US Surfski Champs – Race Report ** Full Results **
San Francisco, California 22 August 2009: "The coldest winter I ever spent was summer in San Francisco" - attributed (incorrectly!) to Mark Twain.
Pic: Roger Dunn
Fog, Wind, Waves andCurrent
The tops of the Golden Gate Bridge were lost in cloud and a cold, damp wind whistled over Fort Baker where the stalwart Wavechaser volunteers had set up for the 2009 US Surfski Championships.
Classic San Francisco conditions: a brisk 20kt wind blowing in from the sea and a forecast 4kt current to challenge the paddlers on the outbound leg. The paddlers' lines would be critical - both on the way out and when riding the wind swells down the long downwind leg to the finish at Berkeley Marina.
Short Course
The short course was sent off first on a 7.25mi/11.6km lap into San Francisco Bay. Mark Heutter won, followed by Peter Marcus, Jeff Schwing, Dan Coupland, Ben Sarrezan and the first woman home, Eva Mauck.
Main Event - the Start
At over 100 competitors, this was the biggest (and most competitive) field ever at the US Champs. Two escort boats formed the start line, engines motoring slowly as they maintained their positions in the current.
"We had a clean start," said race favourite Dawid Mocke. Mocke headed out fast, accompanied by Aussies Jeremy Cotter and Caine Eckstein and fellow Capetonian (and youngest paddler on the course) Sean "The Prawn" Rice.
The stream of skis shot under the north end of the Golden Gate Bridge, almost scraping the rocks as the paddlers tried to stay out of the flood current.
US Surfski Champs 09 Start (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
The lead group edges past the north end of the Golden Gate bridge (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
And into the current (Pic: Lesley Brown)
The raging current shows clearly in this view, taken from the bridge (Pic: Lesley Brown)
Wide Line
"Tony Schumaker is staying out in the current, this is bizarre!" said our lead spotter, Brent Reitz.
Conventional wisdom has it that in order to avoid the current, you have to go at least some way into each of the bays on the way out to Pt Bonnita - but Schumaker was flouting this rule, and seemed to be getting away with it. Some 300m out in the stream, he was keeping up with the lead group.
The leaders pass Pt. Diablo (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
Dawid Mocke, Caine Eckstein and Jeremy Cotter working upwind and upcurrent together (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
Homework pays off
After the race, Sean Rice revealed that he and Schumaker had not only tripped the route a number of times, but had also visited the San Francisco Bay Model a few days before the race. They'd told the tour guide about the race, and she'd obligingly simulated the race day conditions -injecting dye into the model to show the exact currents. Rice and Schumaker knew that it wasn't necessary to take the longer conventional route into the bays. "But I had such a sweet slip on the lead group that I decided to stick with them anyway," laughed an elated Rice after the race.
A little further back, the venerable Dean Gardiner was battling. "My forearms blew up on the way out," he said. "But that actually paid off after the turn because I was fresh and could push it a bit harder."
Pt. Bonnita
By the time they reached the turning buoy off Pt. Bonnita, Mocke and Cotter had dropped Caine Eckstein (who'd left his boat and bib numbers in his hotel room and the race spotters baffled) and Sean Rice. Turning downwind, they started back towards the bridge.
"Jeremy put in an interval and got ahead of me," said Mocke. "I knew that the final leg from Angel Island would be critical so I decided not to chase but to conserve energy. Turns out I conserved a little too much!"
Dean Gardiner
Gardiner said his painful forearms turned out to be a blessing in disguise. "On the way out I was watching the guys in front," he said, "so I could see - and avoid - their mistakes."
Dean Gardiner - forearms seizing up as he battles upwind (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
With the wind behind him, his arms "freed up a bit" and he took off to make up the places that he'd lost. He took a line to the right of the leaders, further out into the stream.
"It seemed obvious to go out into the middle," he said.
"There were some weird little anomalies out there though,"he added, "water going in and out.
"Caine was alongside me," he added, "so I had someone to race.
"It was a great race. Really interesting, lots of stuff going on. The closeness at the end shows how competitive it was. Without swell underneath the wind waves, all the good paddlers were catching their runs so you really had to concentrate - you couldn't afford to miss one."
Having rounded the Bonnita Pt. Buoy in about 8th place,Gardiner ended up third overall.
Sean Rice
"Oh man, what a race! It's the first time in a long time that things have really worked out - I just had a smile on my face the whole way. I was having so much fun on the runs that I had to keep telling myself to focus on the race!"
