Orange Bowl SUP Race 2012 in Review

The venue couldn’t have been much better for the exposure of the sport, with thousands of eyeballs being caught by surprise as hundreds of stand up paddle boarders cruised in the channels of downtown Miami.

Standup paddle board racers at the Orange Bowl in Miami, Florida during the Open 3-mile race.

MIAMI, Florida – The Orange Bowl SUP Race scored high on exposure for the sport, event organization, prizes, and turnout. On the spectator side, the sprint races were highly entertaining and within sight. But for the elite and open races there wasn’t much to see, since paddlers had to weave through channels and across Biscayne Bay. But all things considered, the Orange Bowl was a phenomenal success and Ken Russell and Gary from Jimmy Lewis deserve big kudos.  

For Florida standards, the weather was a bit cold (in the 50/60’s degrees), with plenty of sunshine, and some light winds. The course was fairly flat, with a bit of chop along the way, but not much turbulence. The setting was excellent. Surrounded by skyscrapers, multiple restaurants, and all the flare of Downtown Miami, there was a slight resemblance to a formula-1 setting, where spectators witness a thrilling start, racers whip around the corners, and return to be greeted by a roaring crowd. With hundreds of paddlers on hand, the bottleneck layout of the course made the race all the more exciting and technical. The sprint race was a great addition to this year’s event and a definite winner for next year. If you missed it this year, you should definitely consider attending it next year.

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