly gave up hope...you never know what could happen in a longer race:) and something interesting did happen a wickedly strong HEADWIND.... OMG it was like a punch in the stomach.... after two or so hours of racing we them had to battle a very very tough headwind and crossing! I managed to pass a couple of male racers and got a lot closer to one of the female racers but not close enough... after the HEADWIND and then the side chop I finally rolled in at 3rd female overall and 1st in the 12'6 board length category. I was pretty pleased with it all.

Congrats to all of the Canadian SUP paddlers you all rocked it. It was grand to be out there with so many BC paddlers! It was also awesome to meet up with some of the northwest paddlers from the states... :)

Kelvin : Thank you for the drive, the support, the pictures, and just being you!

What is next...
Board the Fjord Race this weekend. Another distance race. Another good training race for the famous Battle of the Paddle race down in California. I wasn't going to head to this race as I don't really feel like I am good enough at surfing yet to be of contention or in the lead pack...
I ended up looking at my situation, where I am at, what my goals were and with the help of Andrew and others I decided that I wanted to and should head to BOP this year. I did it 2 years ago just for kicks and am sort of in the same frame of mind but now since I have returned from China feel like I might actually want to take SUP a little more seriously.... I am curious what I can accomplish in this sport physically, mentally and emotionally. I have been searching for a sport that I enjoyed, felt like I had some natural talent, and had goals I could aspire to. I think for now at least I have the closest thing to what I was hoping for. I do LOVE adventure racing, another sport I have raced at a high level but the time, money, and the fact that I need a strong team to train with makes it difficult to fully commit to it. SUP however, is new, exciting, there are communities of paddlers all over, I seem to have some sort of natural ability in the sport, and it takes me to beautiful beaches:) haha... I heart SUP right now...

I got some training to get figured out but the one thing I do know is that I want to keep SUP enjoyable, I want to work hard but not overtrain, I don't want to lose sight of all the important things in my life... BALANCE! it will be key as I step it up a notch but yet keep it cool.... :) Exciting stuff!

live, love, laugh,...DREAM!

Hello Werner Paddles and Nikki Rekman Sales!

I am super stoked to work with Nikki Rekman sales! We finally hooked up at the Vancouver SUP Challenge and I am looking forward to paddling Werner Paddles. Keep checking in for reviews, updates, races, expeditions using new gear!

live, love, laugh,...DREAM!
lina

Back on Local Turf and Loving it! Oceanman and Vancouver SUP Challenge

Great weekend down at Jericho Beach...

Oceanman
This year although I wanted to race the entire oceanman solo style and this race is totally up my alley I felt too scattered to enter the entire oceanman on my own,.  I don't feel comfortable driving our car in the city nor did I feel it right for Andrew to drive me across town, I had no wetsuit nor surfski organized for the race AND hadn't been swimming or surf skiing in a long while...These were my excuses for not racing the oceanman solo... Luckily, Shannon asking me to SUP for team Maui Jim (defending ladies champs) kind of sealed the deal for me to just hit up the relay race and enjoy a laid back team atmosphere.

Its always a long day when you are the last leg of any kind of relay team... Andrew and I were the last leg of a huge relay race in Comox Snow to Surf for a couple of years running and although you get the pleasure of running through the finish line you also get the pleasure of having little butterflies in your stomach for an unecessarily long period of time, and just hanging out waiting what seems for forever... Luckily, oceanman is not that long of a race and most of it is within eyesight and spectator friendly so being the last one to go wasn't soo bad in the end. The team was composed of Shannon who absolutely rocked the swim, Sheryl who put in a very solid paddle, Josie crushing the run, and then myself on the SUP. I got to paddle the Starboard Ace Pro Carbon 14foot by 25 inches board. It is so far my favorite 14foot board on the flattish waters. It is very light but still feels long for me as I am sooo used to paddling 12'6 long boards. I have to stand pretty far forward to get the best benefits of the board which always feels kind of funny to me. Anyways, I really like the feel of this board and was happy to race it for our team. The conditions were choppy but not as choppy as last year. We went out on a downwind round a bouy across a headwind, into the beach, with a little run around a bouy, back out in the headwind and home on a downwind. I managed to pass a couple of guys on the board which always makes me feel a little better:) I had a solid paddle. It was short (2km) and short is generally not my forte but I tried to hold on to my speed and power for the entire course. The longer boards are definitely a little tougher to turn but I am slowly getting the hang of it!

