Pilgrim Paddle Race, Results Announced

The YOLO Board Winter Race Series kicked off with great success and 36 Racers from across Florida.

Stand Up Paddle Racers lining up at the water's edge fo the kick off of the Pilgrim Paddle Race.

ST PETERSBURG, Florida – Stand Up Fitness, a multi-dimensional fitness and recreation business serving the St Petersburg, Clearwater and Tampa Bay areas of Florida, announces winners from the first event of the YOLO Board Winter Race Series, the 2nd Annual Pilgrim Paddle at Spa Beach in St. Petersburg held on Saturday, November 27th.  The YOLO Board Winter Race Series is a four part series of stand up paddleboard (SUP) races held from November 2010 to March 2011.  The races highlight the varying bodies of water found in the Tampa Bay region and include a bay, gulf, intra-coastal and river race.  Participants have the option of competing in as few or many races as they choose and compete in one of four divisions: Unlimited, 14’ Race boards, 12’6” Race boards and 12’6” and Under Stock boards.

A cold and windy morning on the 27th transitioned to beautiful racing conditions prior to the start of the Pilgrim Paddle, a four mile course stretching across Tampa Bay.  Thirty six paddlers hailing from as far as Key West and the East Coast of Florida competed.  Top finishers in the Unlimited Division were Kurt Foster with a time of 54:09 and Bob Brodhead with a time of 1:05.  In the 14’ Race Board Division, Chip Bock finished first with a time of 48:44 followed by Thomas Larkin at 56:28.  In the 12’6” Race Division, Nick Bijork, Jock McCain and Paul Norris took first, second and third respectively with times of 49:14, 51:31 and 51:41 in the Men’s Division.  Top women finishers in this division were Sue Cooper at 52:28, Karen Mirlenbrink at 1:00:22 and Wendy McCain 1:00:53.  Brandon Rahe topped the Men’s Division of the 12’6” and Under Stock Division with a time of 53:25 followed by Garrett McCoy at 54:20 and Jim Valenti at 55:11.  Lisa Cool, Kristen Catts and Holly Amodio rounded up the Women’s top finishers for 12’6 and Under Stock Division with times of 1:07:06, 1:07:45 and 1:08:48.

“I’m thrilled with the turn out and competition level displayed at the first race of the YOLO Board Winter Race Series,” adds Brody Welte, Founder of Stand Up Fitness.  “Congratulations to all of the paddlers for a job well done and we’re looking forward to seeing what develops in the Intra-Coastal Race at Clearwater Sailing Center.”

The Intra-Coastal Race has been rescheduled from Sunday, December 26th to Sunday, January 9th to allow all racers to compete without having to reschedule holiday travel plans.  Sponsored by YOLO Board (www.yoloboard.com) and the St. Petersburg / Clearwater Sports Commission, each race of YOLO Board Winter Race Series is approximately four miles in distance and features individual competition.  Cumulative points will be tracked throughout the series and trophies and prizes will be awarded at the final race event to the top racers in each of the four divisions.  Registration is still open for the remaining three race events and cost is $35 per race.  Rental boards and paddles are available at all events.

Scheduled race dates and locations (weather permitting) for the YOLO Board Winter Race Series are: The Intra-Coastal Race at Clearwater Sailing Center on Sunday, January 9th, The River Race at Hillsbourough River on Saturday, February 19th and The Gulf Race (Location TBD) on Saturday, March 19th.  For each race event, registration occurs from 9:00am – 10:15am followed by a Mandatory Paddlers meeting at 10:30am and Race Start at 11:00am.  All events are open to the public.

Online registration for the YOLO Board Winter Race Series is available at www.active.com under the Event ID 1914723.  For additional information regarding the series, please call 727-902-4294 or email brody@standupfitnessinc.com.


About Stand Up Fitness

Founded by fitness professional Brody Welte in 2009, Stand Up Fitness is a locally owned multi-dimensional fitness and recreation business serving the St Petersburg, Clearwater and Tampa Bay areas of Florida.  Named 2009 Entrepreneur of the Year by the St. Petersburg Young Professionals, certified personal trainer Welte has introduced the fast growing sport of stand up paddleboarding (SUP) to the Bay area through his specially designed fitness class Paddle Fit.  Paddle Fit is the first-ever SUP-based fitness program to be approved for continuing education credits (CECs) by the American Council on Exercise.  Stand Up Fitness offers SUP lessons, board rentals, Paddle Fit classes, Eco Tours, Boot Camps and personal training.  Stand Up Fitness is a proud partner of YOLO Board and an exclusive retailer of YOLO Board products in the Tampa Bay area.  Stand Up Fitness has two retail locations, Kahuna Kai Paddle Shop at 1031 4th Street North in St Petersburg and Kahuna Kai Adventure Center at 1001 Gulf Boulevard in Clearwater.  For more information, visit www.standupfitnessinc.com or call 727-902-4294.