Stellar Paddlers at the Molokai, Congratulations

Congratulations to Tim Altman(SEL) 10th and Matt O'Garey(SES) 16th of Australia paddling Stellar skis. Also congrats to Dylan Thomas and Grant Korgan who paddled the Stellar SE2. Grant is paralized from waist down so even a more amazing feat of perservance. Richard Germain from Quebec, Canada also paddled a SEL. So overall it was an excellent showing for Stellar between sponsoring the race and have a great diverse group of paddlers utilizing Stellar's diverse group of skis, something for everyone.

Reid Hyle Wins At Jacksonville

Below is Reid Summary of the River City Challenge May 5th in Jacksonville, Florida

Reid Hyle Stellar Sponsored Paddler 

I did the "River City Challenge" in Jacksonville on May 5th.  It was the first year for the race.  Good event with a fair turnout.  Maybe next year the turnout will be bigger.  They are really putting a lot of energy into this event with entertainment and such.  There should be a promotional video with footage from the race coming out.  

The course was on the St. Johns River in downtown Jacksonville; out against the incoming tide, turn anti-clockwise around Exchange Island, and return with the tide. The organizer expected everyone to hug the south shore on the way out to avoid having to cross the main current which was running at 3-4 mph in the narrow section near the start.  But hugging the south bank was not required. The actual course was the fastest out to Exchange Island and back. I opted to ferry across to the north shore immediately after the Main Street Bridge and try to find eddies there and then ferry back across to make the turn around the island since that route was much shorter than one following the south shore.

The main trick was selecting the correct ferry angles, especially the second ferry as the river is almost 1km wide at that point.  Even though this was a river course, a ski was a much better option than a K1.  It was a lot easier getting the SES in and out of strong turbulent eddies around the docks and moored tug boats along the north shore plus it is all sea wall so the waves were chaotic at times.  I did catch some runners from wakes bouncing along the seawall, wakes that would have possibly swamped a k1. 

I managed a pace similar to what I might do in a k1 in flatwater. My route was 11.25 km and it took 49:53.  I'm really happy with sub-4:30 per km as an average pace on a circuit course, especially considering that it was quite warm and that I crossed the river twice on the up-current leg.  

http://www.rivercitychallenge.org/
http://rivercitychallenge.smugmug.com/

Reid Hyle, Rob Mirlenbrink, Andy Gerber at Shark Bite Challenge

Stellar sponsored paddler Reid Hyle broke his own record by setting a new course record at the Shark Bite Race put on by Rob and Karen Mirlenbrink.  Andy Gerber, a longtime paddler on the Florida, had a good race! Photos by 1440 photography.

Stellar Small Wing

Newly Modified Stellar Paddle
-All Carbon, very light
-Not much twist so very user friendly
-Cam lock connector, so ultra secure, and on water adjustment in seconds.
-Oval tapered shaft.
-Size blade appropiate for most paddlers.
-10 Centimeter overall adjustments

Sakonnet River, Portsmouth, RI

This is my home training grounds, McCorrie Point Beach on the Sakonnet River. Take a right and paddle 6 miles and you will be in the Ocean but before you get there, the River gets wider and wider (3 miles) with tide, current, swells, refractory waves that make it a wonderful place to train. Today it is flat!

Take a left and paddle 3 miles up River and the water gets flatter until you reach the Sakonnet River Bridge where there is more current than any other place in Rhode Island. Remember Rhode Island is the Ocean State!!

Newest Stellar: 18R, Next Generation Performance Sea Kayak

I paddled the brilliantly designed 18R for the 1st time last week for 10.8 miles on one of my time trial courses. My last 5.5 miles downwind and with current was at 7.026 mph. That is screaming fast in a sea kayak and an excellent time even compared to some of my skis on this course. I have done this course 243 times mostly in skis. This was after paddling upwind for 5.5 miles. I was at 84% of Heart Rate for the entire 11 miles. This was my first time in a sea kayak for over a year so as I get it dialed in I will be even faster. For the New England paddlers that want to break 3 hours in the Blackburn and not be in a ski, this maybe your best option. More to come. Exciting! Further time trials will tell, but I believe this will be the fastest performance sea kayak on the market. This boat is the Excel layup(32lbs). More to come!

The Fat Paddler on the SR

See the below link on the Fat Paddlers comments on the Stellar SR.

http://slipstreamsurf.com.au/