Competition
The spec ski is used in surf lifesaving competitions all over the world including Australia, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa, the USA and in Europe. Since its introduction, surf ski racing has been managed by the International Life Saving Federation. The standard ILS surf ski race is about 700m, from a start in the water, out around a series of buoys and back to the beach.
Events include:
- Surf ski
- Surf race
- Paddle board
- Ski relay
- Taplin Relay
- Oceanman (new name since ILS Rulebook 2007, in history it is Ironman)
It was not long before people began going further afield in these new, extremely seaworthy craft, and ocean racing began to emerge. The earliest races were the Scottburgh to Brighton in South Africa, a 46 km event first held in 1958; the Port Elizabeth to East London in South Africa, a 240 km event held every two years since 1972; and the most famous of them all, the Molokai race in Hawaii, a 60 km event first held in 1976. There are also major surf ski races held in South Africa, Australia, and Dubai, with "The Doctor" in Western Australia and the Southern Shamaal and the Dubai Shamaal, the newest surf ski races.
More recently, there has been a huge growth in ocean surf ski racing in mainland USA, Australia, New Zealand and other Pacific countries. There has been a move in many of these active surf ski racing countries to transfer the ocean events to the International Canoe Federations as the Lifesaving Federations often do not have the resources to manage long distance races with up to 500 competitors.
As well as ocean racing, surf skis are becoming increasingly popular as a versatile racing craft for open class races that take place in sheltered bays, lakes and rivers. One advantage of the surf ski over the traditional kayak is that if the conditions tip the paddler into the water, a "wet entry" is possible by simply climbing back onto the boat and continuing paddling without first having to drain the boat of water.
Venues include: Thurso East in the UK.
Read more about this topic: Surf Ski
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