The Ghostryders Watermen Club is a Santa Cruz based surf, paddle, and tailgating club that puts on the Davenport Downwinder every year. A 14 mile paddle down the coast, this race is a favorite among paddlers from all around California and some local surfers in the Santa Cruz area.
This race just feels sharky- and the gray, foggy conditions add to the spook factor. Paddling the Central Coast and up alway makes you feel like there might be some company in the water below you. This, variable conditions, and the grassroots, surfer-led structure of the race make it, in our opinion, one of the most core races around.
The course- if you can see it with the fog- is pretty scenic. Paddlers start at Davenport Landing, try to ignore the waves that they're missing out on, and paddle south. Cliffs, trees, and empty beaches fill the next 13 miles until you reach Steamer Land and the wharf, where the finish is located.
The wind was not in the competitors' favor this year, only turning on for a brief few miles of the race, causing the times to slow down a bit from the year prior. Jack Bark claimed first overall and first stock at 2:33, repeating his 2023 performance. Local Alo Slebir of GRWC came in 2nd stock, followed by 3rd place Davy Thomas. Clint Johnson came in 2nd overall and 1st Unlimited, followed by Patrick Shaughnessy and Liam Murphy. For the Women's division, Emily Bark came in first at 2:55, followed by Cheryl Brightfield for 2nd, and Anneliese Solberg in 3rd. Awesome to see a lineup of five gals after last year's solo female! We're stoked to hit this race next year, with hopefully some better wind.
NAME | DIVISION | PLACE | TIME |
JACK BARK | MENS STOCK | 1st | 2:33:35 |
ALO SLEBIR | MENS STOCK | 2nd | 2:38:40 |
DAVID THOMAS | MENS STOCK | 3rd | 2:39:40 |
CLINT JOHNSON | MENS UNLIMITED | 1st | 2:34:40 |
PATRICK SHAUGHNESSY | MENS UNLIMITED | 2nd | 2:38:40 |
LIAM MURPHY | MENS UNLIMITED | 3rd | 2:48:44 |
EMILY BARK | WOMENS STOCK | 1st | 2:55:07 |
CHERYL BRIGHTFIELD | WOMENS STOCK | 2nd | 3:10:45 |
ANNELIESE SOLBERG | WOMENS STOCK | 3rd | 3:31:29 |
COLE KILCK | MENS '14 | 1st | 2:57:20 |
MIKE DILLOUGHERY | MENS '14 | 2nd | 2:59:59 |
MATTHEW FREDERICKS | MENS '14 | 3rd | 3:04:00 |
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