Stand Up Paddle Surfing UK (http://www.supuk.org) is now Stand Up Paddle Surfing Global (http://www.supglobal.com).

We have a world class field of contributors from Global stand up paddle surfing scene including : Todd Bradley, Ivan van Vuuren, Frank Forbes, Chris “Guts” Griffiths, Adam Zervas, Nancy E Emerson, Johanna Shiu, Bob Long to name a few.

So make sure you update your browsers and check out the new Stand Up Paddle Surfing Global website.

This means that we will be retiring this blog as the new website takes over.  In the mean time the archive will stay here. Here is our very own press release :

Over the winter, while we in the UK were being hit by storms and conditions too windy to stand up paddle surf in, Matt Argyle, the owner of http://www.supuk.org was busy designing a face lift for the website. Working with his graphic design and programming team, they have made the website live today.

The popularity of Stand Up Paddling in the UK has exploded, and this has been reflected in the number of unique visitors to http://www.supuk.org had risen from around 30-40 per day in November 2007 to over 1,500 per day in February 2008. Given this rise Matt felt that he needed to build a website that would be better able to handle the bigger visitor numbers and to have scope to increase the amount of contributors to the website.

Matt continues “Simon Bassett from 2XS is travelling to Maui in April and I asked him if he wanted to be a roving reporter for the website, he agreed, but I realised that I needed to create a website that would allow him to update it with the minimum hassle. I am travelling to the US soon as well and I wanted to be able to post features and reviews in internet cafes, so I don’t need to take my laptop, the platform for this website will enable me to do this”.

Matt runs a web design company and his experience told him that the open source system Joomla! would be perfect for the launch. Allowing content editors, around the world, to log in and publish content to the site with no software needed other than an internet connection and a web browser.

Matt continues “I think that stand up paddle surfing is the first water sport to be “born” in the internet age, people now expect information to be available immediately and they want to join an online community to ask questions and help others. I hope that Stand Up Paddle Surfing UK will be able to provide this service for stand up paddle surfers in the UK and all over the world”.

This is all happening because a very kind bloke called Richard, who runs Major Sporty, is helping us out.  So if you are in the area come along to the show and say hello.

The first place winner’s check of $4,000, ultimately claimed by revered Hawaiian waterman Aaron Napoleon (Pearl City, Oahu, 41), was presented on his behalf to the West Side Junior Lifeguard Foundation. Every surfer in the main event received an equal prize check of $350.

Napoleon surfed through a total of five rounds to win the all-Hawaiian final, charging hard through every round and posting one of the event’s two perfect 10-point rides for a huge barrel. Second place today was 24-year-old Keoni Keaulana (Waianae), who was the top-performing member of the highly represented and respected Keaulana family of Makaha. Third place went to big-wave specialist Ikaika Kalama (Waialua, Oahu), and fourth was Kamu Auwae (Waianae).

Above: Aaron Napoleon setting up for the barrel that earned him a perfect 10. Photo: towner@coveredimages.com

Of the field of 32 surfers, 24 were from the Hawaiian Islands, four were from California: Scott Bass, Kyle Mochizuki, Chris Mauro and Chuck Patterson; two were from Tahiti: Raimana Van Bastolaer and Arsene Harehoe; and two were from Australia: Jamie Mitchell and Liam Wilmott. There was also one woman in the event: Maui’s Tiare Lawrence.

The top-performing non-Hawaii surfer was fifth-placed Chuck Patterson, 38, (San Clemente, CA), who lost in the semi-finals to Napoleon and Kalama. Patterson posted the other perfect 10-point ride of the contest in round one of the main event. Like Napoleon, he surfed all the way from the trials.

Above: Chuck Patterson (CA) was a standout charger today. Photo: towner@coveredimages.com

As the oldest competitor in the final at 41, Napoleon had a well of ocean knowledge to draw from today, both from his own lifetime of experience and as the product of one of Hawaii’s best known ocean-going families. A top-performer over the years in every salt-water sport on offer, Napoleon attributed his success to good genes and just wanting to have fun.

“If you could have been out there and seen how the water and the waves looked from where I was, it was so beautiful, man, I was in heaven,” said Napoleon. “How you goin’ beat one guy (sic) that’s having fun?

“It wasn’t super big, but it was fun.

“My first heat in the trials I kinda really bonked. I told myself that if I get another chance I’m going for it.”

On his perfect 10-scoring, 12-foot wave: “I set it up, pulled in there, had some travel time. I could see the jet-skis in the channel and even though I didn’t make it out, when I came up it seemed like the crowd was in awe. To get the respect, I’m on cloud nine.”

Chuck Patterson followed an identical path to Napoleon through the event, unfortunately falling one heat short of the glory, but not an ounce short on respect earned. Like Napoleon, he only made it out of the trials by virtue of being one of the highest placed thirds (technically only first and second in each heat were advancing, but a couple of vacancies in the seeded main round allowed a couple of top thirds a second shot).

Where Napoleon capitalized on the biggest, most critical waves and a high, racing line, Patterson opted for large open-faced waves and a top-to-bottom sequence of power carves that totally utilized the paddle.

Like Napoleon, Patterson is also an exponent of multiple sports – kite-surfing, big-wave tow-in surfing, snowboarding and skiing. Stand up paddle surfing is his latest passion.

