6 minute read
The second round of APP World Tour hit Long Beach and Manhattan last week for the NY SUP Open, with some thrilling racing taking place around some truly iconic locations. We were on hand with dryrobe ambassador and environmental campaigner Cal Major to take in all the action.
The NY SUP Open is made up of two disciplines of stand up paddleboarding, SUP surfing, and SUP racing, with the racing divided into sprint and long distance competitions. Things kicked off first in Long Beach with the SUP surfing comp, which saw the world’s very best compete to take home the New York title and get a step closer to the overall World Championship Crown.
In the men’s pro competition Brazillian Luiz Diniz claimed his first-ever APP World Tour Event Win. Poenaiki Raioha and Matheus Salazar (also both from Brazil) took second place and third place respectively.
US surfer Izzi Gomez stormed through to first place in the women’s competition, with Japan’s Yuuka Horikoshi taking second and Shakira Westdorp from Australia coming a close third.
The competition then moved onto the Sprint event. The format of this super-exciting competition sees racers compete in heats through a final, in both the men’s and women’s divisions. The races take place on an M-shaped course, starting on the beach before running into the surf (board and paddle in hand), paddling out to a buoy, back to the beach, paddle out to the final buoy, before one final sprint paddle to the beach. 
Races are often decided on the final section of the course as competitors can catch waves that may help them overtake their rivals, and then it’s a sprint out of the sea, up the beach to cross the finish line. This unique racing format is fast, action-packed and so many variables mean anything can happen - the crowd on Long Beach lapped up the drama!
Building swell and increasing winds, working their way up from Hurricane Dorian, made for challenging conditions as the racing went on.
Denmark’s Casper Steinfath took first place in the men’s event, improving on the 3rd place he took at the London event back in May. Martin Vitry from France took 2nd place and Frenchman Arthur Arutkin came in 3rd. American Connor Baxter just missed out on a podium spot after becoming unbalanced and taking a fall on the sprint in.
In the women’s division, there was some epic racing out in the water. The final saw American Seychelle Webster pull ahead and storm to victory, just edging it over Annie Reickert and adding to the sprint and distance wins she took home at the London event. US racer April Zilg came in third.
Friday was a lay day, giving the racers some time off ahead of Saturday’s long-distance event. Along with environmental campaigner Cal Major, we teamed up with the APP to host some waterway cleanups, both on the canals of Long Beach via SUP as well as on Long Beach itself. The tail end of Hurricane Dorian had hit the NY coast and the weather had turned for the worst - dryrobes were essential!
We were joined by some of the world’s top pros on the clean including Seychelle Webster and Zane Schweitzer, who were stoked to get involved and help make a difference.
To finish the day, we held a screening of Cal’s stunning film ‘Vitamin Sea’ at Skudin Surf on Long Beach. It was amazing to be able to bring the film to the US for the first time and share its important messages of plastic reduction and the benefits that spending time outside can have on mental health.
Saturday was the iconic Long Distance race, where the racers started from Jersey City, paddled up the Hudson River before turning and racing past the legendary Manhattan skyline. The race then went past Ellis Island before heading out to the Statue of Liberty, it then turned around and headed back for a sprint up the river to the finish line at Surf City in Jersey City.
It was incredible to see the action up close from a boat following the race and to take in the breathtaking sights of New York from the water.
The racing in both the men’s and women’s race was fast and furious, with positions changing regularly throughout the 13.5km course. The winners gave it everything they possibly could to take the wins. The women's race, in particular, was one of the closest fought finishes the APP World Tour has ever seen!
In the men’s event Michael Booth from Australia was in control for much of the race looking for another victory after his triumph in London. He was closely followed by 2018 champion, Arthur Arutkin, and an uncharacteristic slip by Booth gave Arutkin the lead which he held onto till the finish. Martin Vitry took 3rd place.
The battle for the podium in the Women’s division was fierce, with the lead going back and forth throughout the race. After a close-fought battle, April Zilg edged it over American Fiona Wylde to take the win. Spain’s Laura Quetglas came home in 3rd.
Overall winners of the racing at APP World Tour events are decided by combining results from the Sprint and Distance. After astounding performances in both disciplines at the NY Open Arthur Arutkin took home the Men’s crown with April Zilg claiming the women’s title.
Men’s overall result:
- Arthur Arutkin
- Martin Vitry
- Casper Steinfath
Women’s overall result:
- April Zilig
- Seychelle Webster
- Fiona Wylde
As well as picking up their medals and trophies, the winners also took home an exclusive APP World Tour dryrobe.
The next stop on the APP World Tour sees competitors head to Osaka, Japan, with sprint and distance races that take in another iconic city.
You can find out more about the APP World Tour, watch highlights of previous events and live streams of races over at appworldtour.com
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Twitter: @theappworldtour
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Published on September 12, 2019