Stand up paddle surfing & Stand up paddle boarding
The Water Temperature is:7° C
Tides:
The Estimated Wave Height is:0-5ft
Stand up paddle surfing & Stand up paddle boarding
The Water Temperature is:7° C
Tides:
The Estimated Wave Height is:0-5ft
The bay 6k
Date & Time: Friday 24th July 2009 6pm
Location: Set off from Mumbles slip near Verdi’s Café, finish at The Watersports Station, Swansea Bay
If the taster session whets your appetite for SUP Boarding or you’re already out there doing it, then charge yourself up for THE BAY 6K DISTANCE SPRINT! This race is Swansea’s first official SUP race and a pre-runner to the forthcoming BSUPA Championships to be held at Bae Fest 2009 in September.
THE PRIZES
1st Drops Paddle (RRP £169) and Winner’s Trophy
2nd Dakine SUP Leash
3rd SUP Gower T-Shirt
THE ROUTE
Please check out the route map on this event page. Competitors will set off at the slip near Verdi’s Café, Mumbles. The route will be set by buoys and safety boat cover will be provided by Gower Kite Riders.
The course takes you N/E to the Marker Post on Swansea Bay then a sharp turn N/W takes you along the final stage to the finishing point. If at any point during the route you feel you cannot continue, please draw the attention of one of the organisers or safety boat operator who will be happy to assist you. When you dismount on the shore you must carry your board up to the finishing post where the judges will record the winner. Please feel free to hang around for a while for a mess around on the Bay and some light refreshments courtesy of The Watersports Station!
Return to Mumbles
If you need to return to your vehicle in Mumbles, you may not feel up to the paddle back across the water so try to arrange for someone to collect you from the finishing point!
ENTRY CRITERIA
All entrants must:
1. Be fit and a proficient swimmer
2. Provide their own SUP board and paddle (alternatively boards are available for hire from SUP Gower at £10 special rate for the race)
3. Wear apparel appropriate to the weather conditions (Let’s hope it’ll be boardies weather!)
4. Agree to the content of the Disclaimer at the foot of this page (Disclaimer must be signed on the evening prior to setting off)
REGISTRATION
You must register in advance, either by calling Matt Smith on 07799 062447 or Jay Doyle on 07970 577879. Alternatively email matt@gowerkiteriders.com
You must arrive no later than 5.30pm to sign in at the race start point.
Male and female participants of all ages are welcome and although this is a race, it’s all in the name of fun and about building the light-hearted and friendly community of SUP Boarding so you don’t have to win it to be in it!
Kayakers are welcome to participate but the prizes will be awarded to SUP Boarders only.
Any news on the event will be posted here and also on SUP Gower’s official website at www.supgower.com so keep checking in for updates.
Participation in the THE BAY 6K is undertaken at the participant’s own risk and SUP Gower, its subsidiaries, associated businesses and proprietor shall not be held personally liable for any personal loss, damage or injury incurred by participants to themselves and/or their property.
Ok its not directly linked to Stand up paddleboarding but I ordered one of these the other day because
This is what slackline.com has to say:
Slacklining is the sport of walking a small, flat nylon rope between two points. It is practiced in the backyard, on college campuses and city parks, and even 3000 feet above the ground. Some people do it for fun, others for the obvious athletic benefits, and others still for a meditative purpose, in seeking a higher state of mind. Since slacklining’s development in the late 1970s, slacklining has grown into an international craze, and is a common and popular pastime within the outdoor community.
It was rock climbers who first had the idea of stringing up nylon webbing and walking on it. In the beginning story has it that there were two guys in Yosemite Valley messing around, balancing on a parking lot chain on a rainy day. These young individuals took this concept of balancing and made it their life. They would spend the next several years nurturing each other in community, developing the activity of slacklining or balancing and walking on nylon webbing and sharing it with others. Slackline provides benefits for any serious or recreational athlete, including increased balance, strength and confidence which has got to improve your Stand up paddleboarding!</p>
Go to for slackline kits
Surfing waves and exploring your local coastline on your own power- do your bit for Global warming !! Buy a paddleboard its a great way to get around !
Oxbow flags flapping in the sunshine
I had a go on the Brush boarding machine which was suprisingly easy and great fun !
What beach event isnt the same without the signature beach buggie
Bill Attlee with his Escape SUP boardsescape SUP boards
My good friend olly made an impression with kids and adults at the event - keep popping olly
Bill, Nick and Guts spent most of the weekend sat on their asses chin wagging taking in the sunshine - we all did !
The long awaited shipment of Galaxy of new generations stand up paddleboards (gongsup) is NOW OUT. We now have 9′3 Androgene,9′11 Electric, 10′2 Greedy and 10′8 Everywhere in stock- We will be having a GONG show evening at SIRO’S BAR swansea on the 13th November from 6pm- be there to check them out
Stand up paddleboarding can be fun in any body of water - We are offering
on stand up paddleboards. Trips will be weather and sea state dependent- We are working on a couple of cruises lasting 1.5-2 hours in length (point to point)
Look on our courses and lessons page for details
Check out the photos of The Bitches being SUP’ed for the first time ever on the Gallery or go to
“stand up paddleboarding gower”
BSUPA competitions – Series 2008
BSUPA is running a four contest series in 2008, to find British Champions for SUP riding in the UK by the end of the season.
The events have been put together by Simon Bassett and Matt Argyle of the BSUPA committee with help of local event organizers.. We expect there may be minor glitches as this is the first series in 2008. We hope that you will give us support and feedback so we can improve for the future .We will review contest feedback and make amendments in October 2008 for the following years series.
