With just a little over a week ago since The Last Paddler Standing, I thought it would be a good time to do a re cap while things are still fresh in mind. I must admit I went into this years LPS with a little self doubt niggling in the background. I was in last years LPS and managed 27 laps before dropping out due to injuries, and, I was'nt really prepared crew wise and nutrition wise either. So with that on my mind, and putting it out there that I was going to attempt the full 48 laps this year, I had put a little pressure on myself. Thursday morning, two days before the race I met up with Alexis Samoana, (an LPS legend) in Miami for a coffee and chat about game plan. Alexis is a book of wisdom and shared some tips on mindset, nutrition and injury management. I left this meeting with a better feeling of being successful in meeting my goal. Another person I felt accountable to was Eddie, my son, he had high expectations that pappa could win the race! "Thanks for your confidence in me little man!"

I arrived at Lake Placid ( the LPS site) Thursday night after getting a lift with Craig Swayer from Miami. I arrived at my host, Paul Smolchek's house where I met up with Lindsey Tilton, Sarah (supjunkie) Thornley and Betsy Ray. Lindsy was also competing in the LPS and was focused on becoming the first female to complete the super lap after paddling 48 hours. Sarah and Betsy were on the commentary team. Vibes were good at the house, with Paul bending over backwards to make sure everyone had what they needed. Friday morning I did a comparison test between my Red Paddle 26x14ft Elite and Pauls 25x14ft Flyingfish Freedom. after a bit of testing I went with the Flyingfish over the inflatable Elite. I felt it handled the choppy conditions better, and there was a noticeable glide advantage. friday evening we attended the pre race meeting and were briefed on the course and rules, then headed back to Pauls to get some sleep.

Saturday morning we raised early and packed the gear and equipment into Pauls truck and headed to the LPS site on Lake Placid. We had a little time on us to get our camp site set up before the start of the race at 09.00. It was good to see old faces and meet some new ones on the beach before the race. At two minutes to 09.00 the whistle was blown to indicate the race was about to kick off, then the count down to 09.00 began 10 seconds before. At 09.00 we hit the water with a classic beach start. The pace was hot the first lap, I think I came in at about 36 mins, in fact the first 6 or so laps were fast paced. after that I felt I found a more comfortable and sustainable pace coming in around 42-43 mins, giving me 12-13 mins to hydrate and take on nutrition, and rest if required. The day was pretty hot, with the Florida sun beating down at times, this required me to take on extra sodium. I was lucky to have Cathy as my crew, she had the situatuion locked down, I did'nt need to think about anything. At about 17.00 we were told to use our lights, as soon it would be dark. I was still feeling fresh coming into the evening and my pace was steady and in good time. The sunset was beautiful with orange and gold on the horizon and reflecting off the glassy water. The wind had died down so paddling was smooth and easy.

The evening was easy paddling with little to no wind. It was a little hard to see the bouy lights at first, but after a few laps we just knew where they were. It was good to have a chat with the other paddlers through the evening, it makes the time pass by quicker. It was'nt untill the early hours of the morning that things started to hurt and the little niggles became bigger niggles. Those early hours in the morning are the toughest. We had been paddling for nearly 20 hours now, and the wear and tare was starting to show. Hands were blistering and my feet were swollen and sunburnt from the previous day. It got harder to sit down and rest and harder to get up for the whistle at 2 mins to the hour. It's funny but as soon as I got back on the board again my body just fell back into the rhythm of paddling and the pain subsided. It's funny how your body adjusts to discomfort. Sunrise was a welcome sight and gave me new energy. I felt like I was fresh again and the aches and pains had subsided. we had a little fog set in which made for an interesting paddle with visability reduced, it was harder to see the bouys. After a couple hours though the sun burned off the fog and we had full daylight.

Into the second day things were going well , I would get these strange energy bursts and the aches and pains would disappear. After around noon though things got harder, I had a really stiff lower back and my shoulders were aching. I was lucky Cathy could give me a shoulder rub and loosen things up a bit, but they were tender to touch. My feet were really swollen and looked like pork sausages. This made walking to the tent harder and I had to keep shuffling my feet on my board to get comfortable. I must say I was not looking forward to the next night, it was feeling like an impossible task. I just had to stop projecting my thoughts into the future and take things one lap at a time. I felt good with my hydration and food, but I did start to get a few stomach issues later in the second day. Sometime in the late afternoon we got a warning that a lightning storm was on the way and was expected to hit around 22.00, and set in for a couple hours. Race director, Greg Wingo decided that he would call everyone of the water if it hit and resume the race on the top of the following hour after the storm passes. He also mentioned this would not extend the race and he would go ahead with the super lap at 09.00 the next morning. This news had a funny psychological affect as I started to look forward to a possible break in the paddling, but I knew this was not going to be a good thing if it happened. We set off at 21.00 hours, thinking that we would be called off the water when we completed the lap and potentually have one to two hours of rest while the lightning storm hit. I could see the lightning flashing in the distance and it made for a beautiful sight on the water. It was far enough away to not present a danger at that stage. Some of the images I saw in those lightning flashes, with the paddlers out in front of me having their silouets light up were beautiful.

