I’m working hard on getting in better shape and it’s starting to pay off. I’ve set as my goal the completion of the 2008 [url=http://www.catalinaclassic.org]Catalina Classic[/url] paddleboard race. The race is 32 miles long, between the Isthmus on Catalina Island and Manhattan Beach. Each year about 90-100 competitors enter, and the vast majority finish. With good paddling conditions, the top paddlers can do it in under five hours, which to me is just incredible!
To train, I’m doing a 3 mile paddle five days a week off of East Beach. I try to do one longer paddle on Saturdays, my longest so far is 10 miles from Goleta Beach to East Beach. That was an experience!
For my normal 3 mile routine, I paddle out from the Chromatic Gate, south to the red buoy with the sea lions off Stearn’s Wharf, then east to [i]Mr. Clean[/i], the oil spill containment ship. I then head back to the beach. Each leg is a mile and I’m currently completing the course in about 50 minutes (average speed approximately 3.6mph).
My goal is a sustainable race pace of 4mph, which is the minimum I’ll need to qualify for Catalina. That will have me finishing the event in around eight hours…
I’m also riding a bicycle, trying to replace as many car trips as possible. This gives me a nice lower body workout complement to my paddling. I’ve got a trailer on the way which I’ll use to tow my paddleboard down to the beach behind my bike… that’s going to be exciting, I’m sure!