Paul Jackson from ONE joins me in the studio for a look back at the month in SUP. We talk GlaGla, Iron X and upsets in Florida. We’re also joined via phone by James “Jimmy” Casey who just completed a 100km foil challenge for charity.
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No words required. Just watch this drone footage from the GlaGla Race mass start and enjoy the spectacle that was “the gathering” in the French Alps on Saturday (thanks to the drone hero: @yoannaerostudioproduction)
GlaGla! 🥶 Congratulations Sonni Hönscheid, Titouan Puyo and every single one of the record 637 paddlers who completed a memorable bucket list race around Lake Annecy here in the freezing cold but very sunny French Alps today! 🇫🇷🗻🌞 The 2020 GlaGla Race was something truly special with a gigantic start line creating an amazing sight at the beginning of the race and an extraordinary final 500 metres from Titou producing an exciting finish 💥
Titou seemed to be out of contention as his NSP teammate Ty Judson along with Leo Nika and Tom Auner set a scintillating pace with 1km to go, but despite rounding the final 500 metre buoy in sixth place, the New Caledonian somehow found a better line to the finish and snuck into the lead with 100 metres to go. It was such a clever move that we didn’t even realise on the live stream commentary that he’d replaced his teammate at the front. An incredible victory. Great to see darkhorses such as Portugal’s Renato Queiros, Ukraine’s Oleksii Sidenko and French junior Marius Auber all cracking the top 10.
Sonni defended her title in the women’s race with a signature powerhouse performance 💪 The German was ultimately too strong for Fiona Wylde, while French darkhorse Fanny Tessier showed she’ll be one to watch this year. We’re sorry we couldn’t show more of the women’s race on the live stream, something we’ll try hard to fix for next year…
Thank you everyone who watched online in record numbers, and a big “merci beaucoup” to ‘8 Mont Blanc’ TV for producing the show and providing us with epic live drone footage. And thank you to Benoit Mouren and all his team for organising such a special event.
1. Titouan Puyo 🇫🇷🇳🇨 1:24:56
2. Leo Nika 🇮🇹 1:25:01
3. Tom Auber 🇫🇷 1:25:02
4. Ty Judson 🇦🇺 1:25:09
5. Martin Vitry 🇫🇷 1:25:11
6. Normen Weber 🇩🇪 1:25:27
7. Renato Queiros 🇵🇹 1:26:07
8. Ludovic Teulade 🇫🇷 1:26:08
9. Oleksii Sidenko 🇺🇦 1:26:36
10. Marius Auber 🇫🇷 1:26:47
1. Sonni Hönscheid 🇩🇪 1:34:18
2. Fiona Wylde 🇫🇷 1:35:00
3. Fanny Tessier 🇫🇷 1:35:16
4. Olivia Piana 🇫🇷 1:37:30
5. Ella Oesterholt 🇳🇱 1:38:13
6. Siri Schubert 🇨🇭 1:38:41
7. Anna Tschirky 🇨🇭 1:40:36
8. Alex Tyrer 🇬🇧 1:43:02
9. Erica Revil 1:43:26
10. Tanja Ecker 🇩🇪 1:43:41
It can be hard to comprehend until you experience it for yourself, but there’s a freezing-cold lake in the French Alps that’s home to one of the biggest races in the world. The humble-yet-mighty “GlaGla Race” has snowballed over the years into the first big gathering of the season, and this year a record 620 paddlers have signed up for the ice-cold adventure.
The term “glagla” basically means “teeth-chattering cold” in French, and this year isn’t going to disappoint. The temperature will drop to -7°C (19°F) on Saturday evening, though during the race it’ll be a relatively mild +4°C (39°F).
But if you can’t make it to beautiful Lake Annecy, or if you just prefer to retain the feeling in your toes when you paddle, you can sit back and watch the 2020 GlaGla Race from the warm comfort of your own home on Saturday. → READ MORE
The first major race of the season is just over a week away. Join us in the French Alps for the massive “GlaGla Race” — I’ll be dusting off the baguette microphone and live-streaming the big gathering on The Paddle League from 10am on Saturday the 18th January.
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Last month, we traveled to France for one of the biggest races in the world: the epic “GlaGla” race on the very beautiful (and absolutely freezing cold) Lake Annecy. Joining us in the French Alps was Travis Grant, the 3x Molokai champion and all-round legend of the sport (who’s used to the much warmer waters of Hawaii).
