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Check out Vaikobi's Father of the year and Super Coach/ Surf Ski Champ, Tim Jacobs (AUS)
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Sit back and enjoy the second part of our interview with Sean and Emily where we hear about the racing Sean has been up to, Surfski Paddling in North America as well as PaddleLife's plans for the second half of 2015.
Sean in Norway- Surfskipaddling.com
Vaikobi: Can you tell us about some of your most enjoyable locations you have coached at?
Sean: I would say Israel. The conditions are just out of this world. Warm water, downwind, amazing sea life, cooking waves. I find the country a VERY interesting place. I am passionate about history and I always learn alot when I am there.
I have just finished coaching in Norway and it was excellent. Ut I Naturen from Stavanger put on an impressive show. It makes so much sense for paddling shops to make the most of our PaddleLife workshops - there were demo’s for all the surfski and sea kayaking brands, a fun 3km race in between the two workshops, an opportunity for paddlers to spend time asking me questions about different boats afterwards and just a great atmosphere for everyone.
I love coaching in general. Some of my buddies just can’t understand it - because I am a competitor and I am still passionate about racing. But the feeling I get after a PaddleLife workshop is just out of this world. I love teaching others and introducing people to the sport I love so much. I take a lot of pride in getting to know each and every person I coach. I am a passionate teacher and I don’t think it will ever go away. It would be a waste for me to just be focusing on racing when I have a lot to offer to the sport.
Emily: I have a soft spot for Spain, but I think that’s because of the weather, the keen people and the red wine. I would say it’s mainly due to the people. The places with the friendliest and most welcoming people are always the most enjoyable. The friends we have made throughout the year are very special to us. I do struggle in the cold places though haha.
Sean conducting a PaddleLife session in Dubai
Vaikobi: What is the most common question you get during your coaching clinics from paddlers looking to improve their technique and performance?
Sean: How often should I practice stroke technique? - the answer is “should be every session or at least during your warm up”. Good technique is crucial to getting the most out of surfski paddling. Everyone has their own style of stroke - so it’s about maximising your efficiency.
Bridge to Beach, Sydney 2015- L-R Mark (Manderson/ Ando) Anderson, Jeremy "Jezza" Cotter, Cory "Chill" Hill, Michael "Boothy" Booth and Sean "Prawn" Rice...it seems like you needed a nickname to get in the top 5 in this race..
Vaikobi: It has not been all coaching, you have been racking up some strong race wins along the way- King of the Harbour NZ, Bridge to Beach, Sydney, South African Worlds Selections, Euro Challenge, German Seamasters, Allwave and 4th in the Molokai…pretty impressive- How do you keep your own training program running in spite of the travel and coaching program?
Sean: As I mentioned earlier - it’s a challenge to say the least. I have a very strict training programme I follow but I no longer have a coach. It takes a lot of preparation to make sure I have a boat, some water, a car with roof racks etc.. I couldn’t do it without Think Kayaks - they make sure there is an Uno Max waiting for me pretty much wherever I go. Emily helps a lot with motivation too. I take one rest day a week - which is usually our travel day. I also paddle a lot during the workshops. Especially when we were based in Sydney. I was very focused on training for the SA trial while I was there. So I was following my usual program, but I was living in Manly and coaching at Rose Bay. So every day, after my morning session at Narabeen, I would paddle through the heads (10km), paddle during the coaching session (maybe (8-10km)), paddle back to Manly (10km) and then do my afternoon session. I did that most days.
One day I wore my Garmin for a whole day of coaching in Hong Kong and it clocked 55km. I did this every day for 10 days. It’s crazy to think about it now!!!!! Haha. What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger? I hope! I’m 25 years old and I still feel 19 - I think your body can take alot when you are young. I love pushing myself - I wouldn’t do it if I didn’t find it fun.
I also take a month (usually Jan) where I don’t touch my paddle - I usually do quite a bit of surfing and free diving instead - this is crucial for my mind and my body.
