FLAT water distance training? How far is far?

[adios pantalones]

I Know about the big channel crossings, Molokai, Catalina, etc. With many of those, swell or catching "bumps" becomes part of the ride.
  What about dead flat water? Say, calm Tahoe, The Delta, Mid western big lakes or rivers.

 Who is going long?  How long?  Sustained long speeds?

We have the Bay2Bay 20 miler here in San Diego. It's a mix of ocean and bay, but even the open water doesn't promise sustained rides.

I'm training for the Bay2Bay but am really winging it.

Any thoughts?

[XLR8]

The great lakes have awesome potential for true endurance paddling, including wind, waves and current.  But unfortunately SUP is still in its infancy here and serious paddlers are hard to come by.  Most events seem to cap out at 6 to 8 miles and involve loop courses.  The Outpost, in Holland, MI, is emerging as the leader in SUP event organization, in my opinion.

So for real distance paddling its just random guys paddling far.  For me, over 20 miles is far.

We have potential for some awesome distance events...they exist in my head:  Lake2Lake, could be a paddle from a point in northern Lake Mi through the straits of mackinaw under the longest suspension bridge in the world into Lake Huron.  Could be any distance.  Mission Impossible would be a bay to bay paddle in Traverse City, MI.  We'd paddle around mission peninsula, from west to east bay, exposed to big lake conditions on the north end.  That would be about a 20 mile paddle.

This summer I have plans to paddle the length of the St. Mary's River, 78 miles from Lake Superior to Lake Huron, through the Soo locks and along the international border between Canada and Michigan the whole distance.  My dad will accompany in a solo expedition canoe.  I'll probably be the first stand up paddler to do the full length of this historic river that is an important route for freighter ships.

Sorry this is long and maybe a tangent from the OP.  But I'm stoked on all this.  I love surfing, but I love going the distance too.

[adios pantalones]

The Mission Impossible would be cool! Maybe you should be the guy to promote it!

 

Like you said, Lots of emphasis on surf... and I like it, but distance seems to be drawing me in. I did 13mi. a month ago and a 15mi. last Sat.

I'm hoping to get somebody else here to chime in who has the bug too.

[PonoBill]

The only difference between going long and going short is how long it takes. I've done 40 a few times, 33 at the CCBC. After a while 6 miles seems like you're just getting started and you can do it at sprint pace. For long distances you have to figure on 4 MPH or less, so 40 miles is ten hours. Take breaks for lunch and resting and you're at 11-12 hours for 40 miles. Pretty easy to get up the next morning and do another 40 though.

[Tom]

I did the Bay2bay several years ago on a slow 14' sitontop kayak and it wasn't too bad. Didn't do it last year but the year before did the 5 mile option (from Shelter Island) on a 12 foot wave board. I know that a couple guys did the 20 miler on what I'd guess were 17 foot boards. You might want to ask around at the Hanohano Huki Ocean Challenge, Jan 29, 2011 San Diego

[adios pantalones]

The only difference between going long and going short is how long it takes. I've done 40 a few times, 33 at the CCBC. After a while 6 miles seems like you're just getting started and you can do it at sprint pace. For long distances you have to figure on 4 MPH or less, so 40 miles is ten hours. Take breaks for lunch and resting and you're at 11-12 hours for 40 miles. Pretty easy to get up the next morning and do another 40 though.

Thanks for chiming in Bill. That's the kind of input I'm looking for. I'm running around 3.5 on my first and averaged about 4MPH over 15m on this last paddle. That has me feeling good as a noob.  Time to dig deep and go 20-25m on the next long one.

If I may ask, what are you eating/drinking on the board?

[adios pantalones]

I did the Bay2bay several years ago on a slow 14' sitontop kayak and it wasn't too bad. Didn't do it last year but the year before did the 5 mile option (from Shelter Island) on a 12 foot wave board. I know that a couple guys did the 20 miler on what I'd guess were 17 foot boards. You might want to ask around at the Hanohano Huki Ocean Challenge, Jan 29, 2011 San Diego

Thanks for the tip Tom, Just signed up for the Hanohano!

[PonoBill]

I bring along a couple of bars and lots of water. On my 40 milers I force myself to make the full run by parking 20 miles from a nice little restaurant on the water in Scappose Bay. Paddle, eat lunch, then you gotta get back to the car.

Presto...40 miles.

[surfcowboy]

There are a couple of good nutrition threads on here if you search.

[adios pantalones]

I bring along a couple of bars and lots of water. On my 40 milers I force myself to make the full run by parking 20 miles from a nice little restaurant on the water in Scappose Bay. Paddle, eat lunch, then you gotta get back to the car.

Presto...40 miles.

   Why didn't I think of that! I could paddle down for lunch @ Loews. Yum!

[PonoBill]

Yeah, I'll tell you, there have been a few times I've wanted to turn around at ten miles, but the prospect of a nice lunch just keeps me mindlessly paddling. Good music helps too.

[PaddleAnything]

What type of board is good for long distance trips?   Will a 12.1 stock board work? 

[PonoBill]

Most of my really long distance paddles have been on a Starboard 12'2", which is kind of in between a stock surfboard and an old raceboard. It's 26" wide with straight rails so it glides very well. Still, it's no raceboard. You can go long on anything. Krystyana Chemlinski (might have misspelled that) did the 32 mile CCBC on a 10' surfboard and was in the lead group the whole way (and looked pretty good doing it).

[PaddleAnything]

Thanks Pono, another newbie question.  Have you ever had really high winds come up that made your return trip an upwind hell?  How do you deal with extreme high winds and  windcaps that may blow in on you? 

[adios pantalones]

What type of board is good for long distance trips?   Will a 12.1 stock board work? 

Your handle is your answer!    I have a 12'6" Hobie most days, but I've done it on a barge too.