Spanish athlete Antonio de la Rosa becomes first ever person to cross the Pacific Ocean stand up paddling

Following a solo, unmotorized and unattended paddling expedition that lasted 76 days, 5 hours and 22 minutes, Spanish SUP athlete Antonio de la Rosa reached Hawaii on Saturday August 24th, becoming the first ever person to cross the Pacific Ocean stand up paddling.

After months of preparation, Antonio de la Rosa started on his unique Stand Up Paddle craft from San Francisco at the beginning of June and reached his final destination in Honolulu after paddling more than 2,900 miles

As well as setting a record, Antonio’s other objective was to raise awareness about ocean pollution with a clear message displayed on his boat: “SAVE the OCEAN, NO plastics, NO nets, RECYCLE.”. Hi vessel, name The Ocean Defender, included a sleeping quarter and a storage space. On his way to Hawaii, Antonio, encountered whales on multiple occasions but also numerous floating pieces of plastic trash.

Solo expeditions are Antonio de la Rosa’s specialites. In recent years, he has notably raced across the Atlantic Ocean in a rowing boat, canoed across the Canary Islands and cross-country skied accross Alaska. The 50-year-old Spanish endurance athlete was connected throughout the entire expedition, documenting his journey with enthusiastic daily video posts on Facebook.

However, one of the most precarious moments of Antonio de La Rosa’ expedition occurred in the final night of his voyage as sidewind gusts were pushing him off-course while he was going past the island of Molokai to his destination in Honolulu on the island of Oahu.

To follow Antonio de la Rosa on Facebook and find out more about his adventure, go to :

> www.facebook.com/aventurasdelcali2/