I still have a lot to learn … !!

Right after the BOP Dana Point it was time to SUP surf at the SUWT Huntington beach.

I haven’t been surfing a lot my 8′ during the racing season but after a couple of free sessions I was already feeling better.

At the end I’ve managed to go to round 3, missing the quarter final by… I don’t know how many points as they apparently had trouble with the computers so they havn’t been able to publish any of the scores…

Apart from that it’s been a cool event, everyone was ripping, congrats to Antoine Delpero for winning this event, and thanks to Tristan and the Waterman league for bringing the SUP Surf Stand Up world tour at Huntington Beach !

Yeah !

Once again, I finish in top 10 of the BOP, the most difficult SUP Race on earth, not only because absolutly all the top SUP riders of the world are here and want to take the top places, but also because it is a very technical race with bouy turns, breaking waves and sprints on the beach…

If I would need to choose only 2 races in the year it would be the Molokai2Oahu and the BOP Dana Point !

So yes, I’ve finished 8th, the best result for a European so far next to my 9th place in Hawaii in May, and I am really looking forward to keep improving those results in 2012.

thanks to SUPshop.de for the pictures :

Top 10 finishers :

1 Connor Baxter USA
2 Jamie Mitchel AUS
3 Danny Ching USA
4 Georges Cronsteadt TAH
5 Kai Lenny HAW
6 Travis Grant AUS
7 Slater Trout HAW
8 Eric Terrien FRA
9 Beau O’Brian AUS
10 Kelly Margetts AUS

It took place mid-September after the “Open SUP de Lyon” and before to fly to California.

It has been a little bit of as last minute thing but I managed to give 2 afternoon clinics in Geneva with SUP Genève (plage du Reposoir), I could meet the SUP crew of the online shop eliquid.ch and during the week end I spent a wonderful week end in Germany giving a clinic with Evelyne and Christian from SUPshop.de.

I was very happy to share my knowledges with all the participants and hope to see you again soon in the water.

Feel free to click on those links to open the websites in new windows :
SUP Genève
eliquid.ch
SUPshop.de

Get Up SUP Mag number 4 as well as the Get Up DVD number 2 are available, check them out !

Big thanks to Jean Luc Malfroid for letting me have a go on his Oc1 for this session on lake Geneva !!

Video clip

4 Races during the week-end and 4 wins !

Cool event on the Rhône river in the middle of Lyon, the 2nd biggest city of France.
We had fun weather conditions, sun, wind against the river current that created some “downwind like” condition when we were going upstream.

Results scratch (14′ max) :
1 Eric Terrien : 2,8pts
2 Gaetan Sene : 11pts
3 Didier Leneil : 13pts
4 Greg Closier : 14 pts
5 Renaud Noyelle : 21 pts
…

Congrats also to all the 12′6 riders with Thierry Kostka and Robert Teritehau who battled hard for the 1st place in there division.

I’ve just got my new FCS SUP Race boardbags, 12′6 and 14, on this picture the 14′ boardbag and the paddle bag at the Open Lyon SUP Race.

I’ve recently tried the Sorky earplugs, a little tricky to fit for the first time but it is a perfect solution to prevent surfer’s ear.

http://www.sorky-technology.com/

Another OC session in paradise !

It’s been nice to paddle outrigger those days after so many SUP sessions, back to Stand Up Paddle now, it goes slower but it feels good to be standing up again !

Thanks Frank for this OC training.