The Weymouth Ecover Blue Mile, held at the 2012 Olympic water sports venue, proved a resounding success with an amazing 467 people taking part in the Naish N1SCO One design SUP races and free taster sessions.

Naish UK put up £1,000 in prize money for a series of races, in which all riders used the Naish ONE 12‘6” N1SCO Inflatable board. The event included an intermediate race (400m), sprint races (100m), and a 1,500m course – the Ecover Blue Mile.

Although Naish pro wave rider Jan Sleigh competed, this was really a weekend for members of the public to join in.

Overall winner for the Naish SUP race series on both Saturday and Sunday was Stuart Appleby, while the first woman was Claire Cumming. Winners of the male and female U-18 series were 16-year-old Tom Wells and 14-year-old Lily Young.

Watch a recap of the event here: http://vimeo.com/71723598

Alex Tobutt, a representative of Naish UK, said the weekend had introduced SUP to brand new enthusiasts: a “The really nice thing was that the SUP racing wasn’t elitist; anyone could take part. “We had people of all ages and experience and some people had never done it before – and all of them were able to do it.  Another great thing was that although everyone was competing, they were also helping each other and supporting each other. “A lot of people talked about getting involved and asked about other events. “The other nice part about the event was that we had a lot of spectators watching and cheering and some had never seen SUP before. “Weymouth was a perfect venue; its sheltered and safe which makes it accessible. To get nearly 500 people through taster sessions in a controlled environment is unheard of to be honest, so that was brilliant.”

The next Ecover Blue Mile, featuring another Naish N1SCO Race & the ONE 12’6” Inflatable boards, will be in Plymouth on September 14-15^th.  For more info, visit www.thebluemile.org.