Sean duelling with Cory Hill during 2015 Molokai World Champs - Pic Pacific Paddler
Vaikobi: You have already told us about your Molokai campaign this year on your blog. 4th place in such an awesome field was a great result over 53km's and it seems to be one of those amazing races where you need everything going right for you to be in a position to be able to win. Knowing how much you love to win, are we safe to assume that you will be back to challenge again?
Sean: YES! I will be back. There is unfinished business haha.
Vaikobi: In terms of your racing goals for the rest of the year, is the focus now on getting ready for the ICF World Champs in Taihiti?
Sean: Yes - this is pretty much my focus for the whole year. As I write this - there are 105 days to race day. This is the biggest race of the year for all top paddlers and I want to give it my best shot. I can’t wait! I won’t be doing any PaddleLife workshops for the whole of September.
Vaikobi: Back to Coaching- Moving on to the next half of the year, we will see you spending a considerable amount of time in North America. Can you tell us a bit about how the sport of Surfski is growing in the US and Canada and how important it is for the sport to see these countries grow?
Sean: It is hugely important for the sport! Canada and the US is huge. Just the number of people living near water with money to spend - it’s mind boggling. Over the last couple of years there has been huge drive in these two countries (and of course other parts of the world) to improve health and fitness. I think this is the perfect opportunity for surfski as a sport. People need to get more active and they want to have fun doing so. During the PaddleLife workshops I talk quite a bit about fitness and lifestyle - it’s really why I do the sport and very important to me. I see surfski really taking off in the states in a big way.
Emily: Well the numbers are there and from what we have seen so far, people are keen!! Hopefully there is a good turnout on the East Coast -as there hasn’t really been much coaching done there before. Most of our workshops are about half full now - so time will tell.
Sean conducting a PaddleLife session in Bellingham, WA in the Pacific North West, USA
Vaikobi: We are starting to see pockets of growth in parts of Asia. Where will you be touring in Asia later in the year?
Emily: Yes - well we hope so! Sean has been going to Hong Kong for the last couple of years (mainly for the Hong Kong Dragon Run and to coach) but we both haven’t spent any other time anywhere else. We are heading to - Shanghai, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and South Korea. We are still finalising the last of the logistics and then we will announce our official dates - hopefully by next week. We don’t really know what to expect here. But the dragon boat racing is huge all over and the numbers are big - so we are hoping to introduce surfski to these paddlers. We will see how it goes!!
Vaikobi: Both of you play an equal part in the success of the Paddle Life program. Sean, tell us the importance of having someone like Emily working with you and pulling the whole program together?
Sean: We need someone in the looks department haha!! Well, there wouldn’t be a PaddleLife if it wasn’t for Emily. Em seriously puts her heart into it and she isn’t even a paddler! I don’t do admin well and there is a lot of it! Organising a workshop takes a lot of prep - finding a venue, a contact, advertising, taking bookings months beforehand, making sure everyone has equipment etc. We are doing about 45 workshops this year!!! You can imagine how much there is to do and how much time on a laptop that is. I need the time to train and do the actual coaching. Emily also navigates us around the world and books all the flights and accommodation.
Emily: Well I would say it’s team work. I do spend a lot of time on a computer but we do a lot of it together. It’s quite funny actually - we have a meeting every week with just the two of us haha. We sit down and discuss what we need to get done and decisions we need to make (conclusion is usually that Sean is about 3 weeks behind in writing a blog post!!! haha) . It get’s a bit much sometimes and we realise that days have gone by and we have only spoken about PaddleLife haha. I guess it shows how passionate we are to make it work out. I have learnt alot about the industry, about spreadsheets, about finance, about dealing with sponsors etc - coming from a Science background -it’s all new to me. Sean also runs PaddleFit - the online training - that’s his baby and it’s going very well.
Vaikobi: Finally, both Emily and Sean, can you tell us your most favourite Vaikobi item that you use and why?
Sean: Right now - Anything that is V-COLD!!!!!!! haha. It has saved my nuts so many times!! No but seriously - this range is a lifesaver. Best on the market - no question about that.