An elated Sean Rice heads downwind towards the finish (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
The twenty year old from Cape Town, South Africa was on a high after his excellent sixth place.
"I got beaten by five other guys, but they were the better paddlers," he said.
"Tony [Schumaker] and I had done our homework and had a great line - but Deano had an even better line," he grinned.
Pt Bonnita Rocks
The homework included scouting the rocks at Pt.Bonnita. "I went straight through," he said, "and gained about 150m on the leaders.
"I was careful," he added. "I watched the rocks for about 3min before committing and I wouldn't have done it if we hadn't practised it."
Greg Barton heads downwind (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
Murray Stewart
Aussie (and ex-South African) Murray Stewart pipped Rice for 5th place. He too was happy with his result. "It's not exactly 200m sprints," he grinned. (He's just come back from K1 sprint world championships in Nova Scotia.)
"It was torturous going out, but great coming back," he added. Stewart starts his surfski training now for the Hong Kong and Dubai races at the end of the year, before switching back to K1. "Ski paddling is great cross-training," he said. Stewart is on the Australian Olympic team preparing for the London Games.
And in the end...
Mocke had left himself too much work to do to catch Cotter on the final stretch of downwind from Angel Island to the finish. "Jeremy had a fantastic race," he said, "definitely deserves the win. I messed it up a little bit, but hey, that's racing!"
Cotter was well pleased with the result - especially after his disastrous tour to Spain where a 24 hour stomach bug knocked him out of contention.
"Going out in the current was horrible," he said. "You had to watch the current constantly. Coming back was great though!"
He confirmed that he'd put the hammer down after passing under the bridge on the way back. "From Angel Island, it was great," he said. "It's nice finally to win one of these things!"
Dawid Mocke battles to catch Jeremy Cotter on the final stretch to the finish (Pic: Lesley Brown)
Jeremy Cotter - 2009 US Surfski Champion (Pic: Lesley Brown)
Dawid Mocke paddles to second place (Pic: Eric Nguyen)
Pics by Barbara Kossy
{gallery}2009/08/USSSC/race/BKlitebox{/gallery}
Pics by Eric Nguyen
{gallery}2009/08/USSSC/race/ENLitebox{/gallery}
Pics by Lesley Brown
{gallery}2009/08/USSSC/race/LBlitebox{/gallery}
Results - US Surfski Championships 2009
Rank | Bib# | Name | Time | Boat Make | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | Jeremy | Cotter | 01:53:23 | Fenn Elite |
2 | 1 | Dawid | Mocke | 01:54:01 | Fenn Elite |
3 | 5 | Dean | Gardiner | 01:54:42 | Fenn Elite |
4 | 4 | Caine | Eckstein | 01:55:00 | Fenn Elite |
5 | 3 | Murray | Stewart | 01:56:08 | Fenn Elite |
6 | 9 | Sean | Rice | 01:56:19 | Think Uno |
7 | 6 | Barry | Lewin | 01:57:13 | Synergy |
8 | 17 | Tony | Shumaker | 01:57:55 | Think Uno |
9 | 27 | Michael | Locke | 01:59:32 | Fenn Elite |
10 | 7 | Reece | Baker | 02:01:04 | Fenn Elite |
11 | 38 | Ian | Timbrell | 02:04:47 | Fenn Elite |
12 | 12 | Adam | McKane | 02:05:21 | Fenn Elite |
13 | 21 | Noah | Hawke | 02:05:44 | Fenn Elite |
14 | 8 | Greg | Barton | 02:05:47 | Epic V12 |
