Remember last years ‘Battle of the Paddle’ in Salt Creek? Everyone in the sport of stand up paddling couldn’t believe how nuts the break was, with it quite literally eating boards, paddles and paddlers.

But this puts Salt Creek to shame, with conditions you’d only find in the vicinity of New Zealand. 1-2m wind chop, wind, and endless whitewater as far as you could see. With not a whinge, whine or safety briefing, the guys and girls competing in the New Zealand Nationals just got on with the racing at Piha Beach.

Maybe it was because three of the Starboard dream team were present, or maybe it’s because Kiwi paddlers have more guts than the rest of the world, either way, Connor Baxter, Zane Schweitzer and Sean Poynter got a shock when they showed up to these conditions! Currently in New Zealand for a bit of pre-season training, Zane took out the win over NZ local Armie Armstrong, who was leading for a while before he punched through a monster wave, creasing his board. Connor copped one on the chin (from his own board) and had to retire from the racing, like many others.

Boards were broken, paddles were lost, blood was spilled and still, everyone emerged with a huge smile on their faces. It was an epic day, with some epic shots to prove it.

So next time conditions are a little choppy, a bit blowy or the tide’s sweeping hard, think of these guys, and paddle out.

#News #StandUpPaddle #Paddling #Starboard #Armstrong #Epic