Emily: Sean you can’t say “nuts" in public!!! I love the Womens Aztec paddle tights - I also use them for yoga!
Vaikobi: Well it all sounds like a fantastic year so far and we are stoked to be part of the PaddleLife Team along with Think Kayaks. We look forward to following your adventures over the second part of 2015!
Sean & Emily: Thanks Vaikobi. We are super stoked to have the support from you, along with Think Kayaks and our brand new partner, Motionize. It’s been an amazing year so far. We can’t thank our supporters enough - sponsors, friends, family, paddlers and everyone else who has played a part.
Vaikobi: Thanks Sean & Emily and best of luck for the rest of the year!
For more information on Paddle Life please visit www.yourpaddlelife.com
Part 1
Introduction:
Vaikobi in conjunction with Think Kayaks are proud supporters of PaddleLife www.yourpaddlelife.com
PaddleLife is a year long tour of surf ski coaching clinics that span the globe. Each clinic is coached by current ICF World Surfski Champion Sean Rice from South Africa who aims to increase participation and enjoyment in the sport of surf ski paddling around the world.
Sean is not only an amazing Athlete, he is also a brilliant communicator and coach who has the ability to improve the technique and performance of paddlers at all levels. Sean's partner Emily plays an equally important role in PaddleLife managing the endless organisation, marketing and logistics required to undertake the year round program.
With the year now half way over, we sat down with Sean and Emily to talk about their experiences so far and to find out what is in store for the rest of the year!
Vaikobi: Sean and Emily, You started the year in the Philippines and here we are almost at the end of June and we are exhausted just reading the number of locations you have travelled to and held Paddle Life coaching clinics.
Let us just refresh your memory: AUSTRALIA X 2, NZ, DUBAI, SOUTH AFRICA, SPAIN, GERMANY, ISRAEL, SEATTLE, HAWAII, UK, ITALY, NORWAY & SWEDEN!
Quite a trip so far. How do you stay fresh?
Sean: Haha! Yes it has been quite a crazy few months and staying “fresh” is our biggest challenge!! As hectic as it looks - and it is - we try and keep as much of a routine as we can. We usually travel on a Monday - so we take Monday and Tuesday as “off days” , and our busiest work days are the weekends. I have a strict training programme that I don’t deviate from. I can tell you exactly what session I am doing in 3 weeks time. So just trying to keep that going in such a busy life is a challenge. It’s not just doing the session - it’s finding water, finding a boat (thank goodness for THINK), finding dry paddling kit (thank goodness for Vaikobi and Emily haha).
Emily:That’s cheeky!! haha. Yes - staying “fresh” is definitely the biggest challenge. Not sure when the off days are either?? haha! When we lived in Cape Town we had such a set sleep-eat-study-exercise routine. I would be lying if I said I don’t crave it sometimes. Sean is much better at coping with jet-lag than I am! It took me about a week to recover from our Hawaii flights - so trying to keep motivation to work and when all you want to do is sleep is hard. We try our best to keep a balanced diet as best we can. At the beginning of the year - we had a rule (passed down from Hank McGregor I think?) that anything is allowed if we are in an airport -Sean always goes for Burger King - and then we realised we were in an airport far too often and we were just getting fat!
Vaikobi: How are your Frequent Flyer miles going?!
Emily: Sean would’t know because I do all the booking! They are going OK - not as well as you would think because our routes are so ‘random’ that it is difficult, and often much more expensive to stick with one airline group. Hopefully we will be styling in the lounges soon!
Vaikobi: Can you tell us your worst or most interesting travel story over the past year?
Emily: Ooooh that’s a tough one. There have been so many. Worst - Um…. All I can think of is Sean having severe food poisoning (on many occasions) and trying to locate a nearby toilet very fast. but that’s not interesting. haha
Sean: Well in general - trying to travel carrying a paddle and a surfski is interesting haha. In Sydney we cruised around in a Mini Cooper with my boat on the roof - this resulted in unimpressed cops and a $200 fine. There are so many stories. Watching Emily getting smashed in the shore break at Pipeline was pretty interesting hahahaha.
