Starboard’s Linus Karlsson back on the SUP racing circuit with ultra endurance win: 200 km in 41 hours

Photo courtesy of Linus Karlsson

We just caught up with Linus Karlsson at Planet Baltic SUP Race in Poland (7-9 August), 11-time Swedish National SUP Champion and Starboard Team Rider, who recently returned to the race circuit while balancing a busy professional life. That meant less racing this season, and Linus was refreshingly open about the challenges of limited training time on the water.

Linus at Planet Baltic SUP Race 2025 | Photo by: Piotr Roszak

Fast forward (only a week later!), and he’s proven what grit looks like – smashing Sweden’s Backwater Ultra, one of Europe’s most unique endurance paddle events. Linus paddled for an incredible 41 hours, covering 200.9 kilometers in the process.

At the Backwater Ultra, racers paddle laps of 4.9 km (SUP and certain canoes) or 6.5 km (kayaks, surfskis, and sit-down craft). Each lap must be finished within the hour, with a new one starting on the hour. The format continues until paddlers can no longer keep pace – or choose to step off the water – making it as much a mental battle as a physical one.
The key milestone is the “medal lap”: eight laps, or about eight hours of racing. Completing it not only earns the event’s special medal but also bragging rights as a true ultra paddler.

Hi Linus, welcome back to TotalSUP and massive congrats! Military duties have kept you away from full-time training this year. How did you manage to stay motivated and keep your fitness up despite limited paddling time?

The military itself isn’t too bad actually, we been walking and running a lot and besides that have I put in a lot of hours in the gym. So keeping fit haven’t been too hard actually! But paddle wise, I’m still lacking a lot.

Coming back to racing at Planet Baltic and now winning the Backwater Ultra – what does this comeback mean to you personally?

In Poland, my only goal was to just participate and gain back some racing momentum that I feel I’ve lost. So despite my results I’m happy about that weekend.

As for the Backwater Ultra, I went in with a lot of confidence knowing that this is what I’m best at! Going for hours without really knowing how far it will take me, has been my strength throughout the last year. Going into that event, winning was the only goal on my mind.

Linus at Planet Baltic SUP Race 2025 | Photo by: Robert Hajduk x Szymon Sikora

What was your gear set up for this endurance race?

I used my Starboard Sprint 14×19,75 and Starboard Lima paddle, size M.

The Backwater Ultra has such a unique format – hourly starts and no fixed distance. How did you approach pacing and strategy?

I didn’t pay attention to my heart rate at all, I just focused on finding a good flow in the first couple of laps that I felt I could keep steady.

For a race like this you can either go a bit harder to get more rest or super slow just to save as much energy as possible. I decided to go a bit harder and try to lay down relaxing around 10 min in between each lap.

Photos courtesy of Linus Karlsson

What was the toughest moment during the race, and how did you push through it mentally and physically?

The dark laps between 23:00 and 04:00 are always the hardest and the most crucial part. I didn’t reach the point where I had to dig deep mentally or physically to keep going but waking up after 8-10 min of sleep to get back out paddling is never nice;)

Endurance events are as much mental as they are physical. What mindset carried you through to the win?

My mindset was to test myself how far I could go and rely on what I know I’m capable of. To make it easier I looked at it as day-night-day-night instead of focusing on the finish.

Photo courtesy of Linus Karlsson

With momentum building after Planet Baltic and Backwater Ultra, what’s next for you on the SUP circuit and your plans for 2026?

Actually I don’t have a plan, I’m back at work now and focusing on that in the first place. The races I have in mind for this year are the European League in Portugal and Last Man Standing in Florida.

I’m waiting to see what best fits my schedule. Regarding next year will I keep on training to get back into race shape and be back racing. But probably focusing more at long distance because that’s where I can improve the most during work.

Thank you for your time Linus – We can’t wait to cross SUP paths with you again!

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