15 | 13 | Patrick | Hemmens | 02:06:03 | Fenn Elite |
16 | 14 | Carter | Johnson | 02:06:46 | Huki Special |
17 | 41 | Darren | Lee | 02:07:26 | Huki Special |
18 | 99 | Philippe | Baccora | 02:08:21 | Huki Special |
19 | 10 | Rami | Zur | 02:08:44 | Fenn Elite |
20 | 16 | Gareth | Tudor-Jones | 02:09:00 | Epic V10 |
21 | 20 | Mark | Sandvold | 02:09:07 | Epic V12 |
22 | 42 | Naomi | Flood | 02:09:36 | Fenn Mako 6 |
23 | 18 | Donald | Kiesling | 02:09:58 | Epic |
24 | 31 | Stewart | O'Regan | 02:12:01 | Think Uno |
25 | 33 | Robin | Graham | 02:12:17 | Fenn Mako 6 |
26 | 85 | Sean | Morley | 02:14:03 | Huki S1X |
27 | 30 | Gary | David | 02:14:23 | Fenn Mako 6 |
28 | 104 | Justin | Banfield | 02:14:50 | |
29 | 11 | Ian | MacKenzie | 02:15:01 | Epic V12 |
30 | 15 | Erik | Borgnes | 02:15:05 | Think Uno |
31 | 79 | Dion | Maxwell | 02:15:36 | Think Uon |
32 | 28 | Tony | Calderon | 02:15:50 | Huki Special |
33 | 103 | Mike | Litter | 02:16:07 | Fenn Elite |
34 | 91 | Jeff | Smoke | 02:16:13 | Fenn |
35 | 92 | Richard | Sprout | 02:16:17 | Synergy |
36 | 83 | Cliff | Meidl | 02:16:29 | Fenn Elite |
37 | 48 | Barry | Borm | 02:16:37 | Fenn Elite |
38 | 72 | Brian | Kummer | 02:16:51 | Fenn |
39 | 98 | Tommy | Yonley | 02:16:59 | Huki Special |
40 | 32 | Corry | Fitzgibbons | 02:17:06 | Fenn Elite |
41 | 39 | Bernadette | Wallace | 02:17:38 | Fenn Mako 6 |
42 | 45 | Morris | Arthur | 02:18:22 | Huki Special |
43 | 29 | Mike | McNulty | 02:18:32 | Huki Special |
44 | 24 | Kenny | Howell | 02:18:33 | Epic V12 |
45 | 19 | Joe | Glickman | 02:19:27 | Epic V10 |
46 | 67 | David | Jacobson | 02:20:32 | Fenn Elite |
47 | 77 | Jerry | Merayo | 02:20:48 | Fenn Elite |
48 | 88 | Daryl | Remmler | 02:21:17 | Think Evo |
49 | 78 | Paul | Martin | 02:21:34 | Fenn Mako 6 |
50 | 102 | Tyler | Morgan | 02:21:36 | Synergy |
51 | 87 | Bob | Putnam | 02:21:56 | Epic V10 |
52 | 23 | Craig | Tanner | 02:22:20 | Huki Special |
53 | 40 | Jo Bridgen | Jones | 02:23:53 | Fenn Mako 6 |
54 | 51 | Kirk | Christensen | 02:23:59 | Huki |
55 | 94 | Dylan | Thomas | 02:25:12 | Red 7 |
56 | 47 | Shane | Bell | 02:25:37 | Epic V10 |
57 | 73 | Bob | Lambrose | 02:25:43 | Huki Special |
58 | 81 | Craig | McMannis | 02:28:00 | Huki Special |
59 | 35 | DeAnne | Hemmens | 02:28:11 | Fenn XT |
60 | 68 | Dean | Jordaan | 02:28:38 | Fenn Mako 6 |
61 | 56 | John | Dye | 02:28:44 | Fenn Mako 5 |
62 | 24 | John | Abrahams | 02:31:31 | Think Uno |
63 | 36 | Rusty | Sage | 02:32:28 | Epic V10 |
64 | 49 | Vineet | Buch | 02:32:48 | Fenn Elite |
65 | 43 | Christina | Couch | 02:33:01 | Fenn Mako 6 |
66 | 74 | Cory | Lancaster | 02:34:05 | Epic V10 L |
67 | 60 | Nick | Hanoian | 02:34:37 | Epic V10 |
68 | 75 | Tracy | Landboe | 02:35:17 | Epic V10 L |
69 | 50 | Tim | Burke | 02:35:19 | Epic V10 |
70 | 37 | Warren | Bruce | 02:35:35 | Epic V10 Sport |
71 | 80 | Alex | McLain | 02:35:43 | Huki Special |
72 | 54 | Chris | Dobrovolny | 02:36:46 | Think Evo |
73 | 101 | Olaf | Beckmann | 02:39:26 | Epic |
74 | 69 | Steve | Kaspar | 02:39:29 | Epic |
75 | 46 | Kirk | Atwater | 02:40:08 | |
76 | 90 | Mike | Singleton | 02:42:27 | Think Evo |
77 | 52 | Kevin | Cullinan | 02:42:46 | Huki Special |
78 | 57 | Larry | Goolsby | 02:43:46 | Huki S1R |