Vaikobi: OK, with the first part of your tour so far in strong Surfski countries (participation wise) such as Australia, NZ, South Africa and then the second part in more emerging surfski countries. Can you describe the difference between some of these regions in terms of culture, participation and general enthusiasm for Surfski Paddling?
Sean: The difference is HUGE between all countries!!
Participation - You wouldn’t think it at first - but the more developed countries, such as Australia and NZ are the toughest in terms of coaching. Mainly because having me there isn’t really a big deal as there are so many paddling ‘legends’ from these countries and there are such good coaches around. We were nervous to start off PaddleLife there for these reasons and to be honest the bookings were slow at the beginning. Aussies are quite wary to trust in new people/things, but once their mates had been to a workshop and news had spread that it was good - we were booked up!
We struggled to get into the paddling community on the Gold Coast - but I think that is because everyone comes from a serious surf lifesaving background and again the coaching there is world class. The places that don’t really get much paddling action are a pleasure to coach as everyone is just so excited to have us there. Once we had the “approval stamp” and had gone over all our feedback from the Aussies - we felt pretty confident for the rest of the year!
In terms of paddling culture - the difference is MASSIVE and I find the differences very amusing!
Aussies - don’t care that much for the land-based theory, they just want to get in the water and downwind baby.
Kiwis - KEEN for anything!!!!
Spanish - So super friendly and lot’s of fun. It’s quite challenging to coach because of the language barrier so my coaching becomes VERY animated which is always a laugh. I just say VAMOS all the time haha.
Germans - pretty structured in the way they do things. I have loads of respect for them for paddling in such cold conditions!
Israelis - I love coaching these guys! Their enthusiasm is out of this world and EVERYTHING is a race. It’s so funny because I can tell that no one is really interested in the theory, they just want to get out and race each other. The paddlers are tough and not scared of any conditions. I do a more ‘training’ style workshop which works so well as they all push themselves, It reminds me a bit of my old training squad at home. We start off with boot-camp style running and pushups.
Americans: The opposite of Isaelis! Nothing is a race and team work is huge. Everyone loves the land-based theory and the questions always flow. Everyone paddles together in a close group and I love the way people acknowledge how well everyone is doing. It always ends with “Good job buddy”.
Scandinavians: MAJOR respect for paddlers as it is cold. Right now we are smack bang in the middle of summer and today was a high of 14 degrees. Winter is brutal. Most of the paddlers come from sea kayaking background which is HUGE here. Everyone is very easy to chat to and friendly!
Asia - haven’t done much this year so we will see!
Vaikobi: Which countries/ regions have the greatest potential for growth in Surfski participation?
Emily: We keep a very good database of every country on our tour. (I love numbers and statistics haha). I find it very interesting to look at the differences in the number of people who paddle surfski, what kit they are paddling in, what boat they paddle, what paddles they use etc. It’s also interesting the number of people at each workshop who are trying out the sport for the first time.
I would definitely say Europe in general - but especially Scandinavia. People are moving from the traditional sea kayaking to surfski and everyone is loving it!! Paddlers don’t seem to be turned away by the weather as dry suits are pretty fashionable here! haha. I predict Norway and Sweden are going to see a huge boom in surfski in the next couple of years. It helps that majority of people have disposable income to invest into the sport. I also think the West coast of the USA has huge potential. We hope to create some enthusiasm after our tour in August (Charleston, Jupiter, Jacksonville, Newport, Maine). One of the main goals for PaddleLife is to grow the sport wherever we go. It’s an awesome opportunity for any surfski or kayak shop to get involved with our workshops - we have seen how it drives the paddling industry everywhere we go.
Sean: Yes Emily is quite a nerd when it comes to numbers haha. I would say everywhere! Though I cannot comment on South America or Antarctica (well just yet!).
Vaikobi:
Surfski paddling is clearly growing in Europe, with Spain leading the charge. What does the future look like for Surfski Paddling in Europe?
