This last weekend was the Ta-hoe Nalu Stand Up Paddle Board Race. This is one of the largest races in North America, and many of the top competitors from all over the world were on hand to race. This year we experienced some really strong winds that combined with the wind direction made some of the hardest race conditions that most competitors had have experienced.

I personally did not have a very good race. Normally the first mile of the race is when I really try to push the pace, but because of conditions that were very unfamiliar to me, I was pretty slow over that first mile. After that I was able to pick up the pace and really started passing people, but a lot of the damage was already done. The turnaround point was 5 miles into the race, and at that point we would then have a long 5 mile down winder back to the finish. I had just passed four people right before the turn around and thought there was no way I was going to get caught by them, as I was finally paddling in a good rhythm. So, I made the turn, started paddling hard and was quickly passed by three people. Honestly I was very surprised, but I quickly realized that they were surfing the swells far better than I was, and spending less energy doing it. So, I spent the rest of the race to the finish line trying to go as fast as I could while learning how to be better at surfing the swells.

Overall I just wrote the race off as a learning experience. I have been so focused this year gaining better conditioning and a more efficient forward paddle stroke that I totally neglected the fact that I also need to learn to be good under all weather and water conditions, not just the conditions that I am comfortable racing in. So, back to the drawing board.

The next race is a month away. It is a 22 mile race across the length of Lake Tahoe. Hopefully I will get back on track and will have a better result this next time.

Jay

Paolo and I spent the last week in Salt Lake City at the Outdoor Retail Show. This is my favorite show because I get to see so many people that I have known for many years. I always have a great time catching up with friends, former business colleagues, and with many of our great retailers.

We got back in town late Friday night and for me the weekend was surely going to involve two things; Running my dogs and paddling, and I did a lot of both. The dogs were excited to get out and put in some miles on the dirt, and I was excited to get out and put in some miles on the water. Saturday I put in a really hard paddle board workout, which I am oddly still sore from, and Sunday Lisa and I went up to Tahoe for a paddle. I stopped by and visited Phil at Tahoe paddle and Oar http://www.tahoepaddle.com/home and he was nice enough to send me out on one of his race boards. It was a great weekend, and was definitely needed.

For me this is going to be my last hard week of training before the next paddle board race coming up in two weeks. I will be happy to get this week over with so that I can relax and recover a little next week in preparation for the race. I recently got a waterproof case and headphones for my iPod from H20audio http://www.h2oaudio.com/ and am now even more happy when on the water. Sometimes working out can be painful and honestly not a lot of fun, so having good music with me one the water has definitely helped make those moments much more enjoyable.

Best,

Jay

Paolo and I spent last week in Las Vegas for the annual ICAST Show. Shows like this are always a good time as it is a great opportunity to see many of our dealers, reps, and friends. We had some new product to show and everyone seemed really excited about it.

Now back in Reno it is time for me to continue to get in better shape for Stand Up Paddle Board racing. I have had a pretty good season so far, but the biggest and most important race of the year for me is just under a month away. As a result I have been working out extra hard, and hopefully all the pain that I am putting myself through now will pay dividends during the race. Fortunately I have felt more fit and comfortable in each of the races this year, but only with more training can I expect to continue to improve. So for now it is time to find comfort in the pain of hard work.

I am going to get up the lake (Tahoe) this weekend and am going to paddle the race course. It will be nice to paddle the course a couple of times and start making a race plan based on times and landmarks. This should help remove any guess work on race day, and should generally make the race more mentally comfortable, even if physically it hurts like hell.

Jay

Last weekend was the third annual Jam from the Dam stand up paddle board race up at lake Tahoe. It was a picture perfect summer lake Tahoe day and the race conditions could not have been better. This race was 6 miles, which meant just about an hour of fast paced racing. Feel the burn…….

This was my 3rd lake race of the year and each time I have made a conscious effort to learn something new, both about race tactics and about my body during an endurance race. Each race I have made forward progress and now I really feel like I understand what it takes to win, though I did not win. I finished 2nd in my class, for the second race in a row, but I feel like I am making good progress and that is all I can really ask. Now it is time to take the things that I have learned and apply them to my workouts. Win or lose, my goal at the next race is to simply be better.

Again I would like to thank the folks at Surftech http://surftechsup.com/ for their support. I would also like to thank Phil at Tahoe Paddle & Oar http://www.tahoepaddle.com/home for organizing the race.

Jay

Last Saturday was the second race in the 2010 Lake Tahoe Standup Paddle Board race series. http://www.laketahoepaddleboardassociation.com/ The race was called the Thunderbird Run and started at Sand Harbor up at Lake Tahoe. The race conditions were perfect and the weather could not have been better. It was a little warm, but after the cold spring that we have had I will not be complaining about a little heat. At least not for a while. This was an 8 mile race and I competed on a Surftech, Jamie Mitchell model, in the stock class. http://www.surftech.com/ I had a good race, not a great race, and finished 2nd in my class.

It was my first time ever on this particular board, and during the race I learned a lot of things. I picked up on lots of little details that make a big difference over the course of 8 miles. I was surprised by how my body reacted at certain points during the race, and there are a lot of variables that could have factored into that. Like I said though, I learned a lot, not only about my body but also about the boards, and technique. Hopefully I can continue to build off this finish and this new experience.

The next race in the series is about a month away, so this will give me some time to apply my new ideas to training.
Thanks again to the Lake Tahoe Paddle Board Association for putting on the race, and to Surftech for their support.

Jay