“I’m addicted!” said Patterson, who runs a construction company and cross-trains young athletes when not pursing his own sporting goals. “This new sport is so exciting. It’s as much fun as anything I’ve ever done and it’s the most humbling. It has its glorified moments that leaving you feeling amazing, but then you can turn straight around and fall on a small little bump on the water. It’s a humanizing experience – you’ve just got to get back on your feet and start over. You’re always learning and it’s never boring.”

The vibe on the beach said it all today: no commercial hyp, just an intimate crowd of mostly surf-stoked aunties, uncles and families. There couldn’t have been a better venue on the planet than Makaha Beach – for natural beauty or waves. Located near the end of the road on the West Side of Oahu, Makaha has long been a paradise for surfers, playing host to the first world championships of surfing more than 50 years ago. Not much has changed around here in that time, and those things that did have now come full circle, like the old beachboy style of stand up paddle surfing that proved without a doubt today that it’s back to stay this time.

Ku Ikaika: “Stand Strong”. The name for this event came from the name of the non-profit foundation established last year by supporting sponsor of this event, C4 Waterman. The Ku Ikaika Foundation was established to shine a light on the youth that it encourages to stand strong and make strong, positive choices in life.

For more details see the BSUPA website.

http://www.kuikaikachallenge.com/

HONOLULU – (February 13, 2008) – The world’s first big-wave international stand up paddle surfing competition – the one-day QuiksilverEdition Ku Ikaika Challenge, presented by C4 Waterman and Red Bull – will tackle macking Makaha Point surf tomorrow, with forecasts for the West Side coming in at 12 feet (wave face heights of 20+ feet), with set waves as high as 15 feet (30-foot wave faces). Competition will get underway at 7 a.m.

“The storm system that generated this swell was absolutely enormous,” explains NOAA forecaster Pat Caldwell. “If it had just slowed down a touch we would be eyeing a possible ‘Eddie’ swell tomorrow for the North Shore, but conditions look pretty amazing for Makaha.

“There’s a broad range of direction to the swell, but the bulk of it will be in the 305-320 degree range which is great for Makaha – not too much shadowing from Kauai.

“Because of the relative proximity of the system, there’ll be a broad range of wave heights too, but the majority of waves for Makaha will be around 12 feet Hawaiian scale.”

The format for the event will be four heats of trials competition with eight surfers advancing to the main round. The main round will feature eight four-man heats with two surfers from each heat advancing through subsequent rounds to a four-man final in the afternoon.

The event is primarily a fund-raiser for the West Side Junior Lifeguard Foundation. Total prize money stands at $15,200, with the winner’s purse of $4,000 being won on behalf of the Junior Guards. All surfers in the main event will receive equal prize money of $350 each.

Competitors include riders from California, Australia, Tahiti, and the Hawaiian Islands.

INVITEES:
Archie Kalepa
Bonga Perkins
Brian Keaulana
Bruce “Cito” DeSoto
Craig Davidson
Dave Kalama
Dave Parmenter
Duane DeSoto
Ikaika Kalama
Jamie Mitchell
Jamie Sterling
Kamaki Worthington
Kelly Slater
Lance Hookano
Leleo Kinimaka
Luke Egan
Mel Puu
Raimana Van Bastolaer
Rob Machado
Robby Naish
Rusty Keaulana
Titus Kinimaka
Tom Carroll
Vetea “Poto” David

16 TRIALISTS:
Buzzy Kerbox
Chris Mauro
Chuck Patterson
Derek Doerner
Ekolu Kalama
Garrett McNamara
Kainoa McGee
Kalani Vierra
Keone Downing
Keone Keaulana
Kyle Mochizuki
Noah Johnson
Nolan Keaulana
Tiare Lawrence
Todd Bradley
Tony Moniz

FORMAT:

32-man format featuring the world’s top stand-up paddle surfers (24 invitees and 8 trialists from a 16-man trials division to be held on the same day).

PRIZE MONEY:

$4,000 donation to the West Side’s Junior Lifeguard Foundation will carry the event winner’s name. Surfers will share equally in $11,200 prize money ($350 each).

Its a really interesting watch, the scenery is amazing.  Lets hope that someone wants to give the challenge this year (Olaus ?!?).

As you may have noticed I have been intrigued by these boards, as the company is European and produces a really large range of 17 different boards (as well as a recently introduced childs board) from the website it appears that they will even do you a custom board if you require it. The boards come in three different finishes at three different price points. The cheapest finish is called proteck and is an epoxy sandwich construction, the mid-range is called highteck and is a more advanced epoxy sandwich (which lowers the weight and makes the boards stiffer) and at the top end is carbonteck which is 100% carbon on the sandwich, making the boards alot lighter and very stiff.

This weekend we hit the beach at West Wittering and Simon from 2xs let me try out one of the 12ft boards made using the highteck finish, I will put a full review together later, but here are my quick views.

Its light, really light,  much lighter than my C4 10′ 6 or my Jimmy Lweis 11ft.  It took me a while to get used to it because it was so much longer than I normally surf, but once I got the hang I loved it.  The deck grip that comes with the board is lush and comfortable under your feet, I found that it surfed better in slightly bigger waves (2ft plus), its easy to turn and very easy to get to the nose on.  I managed to spin the fin out doing this and it felt really good, a bigger fin might solve that problem, but I quite like spinning out on a wave, with a bit of practice I might be able to pull off some 360′s.  Well I can dream.

Neal Gent was also out on his brand new 9ft 11 GONG board, which was going really well, it looked really loose and I think Neal is pleased with his new toy !  I hope to get out on some more of these boards (well I am actually going to put my money where my mouth is and buy one I was so impressed), so expect to hear more about GONG SUP.