Sean: It looks great!!! Spain is on fire at the moment! They have some great paddlers - Danny, Esteban and James to name a few. There is also a new surfski centre in Grand Canaria - which I have heard is excellent! I think the way surfski is going to grow (besides PaddleLife workshops) is travelling to these centres for holidays. Flights around Europe are SO cheap - there is no reason why we shouldn’t be going on paddling trips with our friends. Especially if you are from Norway, Denmark and Sweden, where the climate is cold, you can paddle crazy downwinds while your family chills on the beach, it’s sunny and it’s cheap. I think the more Europeans start travelling to workshops/races/events/paddling centres - the better. (EuroChallenge/Nelo Summer Challenge/ Allwave Cup/ Grand Canary). Also getting a boat is super easy as there are agents everywhere!
End Part 1
Stay tuned for Part 2 where we hear about some of Sean's racing this year as well as his targets and goals for the rest of the year.
We are clearing the decks of the remaining items left in the Ocean Active Womens Capri range. All Ocean Active Capri's reduced to $50 so be quick and pick one up before they go!
Available at: http://www.vaikobi.com/pages/v-ocean-active
The team at Vaikobi are constantly working on designing and developing the most innovative and functional performance gear to keep you training and racing at your best.
Check out some of the latest new innovative products in our line up which are available now through your local Vaikobi Stockist.
Introducing the New V Heat Sprint Shorts
Working with some of the worlds best paddlers, we are proud to launch the new V Heat Sprint Shorts.
Designed specifically for Sprint and Surf Club Ski Paddlers, the V Heat Sprint shorts provide minimal resistance when paddling at 100% effort.
Featuring Vaikobi's unique Vprene one panel butt pad for ultimate comfort and unrestricted rotation, this short is sure to excite the performance paddling scene! Available in Navy and Bottle Green/ Gold
Introducing the New V Light S/S Race Top
Light just got Lighter!
Our Athletes told us that they wanted a super light top which was highly breathable, fast drying and didn't get heavy when wet. Solution? The V Light Short Sleeve Race Top.
Featuring 150GSM 100% Polyester Fast Dry Mesh and ergonomically designed for maximum comfort when paddling. The V Light Top is ready to take you to the next level.
Available in Cyan Blue/ Grey & Grey/ Fluro Yellow
Women's Vaikobi Ocean Active Range
The Vaikobi Ocean Active range features an innovative line up of Women's Capri's and UV tops to make you look and feel great both on water and land.
Designed to make you perform in the Ocean environment, the Ocean Active range is super light and fast wicking whilst feeling great when both dry and wet.
Paddle out, Work out and Stretch out with Vaikobi Ocean Active.
The Vaikobi Hi Vis Race PFD has set a new standard in Performance Paddling!
Lighter, More Breathable, More Visible with fantastic range of movement, this PFD is rocking the paddling world across Surfski, SUP and Outrigger Paddling.
The most common feedback we hear about this product is that you "Forget that you are even wearing a PFD!"
Paddle Hard and Paddle Safe with Vaikobi.
Product Features:
- Super lightweight and breathable
- Hi Vis Fluro Yellow for maximum visibility
- Australian Standard 4758 Level 50- Mandatory for Australian Races
- Hydro compartment on the back to store your hydration pack
- No side panels for maximum breathability
- Easy access mesh pockets for storage of energy gels
- Padded shoulders
- Front centre zip for ease of putting on
Vaikobi will be on site at the Hawaiian Airlines Sydney Harbour Challenge at Manly Wharf over the weekend of Feb 28th/ March 1st in what is set to be the biggest Outrigger Canoe event in Australia.
106 OC6 Teams from across Australia are all descending on Sydney to race on the iconic Sydney Harbour and challenge for a shot at the large prize pool on offer including airfares for the winning teams to Hawaii!
In partnership with The Paddle Shop QLD, Vaikobi will have our full range of products on site including our hugely popular Ocean Active range of Capri's, V Heat Paddle Shorts and Tops, V Cold Range and our Hi Vis Race PFD.
See you all this weekend and best of luck to all teams!