We stayed at the NSP house in the mountains where we went snowboarding, ate far too much cheese, and enjoyed an awesome side-trip around an awesome race. In the first of our Paddle Vlogs, here’s how it looked behind the scenes…
Relive the magic of the GlaGla Race with this extended edit from the French Alps.
Thanks to Red Paddle Co. and all the crew from the Alpine Lakes Tour for making this massive event happen (it’s now one of the biggest races in the world). See you all back at Lake Annecy in January 2019!
Tom Auber and Melanie Lafenetre have won the 2018 GlaGla Race, as hundreds of paddlers braved the freezing cold French Alps to produce one of the largest races our sport has ever seen.
Tom claimed victory for the home nation after a frantic finish with Leo Nika — it was a literal photo finish, which is heartbreaking for Leo as it repeats the exact same scenario from 12 months ago. Italian Martino Rogai was just behind in third after pushing hard over the final kilometres, while Molokai hero Travis Grant had to settle for fourth place following a high-paced sprint to the line. The lead quartet stuck together for almost the entire 14km race, with Federico Esposito and Yanis Maire the only ones who could stay within shouting distance.
In the women’s it was all Melanie, with the 17-year-old from St. Maxime opening a commanding lead early and never looking back.
But the real story from this year’s GlaGla adventure was just how many paddlers stood on the start line. With just under 500 paddlers signed up for this crazy, cold water classic, the GlaGla is officially one of the biggest (by one measure it’s the #2 race in the world right now).
Full results from the short distance and long distance over on the official timing site.
You can also watch a full replay of our GlaGla Race Facebook Live stream.
A massive “merci beaucoup” to Benoit and the crew from the Alpine Lakes Tour, as well as title sponsor Red Paddle Co, for helping make this amazing event happen. See you back in the French Alps in January 2019!
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Full replay of the 2018 GlaGla Race, where a record 494 paddlers took part in this freezing but very fun adventure in the French Alps.
Congrats to Tom Auber and Melanie Lafenetre for taking the wins, and well done to everybody that finished (that was COLD).
Thanks to the whole team from the Alpine Lakes Tour and title sponsor Red Paddle Co for making this epic event happen — add the “GlaGla” to your 2019 bucket list!
We’re only 24 hours from the first big race of season 2018: The GlaGla Race in the French Alps. But the “GlaGla” isn’t just the first big race of the year, it’s going to be one of the biggest races of the year, period.
The humble GlaGla has become something of a stand up paddling phenomenon. Held in a quiet corner of France in the freezing cold depths of winter, this amazing race has officially become one of the biggest in the world after a record 494 paddlers signed up for the 2018 adventure.
Measured by the number of stand up paddlers on the same start line, the GlaGla would now rank as the #2 race in the world behind only its compatriot the Paris Crossing. Extraordinary. → READ MORE
And just like that, a cold water race on a quiet lake in the middle of the French Alps has become one of the largest stand up paddle events on the planet.
The 2018 edition of the GlaGla Race is going to be huge. The event has already attracted over 450 paddlers, including Molokai hero Travis Grant, and the contest is still 10 days away. There’s an outside chance it’ll hit 500 participants by race day (January 20th), which would put the GlaGla Race in ultra-rarefied territory that only 3 or 4 other events have ever reached. → READ MORE
We’re just under two weeks away from the first big race of the seasons, the GlaGla Race in the freezing cold French Alps, and what a showdown it’s shaping up to be. Over 430 paddlers have signed up to brave the chilly waters of Lake Annecy on January 20th, and SUP Racer will be there with special guest Travis Grant to live stream the whole show on Facebook.
The GlaGla Race is also the first “points race” of season 2018, something you’ll be hearing a lot more about next week. But until then, enjoy this awesome aerial look back at last year’s event (and head over to glaglarace.com if you want to register and join the adventure).
2018 is only hours old, but we’re already gearing up for the first big race of the season. And by big, I mean BIG.
One of my funnest adventures of 2017 was a last-minute trip to the French Alps to experience a truly unique stand up paddling event: The GlaGla Race. Held on the near-freezing waters of beautiful Lake Annecy and surrounded by tall, snow-capped peaks, the GlaGla Race is part-race/part-adventure, and this year it’s expected to attract more than 400 brave competitors to this chilly corner of France. → READ MORE
