Paddle boarders gear up for Siesta Key Classic

HYPR Atlantic Surf and Paddle benefiting Surfrider Foundation will host the inaugural Siesta Key Classic Paddle competition 8:30 a.m. Saturday, April 20, at Siesta Key Beach.

This is a World Paddle Association sanctioned event and the first on Siesta Key. 

Paddlers can enter the 12-mile Hypr Hawaii Endurance Challenge or the 3-mile fun paddle.

The race will begin at the north end of the public beach and the afterparty will take place 1 p.m. at The Beach Club.

Top finishers in qualifying categories will earn tickets to the Hawaiian island of their choice. The classic will benefit the Surfrider Foundation thats mission is to protect the ocean through a powerful activist network.

It will also benefit The Shark Fin Project, which aims to stop shark finning.

Shark finning is the practice of catching and killing sharks just for their fins. Currently, 100 million sharks are harvested every year throughout the world for their fins.

Pre-race registration is from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, April 19, at Lelu’s Coffee Lounge,  in Siesta Village.
Paddlers will take off 9:30 a.m. race day.

For more information visit siestakeyclassic.com.