Southland Sport
Australian newcomer to The Ultimate Waterman, Jackson Maynard (Currumbin), has triumphed in his first outing at the event smashing his opponents in the Prone Paddleboard discipline today (Saturday 1st April).
The Prone Paddleboard is the first of eight disciplines being contested over the next nine days and was held at Colac Bay in Southland, New Zealand.
Under grey skies, the eight athletes had to battle solid 1.0m – 1.5m waves as they completed four laps of the 1.5km course.
The 24 year old put five minutes between him and his nearest opponent, Hawaiian Zane Schweitzer, finishing in a time of 34:10 minutes.
Maynard has a strong background in surf lifesaving, competing in the prestigious Nutri Grain Ironman Series held in Australia and his experience showed today as he stretched out to a big lead by the time he rounded the first can.
“It was good to get the first one out of the way and get the win” an exhausted Maynard said post-race.
“I am lucky to win my double whammy discipline. Now I can have fun with the surfing events and see how I go at the end of the week, I guess there is a bit of pressure off now” Maynard added.
Coming from the warm waters of Australia, Maynard was challenged by the cooler New Zealand temperatures.
“There were fun little waves, but if you didn’t have the luck of getting a wave around the last can, you had to paddle the whole way in. The water was cold but for the first two laps I was hot, then the water got to me on the last two laps and my legs started to go a little numb.”
Maynard finished the day with 2000 points, and a healthy lead over his opponents. He believes that he will also be competitive in the OC1 (Waka Ama) scheduled for the final day of the event, a discipline that he grew up doing with his Dad, a legend of the sport in Australia.
2016 overall event champion and winner of the Prone Paddleboard in 2016, Zane Schweitzer finished in second place today after battling for all four laps with fellow Maui athlete Connor Baxter. The two fierce competitors went neck-and-neck before Schweitzer snuck on to a wave leaving Baxter 50m behind on the third lap, a handicap he couldn’t overcome, and he ultimately finished in third.
Brazilian Caio Vaz finished the race in fourth place ahead of American Chuck Glynn in fifth, Manoa Drollet (TAH) in sixth, Daniel Kereopa (NZL) in seventh and Coco Nogales (MEX) in eighth.
Please see below for official times and points from the Prone Paddleboard discipline held at Colac Bay, Southland on the 1st April 017.
1. Jackson Maynard (AUS), 34:10 – 2000 pts
2. Zane Schweitzer (HAW, 39:07 – 860 pts
3. Connor Baxter (HAW, 40:26 – 730 pts
4. Caio Vaz (BRA, 40:41 – 670 pts
5. Chuck Glynn (USA, 41:00 – 583 pts
6. Manoa Drollet (TAH, 41:45 – 555 pts
7. Daniel Kereopa (NZL), 41.59 – 528 pts
8. Coco Nogales (MEX, 54:07 – 475 pts
Prior to the race, all athletes chose their double whammy disciplines, their preferred discipline for which they receive double points:
Jackson Maynard – Prone Paddleboard
Zane Schweitzer – Longboard
Daniel Kereopa – Longboard
Manoa Drollet – Big Wave/Shortboard
Caio Vaz – SUP Surfing
Connor Baxter – SUP Endurance
Chuck Glynn – SUP Endurance
Coco Nogales – Underwater Strength Run and Swim
The large storm that is tracking under Australia and heading to New Zealand is expected to bring large swells to the Southland region over the next three days. This will bring the coastline alive with options for the surfing disciplines to be completed starting before dawn on Sunday morning.
The Ultimate Waterman will again see the athletes compete in eight disciplines over nine days, chasing the best surf and conditions around the region. The events are; big wave paddle in surfing, waka ama, longboard, shortboard, stand-up paddle, SUP endurance, underwater strength run and swim, and prone Paddleboarding.
Red Bull Media House will film the event for redbull.tv, taking The Ultimate Waterman and Southland’s stunning scenery to its huge global audience.