Wilmington woman keeps title in Surf-to-Sound paddleboard competition
WRIGHTSVILLE BEACH, NC — Only 6-seconds at the finish line separated Canadians Larry Cain and Tamás Buday Jr. in their exciting rematch at North Carolina’s 2016 Surf to Sound Challenge.
Cain, an Olympic Gold Medalist and inductee into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame, regained the men’s championship from fellow Olympian Buday, posting a time of 1-hour 12-minutes 35-seconds in the 6.5-mile ocean to sound elite paddleboard competition.
Cain has captured the Surf to Sound Championship four times with Buday winning twice.
April Zilg of Wilmington ranked 10th in the world on SUP Racer’s list of Top 50 Women, effortlessly defended her women’s elite championship with a 14-minute lead over second-place finisher Stephanie Shideler of Long Beach, NY. Julieta Gismondi, from Yonkers, NY, stepped up to elite status from 2015’s Harbor Island Loop and captured third-place in the elite Surf to Sound Challenge.
Choppy water with winds 10-20 mph tested paddling skills and stamina on Saturday, calming down considerably for Sunday’s races with variable winds mostly five mph. All races and activities were based at host hotel Blockade Runner Beach Resort.
