Durban – With the interest in surfski paddling still high after the successful Fenn SA Surfski Champs held in Durban last weekend, the annual Winter Surfski Series gets underway with the first of three popular Sunday morning races from the Marine Surf Lifesaving Club this weekend.
On the back of a resurgence of interest in surfski paddling, the winter series has been expanded to start with beginner-friendly races in the shelter of Durban Bay and gradually extending to offshore racing, culminating in the annual 47km Scottburgh2Brighton on the last weekend in June.
The Thule Season Starter at 9am on Sunday will be held with the same strict Covid-19 protocols in place set by Canoeing South Africa and successfully implemented at the Friday evening Summer Series and national championships last weekend.
The series aims to take advantage of the generally reliable autumn weather and ocean conditions to make the races accessible to novice ocean paddlers, while still catering for the serious year-round surfski aficionados.
The first three races are all designed to held in the safety of the Bay and are classified as inshore races to make it accessible to newcomer or casual paddlers.
On the last weekend in May the annual Bay Union King of the Bay, the years one-and-only opportunity for surfski paddlers to paddle across and out of the Durban harbour, will once again attract a big field to it’s short and long course races.
Two weeks after that the iconic Pirates-Umhlanga-Pirates 26km race marks the final preparation paddle for the Scottburgh2Brighton race that will form the pinnacle of the season.
The Durban surfski series have a well-established tradition as the longest running, best supported and most competitive regularly-held series in the surfski world, and every week attracts many of the sports trailblazers and winners of major global events.
For the first time the expanded series now offers those elite paddlers a shot at series prize money in addition to the incentives on offer at each race, with series entrants eligible for a lucky draw that includes a brand new Point Watersport surfski.
WINTER SURFSKI SERIES 2021
Sunday 18th April – Thule Season Starter (6km / ±12km)
Sunday 2nd May – Race 2 – Marine (8km /16km)
Sunday 16th May – Race 3 – Marine (9km / 18km)
Sunday 30th May – Bay Union King of the Bay (9km / 21km)
Saturday 12th June – Pirates – Umhlanga – Pirates (26km)
Saturday 26th / Sunday 27th June – Scottburgh2Brighton (47km)