The Jay Race Turns Ten


Lumberyard, Capitola Beach, CA

The paddleboard race in memory of Jay Moriarity just keeps growing. This year, it outgrew the New Brighton Beach parking limits and so moved to Capitola, and the course lines were redrawn.

Who showed up? The core is Santa Cruz. They all showed up, pretty much. Past winners did. Joe Bark did (what’s it like to see your work under nearly every paddler, whether prone or SUP?). Eight-time Moloka‘i to O‘ahu champion Kanesa Duncan Saraphin did. The contingent from the Monterey side of the Monterey Bay included Mike McDaniel, Mike Roberts, Paul Wetterau, Sam Trimboli, Andrew Spinardi, Les Waddel, and yours truly.

And a south swell showed up, too. Capitola was going off as it rarely does, and the locals were all over it. Clearly, we paddleboarders had the wrong equipment for the conditions! And a few paid the price at the finish line, me among them.

I was glad just to be there. I fractured my left arm in April (technically, a radial head fracture) and missed a lot of training. There had been another casualty last year: the fin box on my brand-new Bark CT fourteen. This was my first race on that board.

The prerace ceremony featured Kim Moriarity and Frosty. Their message was simple and uplifting. Jay’s simple approach to life was to tap into all that’s positive in a rather intense way.

Santa Cruz’s Craig Waltz and LA’s Anthony Vela were locked in a battle, as they were last year. But this year, Craig came out on top and not by a small margin. Chalk one up for SC!

That paddle went well, and it was fun. We had glass on the way out and the wind came up on queue for the downhill part. There were a few fun exchanges with the other paddlers – especially Joe Bark.

That south swell gave me something to think about at the end. I must attract it. I got rinsed, and used the whitewash from the next wave to get in. I waved off the lifeguards, started my run to the finish and … who’s there, but Mike Roberts. Just like last year. The only reason that happened is he was on a stock board – by all rights, he should have been way out in front of me. So for the second year in a row, we crossed the finish line together, laughing our brains out.

We hung out for the day in Capitola, and then made our way to the awards party at Santa Cruz Harbor’s Crow’s nest. An outdoor fest on the sand was the perfect ending to the day.

Here's my rating for this race: IT'S A TEN!