79 | 61 | Jeff | Hegedus | 02:45:18 | Epic V10 |
80 | 105 | Jay | Wild | 02:47:26 | |
81 | 64 | Rod | Hope | 02:48:59 | Think |
82 | 76 | Deon | Lourens | 02:50:22 | Epic V10 |
83 | 55 | Reivers | Dustin | 02:50:33 | Huki Special |
84 | 100 | Corky | Armstrong | 02:50:43 | Think |
85 | 86 | Kathleen | Petereit | 02:54:28 | Huki S1R |
86 | 95 | Tony | Van Buuren | 02:54:59 | Huki S1X |
87 | 96 | Ed | Visser | 02:56:50 | Fenn XT |
88 | 93 | Robbie | Stewart | 02:57:35 | Fenn XT |
89 | 63 | Jim | Hoffman | 02:57:45 | Fenn XT |
90 | 70 | Tom | Kerr | 02:58:12 | Fenn XT |
91 | 26 | Gordon | Burns | DNF | |
92 | 44 | Krisztina | Fazekas | DNF | |
93 | 53 | Steve | DelGaudia | DNF | |
94 | 58 | Mike | Gregory | DNF | Huki |
95 | 65 | Andy | Howell | DNF | |
96 | 66 | Paul | Jacob | DNF | Epic V10 |
97 | 82 | Eric | McNett | DNF | Huki |
Summary - Women
- Naomi Flood 2:09:36
- Bernadette Wallace 2:17:38
- Jo Bridgen Jones 2:23:53
- DeAnne Hemmens 2:28:11
Results - US Surfski Championships 2009 Short Course
Rank | Bib# | Name | Location | Time | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 186 | Mark | Huetter | Del Mar, California | 00:58:38 |
2 | 178 | Peter | Marcus | Bellingham, Washington | 00:59:01 |
3 | 173 | Jeff | Schwing | Oakland, California | 01:00:07 |
4 | 155 | Dan | Coupland | San Carlos, California | 01:00:17 |
5 | 182 | Benjamin | Serrazin | Sausalito, California | 01:00:37 |
6 | 158 | Eva | Mauck | Newport Beach, California | 01:00:52 |
7 | 162 | Bruce | Fincher | Ventura, California | 01:01:21 |
8 | 71 | Thadius | King | Montecito, California | 01:01:51 |
9 | 172 | Pete | Rudnick | Pleasanton, California | 01:02:18 |
10 | 169 | Jim | Nurse | Pleasanton, California | 01:02:20 |
11 | 187 | Keith | Keillor | San Diego, California | 01:02:40 |
12 | 151 | Jude | Turczynski | West Sacramento, California | 01:03:20 |
13 | 153 | Kyle | Tsuye | Elk Grove, California | 01:04:21 |
14 | 156 | Roger | Dun | Mountain View, California | 01:04:25 |
15 | 157 | Scott | Kelly | Hayward, California | 01:05:22 |
16 | 171 | Misha | Riszkiewicz | Sebastopol, California | 01:05:42 |
17 | 160 | Craig | Courtney | Fairfield, California | 01:05:46 |
18 | 161 | Beth | Dressel | Costa Mesa, California | 01:05:59 |
19 | 181 | John | Weed | Placerville, California | 01:06:17 |
20 | 166 | Andrew | Losli | Hillsboro, Oregon | 01:06:37 |
21 | 184 | Duncan | Burns | Tarzana, California | 01:06:49 |
22 | 174 | Mike | Staninec | Sausalito, California | 01:07:25 |
23 | 175 | Matt | Tager | Redwood City, California | 01:08:07 |
24 | 170 | Patrick | Pruitt | Santa Rosa, California | 01:08:11 |
25 | 164 | Danny | Hough | Huntington Beach, California | 01:08:56 |
26 | 179 | Sergey | Lipovetsky | Pacific Grove, California | 01:09:14 |
27 | 177 | Edgar | Butts | Vallejo, California | 01:09:31 |
28 | 183 | Tom | Kellerman | Morro Bay, California | 01:10:09 |
29 | 176 | Debbie | Arthur | Bellingham, Washington | 01:10:47 |
30 | 167 | Ariel | McNett | Topsham, Maine | 01:11:38 |
31 | 159 | Patrick | Campbell | Glen Ellen, California | 01:14:05 |
32 | 168 | Eric | Neumann | Belmont, California | 01:20:44 |
33 | 163 | John | Hofman | Folsom, California | 01:25:44 |
34 | 185 | Tom | Zappas | Rocklin, California | DNF |