Above : Jamie Mitchell – Dubai ‘ Paddle Around The World ’ 2013 – claiming the island of Eastern Australia
Below : Chris and Jamie in Dubai
When I started SUP Racer a decade ago , the 11 Cities ‘ was ’ endurance racing . It stood alone as ‘ that crazy race in Holland ’ that competitors either loved or hated
Chris , when did you first start to notice endurance racing and was there one particular event that caught your eye ? I ’ m certainly not alone in saying my introduction to the ultras came via the SUP11 City Tour , a very special ‘ race ’ held in the quaint Dutch province of Friesland every September . When I started SUP Racer a decade ago , the 11 Cities ‘ was ’ endurance racing . It stood alone as ‘ that crazy race in Holland ’ that competitors either loved or hated , a week-long odyssey that pushed your mind and body to the limit . This event single-handedly made ultra-marathon paddling a legit discipline in the SUP world . It was ahead of its time ( it ’ s now the longest-running race in our sport ), but I ’ m happy to say it no longer stands alone on the international calendar .
Can you tell us about your first ever personal experience of endurance racing ? In terms of racing , the 2014 11 Cities was my first ultra . I ’ d made a deal with Mistral to promote their fancy new inflatable that was supposed to keep up with the hard boards , and we decided that if I cracked the top 10 on any stage , it would pass the test ( the race wasn ’ t quite as competitive back then – I ’ d be struggling for top 40 these days ). Alas , my best stage finish was 11th , and that board never made it to production .
However , my first experience of simply paddling way too far came in early 2013 when Jamie Mitchell and I found ourselves in Dubai , of all places .
Jamie is famous for surfing big waves and winning the traditional Molokai race ten years in a row , so when we travelled together , we were always looking for new ocean adventures . I ’ d long been fascinated by Dubai ’ s man-made islands known as ‘ The
World ’ – an ostentatious project that ran out of money and left a literal desert sitting five kilometres off the coast . We thought it might be a laugh to ‘ paddle around the world ’ and thus began one of the most physically demanding days of my life .
Under the 40-degree midday sun of the UAE ( why we didn ’ t start earlier in the day , I will never know ), we naively set off from the beach beside the iconic Burj al Arab . We quickly reached the southern edge of the islands that looked more like a dystopian oasis than a high-end development project . We landed on ‘ Eastern Australia ’ island and symbolically planted our Quickblade paddles as if they were flags and we were claiming new territory . We had aimed to reach the North Pole , but Dubai had other ideas .
There was nobody else for miles , so we knew it wasn ’ t a good sign when a large boat emblazoned with ‘ security ’ sped our way . The water police informed us , rather sternly , that we were breaking several laws by accessing forbidden waters ( understandably , Dubai doesn ’ t want anyone sharing their failed megaproject with the outside world ). After taking Jamie ’ s lead of providing a false name and nationality , we were escorted out into the open ocean , beyond The World ’ s protective rockwall – a monolith so high it obscured our view of both the islands and the distant shore of the mainland . But we ’ d come this far , so we figured if we paddled around this outside barrier , it would still count as going ‘ around the world .’
That wall seemed to never end . Jamie was swearing his head off each time we turned a corner , only to see the labyrinth continue . We finally reached the north-western corner late afternoon before paddling back to the mainland without speaking a word .
The SUP Soldiers ( Mike Procter , Stuart Croxford , Ben Ashwell ) - Yukon River Quest , 2019 . Photo : Trevor Tunnington , Ultra Paddle League
Christopher Parker Iceland , 2017 . Photo : Christopher Parker
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