LAGUNA BAY LONGBOARDS STAND-UP PADDLE DIVISION NOOSA'S BIGGEST EVER

"War on Water"

Noosa's own Laguna Bay Longboards will sponsor the biggest ever stand up paddle division at the 2011 Noosa Festival of Surfing. In a joint announcement, Laguna's Tully St John and festival director Phil Jarratt said the expansion of the division was in keeping with the tremendous growth of stand up around the world.

The four-year-old Stand Up Paddle Pro surfing event will be joined by amateur divisions for seniors (over 45) and women, plus a 5-kilometre "loop" race on Laguna Bay prior to the Festival's opening ceremony on Sunday, 13 March.

"We wanted the SUPS at the Noosa Festival to reflect what's happening everywhere in the world of stand up," said Tully St John. "That is, everyone is doing it, from surfers of all ages to serious watermen and surf paddlers, from kids to mums who see it as a great workout. Laguna Bay Longboards SUPS will cater to all of them, and we expect to attract stand up paddlers from all over."

Festival director Phil Jarratt said he was delighted that a local surf company had come in as sponsor. "Under his various surfboard brands, Tully has been a major player in the local industry for quite a while now, and it's great to see him developing SUPS alongside traditional surfboards. While stand up has developed a life of its own in many land-locked places, on our coasts we want to see it grow side by side with surfing, and so does our governing body, Surfing Australia. We're all from the same tribe, and the Laguna Bay SUPS division at the Noosa Festival will demonstrate that."

Tully said he had been inspired by recent stand up paddle races, such as the Battle of the Paddle in Hawaii and California, to work with surf club officials in creating a loop course close to the beach, so that spectators could watch the entire race "up close and personal". Competitors will paddle five times around a one-kilometre triangular course, punctuating each circuit with a beach sprint. "Racing is always thrilling when you've got the paddle in your hands," Tully said, "But we want to make it just as exciting for the spectators." The Battle of the Paddle at Doheny Beach, California in early October, broke spectator records with almost 10,000 people gathering to watch a thrilling race, with more than 800 competitors in the water.

Entry forms for the Laguna Bay Longboards Stand Up Paddle division are now available on-line at the festival site, or you can download the attached form and fax to 07 5473 5974. For further information phone the hotline.

Other divisions now open are:

Fin-Free Pro, Noserider Pro, Tandem Open, Family Challenge