Basically we rocked it. We came in 6th overall and first for the women! Loved racing with the ladies!

Vancouver SUP Challenge

Team Starboard photo credit: Ian Hylands

We were blessed with sunshine, great water conditions, music, a very welcoming fun group of SUPers, and an enjoyable atmosphere for a race. Big shout out to Gary, Shanon, and crew for putting on a wonderful event. There was a ton of SUPin to be had in just over 5 hours....

 I started the day with talking/hugging/smiling with and catching up with people that I hadn't seen in over a year!

First event: 14ft race 4km
I was on the epoxy ace pro 14x25 Starboard Board.
A little crazy start. The time I am really nervous in SUP races is the start line.. The starts are sooo nerve racking with expensive boards, paddles, and lots of people aiming for the same area... It is always a little crazy and I am always just praying that I stay on my board and not in the water:) My start was alright here and I managed to get out in 4th place off the start. We rounded the first couple of bouys and I was out in front with the men... it felt good. After the bouy chaos we headed out into the headwind around an anchored barge. I managed to sneak in at 3rd overall before I stopped paying attention and just followed Norm to the WRONG pier.... OOPS.. no biggie in the end other than we paddled a little farther than most! It was great to paddle into my first win.

12'6ft 3km race
I was on Starboard BOP 12'6x26.5 carbon
This race was the most popular among the ladies and also had lots of paddlers in general. Here the battle was tougher and tighter. Shannon was right on my heels, Stu blasted out in front and Mike D managed to pull in a 5th among the men on an inflatable! I felt strong, things stayed exciting around the turns as people were spreading out and hence really there were people everywhere going in ALL directions. Some good hearted madness! Again I pushed hard, Declan was a great board handler and I managed to pull off a second win.

Kids Race
LOVE the kid races. Shannon, Nikki, and I helped out on the water and it was brilliant cheering and encouraging them throughout the paddle. I would love to get more involved with some more KID SUP events and opportunities!

12'6ft Sprints
I was on Starboard BOP 12'6x26.5 carbon
Sprints are my toughest, pushing hard form the start and the entire race is NOT what I am used to coming from an ultra endurance background for the last several years. I managed to pull ahead before the bouy turn and due to being out in front I managed to escape the one bouy turn chaos! YAY! Another first! Cruising into the beach felt great. My body was starting to feel the pain of pushing hard in 3 shorter races but I was totally riding the high mentally!

Team Relays
Mike D, Stu R, and me!
We race the Starboard Ace Pro Epoxy 14ft x 25
We destroyed (to put it mildly:)) FUN!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE relay races, its just plain old madness out on the water and on the beach, the cheering, the change over with boards, LOVE!

I loved seeing old faces, meeting new ones, seeing how Vancouver/BC has built a really fun community of SUPers.... I am in love with SUP! The training BEGINS! Since leaving gymnastics back in 1998 I have not truly focused on one sport... I am a little nervous to miss out on friend events BUT I am stoked to see what I can do with my mind and body in this sport. I am excited to be part of this community and pushing the limits in different ways.

Gary you pulled off a great event! I had my doubts with so little time and so many races but it worked sooo well! Loved it!

Awesome ladies: Shannon, Nikki, Me photo credit: Ian Hylands

next race Round the Rock-Seattle.... bring it on!

live, love, laugh,...DREAM!

lina

Homeward Bound: Biking in Tahoe, Oregon and the Gorge Paddle Challenge Race Report

 

To recover from the Tahoe-Nalu SUP race Andrew and I did some riding around the Tahoe area. We first headed to South Lake Tahoe to check out Mr Toads Wild Ride. It was a long haul UP, luckily I like UP.... the first part of the down was technical with a nice film of dust making it extra slippery... I was in the wrong headspace...thinking about the race that just passed and my future in the sport of SUP etc..... not helpful when trying to mtn bike down slippery boulders... needless to say I realized my thoughts were on cloud nine so took it easy and decided to march down some of the more difficult routes. Luckily, the technical sections didn't last too long and I was able to get my head back in the game and enjoy the rest of the descent. It was fun.....After about 5 hours we were back in the car and in search of a beach. We found one in Tahoe City. I got out on the SUP and practiced some bouy turns until the thunder and lightning seemed loud enough to scurry me off the water. We enjoyed some shopping and headed for the summit of Mt Rose. We spent the night on the summit as it was very close to the trailhead of our next ride: Tahoe Rim Trail into Flume Trail.
   TRT and Flume trail were very scenic indeed, flowy and fun. It is a shuttle ride and luckily we knew some amazing folks in Tahoe (Jennifer and Craig) that offered to pick us up at the end of the ride. We actually rode the flume trail the opposite way then most in order to get a little more of a technical descent later on in the loop! We enjoyed ice cream and burritos at the end of the ride!