Our main ambition is not only to compete, but to have fun on the water and keep the stoke of SUP riding.
Statement: When you enter a BSUPA competition you do so as a waterman/woman who wants to push him or herself to achieve the best Stand Up Paddle Boarding you can. BSUPA promotes a positive attitude in and out of the water. BSUPA will not tolerate bad behaviour to judges, other contestants, contest staff or BSUPA staff. Anyone found doing this will be removed from the competition and banned from all future BSUPA events.
Format: Depending on the number of entrants we will run 4 to 6 man heats in a single/double elimination format, depending on conditions, with the best two SUPers in each heat going through to the next round.
Heat Lengths: Will be between 10 minutes to 30 minutes depending on number of contestants and tide/wind/weather conditions at the beach. The contest director will advise on the day.
Overall Score: In 2008 there will be four events, with each SUPer’s best scores from three events being added up to give a total score for the season. The lowest event score for each SUPer will be discarded. The SUPer with the highest score in his/her category will be crowned British Champion.
Categories: In 2008 there will be an Open Men’s and Women’s category (open to all ages). There will also be an Under 18’s category if there enough entrants of that age (you must be under 18 on the 29th September 2008 to qualify for this category, ensuring that you are under 18 for the whole of the UK series in 2008). Under 18’s need to have a legal guardian with them during the contest.
Rash vests: Each contestant will need to collect an allocated a coloured rash vest 15 minutes before the start of his/her heat from the beach marshal.
Signals: A single horn blast will signify the start of the heat, a double blast signals the end. There will also be two 1 metre diameter discs on the beach, one painted red, one painted yellow, when the yellow one is showing the heat has started. When both the yellow and red show, the heat has 5 minutes left. When neither are showing the heat has finished.
Scoring: A contestant can catch a maximum of 10 waves in a heat. The score of the best 2 waves totaled up gives the score for that heat. Performance on each wave is marked out of 10, giving a maximum heat score of 20. Performing radical controlled manoeuvres in the critical sections of a wave, fully utilising the paddle to manoeuvre and counter balance, with commitment, power and flow will maximise scoring potential. Please remember it is stand up paddlesurf contest so its important to remaining standing during the wave ride and keep control of the board while exiting the wave and paddling back out . Scoring, as a guideline is as follows :
Score Performance 0 – 2.5 points Poor Performance. For example – poor wave choice, falling off the board, out of control, no manoeuvres, no use of the paddle during manoeuvres. 2.5 – 5 points Fair Performance. For example – reasonable wave choice, limited manoeuvres, little use of the paddle during manoeuvres, manoeuvres not linked. 5 – 7.5 points Good Performance. For example – good wave choice, linked manoeuvres, good use of paddle during manoeuvres, some use of the critical section of the wave. 7.5 - 10 Points Excellent Performance. For example – excellent positioning and wave choice, smooth, flowing SUPing, manoeuvres linked and maximum use of the paddle. Difficult manoeuvres achieved in the critical section of the wave.
Interference and drop in rules: The contestant who takes off first and is closest to the breaking white water, on a clean section of the wave has priority. All other contestants must avoid this SUPer whether they are paddling out or paddling in.
A contestant, who drops in on another contestant already riding a wave, is penalised by a 10 point deduction from the contestants heat score.
Snaking: The contestant who is farthest inside at the initial point of take-off, and has established wave possession, is entitled to that wave for the duration of his/her ride. Even though another surfer may subsequently take-off in the white water behind him. The judges will not penalise the surfer because he has right of way even though he/she is in front.
Crossover (double interference): Crossover can be defined as two SUPers who take off on the same wave, from different peaks and are approaching each other. This is potentially a very dangerous situation with SUP boards; and must be avoided. As soon as either SUPer is aware that they are in a Crossover situation they must either kick out of the wave, or straight line to the beach, to avoid a collision. As soon as judges see a crossover both riders will loose there top wave score.
Start of Heat: The contestants will gather on the shoreline prior to the end of the previous heat (or if it is the first heat of the day as directed by contest staff). When the signal (see “signals” above) for the start of the heat is given the contestant can paddle out into the surfing zone. In the case of large/difficult surf, the contest director has the discretion to allow a short amount of time, before the start of heat is signaled, to allow contestants to paddle into the line up.
End of Heat: When the end of a heat is signaled (see “signals” above) the contestant must return to the beach prone on the SUP board. If the contestant has already taken off on a wave and the end of heat is sounded during that wave ride, that ride will count. If the end of heat signal is sounded and the contestant subsequently takes off on a wave that wave does not count.
Judges: The judge’s decision is final. The judges are not to be approached by contestants during heats. All questions/issues will be referred to the contest director/Head Judge after the round has finished. Judging forms will be available at the end of each round, once the scoring has been entered on the system.
Protests: Any protests should be referred to the Head Judge or Contest Director at the end of each round. There will be up to 5 minute period of investigation, followed by the Head Judge making a final and binding decision.
Eligibility: To compete in a BSUPA competition SUPers must be BSUPA members, and therefore have 3rd party liability insurance. To be part of the BSUPA series and to have scores count towards the 2008 British Championships SUPers must be British Citizens and possess a British passport.
International Invitees (Wild Cards): There will be a limit number “Wild Card” places at each contest available for international invitees. This will allow BSUPA contests to have the best SUPers compete from around the world, raising the standard and the profile of the sport. It also encourages the international Waterman/woman culture in the UK. International Invitees cannot win the overall British series, but can win individual events.
