Roberto Ricci Designs (RRD) rider Susak Molinero had a strong 2018 season finishing in the top 20 of the SUP racer rankings and 12th in the APP World Tour, despite a mid season injury. The Iberian paddler started the 2019 strong by recording her first victory on the Eurotour in Gran Canaria. Susak talks to TotalSUP about RRD, her paddling and her future ambitions.
Hi Susak, Can you talk about last season? How did it go?
I had a really good time last season. I raced in local races, international races and the ISA worlds. Racing in the ISAs is always a big one, there is often a lot of emotions flowing in this event, you really feel the adrenaline in your veins when you race at the ISAs!! But being there really focuses you on the need to improve! Last season I had the opportunity to visit some amazing places and I met all my SUP friends, old and new. I did this all with my partner and team mate Paolo Marconi! I also enjoyed racing on the APP tour in Paris, this was a cool experience too, I really loved the sprints. However last season was that easy, I had a rib fissure injury in the middle of the 2018 Eurotour, so I had to stop racing, then restart slowly with the help of rehab.
I started the season with the La Misteriosa race in Gran Canaria, it was amazing. Organized really well by Lucy and Stano from La Misteriosa club. We were able to enjoy different ocean conditions. With each lap the conditions were different due to the local thermo wind. During the race we had different aspects of the wind to paddle into, sometimes it was downwind, side and also upwind. The course also had some fun buoy turns set right in front of the beach. We had a lot of fun with the sprints and cheering the kids on in the racing!
We were there for 2 weeks before and had a good 2 weeks of training before the race, with perfect downwinds and some real epic days of paddling in the ocean. We trained with the SUP team from Gran Canaria (Misteriosa team) and we really enjoyed it. We are actually thinking about spending more time there over next winter, so we can train, improve and feel more confident with the ocean vibes!!
Can you talk about the SUP board that you use?
I paddle a Razzle Dazzle Version #1 14 ft. It is slightly modified. RRD has 14ft x 23″, 14ft x 24″ and 14ft x 25″ race boards. Right now now we are waiting for the new SUP board for the season (Razzle Dazzle Version 2). However, my board performed really well in Gran Canaria, although it is not a DW specific board it felt really good when catching the bump. For the buoy turns the basin design of the board is not a problem. Every board is different, there are a lot of designs out there, and for sure you have to know your board, more you ride it more you control it!
Since joining the RRD team I fell in love with the Razzle Dazzle design, I love the zebra design, it’s so different from other boards. RRD is great brand, Ricci started with windsurfing, but now that he has started with SUP we can enjoy all the water sports from surfing to foiling.
The Eurotour takes part in varied conditions, flat water, up wind, downwind, and chop. How does your board deal with all these conditions?
The Razzle Dazzle works in every condition. But it is not just the board that makes you perform well, training has a lot to do with it. The training that every rider does really does matter. Paolo and I chose to train in windy conditions and choppy water so we can developed great stability and agility. Personally I prefer to have only one board for racing, that can work in all conditions, because conditions can change in a split second!
Whats the goal for the 2019 Season?
This year I’m looking forward to racing after a hard winter, it’s gonna be a long season again, I want to do my best and enjoy every single stroke!
For more information on the RRD collection follow this link!
