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REGARDLESS of
the motiva-tion
behind
getting on a
board, there
are very few activities like it
that allow participants to be
fully immersed in nature.
“Have you been to a gym in
Wilmington?” Colclough asks.
“Wouldn’t you rather be out
on the water? You burn more
calories, there’s fewer negative
impacts on your body, and let’s
face it, the scenery is a whole
lot better than a gym.”
John Beausang turned to the
sport as a way to rehabilitate
his back. Rather than getting
surgery to fix two herniated
discs, he opted for an overall
lifestyle change that included
core-strengthening exercises,
including SUP.
“Before I started paddle-boarding,
my back would go
out a few times a year,” he says.
“Since then, I’ve been able
to avoid subsequent injuries.
What started as a health benefit
ended up being the start of
a decade of immersion into a
wonderful paddling culture.”
In addition to being a well-respected
waterman, Beausang
Clockwise from top left: Large waves clobber competitors in the Carolina Cup’s Graveyard course on
April 23, 2016, in Wrightsville Beach. Paddlers race into the water for the start of the 2016 Carolina
Cup’s Graveyard course. Competitors in the 2016 Carolina Cup’s Harbor Island course navigate Banks
Channel. Paddlers crowd Banks Channel at the start of the Blockade Runner Flatwater Championship
course of the Surf to Sound event on Nov. 6, 2016.
runs the Distressed Mullet, a
website that has posted over 15,000 articles on SUP.
His love of paddleboarding led him to co-create one of
Wrightsville’s many SUP races. After traveling to other competi-tions,
Beausang, in conjunction with Newkirk, Howard, James
Bain, William Pope, and Mark Schmidt, created the Wrightsville
Beach Paddle Club and hosted the first ever Carolina Cup in 2011.
Beausang and Schmidt still direct the race. Beausang handles
the majority of the community engagement, while Schmidt is
more focused on the operations and expansion.
The rising popularity of paddleboarding can be seen in the
explosive growth of the Carolina Cup. About 170 paddlers com-peted
the first year. In 2012, it was the largest race on the East Coast
with over 400 paddlers. The 2015 event was the largest SUP event in
the world, organizers say.
“Some people who competed in the original race have even
moved here,” Beausang says.
Over 1,000 paddlers from more than 20 countries came to
Wrightsville Beach for this year’s Carolina Cup, which took place
April 21-22. They competed in one of several events, including a
kids race, the Harbor Island Recreational “fun” race, Money Island
june 2018 20
WBM