Maui to Molokai SUP race 2012, race recap by Bill Boyum and Robert Stehlik

Before the start of the Maui to Molokai race at Honolula Bay

The Maui to Molokai race was my favorite race I have competed in to date.
Most of the content in this post has already been posted on the standup zone in this thread:
http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?topic=16792.0

Here is the GPS data of the race:
http://connect.garmin.com/activity/199292338

Bill Boyum from Maui did a great writeup along with excellent videos, which I will re-post here, videos are at the bottom of this page.

Race Recap written by Bill Boyum:

As Blueplanet reported, he came over friday morning, I picked him up and we did a fairly smokin' Maliko run to the oil tanks.  BluePlanet (Robert) was going to be racing on Sat so he just wanted a cruise run which was perfect since he was going with me and Victor.  Robert's a great guy and very good DW paddler.  He sandbagged considerably on his very first Maliko run to allow me stay with him and certainly seemed ready for the next day.

  TS Daniel had just cleared south of the BI Friday night and pressure gradients had tighten significantly.  I wasn't going to even be racing, just shooting vid from the Baxter team boat but I was just as excited.  Wind whistled in my window all night long, sleep was scattered.

Arrived in Lahaina at 6:45 and our skipper, Mike Holmes from Molokai reported a very rough crossing.  The Baxter team posted along with a very jovial Chuck Patterson, keen to do his first Pailolo, M2M.  Conner was stretched out below while Chuck and I swapped old stories on the deck and laughed.  He's a guy who  must have the biggest grin on the planet.   That grin grew bigger as we blazed up the coast on glassy seas, finally crashing into a very solid wind line off Kaanapali. Yep the conditions were outasight.

We pulled into a glassy Honolua Bay, which for old surfers like me, is a sacred place of untold beauty and an incredible spot to begin a race.  Most of the racers did preliminary a warm up paddle around the bay  and I was able to shoot some close ups of all who came around our boat to drop stuff and chat.  Young Dylan from South Africa posted in one of the smallest escort boats I'd seen, with the SA flag waving.  Fun stuff.  He was using the same SB he's been using so far on his trip, without a rudder, an ambitious undertaking for the Pailolo.

Start was the usual sprint blaze but soon there was a break out pod of around eight paddlers which quickly turned into a pod of four following, not drafting mind you, Conner.  Conner, Dave, and Livio from Maui and Dave Kssa from Sydney OZ(Kssa on our forum)  Dave Kssa had already proved his worth in previous runs and despite his jovial personality, a closer inspection of his eyes would inform you that this guy is a very keen competitor.

However within that first mile, the Conner and Dave show separated from Livio and Kssa.  Kalama maintained a constant charge on Conner's burst regime and the two were quite close with a see-saw for around 8-9 miles.  The channel was as good as the channel could be.  There were very tall and massive broad swells moving through deep water as usual but what wasn't as usual was that the wind speed  allowed Dave and Conner to chop glides off the crest tops and make a turn to the right.  My GPS on the boat showed 7.5-10mph during this stretch for these two, which is phenomenal for deep-water open ocean speeds on an SUP.

I found it interesting, even in the first early miles, to see how each of the two leaders adjusted to bodily stresses.  Dave would catch glides and do Lance Carson type soul arches to alleviate some of the static contraction building up in his back, looking graceful in a hardcore situation.  Conner on the other hand, would squat down so low his butt was almost touching the board as he pulled into almost hollowed out sections of crest tops.  Who has legs like that?  Only the young.  In this channel environment the two seemed a remarkably even match.

But as we neared Molokai, almost ten miles into the race, out of nowhere, Livio began moving up fast.  Soon he was within the camera frame with Conner and Dave.  I was very excited.  As someone shooting video, more racers means better footage. Livio was risking all by fully dropping down the face of a few monsters instead of only riding the top.   It appeared to be paying off.  I bet his GPS was spiking very high.

Racing this distance (28 miles) absolutely requires hydration and nutritional help.  Support boats can carry those supplements and this was where the Baxter team (Conner's parents, Keith and Karen), excel.  It's a well-oiled machine.   Karen mixes the shake and Keith throws on a pair of swim fins.  After signaling to Conner, Keith leaps into the deep blue, a true ‘leap of faith’. (kind of what I think of as blundering into south central LA and running out of gas).  Keith didn't even flinch.   Well away from the boat, Conner was able to squat down and pick up from the outstretched hand of his father, his go-juice or bar.    Then we in the boat would double back for the Keith retrieve.  It was an exceptional thing to witness.

I was looking for Dave's method but failed to see what he did because separation had slowly begun to occur.  Conner was pulling away.

