Covewater Classic SUP Race - Sept 22nd!

COVEWATER CLASSIC SUP RACE - SEPT 22nd!

RACE RESULTS!

The Second Annual Covewater Classic SUP Race is set for Saturday, September 22nd.  Taking place in the waters off of Capitola Beach, the Classic will feature a 3.5 and 6.5 mile race.  Best of all, this race is free.  No registration, no fee, no attitudes - this is just a free race for paddling enthusiasts.  After the race, join us for a hosted lunch at Sante Adairius Rustic Ales in Capitola featuring delicious food from Surfrider Cafe.  More details and RSVP for the post-race lunch party here.  See you at the Classic! (Assemble at 9AM; race starts at 9:30.)

J.Riggs DW Instructional Video for 14' Boards

Jeremy rides a 14' rudderless board in this excellent instructional video. He highlights the importance of maintaining board momentum (speed) and turning to stay with the bumps.

   Maliko Downwind Training Run from Paddle With Riggs on Vimeo.

The Shaka Continues to Amaze

Thursday August 23, 2012 - New Brighton to Sewer Peak Channel RT (low route out, high route back). Sports Tracker link. New Brighton, to the channel at Sewers, up and out and back to NB via Sponge Bob. First 3 miles into an 8-9 mph headwind, then downwind in 6-7 mph tailwind. No surf from NB to 2nd Peak. Only 1st and SP had any waves at all. One lone surf school class out at 1st Pk. Sun off NB and Cap, overcast up at the Point. Really good day for a paddle.

I continue to be completely impressed and stoked with the Angulo Shaka. The board paddles so well into a head wind and chop and with such stability it's just amazing. The bow just crushes the oncoming wind chop and waves, and you can push it through the waves with your legs as you pull it through with your paddle. Even in rolling back wash that puts a nasty cross hatch across the sea surface the Shaka maintains its stability. The result is that the paddler can continue to dig in and paddle steady and hard, without having to worry about balancing while keeping up a rhythmic pace that maintains board speed. Analyzing the data on Sports Tracker shows that I was able to paddle at an average speed of 3.6 mph into a brisk head wind. The wind increased during mile three and the sea surface became rougher than miles one and two but I was still able to keep up my pace.

Granted, all this is measured by me and I'm not what you would call a fast paddler. But that is really irrelevant because I am measuring against myself and the clock and the board. The point here is that compared against a flat water board design like my 12-6 Bark Competitor the Shaka not only holds it own, but exceeds the performance I could expect from the Bark in ALL conditions. The Bark should be expected to excel in flat water padding, but again, the Shaka holds it's own. Where the Shaka excels (going downwind) there is no comparison.

This is proven out in the final 3.5 miles of the run where I averaged 4.55 mph. It should be noted that the wind dropped off a bit and the wind swell was minuscule. I was amazed with the glides I was getting in the almost non-existent swells. This was proved out factually by the tracking app. It just doesn't take much swell or wind to push the Shaka downwind at a very acceptable speed.

Initially I purchased the Shaka for downwinders. But the versatility of this board makes it an solid value. I was originally going to keep my Bark but now there's really no need to. The Shaka is all the board I need for everything I do SUP, except surfing.

Angulo Shaka Continues to Meet Expectations

Monday August 20, 2012 - New Brighton to Sewer Peak Channel RT (low route). I didn't have my Sports Tracker with me today, but the route was about 5.5 miles. I did the first 2.75 mile, into the wind first leg in 33-37 minutes. Calculated out that's to 4.5 to 5 mph into a light headwind averaging about 3 mph. I was working hard and steady but not really pouring on the coals and I'm happy with this time and pace given that the Shaka is not specifically billed as a flat water racer. 

Today's time was better than any other time I've posted ever, and any time posted on my 12-6 Surftech Bark Competitor. I rested for a few minutes in the channel and then paddled back steady but relaxed, concentrating on what I think is good technique, and paddling about 70% of maximum energy. My overall time was about 1 hour 15 minutes which calculates out to 4.4 mph. Again, a very satisfactory and acceptable time for a board that is not designed for the racing circuit.

At 28.8 pounds the production Shaka is durable and an excellent all-around paddler for rough water, (especially) downwinders, social racing, touring and family activities. An active recreational and fitness paddler could do a race in the morning, a downwinder in the afternoon and then meet the family at the take-out point beach for more family paddling and fun.

For the more serious racer, hopefully Ed and the Angulo movers and shakers will bring the all-carbon Double Shaka to market sooner than later. But my guess is that if an eager paddler wanted to buy one they could get a one-off custom Angulo Double Shaka with just a little bit of arm twisting.

If that's something you're interested in you can get the contact info from the Angulo website.