Sea Paddle NYC 2010, Big Star Turnout

NEW YORK, New York – Thirty days remain until stand-up paddlers from around the world converge on Manhattan’s waterways for the 4th Annual SEA Paddle NYC.As participants continue to register and train for the 28-mile charity paddle around Manhattan, organized by Surfers’ Environmental Alliance (SEA), key figures in the surf, stand-up paddle and entertainment industries have come on board in support of SEA and the paddle’s eight autism beneficiaries.

This year, avid waterman, extreme sports extraordinaire and environmental advocate Tom Jones is not only joining industry legends for the paddle around New York, but is in the process of making history leading up to SEA Paddle NYC.Jones is currently traveling the 2,800-mile stretch between Key West and New York City via paddle board to advocate for a plastic-free ocean.Now along the coast of the Carolinas, he should arrive in New York just in time for a celebration paddle around Manhattan withSEA’s 200-plus participants.If successful, Jones will break his own previous World Record for paddling 1,200 miles along California’s coast.

In addition, Israel “Izzy” Paskowitz, founder of Surfers Healing, one of SEA’s charity beneficiaries, returns for a second time to paddle alongside surf legend Joel Tudor, actor David Chokachi and Extreme Suring World Champ Garrett McNamara.One of Hawaii’s elite big-wave chargers, McNamara has paddled, been towed and stand-up paddled into some of the largest and deadliest waves on the planet.From the “Jaws” of Maui to the Tahitian beasts at Teahupo as well as into the tsunami-generated waves of Alaska, “Gmac” has ridden it all.

Jamie Mitchell, one of the world’s premier ocean athletes has signed on for SEA’s first-ever Elite race around Manhattan. The Australian-born waterman, big-wave surfer and international swell-chaser is an eight-time Molokai-2-Oahu paddling champion.Having won nearly every paddle race he has entered in the last eight years, Mitchell promises to bring his paddling prowess to the inaugural Elite race.

After the world-class watermen and industry greats complete their journey around Manhattan, they’ll join paddlers, family and friends for SEA’s Ultimate Beach Party at South Street Seaport’s Water Taxi Beach starting at 3:00 p.m.The good times will continue on the third-floor viewing decks of the Seaport for SEA’s biggest party of the year, the White Water Evening.Boasting the Brooklyn Bridge as the backdrop, White Water partygoers will celebrate the paddle and honor this year’s beneficiaries with silent auctions, a charity poker tournament, live music, an award ceremony and much more.

This year marks the first time SEA will host its renowned fundraising after-parties in Manhattan.To learn more about SEA Paddle NYC, or to purchase tickets to the Ultimate Beach Party and White Water Evening, please visit www.seapaddlenyc.org. (Read the previous press release about the Sea Paddle 2010 and how it's shaping up to be the biggest ever).

About Surfers’ Environmental Alliance (SEA)
Surfers’ Environmental Alliance is committed to the preservation and protection of the environmental and cultural elements that are inherent to the sport of surfing. SEA’s goals are achieved through grassroots activism, community involvement, education and humanitarian efforts. The non-profit organization successfully engages in projects that strive to conserve the quality of marine environments; preserve or enhance surf breaks; protect beach-access rights; and safeguard the coastal surf zone from unnecessary development.To learn more, please visit www.seapaddlenyc.org.