I got permission from Carlos Gonzales to post this. It originally appeared on Surf Caribe. It was written by Quique Figueroa and the photo is by gOnzo. This is a very cool SUP race that took place in December in Puerto Rico. Read on...
In conjunction with their national contest, the Puerto Rico Hobie Cat Association staged its first annual stand up paddlboard (SUP) race at Pine Grove beach in Carolina this past Sunday. An exciting finish innaugurated what everyone hopes will become a highly anticipated holiday event. Surf Caribe was there to show you what went down.
Fifteen competitors participated in this first annual race hosted by Beach Cats and the PRHCA. Things got started around 9:25am, just before the wind kicked in with an “off the beach” lemans start provided by Camille. The paddlers enjoyed the flat waters and calm winds of the Balneario de Carolina and headed for the famous “Caballos buoy”. An upwind run out to sea through the surf break followed by a downwind paddle back to the beach. As planned by the wind gods, the trades started blowing just as the leader pack went around the buoy making it difficult to work against the chop. Catching a wave on the reef was a way to gain some distance or loose it all as some competitors found out when they got separated from their board trying the risky maneuver. After returning to the first set of marks near shore the competitors headed for the “Islita” in Isla Verde, downwind thankfully. Around the “Islita” the race was neck and neck between Greg Carson and Ernie Alvarez with Art Wibble not far behind. Ernie caught a small wave on the inside reef to take over the lead while Greg stayed on the outside with only 500 meters to go. Art also made a late move of his own, and closed in on the leaders as they neared the finish in front of the Marriott Courtyard Hotel. The two leaders were side by side as spectators, family and friends cheered them on. Ernie maintained a very slight edge approaching the beach break, as he tried for a wave he slipped and Carson managed to stay on his feet all the way to the beach for the final run to the Red Bull tent and the official finish.
The 5 mile course took over 90 minutes to finish given the challenging conditions found throughout the course. After racing everyone enjoyed the beach, sun and a little bit of Hobie Cat racing while taking advantage of refreshment provided by Red Bull and Heineken.
The afternoon ended with the awards ceremony under the supervision of Carlos González, the event’s sponsor/organizer/mc/chase boat captain. The top three finishers took home the spoils provided by Beach Cats and Rums of Puerto Rico.
Many thanks to everyone who joined us on the beach this Sunday, especially our friends from the Island’s west coast.
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