Dusi, Day 3: Birkett wins fourth Dusi and Zondi first in an epic stage. Robin Kime and Ulansky keep reigning

Birkett & Zondi, winners. Photo: Stuart Berry

Andy Birkett continues to grow his incipient legend by winning this morning his fourth Dusi Canoe Marathon fourth with Sibonelo Zondi, the second black paddler to achieve the absolute title of this great South African race.

The third and final stage, held again under a very hot weather, followed the script laid down after the first two days, where Birkett and Zondi had almost nine minutes on their closest rivals, Jasper Mocke and Hank McGregor. The accident in Day 1 by Lance Kime and Thulani Mbanjwa, who were part of the three candidates for the title, made the victory a matter of two.

Birkett and Zondi started with conservative tactics, thanks to the big advantage that they had. Ahead, 36 kilometers to the finish line in Durban, with a first part of about 5km on the flatwater of Inanda Dam to enter after the portage down the wall in the clear waters of the Umgeni river, where rapids as Tops Needle or Pumphouse, and especially the Burma Road optional portage, usually mark the course of the race.

Dusi, Day 2: Birkett and Zondi speed up for the title

Birkett & Zondi made a solo race down the river. Photo: Twitter @AntStott

Undoubtly they were already favorites before the start of the race, but the superiority Andy Birkett and Sibonelo Zondi are showing in this year's Dusi Canoe Marathon only a few could imagine it yesterday morning at the start in Pietermaritzburg.

The beginning of this second stage, in mode of trial according to the times yesterday, saw Jasper Mocke and Hank McGregor pushing very hard from the start to try to reduce some of the disadvantage of 5'27" with the leaders. They managed to closed it to four and a half minutes, but like if Birkett and Zondi were waiting for their rivals to get tired, after the first two long portages they put the effort on the river and passing through the biggest rapids of the day, after the confluence of the Umgeni river with the Dusi, the put back the gap in five and a half minutes.

Dusi, Day 1: Andy Birkett and Sibonelo Zondi want to set the race clear from the beginning

The A batch going through Earnie Pearce. Photo: Twitter @DusiCanoe

This morning started the 63rd edition of the Dusi Canoe Marathon, which this year takes place in K2, and has been a day full of action and news.

After an early departure (6 AM local time, 5 AM CET), among the 61 seeded K2s there were three clear favorites: Lance Kime and Thulani Mbajnwa; Jasper Mocke and Hank McGregor; and Andrew Birkett and Sibonelo Zondi . But last year's winner Lance Kime and his partner (also K2 winner) Thulani Mbanjwa, didn't have much time to enjoy the race. At Witness Weir, the second obstacle of the day just three kilometers from the start, they broke their K2, seeing themselves forced to a long stop for a quick repair and losing almost every chance for the title, except unexpected catastrophe on their rivals in the next two days.

So, right from the very first kilometers, everything pointed to a McGregor/Mocke vs Birkett/Zondi race, where the first ones set a blistering pace on the water.

Jasper Mocke renews his "Doctor's degree" in Perth (Australia)

Great aerial view after the start. Photo: John O'Sullivan

The Mocke brothers, in their usual Australian tour during January, managed to claim the top two spots in The Doctor, the second race of the Surfski World Series 2014, after the Mandurrah Cup won by Jasper Mocke a week ago. And again the youngest of the brothers claimed a tough race on the blue waters of Perth.

On a perfect day for the surfski, no more and no less than 330 boats gathered in Rottnest Island to face the 27 km. of downwind to the finish line in Sorrento Beach. Among them, 46 SUP (Stand Up Paddle), booming discipline in the last years.

The massive start was hectic until the first turn of the race, before facing the open sea. The Australian Cory Hill ...

Sean Rice brings home victory at Camps Bay, sixth race of the Vodacom Cape Town Surfski Series

Last Sunday it was held a classic Spring surfski race in Cape Town, the Natural Camps Bay Clash, on the Atlantic side of the city.

The field was rather strong. After coming back from Hong Kong, the big stars attempt to fine tune their form for the big upcoming event of the Cape Point Challenge. This time, Jasper Mocke and Sean Rice had a nice neck to neck race, while Dawid Mocke and Brandon van der Walt fell back from the lead on a course with little wind and quite bumpy. Under these conditions, the physical strength of Sean Rice was finally decisive, opening in the last stretch a gap wide enough to enter the finish line alone and to be the only paddler under 50 minutes. Behind him, Jasper and Dawid Mocke completed the podium.

Brandon van der Walt, fourth overall, was the winner U21 (age division of the races), followed by Dom Notten and Craig Flanagan. In junior, victory for Kenny Rice, while Graeme Solomon won the veterans category and was fifth overall. Look in the video at his surfski, developed by Carbonology Sport in collaboration with Graeme's company in Cape Town, Bamboo Warehouse. Indeed, it is built in carbon and bamboo, giving it that classic (and classy) wooden aspect and weighing only 11.5 kg. Beautiful prototype. We do not know if it will continue to be produced, since its maintenance must be very careful, as it was always with wooden kayaks, but the truth is that we love it.

