Reposted with Permission from New England Surfski

Area paddlers met in Rhode Island for the 14th Jamestown Double Beaver on a stunning day. With competition from the Toms River Race in New Jersey the day after, participation was lower than usual. The field consisted of 7 surfskis and 3 SUPs. As race director Tim Dwyer told everyone, racers would run the standard 10.25 mile course. Starting off the dock of the Conanicut Yacht Club, they’d proceed out of Jamestown Harbor, by the House on the Rock, and past Beavertail Light to turn on a bell buoy. They’d then return to the start. With a moderate breeze from the NE, the first half of the race would be roughly downwind. The second half would not be.

With Rob Jehn and other New Jersey standouts opting for their local race, Greg Lesher was the favorite in Jamestown. Locals Tim and Sam Duffield would vie for the title, but two wildcard South African paddlers might also challenge. Garth Brewer and Nathan Honey work on a sailing yacht calling Newport its home for a few months. Conveniently, they brought along their surfskis. On the women’s side, Mary Beth Gangloff was the sole competitor. The surfskis would be joined by three intrepid stand-up paddlers willing to brave the varied conditions of the Double Beaver.

Promptly at 10, Tim counted down the field to the start. Taking advantage of the outgoing tide and the surprisingly good downwind conditions, Greg jumped to an early lead, with Tim, Garth, and Sam in pursuit. Passing House on the Rock, the water flattened out as paddlers fell temporarily in the lee of Conanicut Island. As they made they made their way offshore towards Beavertail, however, they again were able to take advantage of a helpful wind.

After clearing Beavertail Light, conditions became more confused as paddlers had to deal with beam waves traveling unimpeded down the west side of Narragansett Bay. At the turn, Greg had a three minute lead on Tim, who in turn had a slightly narrower advantage on Nathan and Sam. Paddling slowly back against the wind and current, the field retained its order. Greg won in a time of 1:32:42, followed by Tim (1:36:11) and Garth ( 1:39:58). Mary Beth finished in 2:05:53. Will Bomar and Carly Tillotson handled the challenging conditions around the turn buoy admirably, finishing seconds apart (around 2:23:45) to take the men and women’s SUP titles.