Yesterday, ten members of the Frangipani SUP Challenge & Race Team – plus our Team Skipper for the day Susanna – travelled from around the country to the beautiful Bewl Water Reservoir in Kent, to compete in or help with the much anticipated and very awesome GBSUP British National Championships 2024 aka ‘Super Sunday.’ And super it most definitely was!
Some of the Frangipani SUP team.
The wind forecast leading up the event had been fairly changeable and although we arrived to mirror flat calm conditions, the wind built during the day as expected and by the afternoon the wingfoilers in their area of the reservoir were having a blast!
Adjustments were made to race course layouts by GBSUP Race Director Scott Warren, to take advantage of the lay of the land, but the wind made racing extremely challenging in places with competitors having to give it their all! It was very reassuring to have Kent Search and Rescue providing full, professional safety cover for the event.
Paddlers of all ages and experience levels battled it out over Distance, Technical, Challenge Tour and Junior courses, to determine who would be crowned overall British National Champions and Age Group Champions for 2024.
The Junior and Distance racing was held in the morning and then the Technical racing after lunch, and we were all immensely proud to see people participating in the Challenge Tour – this provides a non-competitive and relaxed way to experience the event over shorter distances.
The Challenge Tourers with their medals.
We were stoked too, to see so many brilliant juniors taking part in the event, much to the credit of Rebecca from Mersea Island Boating Lake with members of her junior SUP Squad, the “Mersea Lakers,” arriving en masse.
She has been working hard over the past couple of years to build youth racing skills at her home venue in Essex and all credit to her and her team for their inspirational work.
The juniors took to the water under the watchful eye of race Director Scott Warren and on water supervisor Andrew Tee of Oxford SUP Club (below) whose own son Max is storming ahead in junior racing, competing for GBR in Sarasota in November.
Andrew and I both volunteer our time as directors of BSUPA (he’s the Chairperson) which is the British Stand Up Paddle Association and our Board is delighted to be supporting GBSUP for a third year. Andrew paddled with the Challenge Tour and I raced in both Distance and Technical, so go BSUPA!
Congratulations to all the junior racers, winners and their amazing parents/guardians! You smashed it folks and we can’t wait to see you again soon. Here are a couple of quick snaps of junior racers (with parents permission) grabbed during the busy prize-giving. For all the official images please head on over to the @GBSUP and professional photographer Amanda Roberts @p3tphotography social media pages.
GBSUP Director Lauren and son Harrison (below) both raced! Lauren in the women’s 14’ and Harrison (aged 5 years) in the juniors…well done to them both. And meanwhile, his baby sister Juno gurgled and clapped in support! Many of us on the racing circuit have known Harrison since he was born…
Young racer Dan is a Champion! Well done.
As usual, it was great for competitors to be able to stay fully connected with GBSUP during the event through the Buccaneer Sessions App and to talk to Duncan Troy from Oscar Propulsion Sport about their innovations in blade slitting technology, with a range of paddles available for demo.
Also in the event village we were able to learn about Ocean Saver environmentally friendly products for the home – Pollocks to Plastic!
I was stoked to be able to race with my new SIC Maui RST 14’ x 23” board, a Black Project Sprint paddle (small) and a Black Project Tiger fin – big thanks to series sponsor Chris Freeman at Black Project Maui for designing such awesome paddles and fins, to Tom and Freddie from Maxtrack for getting SIC Maui kit onto our island and to our team’s lovely kit suppliers, Fluid Lines in Colchester…and of course other brands are available!
After all the racing was done, Nick Judd from ‘Go with the Flo’ organised a charity step back turn challenge, although having had a refreshing dip during the technical race, I had to go and have a hot shower so sadly I missed out on the fun! Well done everybody who took part.
And finally we moved onto the much awaited prize-giving where handmade trophies and medals from ItsClearCut.com and Tash Paints were awarded to podium winners. Extreme respect to the overall British National Champions and to all the Age Group Champions for 2024. You smashed it folks, congratulations!
Ginnie Betts – British National Champion 2024
Hector Jessel – British National Champion 2024
In case you didn’t know, GBSUP is a Community Interest Company CIC which means all Directors donate their time, expertise and colour coordinated baking for free!
Organising multiple events during the year throughout the country is a hugely complex, time consuming and exhausting task which they do on top of their day jobs and own high level SUP racing. Phew! Yorkshire tea to the ready…
Above Directors Sara and Scotty, below bakery by Director Lauren to match the Age Champion trophies!
At the end of the championships, we all gave a very cheerful and loud round of applause to Scotty and all the GBSUP directors, without whom none of this would ever happen! Big respect.
On a personal note, I worked very hard (with the support of my amazing Coach Seychelle) to retain my Age Group Champion status for a second year running. But in all honesty, I was actually more stoked to see my team colleagues, people whom I coach and my long standing SUP racing friends achieving SO many “wins” in SO many different ways on the day. The amount of learning and personal growth that takes place at these GBSUP races, the wealth of development in the sport and the bundles of enthusiasm generated for “our next race” – these are the wins that truly warm my heart on a blustery, chilly autumnal day. Thank you GBSUP and everyone.
Credit Amanda Roberts @p3tphotography
See you next weekend folks for the last event in the GBSUP Black Project 2024 series and prize giving, at Calshot Castle. If you are not registered yet, you know what to do…!
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