Hundreds of the top stand up paddleboard racers in the world and thousands of spectators will gather at the Santa Monica Pier this Saturday, June 6, for the 6th annual Tommy Bahama Paddleboard Race & Ocean Festival.
The event will feature thrilling race competitions, a lively festival and family friendly activities.
This year, Tommy Bahama has increased the prize purse to a total of $15,000, making this event one of the biggest paddleboard competitions in the world.
Leading professional and amateur athletes will compete in an exciting array of stand up paddleboard races, dory races and a rigorous ocean swim.
One of the most exciting and anticipated events every year is the Tommy Bahama Paddlecross Cup, a short-course sprint race out and back through the surf.
The latest event to be added this year is the SUPsquatch, where teams of 5 or 6 paddlers team up to paddle a single huge inflatable stand up board through waves and around a multi-buoy course.
The Ocean Festival will feature live music and hula dancers performing throughout the event, with Tommy Bahama also bringing back their signature lounge tent and 21 and over rum bar.
There will be a lifeguard and surf history pop-up museum, which retells the history of paddleboarding and its origins at the Santa Monica Pier in the 30’s.
This year they are honoring the Santa Monica Pier’s Manoa Paddleboard Club (the first club of its kind, existed from 1939 to 1950), with an award being named in in honor of SUP legends Preston “Pete” Peterson and Dorothy “Dottie” Hawkins.
The family-friendly free event will be held from 10:30 am to 1:30 pm, kids can enjoy beach activities such as short sand races, a sand obstacle course, volleyball and limbo for the chance to win prizes.
The event also benefits Heal the Bay, an environmental nonprofit dedicated to cleaning Southern California’s coastal waters and watersheds.
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