Situated in the renowned Orange County region of Southern California (SoCal), San Clemente is something of a best kept secret among the Californian surfing population. Located just south along the coastline from the often thronged and universally famous Laguna Beach, as well as rival surf spot Dana Point, San Clemente has the merit of being a little bit more of a low-key and less developed coastal conurbation. It doesn’t boast the buzzing nightlife of its coastal pairs, and though it lays claim to a decently sized local population, it is very much a more residential area than some of its livelier fellow seaside destinations.
That doesn’t make it any less rich in waves and challenging swells however. Quite the contrary. Indeed, San Clemente’s geographic positioning means that it is privy to both impressive northwesterly swells in the winter months and summertime southerly ones. These consistent year-round conditions, and the fact that the coastline is dotted with ideal surf spots such as San Onofre (aka “Sano”), San Clemente Pier, Riviera Beach, Threstles or Cotton’s Point, to name but a few, mean that surfers flock here in great numbers when the surf is up, and in recent times, SUP riders have begun to gravitate en masse to San Clemente as well. Indeed, the SUP culture here is thriving, with multiple manufacturers and purveyors of SUP boards and accessories taking up residence in the town. San Clemente is also a hive of activity for SUP meetups and local (along with not-so-local) enthusiasts. Hobie SUP, Brawner Boards and Brusurf are just a couple of local names that specialize in board sport accessories of all kinds, while other establishments, such as Riviera Paddle Surf and the aptly named Stand Up Paddle Board Rentals Company, more specifically focus on appealing to SUP riders in particular (though they cater to all tastes to some degree as well).
San Clemente is now teeming with SUP industry names and youth paddlers, and SUP superstar Candice Appleby even originates from the area. Having won countless national and international titles, and beyond her impressive surfing credentials, Appleby is undoubtedly one of the foremost female SUP racers of her generation. And though SUP brand par excellence Infinity SUP is headquartered in nearby Dana Point, master craftsman Steve Boehne, along with his two sons, Daniel and Dave Boehne (themselves shapers and designers), actually reside in San Clemente too.
The town is also home to numerous SUP events, which take place there throughout the year. Perhaps the most noteworthy of these is the San Clemente Ocean Festival, which emcompasses all manner of beach-based activities, from sand sculpting and concerts to art exhibits and kids’ fishing derbies. The jewel in the crown regarding the athletic component of the festival however remains the SUP Surf Championships, which are open to all. Â
Riccardo Rossi has been in the Infinity Speedfreak squad since he was racing as a junior SUP racer in Italy. As he prepares for the ICF World Championships in Thailand he took some time out of his schedule to talk to Chris at TotalSUP Hi Riccardo, welcome back to TotalSUP, it’s been a while. For […]
Dana Point Harbor, in Southern California will once again be at the heart of the action as the highly anticipated 5th Annual Infinity SUP Dana Point Harbor Hoot returns on October 14th, 2023. This landmark event created by SUP Race pioneer and now international race director Anthony Vela is set to be bigger and better […]
“We felt like rock stars” said about the event Andrey Kraytor who shredded the Sprint final to pieces and walked away with Gold. Agios Nikolaos On SUP 2023, ICF SUP World Cup and National Panhellenic SUP Championship, brought together elite national athletes and some of the world’s top riders and delivered on the promise: “This July […]
Juliette DuHaime is one of the Infinity SpeedFreaks, the Elite SUP race team from Infinity and she is frequently found at the business end of competitions around the world. TotalSUP last caught up with Juliette at the end of 2022 and we were super happy to get some more time with this speedy water woman. […]
We’re only a couple of days away from the Agios Nikolaos On SUP 2023 kick off on the 7-9 July! With elite athletes from across the world confirming their attendance each day and an amazing roster of Junior paddlers, this ICF SUP World Cup and National Panhellenic SUP Championship event, is set to serve as a stage […]
Do you remember how you were using your SUP ten years ago? This was a little before SUP hit the mainstream, SUP surfers were still riding big boards and this relatively new sport was finding its way. And then Dave Boehne and the crew at what was the Infinity Paddlesurf Co released SUP Pirates, issued on […]
This season the Infinity SUP SpeedFreak squad was boosted with the signing of Brazilian SUP racer Lena Ribeiro. Lena may not be a familiar name for some but she has been competing at the top level for a long time with a very impressive set of results including a top 10 finish in the 2015 […]
The E-Ticket, a Performance Touring Board from Infinity SUP Touring boards are probably the most useful boards available, they are designed to be efficient, stable and robust, to work in all conditions and to carry loads over big distances. Yet they are often overshadowed by their sexier, race-board siblings. The E-Ticket from Infinity Surfboards is […]
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