New Races At Hoe Toa NZ Paddle Championships 2018

OREWA, New Zealand - Join hundreds of local NZ and International paddlers on New Zealand’s Hibiscus Coast for a fun weekend of paddling workshops, beach races in and out of the surf, inshore flatwater racing and downwind distance paddling at the NZSUP National Festival of Paddleboarding, proudly brought to you by Sol Republic, Magrette, Olukai and Maui Jim.

New For 2018

• Hoe Marino Flatwater 1km, 2.5km and 5km Inshore Races (can be entered online and on the day)
• Hoe Toa Teams Relay, each team of four must have at least one woman, one prone paddler and one U17 Junior, and board class is Open (max length 14’)
• Inflatable Board Divisions in several of the races. 
• Fun family-friendly races on the giant SUPs
• New Unlimited and Foil Division - foils allowed for downwind long distance race
• SUP Surf Race Skills Clinics on Friday with Trevor Tunnington

Paddlers leading the pack at the 2017 NZ Paddle Champs. | Photo credit: Georgia Schofield

Key Highlights

Hoe Toa NZ Paddle Champs is excited to announce that we are now officially part of the The Paddle League. As a Regional Event, Hoe Toa will count for world championship ranking points on the interlinked Paddle League rankings, placing the event in the same system as the major international events. There will be a primary qualifying event for paddlers wishing to represent NZ at the ISA World Championships, in Brazil November 2018. Along with the races, there will also be community beach cleanup and Orewa Estuary cleanup on boards, using the Starboard paddle picks that will be supplied to all event participants with their entry pack. All trash to be collected and weighed by SeaCleaners.

• Olympic Gold Medallist Sailor Jo Aleh once again joins top NZ paddlers Annabel Anderson (Ranked World #1 and 7-times title holder) and Penelope Strickland (Ranked World #6), who will this year be hotly contested by 16-year old Brianna Orams, Head Girl from Long Bay College. 
• World Elite Top 100 Ranked male paddlers competing include: Marcus Hansen (NZ, #31), Trevor Tunnington (NZ, #14), Ollie Houghton (NZ, #78), Lincoln Dews (Aus #7), Ben Tardrew (Aus, #96), Peter Kosinski (IRE, #74) Jackson Maynard (Aus), Kelly Margetts (Aus).
• Ones to watch: Junior NZ Elite Paddlers Fergus Dunlop (13) and Maddie McAsey (14) from Takapuna step up the distances from their regular 3km weekly races.
• Youngest registered paddler 8-year old Max Dunlop from Takapuna.
• Oldest registered paddler 74-year old Brian Jordan from Keri Keri.

For All Ages


Hoe Toa is the Maori translation of “Champions Paddle”, and is a celebration of New Zealand paddling for tane (men), wahine (women) and tamariki (children) of all ages and abilities to get more involved in the emerging sport of stand up paddling, meet and paddle with NZ’s very own World Champions, smash their personal SUP goals and see how they measure up in the national rankings.

Racer Maddy McAsey competing in the NZ Paddle Championships 2017. | Photo credit: Georgia Schofield

Festival of Paddling

Featuring eight different paddleboard races over two days, the event format includes a Marathon Paddle (Hoe Tawhiti 16-20km), Half Marathon (Hoe Poto 8-10km), Quarter Marathon Flatwater (Hoe Marino 5km) and Fun Race (Hoe Marino 2.5km) Distances one day, then a day of Technical Beach Racing in and out of the surf, combined with fun events on the giant inflatable SUPs, a 1km race in the estuary for beginners, have-a-go sessions and a beach and estuary cleanup, in support of SeaCleaners. View the event schedule here.

Community Focus


Flo Yo Fit workshops, Master Classes with Elite Athletes, Free Board Demos and Sponsor Expo, food trucks and live music overlooking the beautiful golden sand Orewa beach, where there will also be an organised community beach and estuary clean-up in association with SeaCleaners, and some great spot prizes for all participants. Hoe Toa is a Zero-Waste event.

Sponsors

Magrette, SOL Republic, Olukai, Maui Jim, Sharkskin, Hibiscus & Bays Community Board, Starboard, Supshed, Ocean Culture, Moana SUP, NZ Boardstore, Thule, Ceres OQua, Leashlok, Strongarm, PaddleFit, Molly Woppy

The event will be livestreamed on SUPRacer, reaching an anticipated 15,000-30,000 viewers worldwide. Registration for the event is now open and all competitors registered before 5 March are in to win a set of Sol Republic Amps Air. For more information, visit NZ SUP Champs' Facebook, Instagram, or website.

For more SUP News, click HERE.