Welcome to the 27th Annual Santa Cruz PaddleFest (SCPF), the most renowned paddle surfing event on the globe. It is plotted for the weekend of the 22nd through the 24th of March, 2013, with pomp and circumstance that only a surf town as famed as Santa Cruz can muster. This SCPF has one of the best venues you can imagine; perched in a park on the cliffs virtually on top of a world class surfing break, Steamer Lane . Every facet of the event, judging, media center, spectator/food pavilion, information center, and manufacturers displays, are staged on the cliffs next to the break. We have strived to envelope the spectator with the best paddle surfing in the world with comforts, excitement of the moment, and knowledge of the essence of the sport. We grease the action with interviews with international competitors and town parties where everyone can share in the action.
We have enacted several facets to make the 27th event even better. The 2013 SCPF will be the final event of a group of west coast contests called the Pacific Paddle Surfing Series (PPSS). We will crown the west coast champion at the completion of the SCPF. With the added excitement created by this series we have revamped the Santa Cruz event into two contests; the Elite Steamer Lane and the Cowell’s Classic. Our objective of the Cowell’s Classic is to have a two day contest in a milder break to help the novice and intermediate paddler get into the fun of paddle surfing. We have structured the event with water ambassadors and jet skis to make their experience enjoyable. The SCPF Elite Steamer Lane event, running concurrent with the Cowell’s Classic, will also be the final event to choose the paddle surfing athletes to represent the US West in the Australian world championships in July of this year. There should be plenty of stoke for this happening.