Successful New "Rally" Style of SUP Racing

DANA POINT, California - Chuck Patterson and the Watermans Paddle for Humanity event introduced a new style of SUP racing called a "Rally" that had all the contestants, including many elite paddlers in the world, shaking their heads and saying it was "gnarly".

Typically stand up paddle racing has used a select variety of race styles.  There have been races on flat water, open ocean races, races in and out of the surf with beach starts and finishes as well as river races, but have you ever seen SUP racing that has the athletes coming off the water and running over sand hills 5 feet tall?  Or what about having racers weave in and out of flags, grabb braclets as lap counters and then hit the water again?  Most likely not, but this is exactly what Chuck Patterson created as a "super challenge" for many of the worlds best sup racers.

To understand how this race style came to be, it helps to know Chuck Patterson. He is 6’2” and weighs 220 pounds. He competes at the pro level in five different sports: stand up paddling, tow-in surfing, kite surfing, skiing and snowboarding.  He is without doubt an extreme athlete who pushes the limits of what is possible.  With that in mind, it is no wonder that Chuck had a new vision for SUP racing and created an ultimate SUP fitness challenge.

In a recent video interview about the "Rally" course Chuck mentioned that paddlers are killing it in the water but that he wanted to add a little more of an adrenalin aspect to racing where the athletes get tired and really have to work for their reward.  He said, "We're trying to bring something different to the game;" which is exactly what ended up happening. The course was extremely tough, spectators were thrilled, racers were exhausted yet stoked and everyone there definitely got a shot of adrenalin.  At the end of the day, the Chuck paddle "rally" mission was accomplished and from all accounts the race was a hit.

Enjoy watching more video clips from the Dana point "Rally" race on the Supconnect home page or by clicking on uploaded videos at www.youtube.com/supconnect

Would you enjoy participating in the challenge of a "Rally" SUP race?