The Santa Cruz Paddle Classic Went Off

Capitola Beach, Sunday morning, and the sand was packed. Boards everywhere, paddlers stretching out, a few butterflies before the gun. People show up from all over for the Santa Cruz Paddle Classic, and you could feel the energy the second you walked down to the water.

The Classic is one of those that everyone shows up for. The long course runs 12 miles from Capitola Beach all the way up to Santa Cruz. It pulls serious watermen and women from everywhere. The swell calmed down - it was up but manageable.

And the racing was insane.

Soquel's Rob Gibbs smashed the 12-mile long course in a record 1:35:21. A record. Yohei Rosen out of Santa Cruz chased him down for second, Aptos' Ron Lee took third. Rachel Marcuson, who coaches Outrigger Santa Cruz, threw down the fastest women's time of the day and set a course record of her own. These people can flat out paddle.

And here's what to love about this race. It is not just the front of the pack.

You had Suzanne Riedinger out of Aptos, 81 years old, winning her division. Eighty-one! You had Hailey Kinter from Capitola, the only entrant in the adaptive short course, who paddled the whole thing because of course she did. Little groms and grizzled lifers in the same lineup, same cold water, same grin at the finish. Everybody out there for the same reason, which is that there is nothing better than being on the water with your people.

This race has deep Santa Cruz roots. It started as the Jay Race, named for Jay Moriarity, and the Live Like Jay spirit is all over it. The whole weekend was a celebration. Sun, salt, records falling, the community on one beach. A party with a 12-mile entry fee.

Back when this was still the Jay Race, MERGE4 made a Jay sock with the iconic Bob Barbour shot of Jay at Mavericks on it. Putting that image on a sock was an honor, and being part of this race carries the same weight. We're a Santa Cruz brand, and our team are water people.

Big respect to the crew who put it on, the volunteers who stood in the wind all day, and everyone who paddled. 

Same beach next year. Paddles up.