Mandurah Duel this weekend - Who will win!

Who will win? The Ocean or Estuary?
It's on this weekend, will this year be the year of the estuary? The Mandurah Duel is all about who’s faster, the ocean, or the estuary!

Last year it was the ocean paddlers who won, granted it may have been due to Travis Grant’s insane skills, but it’s a win for the ocean side none-the-less. This year the race is on again, and with the current forecast it looks like the paddlers will be smoking down the ocean side yet again.

The whole concept of the race is a simple one, paddlers start at two points, some in the river, some out in the ocean - and finish up at a point further south, or north, depending on whether it's windy or not. Some say the ocean paddlers have an advantage, with the ever-reliable Perth sea breeze kicking in and helping to blow the paddlers north up the coastline. Others say that the calmer waters of the estuary are an advantage, because paddlers could get a rhythm up and continue paddling at the same pace the whole way through. It’s always been the ocean paddlers who win, normally the guys paddling OC1’s can finish the course in just over an hour. Could this be the year they crack the one hour mark?

This year, there is also a (FREE for SUPWA) Battle of the Paddle style event on the Sunday, right outside the main event. The tech race was one of the highlights of last year, with strong onshore winds meaning lot of spills for the spectators to enjoy. This year it’s almost as anticipated as the long distance event! Entrants are supposed to be very strong already, with one day left to register before the event (no on-site registrations) We’re looking forward to hearing who won, how fast they did it and of course, were they in the Ocean, or the Estuary?

Check back next week for results, pics and reports from the paddlers.