Before we hit outside Kamalo, the sea surface had changed dramatically.  Glides were slowing down and growing relatively steeper as the bottom grew shallower.  Large scalloped bowl sections lined up and with breaking crest tops.  Still, these glides weren't what you might consider easy entries.  The faces were still initially shallow faced as they stood up (by Maliko standards) and Conner was hammering down race start speed sprints to drop in.  But once in it was quite a sight.    The faces would open up like no ones business, and the fancy and fast foot work was in full gear.  He dropped so many that were ‘toenail clinging’ and which I thought were a  for sure wipeout but somehow he would pull out the drop.  He wasn't perfect and did finally crash very hard, the kind of crash that would take the starch out of a guy like me, but Conner was up in a blink and if you've seen that race vid from Haliewa then you know how fast that is.   Conner maintained his knee pumping, energy bunny routine throughout this final 15-mile stretch of the race.  How fast?  Wicked fast.  My guess is around 11mph average for this section.  I bumped my GPS somewhere along the channel section so I don't have that speed but I do know this.  Our boat had a cruising speed, which wasn't sufficient to keep up with the kid.  Sometimes the boat would drop in along with the kid and we’d keep up but otherwise we'd have to throttle up to catch him almost every 40 seconds.  As Peter posted a 9.2 average is blazing fast for his record time.  The word from people have been doing that particular run for as long as it's been done on an SUP, is that yesterday was the best conditions yet.

Open ocean inter -channel racing is still a very fringe wing of the sport of SUP and the logistics for doing it, while maybe not as much as a mountaineering expedition, are still significant with all the incumbent dangers that the open ocean can bring.  Like powder skiing in the backcountry, the very elements that can enhance the experience, can be the same that could be your undoing.   All the participants in these kinds of channel crossing are heavy hitters and have a strong enough focus to keep going a marathon distance, navigating through mountainous seas.  I've seen some stuff in my life, some really impressive shit but this was right up there among the top.

I'm not great on boats but drank alot of ginger tea the day before.   I was doing fine until the shooting starting getting very intense.  Dave Kalama wore his famous racing red shirt and was easy to spot in my frame and since Conner was near him during the first half, it was good.  But Conner had a white shirt and during the high-speed Kamalo stretch, it was straining to find him.   Like reading a book in a car, I began to suffer some nausea.  I’d heave a bit and Keith would take over and then I’d be back on it.  In any case the thought of going back to Maui upwind on the ferry, as I originally planned, were thrown quickly out the window.  Pounding into those size seas upwind would have been torture for me.  So I went back with Karen and Conner on the small puddle jumper and was treated to a stunning ride along the north shore cliff side of Molokai at sunset…  fitting end to a very long day.

Already had a look at the vid and pics.  Looks very good.  Working on them so stay tuned....


Here are Bill's videos of the race (keep watching to see all three videos):




Below are Interviews I did before and after the race for Radio Chum with some of the top finishers and the event organizer.

I did not have video to go along with these audio interviews, so I made a slideshow of the event, all four interviews have the same slideshow playing.

Rodney Kilborn da Handsome Bugga : http://handsomebuggaproductions.com

I'm looking forward to doing this race again next year.
While the distance it is almost as long (27 miles) as the Molokai to Oahu race (32 miles), this race is just so much faster and funner.  While the M2O race keeps getting harder and harder as you get closer to the finish, the M2M race keeps getting better and better.  If you are interested in doing a long distance channel crossing solo for the first time, I highly recommend this race.  

Aloha,
Robert Stehlik
www.blueplanetsurf.com

SUP Paddle Technique Part 2 - The three ingredients of a powerful stroke by Robert Stehlik

Breaking down the Power Phase, part two of the paddle technique series. 

The proof's in the pudding:  My thinking is that if someone is fast and winning races, they must be doing something right, so I developed my technique by watching and listening to the fastest paddlers and trying to emulate what they are doing.   This paddle technique series is my attempt to share what I have learned and break it down into easy to follow steps. 

First, some recommended reading:
Good technique starts with a good paddle, it's impossible to have good technique with a paddle that is too short, for example.  So if you are not sure you have the right paddle, read part one first:
Choosing the right Paddle

A stand up paddle stroke can be broken down into these main phases:  Reach, Catch, Power, Release, Recover.
Dave Kalama breaks down these steps and the Tahitian style paddle technique very well on his blog.  If you have not read his technique posts yet, you should:
www.DavidKalama.com

Each step of the stroke is important and needs to be practiced.  Good reach and catch are important before applying the power so they really should come first but for this post I will just focus on the power phase, where the pedal hits the metal.  I have found an effective way of teaching a more powerful stroke is by breaking down the power phase into three basic components or ingredients, which I call PUSH, TWIST, LEAN.

4th of July Race finish, photo: Reid Inouye

Each paddler develops their own individual technique and I can often identify a friend paddling in the distance by the stroke long before I'm close enough to recognize any features.   Despite different styles, I think every good paddler uses a combination of the "three ingredients".
Beginners often paddle by pulling the paddle with the lower arm.  This is probably the least efficient way to paddle and will tire the arms quickly.  Pulling with the lower arm bent is not an ingredient of a powerful stroke.  The bottom arm should stay straight throughout the power phase. The lower hand acts as the fulcrum (rotation) point of the paddle.  The only time the lower arm should bend is to lift the paddle out of the water for the recovery. (To visualize this motion, I like Dave's image of pulling a sword out of it's sheath while the top hand twists a door knob to feather the blade).  
Note: I have noticed that some fast paddlers like Kai Lenny sometimes use the bottom arm to pull the blade at the end of the stroke when leaning far forward, but for most of us, this is not an efficient way to power the paddle.