BEND Oregon was our next destination. We were running out of time so our stop in Bend was short but sweet. We magically happened to be in the city when my old adventure race teammates Jason and Chelsey were in town (a rare occasion). They were kind enough to lend us a bed and make us some delicious dinner. Jason also pointed us in a direction of  a nice mtn bike ride. We rode the Mazrek trail the following day. It ended up being a longer than intended ride but fun nonetheless. We climbed up the road to some waterfalls then had a steep singletrack climb into a 13 mile singletrack descent. All not that far out of town.

Following Bend, we headed to our last stop on our 3 week road trip... Hood River. We had been here before but it is a lovely town with a great vibe. I had my second SUP race here.

Gorge Paddle Challenge

Chasing Allsion

My second PRO/Elite SUP race. Still no specific SUP training, still riding mtn bikes and camping, still had some firsts....
The wind conditions were set for a huge downwinder on Sunday so it was short course on Saturday. We arrived on Friday in hopes of some wind so I could practice some wave riding.... no luck.... it was dead flat so instead we went shopping! I got myself an adjustable seat post specialized style, a lightweight down jacket AND... that was expensive enough for one day! I eventually got out for a little paddle on the Starboard carbon New. Andrew and I enjoyed dinner at a taco stand by the road.... Delicious!

Saturday proved to have slight winds, enough to feel the headwind and ride the downwind and cause some chaos... The start was crowded as we ll headed to the left side to avoid being pushed downwind of the first bouy turn. I decided to start BEHIND the fast people and it worked out okay... it was roomier and so I could actually get some strokes in. I still need to work on my starts as I don't seem to paddle hard enough right away.. I am an endurance athlete in every way.... it takes me some time to get in my grove but in these one hour races... every second counts (as I am quickly learning by my close finishes with others....). I had a pretty terrible first lap and was about 8th place.... but into our first headwind I quickly realized I had a strength... HEADWIND... not the most fun strength in SUP but I suppose a useful one in certain races... I paddled passed a load of ladies and found myself in 4th behind Allison.. Unfortunately for me that is where I stayed for the rest of the 4 laps of the course. Allison is a really strong paddler and we are very similar in strength..... It is exciting and I look forward to paddling against her in more races... I finished about 7 seconds behind her in 4th. Not too bad for my second elite race with no specific SUP training.

Sunday was the downwinder. It was blowing hard. I was nervous not for the race but to not like it, to not finish it, to get ultra annoyed with the conditions..... It was my first downwinder.... it won't be my last but I do need A LOT more technical practice in order to be efficient and fast. The best way I could describe my emotions was that it really was FUN but very frustrating at the same time. I tried different tactics in catching waves etc but I just wasn't getting it enough and tons of paddlers were flying past me no matter what I did... Not my best result but that wasn't on my radar anyway for the downwinder... it was all about doing something new, something a little scary, and finishing with a smile on my face.... I look forward to the next one!

We took off after the race and made it back to Vancouver that night....

We are now finally back in our apartment but living in a flexible manner as we are renovating....

Battling for 3rd.... Couldn't catch Allison.... 

4th place

more race pictures HERE

live, love, laugh,...DREAM!
lina

Tahoe Nalu SUP Festival

I have been riding my mtn bike for 13 days out of the last 15 days... It's been AMAZING but most would probably say not the most ideal SUP training.... Well, I have my theories.... and been hoping that it is decent training for the next two BIG SUP races I have entered. I figure since I haven't been able to train on a SUP board for a year; two extra weeks wouldn't make that big of a difference?!?... I felt pretty good after my first race back at the Eastern CAN champs, winning helped:) Thanks to our road trip and my amazing hubby Andrew, I was able to try out two bigger races. Races with big prize money and hence PROS. These races could give me a starting point and let me assess where I stand up against paddlers that paddle all year, race a ton, and for some it is their career.

