SurfingSports Standup Paddle Surf & Standup Paddling BLOG

I got my toes in the water, ass in the sand
Not a worry in the world, a cold beer in my hand
Life is good today. Life is good today.

-- ZBB

Those are the lead kickoff words from Zac Brown Band's record ..."The Foundation"...that's been tearing up the charts and won him a Grammy Award this year's for best new artist...



Life is good today...couldn't have said it any mo' bettah...

The surf has been pumping with the air temps in the 80's...the Jasmine and Spring flowers in the air are intoxicating...life is good today...






The new 8'10 double wing round pin North Pacific is working really good...real shortboard feeling...loose in the juice...

Surf was a little bigger today so I ran a pair of small flexy sidebiters to complement the keel twins...nice having fin box options...I have to admit, I'm a bit of a fin tinkerer...always have been...



Grammy award winner for best new artist, the Zac Brown Band is out from GA on tour and is playing Santa Barbara tonight...we'll be hooking up with the ZBB before the show for an "Eat & Greet"...

"Brown launched his Southern Ground record label in 2009 and signed Atlanta based artists Sonia Leigh, Levi Lowrey and Nic Cowan. In addition to the music, Brown also is launching a line of steak rubs and barbecue sauces under the Southern Ground label, and—in partnership with photographer Jeffrey Skillings and writer/bandmate Coy Bowles—is preparing the release of his first cookbook. As Brown notes, these projects have their roots in Zac’s Place, a lakeside restaurant he used to co-own and run. “For me it’s about creating something that’s really excellent,” he says. “People are going to be blown away by how good the products are.”

Dunno if Zac will be cooking up our typical St. Paddy's Day menu...but, whatevers it is should be a might good...we're just supposed to bring our appetites, thirst, and typically good attitudes...;-)







Oh yeah...life is good today...

Next Free SUP Demo 9AM - 12PM Sunday, March 21...Santa Barbara, CA...call or email shop for info...

Labels: Zac Brown Band Santa Barbara

Next Free SUP Demo 9AM - 12PM Sunday, March 21...Santa Barbara, CA...call or email shop for info...


The Santa Barbara Cold Current ™ 9 Mile race from Goleta Beach Cove to Ledbetter Beach is ON!

For fast and hassle free online registration click here...

or go to the Santa Barbara Cold Current web site for snail mail-in registration docs, event summary and course map etc…..



All entrants registered by Midnight on Saturday, April 10, 2010 will get a limited edition California Downwind Race Series Hanes 90/10 Pullover

Free board and rider shuttle for the those who RSVP robert@blacksmithendurnace.com by Midnight on Saturday, April 19th...


The SB Cold Current has proudly aligned with The Friendship Paddle organization to be proceed recipients of the event, if you don’t know who this group is already, please take a look at their web site...


Stepping up to the plate to help set the tone for an awesome event is Honolua and Starboard SUP, these guys will be bringing cool prizes and swag!. Carpinteria micro brewery Island Brewery will be tapping some kegs for post race festivities. The post race meal proudly supplied by Santa Barbara’s longstanding and community involved SUP board and equipment store Standup Paddle Sports. Debbie and Wardog , founders and proprietors of Standup Paddle Sports, LLC and SurfingSports.com, Inc, helped arranged for Starboard SUP to donate a Classic Construction SUP racing board

ALL PROCEEDS generated from the sale of the raffle tickets for the Starboard SUP board will go directly to The Friendship Paddle Organization. Please stay tuned for information on how you can get some of these raffle tickets.

The Santa Barbara Cold Current race will also be the 1st of three races that have aligned to create the inaugural running of the California Downwind Race Series. The other 2 races are:

Malibu Downwinder, Saturday May 8th, 2010

The Akolu ABC to Cab, Saturday June 5th, 2010

The CD web site www.californiadownwind.com goes live on April 1st , 2010. There you will be able to learn more about what this series is about, how points will be issued for respective finishes. Gary Fortune will be crafting up some of his special ceramic artwork for prizes and Honolua is going to be spoiling the champs of this inaugural race series by sending them to……well you just have to with until April 1st to find out. Every paddler who starts and officially finishes all 3 events will be awarded a commemorative California Downwind Race Series belt buckle.

Stay tuned for more info...

Robert A. Gilcrest
Founder/ Event Director
Blacksmith Endurance Co.
robert@blacksmithendurnace.com

Labels: California Downwind Race Series, Santa Barbara Cold Current, Santa Barbara standup paddle sports, The Friendship Paddle

Next SUP Demo 9AM - 12PM Sunday, March 21...Santa Barbara, CA...call or email shop for info...












It is not that common that a blue whale shows it's tail flukes before diving...
on this trip to the Channel Islands, I captured this sequence...



We were one of the early pioneers of standup paddling in the Channel Islands...

For more pics from this adventure...please click HERE......and, for even still more of this Santa Barbara Channel Island standup paddle adventure...click HERE...

Truth Aquatics - is your gateway to the Santa Barbara Channel Islands...thanks to Glen Fritzler and his staff fro this wonderful adventure...call or email our shop if you'd like to be added to a list of paddlers for an upcoming SUP trip to the Channel Islands...

Labels: Channel Islands blue whale, Santa Barbara standup paddle sports, Santa Cruz Island, Standup Paddle

Next SUP Demo 9AM - 12PM Sunday, March 21...Santa Barbara, CA...call or email shop for info...


Nice Spring day in the country today...all greened up for St. Paddy's Day next week...



The Coreopsis was going off...





Surf was a bit bumpy and ragged compared to the perfection of this Winter...but, still had some size on sets...

Labels: Santa Barbara, Spring, SUP

It finally looks like Spring is starting to be sprung over much of the country...
Spring fever is in full bloom...folks pretty much everywhere are over Winter...especially, those folks in areas with frozen water holes where they standup paddle...;-)



Spring Equinox is 10 days away...
Daylight Savings Time starts this Sunday...Spring forward...

We have folks flying in from Indiana, where it was in the 70's yesterday, to take SUP lessons this weekend...Hartford 60*...we have a number of SUP's on the way to Connecticut as we speak...St. Louis was 75*...Pittsburgh 65*...Milwaukee 52*...Baltimore 60*...DC 65*...we even just delivered SUP gear to Anchorage, where it was a toasty 13*F...the WEATHER is improving as the earth is starting to tilt more towards the sun...anyways...you get the picture...

Speaking of pictures...scratch and sniff these...our backyard garden has been going off for a couple of weeks now...close your eyes and try to sharpen up your odor memory...the olfactory nerves...connect the scent of these Spring flowers to a pleasant event...ahhhhhh...love and the love of getting out on the water and paddling is in the air...;-)



Pink Jasmine wafting in the air...





Our orchids are going off...if you're into orchids...the 65th Annual Santa Barbara International Orchid Show is this weekend...

If you want to get an early jump on the coming paddling season...think about a Spring break vacation in Santa Barbara...we can have you out standup paddling with our top of the line boards and paddles and expert instruction on standup paddle fundamentals...then, if you have fallen in love with it, you can purchase your gear to use for the rest of your trip here in the beautiful Santa Barbara area...and, we'll ship it back home for you...many people have done this...it's an excellent way to make a great selection just perfect for you and the family...

No worries if you can't make the trip...our expert paddleboarding specialists are standing by to help you make the right choice the first time...

Labels: Spring, standup paddling