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Thursday, March 28, 2024

Surf to Sound features six-man canoes

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The end-of-season Surf to Sound standup paddleboard race in Wrightsville Beach this weekend, which has grown into an international draw for competitors, will feature a new race of canoeing teams that organizers believe will expand the reach of the growing event.

The Kraken is a 25-mile competition that features the six-man outrigger canoe, known as the OC-6. This paddling class is team-oriented and something race director Mark Schmidt said he wants to encourage in Wrightsville Beach.

“This is something that has started to show up at some of the other races,” Schmidt said. “We wanted to use it to attract some new people and feature some local boats that have appeared in Wrightsville Beach.”

Surf to Sound features two days of events and is expected to draw at least 300 racers. Competitions include the 4-mile Harbor Island Loop and the elite division 6.5-mile Surf to Sound Challenge on Saturday, beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the Blockade Runner Beach Resort. There’s also a kids’ race on Saturday that starts at 11:30 a.m.

Contestants in The Kraken will depart from the Blockade Runner at 8 a.m. on Sunday and head south through the Intracoastal Waterway, around Masonboro Island, and come back north around Harbor Island, running under Johnnie Mercer’s Pier and Crystal Pier before returning to the resort for the finish line. The Blockade Runner Flatwater Championship is also schedule for Sunday.

Schmidt said at least two local six-man canoes will be competing in the Surf to Sound. Competitors from other classes voiced that they would be interested in competing in the ultra-distance race, so Wrightsville Beach Paddle Club opened the race to all classes of paddlers including SUP boards, surf skis, prone boards and kayaks.

After the completion of the race, the OC-6 boats will be on display for visitors to view and learn about from the paddling teams who represent this new community paddling class in Wrightsville Beach.

Because this is a relatively new class in the area, some of the teams reached out to the paddle club asking if they could compete in some of the shorter races during the Surf to Sound this weekend.

“The crop of OC-6s is still newly formed, and they’re trying to get their bearings, so we decided to open up the 4-mile and 9-mile races for the class,” Schmidt said.

Paddling activities will begin on Friday, Nov. 4 with clinics taught by Larry Cain and April Zilg. Cain is a Canadian Olympic gold medalist, and Zilg is a Wilmington local who is currently ranked 10th in the world for women’s SUP.  The two have won the Surf to Sound Challenge in years past and will compete in the race again this year.

For the past year, Zilg has competed in numerous international competitions but voiced that Wrightsville Beach has its own challenges.

“There’s more art to Surf to Sound Challenge than many of the international races. Most are in protected flatwater,” Zilg said. “Here we have current, tide, wind and ocean swells. You have to understand how to read the water and work with Mother Nature.”

Race-day weather is expected to be sunny skies, temps in the low 70s, light winds and moderate water temperatures.

“Race conditions are expected to be near perfect,” said Bill Baggett, Blockade Runner Beach Resort owner.

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