Connor Baxter wins 5th Maui to Molokai Stand Up Paddle Race

Start of the M2M, and Baxter is already up front!
Five in a row, and Connor shows no signs of giving up any time soon after his super-human run in this weeks Maui to Molokai stand up paddling endurance race.

On a downwind course from Maui to Molokai, the M2M is known for being a little more fun, and less of a grueling paddle compared to the M2O, Molokai to Oahu paddle (which is only two weeks away). One of the reasons paddlers find this paddle more fun, is they were designed for stand up paddling specifically, where as the alternative events like the M2O were started way before SUP was a ‘thing’ for the prone and outrigger craft.

So the M2M is fun, it’s an epic downwind run in conditions us Aussies could only dream of, or only get to sample on that once-a-year SUP holiday. In recent years it was reported that paddlers only needed one paddle every 10 seconds to keep up with the runners, and times for the 43km crossing are well under three hours. But this year, conditions weren’t so good according to Aussie paddler Travis Grant:

“The first half of the race was very tricky but it did get really fun in the second half, when the wind turned on and bumps started rolling. Dave, Kai and myself were all trading back and forth the first 25km while Connor was always slightly in front. It was good racing, very technical. After the conditions turned on in the back half of the race, Connor got a big lead on us before Kai pulled away from Dave, who in turn gapped me. Sounds like Kai made up some ground towards the end but Connor still won by a good couple of minutes. I was probably 10 minutes behind by the end.”

If you didn’t catch the star-studded list of paddling names there, that’s the winner Connor Baxter, Kai Lenny, Dave Kalama and Travis Grant. Four of the biggest names in paddling and all event favorites for the Molokai to Oahu in a few weeks.

You can read Connors report on the race here, and stay tuned for the Molokai to Oahu race in a couple of weeks, where the worlds best endurance paddlers will be pushing their bodies to the limits.