I finished last year off with a high winning many races around BC and feel that now I want to try and expand my racing further. I know I need to get back and figure out some proper training for SUP and I know it will still include all the activities I love to do but just in different percentages... I believe that my love for multi sports has helped me get me to the level I am, a level with very little SUP specific training... I am KEEN to see where my natural talent combined with specific training can take me... I want to be among the top ladies... right now I think I can get there... but it will take hard work.... it shouldn't and won't come easily....

Photo by Jennifer de Jung

Tahoe Nalu Day 1

10 miles
I was racing an older starboard Surf race 12'6 x 26.5
I was using a starboard carbon enduro paddle
We had to carry pfds so I had the mustang inflatable waist pfd

We started in knee deep (if you were tall and thigh deep if you were short like me!) water all in a line. It was a there and back course. I kind of just got in line... probably too far left but I am knew at this.... I had a BAD start. I jumped up on the board right away and just couldn't get a stroke in as we were squished together and got boxed out and had to just sort of wait until I could actually get my paddle in the water... I got a little flustered but eventually managed to wiggle my way around folks and get a rhythm... unfotunately I could see some ladies out in front already... I just put my head down and paddled. I managed to pass a few and keep my eyes on Brandi and Candice but knew I probably wouldn't be able to catch them (but that didn't stop me from trying...) The water was bumpy and had some awkward waves here and there.. I did stay upright the entire race... on the return I was pretty nervous not to draft some men (illegal to draft people from other categories) so I kept to myself on the outside of the line which maybe was a mistake? Don't know... I will have to ask about strategy. At some point a girl I had passed on the way out...passed me about half way back... I tried to dig deep but just couldn't catch her again... She beat me by about 5 seconds... OUCH... !

I got 4th but 4th to some of the best of the best so I can't really complain... actually I am quite happy about this. I was 5 minutes behind Candice Appleby (really probably the strongest female in the SUP community at the moment...) My future goal: to give SUp ladies like Candice, Brandi, etc a run for their money!

Coming to these races is difficult mentally... 1st: I don't know anybody 2nd: I don't have the experience others do 3rd: I am used to be being known as one of the top females.

It is important to do things that are uncomfortable, scary, unknown,.... I think it is the only real way to improve in all aspects of yourself. Although I get weird jitters inside, and nervousness of the unknown I really love putting myself out there!

more photos from Day 1 racing

Day 2

Race start beside the fast Candice Appleby

sprinting into the finish!

MORE PICTURES OF DAY 2 HERE

In short: FUN and very difficult at the same time. Three loops of a W shaped course, three starts, all loops counted for points. My strengths the first paddle to the first turn.... each turn I managed to lose some ground.... I NEED to practice my pivot turns! Ha, awesome experience though, got the heart rate way up there and look forward to more of these paddle festivals....

4th overall among the elite women!

It has been an awesome experience competing against these FAST ladies... it has definitely inspired me to get myself organized and start training specifically for SUP and just see where I can place among these incredible athletes! So, I have to say I am proud of my accomplishments this weekend and excited for the possibilities that may come in the future!

live, love, laugh,..DREAM!

lina

MOAB!

My summary of our time in MOAB: Cool landscape, grippy slickrock, somewhat annoying to ride on sand patches, funky dessert trees, lovely alpine singletrack, camping in canyons, long rides starting before sunrise, sketchy but very cool trails on the edges of cliffs, lots of time to hang in the shade....

Andrew has added more favorites from our first two days of riding PICTURES HERE! We rode slickrock and Poison Spider into Portal.

PIctures HERE from our Whole Enchilada ride (Do this ride if you can,....it was really too much fun!)

hopefully this is good training for SUP?!? I think so:)

live, love, laugh,...DREAM!
lina

IDAHO!

We have just spent the last week playing around the Sawtooth National Park in Idaho.... WOW! It is a little hidden gem of awesome alpine mtn bike trails, hiking trails, creeks, rivers, and lakes. If I was into fly fishing this seems to be the spot for that too! We have met so many nice people on the trails and around town as well! I highly recommend checking this area out if you love the outdoors.

PHOTOS of first part of trip to Idaho and first couple days of Idaho

PHOTOS of second part of Idaho

I will write more about our rides/camping/etc later.... the coffee shop is about to close.... NEXT: Lake Tahoe area for more mtn biking and SUP training and RACING!

live, love, laugh,...DREAM!
lina