In women, victory for Nikki Mocke, with a big gap over Bianca Beavitt, second, and the junior Kirsten Flanagan, third, who entered sprinting to decide the two remaining podium positions.

You can check the results at this link and see the always colorful race video below ( by the way, it goes an Olympic champion , see if you find it):

South Africans rule at the Eurochallenge

Left to right: Sean Rice, Dawid Mocke and Jasper Mocke

This past weekend was held at Villajoyosa (Spain) the Eurochallenge 2013 of surfski. Crowded field, but it was missed some more foreign participation, which in previous years had been abundant. Anyway, that foreign participation was of very high quality, as evidenced by the podium conquered by South African stars, all of them from Fish Hoek, Sean Rice, Dawid Mocke and Jasper Mocke.

That was the order in both races, the downwind North course on Saturday, of the two prepared depending on weather conditions. 20 kilometer run in line along the coast heading Southwest and finishing in Villajoyosa. And the classical race on Sunday.

Sean Rice, recent winner of the South African trials, both in 1,000 meters and surfski, stood alone doing much of the race at the downwind. As recognized after by Dawid Mocke, trying to follow him was a ticket to get sore muscles. Rice got a three minutes advantage over Dawid Mocke and five over Jasper. Walter Bouzán came in fourth place very closed to Jasper Mocke and heading the European field, where the Dutchman Joep van Bakel was fifth and Daniel Sanchez Viloria, who arrived as second Spanish, added himself to Walter in the list of our representatives in the Surfski World Championships to be held this coming July in Portugal.

McGregor, Nikki Mocke, the Mocke brothers and Eray/Mocke, RSA champions of surfski

Photo: Owen Middleton

Last weekend was held at Fish Hoek (RSA), the last race of the Surfski World Series, the Cape Town Downwind, which was also the Sout African National Championships. With no Australian in the field, other competitors arrived from Portugal, Great Britain, Germany or Belgium were not going to dispute the clear favoritism of the locals, mainly the Jasper and Dawid Mocke, who were playing at home. And they got victory in the doubles race of Monday 17th, but were dissapointed in the singles with a 5th and 6th place far away from their aim. Hank McGregor and Matt Bouman showed the Durban way of surfskiing by leading last half of the race, with McGregor retaining the SA title got already in 2011 and Bouman in silver. Bronze was for an impressive Simon van Gysen, who made a terrific final kilometres.

Jasper Mocke's European Hat Trick: Done

This last weekend was held at the French Britain the 3rd edition of the Breizh Ocean Race, which witnessed again a solid performance by South African specialist Jasper Mocke, who finishes this way a very succesful European Tour that started one and a half month ago training at Santander (Spain), where he has found a nice base camp for his European seasons.

The long course race start with the French Britain coast behind . Photo: Philippe Blanquet (Lemon-Prod)

After his victories at the Ohana Mana Cup of Sardinia and the Greek Aegean Race, this Sunday he got the 2,400 € prize for the winner of the Breizh Ocean Race ahead of Spanish Walter Bouzán and again the Australian Dane Sloss, another surfski specialist who completed the podium.

On Saturday it took place a 6 kilometres prologue to decide Sunday's start list and also for the organizers to check if any of the contestants maybe was not prepared enough to face a possible rough sea next day.

Jasper Mocke wins the Aegean Race of surfski in Greece

Jasper Mocke, ayer, en aguas del Egeo

Jasper Mocke got yesterday another victory in his succesful European tour. After his great perfomances at Rome and Sardinia, it was at the Aegean Race, held on the Athenian Coast of Greece, where he won over a short but qualified field of around 50 paddlers.

Sadly, the Meltemi, well known wind from the North of the Aegean Sea, didn't show yesterday and the race was competed under flat conditions, with barely no swell to surf and lots of paddling instead. This were not ideal conditions for South Africans or Australians, but anyway they managed to get the two first positions through Jasper Mocke and Dane Sloss, who finally arrived to the finish line with a short difference of 13 seconds for Mocke, who stopped the clock at 1h19'41". After two minutes, third position, closing the podium, went to Spanish Federico "Kiko" Vega.

At this link you can see the final results.

Jasper Mocke wins the Ohana Mana Cup of surfski in Sardinia (Italy)

Winner, Jasper Mocke

The brilliant bronze medalists at last Marathon World Championships in Rome, Jasper Mocke and Simon van Gysen (RSA), kept showing their current great shape last weekend at the Ohana Mana Cup of surfski held at the Island of Sardinia (Italy).

With a 38 km. downwind course along the southern coast of the island, about a hundred surfskis took the start on this 2012 edition. And, as it is usual, South Africans, with permission of the few Australian paddlers, claimed the main positions of the race. They put 5 paddlers into the top ten, claimed victory in the Women's race and showed Europeans again in their own field the superiority of southern hemisphere paddlers when it comes to surfski paddling.

Jasper Mocke and Simon van Gysen got the lead for the full length of the race, until finally the younger Mocke got some advantage facing the finish line, where he entered in first position (1h36'30") with 44 seconds over his marathon K2 partner, winner this spring of the Eurochallenge at Vilajoiosa (Spain).