Hong Kong waters never gets too big… until you race Around Po Toi!

WORDS: PIETRO SCOGNAMIGLIO | IMAGES: GILLIAN MEE

OUTRIGGER CONTACT

outrigger@rhkyc.org.hk

2021 saw the “Around Po Toi Race” back into the racing schedule where conditions can be huge and at this time of the year the weather is unpredictable.

The race was held the last Saturday in November under blue skies and fresh temperatures. On the usual wind-tracker application the winds were blowing north east 15kts and gusting 22kts. That’s all we knew standing at Hobie Cat beach near Stanley, home for the Hong Kong Outrigger Canoeing Club paddlers (HKOCC) the organizers for the race and where the racing briefing was held.

The start is just off Hobie Cat beach and a fleet of ten mixed unlimited OC6s from six different Hong Kong paddling clubs lined up ready to race for approximately 21km. The race course journeys around Po Toi Island (south-east of Hong Kong Island, off Stanley) finishing at Hobie Cat Beach where a BBQ lunch was organised by the hosts, HKOCC.

Calm waters welcomed at the start but after only for a few sets of strokes ama side waves were present all the way to the south-west corner of Po Toi Island. The exposure got bigger and bigger going around the island towards Beaufort Channel where waves got as big as an unexpected three meters in size. Po Toi island is famous for its rock formations which make a “washing-machine” effect of waves even easier to occur. Non-ama side and stern swells were prevailing from the end of the channel back to Hobie Cat beach giving a good few kilometers of real surfing fun.

RHKYC brought home some awesome results with three crews racing under the club’s colours.

Team Hokulani (Sarah Wilson, Marti Redaelli, Ryan Lopes, Steph Tovolli, Ryan Cheung, Doug Woodring) crossed the finish line first with a time of 1:43:13, keeping the second team about 15m behind. The course record in standard canoes was only a few minutes away but given the extreme conditions of the day it was an amazing result.

Team Eh Leu (Pietro Scognamiglio, Katrina Leung, Alex Miranda, Nick Crabb, Maud Ducquesne, Melissa Davis) gained a solid fifth place with a time of 2:32:38 whilst Team Maka Koa (Amy De Vera, Tatiana Filippova, Philipp Chou, Yverain Olivares, Justin Wong, Nicky De Lacy), after being dragged off route (they might have been enjoying the surfing too much and decided to keep following the waves) crossed the finish line with at time of 3:05:22 and were eighth in the final ranking. As a first-time racer I am glad I took part as it was extremely challenging (it was the biggest water I have experienced in my two years of paddling) but particularly fun. I was impressed, even more than usual, with the incredible job the steers-people do and their ability to keep the boat upright in those huge waves which from the front of the boat looks at times a bit intimidating to say the least. It must be a mix of skill and art. It is said that in ocean sports weather is everything and I think it’s true as the surfing back was worth the entire challenge.

This race was the last paddle for our women’s captain Stephanie Tovoli who left Hong Kong just a few weeks later. I would like to take this opportunity to thank her personally and on behalf of the RHKYC OC section for all that she did for the club and for the amazing results she conquered throughout the season. She has been a role model for many of us. Stephanie, you will be missed a lot and we wish you all the best in your new adventure.