We came in from our lap expecting to be called of the water, but the storm was'nt here yet so we headed back out at 22,00. This kind of had a negative psychological effect I had to overcome. The thought of gettin a break from paddling at this stage was like a feeling of winning the lotto! I was sore and exteamly tired, but I knew that a break of an hour or two would be very hard to get started again after. I was kind of in a dream state at that point and nodded off a few times while paddling. when we came in from our lap, the call was made to get off the water as the storm was about to hit. About half an hour within of getting off the water, the storm hit with fury, There was alot of rain and lightning, so it was a good call to get everyone of the water. I tried to eat something then had a lay down in the commentators room. The next thing I knew I was being shaken awake by Laura, with ten minuts to the start of the 01:00 hour lap. This was tough and I was not in good shape, everythig was stiff and I was aching, not to mention half asleep. I just shut it out and went into auto pilot mode again. At the top of 01:00 we hit the water, It was defintly hard to get back into the rythym again and the blisters on my hands were on fire! About half way through the lap , I settled in again and it was back on the program. Those laps through the second morning were a bit of a blur, they just blended into one. eventually the sun rose and I knew I was on the home run now, with just a couple more laps untill I had completed 48 hours. I must say that this was my goal, to complete 48 hours, I had not considered the super lap and was ready to call it a day after lap 48.

There was 7 of us left now at lap 48 and every one was intent on doing the super lap, except me. The super lap is when the lap is extended by 1.6 miles, so the total distance is 4.9 miles, and this must be compeleted in under 1 hour. Lindsey Tilton had paddled 48 laps just for this moment and had fire in her eyes, she was going to become the first female to complete the super lap in the history of the LPS. John Batson, who had been dominating every lap, had a score to settle from last year having been timed out on the super lap due to strong head winds. The other contenders were Brad Friesen from Canada and Bruce Ironsmith from the UK, both formidable contenders. There was Jeremy Stanton and Micheal Carson as well, who had been relentless the last 48 hours. When I landed on the beach after compeleting my last lap I took up my board and started to make my way up the beach. I was met by Paul Smolchek on my way up, and I told him I was out, and was'nt going to do the super lap and was satisfied I had completed 48 hours. He replied and said "No way Bro, you gotta do the super lap!" This threw me of a bit and had me questioning my thoughts around my decision. Then Sarah Thornley approched me with the camera and microphone for the live cast and asked if I was going to attempt the super lap. I tried to give a weak response about being satisfied with compeleting 48 hours, but I was'nt even buying it myself! Sarah then reminded me how Lindsey had made the same decision 2 years ago and had regreted it. Lindsy was ready to redeam that decision today, and that's when I decided to do the super lap on top of the next hour.

Two minutes to 09.00 the whistle blew for the paddlers to get ready for the super lap. The 7 of us grabbed our boards and waited for the count down. At 09.00 we hit the water and the pace was hot! This lap needed to be done in under 1 hour, otherwise you will be timed out and only your last completed lap would be counted. I was truly impressed by Lindsey, who went up to another level with her paddling. I tried to hang with her, but she was too strong! I could'nt fathom where she found that energy after not sleeping for over 48 hours and keeping a good pace the whole time. John, Brad and bruce took to the front and were close to each other. Jeremy was just behind Lindsy and in front of me. Micheal was just behind me. I realised within the first 15 mins that I was gonna be close to not making the cut off time of 1 hour. I had no exrta gear, and had probably doomed my chances by being indecisive about attempting the super lap. Mindset has eveything to do with it at this stage in the race, and I feel I had not prepared mentally for it. Lindsey on the other hand was fully prepared for this moment, and I was watching the results first hand! she is a true testament to metal preperation. By the time I made the bouy turn on the lap extention I knew I was done and was going to be timed out. It was awsome to hear everyone on the beach screaming and cheering us on. John was looking strong in the lead as we passed each other as I approched the bouy turn. The gap between me, Jeremy and Lindsey was increasing rapidly, they were strong, with Lindsey in 4th position behind John, Brad and Bruce. I had completely burned everything, and had nothing more to give, my pace was slow and felt like hard work. I made it back into the beach 3mins over the cut off time, so I was timed out of the super lap. I was most stoked for Lindsey who had smashed it! and became the first woman to complete a super lap in the Last Paddler Standing! John, Brad and Bruce had all completed the super lap in under 1 hour, and were ready to head out on the next hour to fight it out. They headed out again at 10.00 and Bruce timed out due to an injury. That left John and Brad to do the next super lap at 11.00. After they both come in under the hour, Brad conceded the next lap to John. They don't call it the Last Paddler Standing for no reason, and at the top of the hour at 12.00 John Batson headed out alone to complete the super lap solo in under 1 hour. John absolutely smashed it! and took the title of the Last Paddler Standing! It was well deserved after he was timed out the previous year, and it was an undeniably strong performace with him dominating the whole 2 and a half days.

The Last Paddler Standing is more than an ultra SUP race, it's a community of the best type of people! The people involved are passionate about paddling and go the extreames to help the paddlers and make everyone feel welcome! If you ever want to challenge yourself and see what you can achieve if you set your mind to something, then consider the LPS! I cant wait till next year!

Big shout out to Greg Wingo, Race Director for creating this monster, and all who contributed to this event! your all legends!

John Batson taking the title of The Last Paddler Standing.

Another year, another chip. 46 laps in total and 48 hours of no sleep.

The family.

Foggy second morning.