Karen Wrenn at the Hennessey's Cup and Battle of the Paddle

The Hennessey's Cup in San Diego was this past weekend and Karen Wrenn is becoming quite a contender. Karen was happy with her race, here's what she said, "The Hennessey Race went really well. I got 4th. Which was really good considering who was there. I can tell I have improved a ton just since Tahoe."

The next big event is this weekend, Battle of the Paddle. KIALOA will be on the beach with a booth ready to demo! We are all excited to see Karen compete there as well as defending champ Chuck Patterson.

Both Karen and Chuck will be competing in the elite category with the possiblity of winning the largest cash purse offered in SUP racing, and on Sunday they are teaming up to do a relay.

Good Luck and see you there!

SUP Catch and Release With Michelle Woo Bowan

KIALOA is excited to introduce Michelle Woo Bowman. She is the latest addition to the KIALOA family and has been using her experience in fly fishing and surfing to combine the two sports with SUP. She is an avid fisherman and a full time marine biologist.

http://www.bowmanbluewater.com/ Her husband, Conway Bowman, is a well know fisherman and IGFA record holder. He runs a guide and outfitter service in San Diego.

Southeast SUP Championship in Wilmington, NC

KIALOA Paddles is proud to support the Fastest Growing Water Sport Races through Intracoastal Waterway

Coastal Urge will host the largest Stand Up Paddleboarding (SUP) race on the East coast this Saturday, September 26, 2009. The South East SUP Championship will draw people hundreds of miles to race the 3.5 mile course around Harbor Island to compete for great prizes from race sponsors and the coveted bragging rights.

Hosting two races earlier this year, Coastal Urge owner Jeoffrey Nathan predicts this race to be the largest yet. Originally 4 classes were established: a 12’6” and under board division and a 14” and longer division for both men and women. This race will bring a new element to the water adding a Lifeguard class.

Dockside Restaurant will host this Saturday’s big event as well as a private racer’s dinner the night before. With the gun sounding at 9am Saturday, racers and their families will be able to join in on Dockside’s community wide bash featuring music and food to celebrate their 25th year in business.

Want to get involved in the world’s fastest growing water sport? The Coastal Urge crew will be running SUP demos out of Dockside all day Saturday. Also, monthly SUP Cleanups are open to all types of paddlers.

While all proceeds from Coastal Urge’s first race, the Cold Stroke Classic, went toward the Wrightsville Beach Sea Turtle Project, all proceeds from May’s Intracoastal SUP Cup and the upcoming South East SUP Championship will benefit the Surfrider Foundation, a non-profit organization dedicated to protecting and enjoying the beaches and oceans.

For more information, contact Jeoffrey Nathan at (910) 256-6468 or Jeoffrey@CoastalUrge.com.

Footage from the Intracoastal SUP Cup can be found at www.vimeo.com/5551962.

Portland Dragon Boat Races

KIALOA attended our first dragon boat race last weekend on the Willamette in P-Town. The weather was great, the people were friendly and Kai Ikaika had an awesome beer garden. KIALOA would like to thank everyone who stopped by our tent to check out the Hybrid Dragon Paddle. Mahalo!

Congratulations Ken Wilson 1st at Rogue

Ken Wilson won first place at the Rogue SUP division in Newport Oregon. Ken is one of the KIALOA riders in the Northwest.

Here is an older photo of the Ken Dog in action.

Check out Ken's website Awesome Surf Videos.