Kai Lenny using twist, lean push AND lower arm pull at the end of the power phase.
Pic: Stand Up World Series / RonanGladu.com  

To learn how to combine the "three ingredients" for maximum power, we will first look at and practice each ingredient in isolation before combining them.  My friend Evan shot a short video where I demonstrate the three ingredients on the paddle simulator in our shop.  If the description is confusing, please watch the video at the bottom of the page and it will hopefully make sense.  If you are still having a hard time, please stop by the Blue Planet shop for a paddle simulator demonstration or come to one of our monthly clinic/ demo days where we have advanced paddle technique clinics (all free).

1) First ingredient: PUSH:

 This is basically using your top arm to push the paddle out in front of you. Try to do this motion in isolation while keeping your shoulders square, staying upright, and keeping the bottom arm straight. It's like you are punching your hand forward from in front of your face. By bending the top arm, you increase the forward reach and by pushing with your top arm you can do quick strokes that work well when you want to accelerate quickly, like when catching a wave or getting on a bump. The downside is that if you use only the triceps in your arms to power yourself your arms will tire quickly.

2) The second ingredient: TWIST: 

 To practice this, keep both arms straight through the stroke and stay upright, using only a twisting motion to move the paddle. Rotate your hip and shoulder forward to reach, then unwind with the shoulders following the hips. This twisting motion should be where most of the power in your stroke comes from, using the muscles in your back and core to propel yourself forward.

 
3) The third ingredient: LEAN: 

 A word of caution: if you have lower back problems, you will want to go easy on the lean until your your back gets stronger. To isolate the lean, keep both arms straight and keep your hips and shoulders square. Straighten your body for the reach, then use your body weight and abs to lean on the paddle by bending at the waist. If you watch some of the most powerful paddlers (like Danny Ching, Chuck Patterson, Aaron Napoleon) you will notice that they lean heavily on their paddle during the stroke and often end the stroke with their upper body at an almost 90 degree angle to the legs. By pushing the blade down into deeper water during the stroke, it is also able to reach more "new still water" (as my swim coach likes to call it), giving it more grab. The lean engages your core and as you are leaning forward, you are pushing down with your top hand and using gravity to "fall" onto your paddle. If you are doing it right, your abs should feel like you are doing a crunch with every stoke.

Danny Ching is really leaning into the stroke, note that even though he is taking a very long stroke, the blade  will still release in front of his feet due to his forward lean.

Here is a frame grab of Danny Ching at the end of his power phase during the last Battle of the Paddle race.  Please note that pulling the paddle this far back works on a displacement hull but won't be effective on a planing hull (like a surf SUP) as the paddle angle starts to pull the board down into the water.  Notice too, that despite pulling the paddle way back, the blade is still in front of his feet because the upper body is leaning far forward.  This is another advantage of the LEAN, you can lengthen the stoke without pulling past your feet.

Here is a picture of Jaime Mitchell (from futures fins blog). note how he is upright during the reach, he is not leaning into the reach, the forward lean starts after the catch and pushes the paddle down during the power phase.

The LEAN adds power to the stroke but also brings the stroke further back and the recovery takes longer.   Dave Kalama proved that the quick, shorter, Tahitian style stroke which uses more of the PUSH and TWIST than the LEAN, is very efficient in downwind conditions and longer races like the Molokai challenge.

Here is the video shot by Evan Leong of standuppaddlesurf.net demonstrating the the three ingedients on the SUP simulator at Blue Planet Surf Shop (sorry, the quality is not the best):


In long distance paddling it is good to have several power sources to rely on.  For example, you can use the push for a quick burst of acceleration, then rest your arms by using more twist and lean.  I recommend practicing and perfecting these three ingredients in isolation, then try to combine them in different ways to find your own "secret sauce".

Links to the paddle technique series posts:

Paddle Technique Part 0: Introduction to SUP

Paddle Technique Part 1: Choosing the Right Paddle

Paddle Technique Part 2: The Three Ingredients of a Powerful Stroke
Paddle Technique Part 3: Stacking the Shoulders

Paddle Technique Part 4: Reach and Catch

Paddle Technique Part 5: Recovery, Paddle Length and Grip

Paddle Technique Part 6: Turning the Board
Paddle Technique Part 7: Catching Waves

Aloha,
Robert Stehlik
www.blueplanetsurf.com

Additional resources:
If you are looking for more help with your paddle technique, you may want to check out the training program that Wet Feet is putting together in Honolulu, which I will be involved with: http://www.wetfeethawaii.com/default.asp?id=22

I have also put together the Paddle Core Trainer, a SUP simulator kit for home use that is great for working on your technique on the days you can't get on the water.  It comes with an instructional DVD that will help with your stroke and stoke:  http://www.paddlecoretrainer.com/

at the 2009 BOP photo: Phil Rainey

flatwater training.  photo: Alex Nix