By Chad Klassen

Local stand-up paddler set to compete in first pro race since 2011

Aug 31, 2017 | 2:01 PM

KAMLOOPS — On a calm, placid Heffley Lake, Bodie Shandro is training for his next challenge, paddling blindfolded at one moment and paddling on one leg the next. 

The 53-year-old is preparing to compete in his first professional stand-up paddle race since 2011. That was in Hawaii. In September, he’ll be down in California at the start line of the 2017 Pacific Paddle Games. 

“It’s the biggest purse. It’s kind of the Super Bowl of stand-up paddle boarding,” said Shandro. “So there’s $60,000 in prize money out there, and definitely it’s your top eight men, top five females that are taking home the purse. But I’m not doing it for chasing money, not at 53 years old. I’m just going out there to have fun, get back in the mix, and see where I line up against all these young guys.”

Shandro has spent the last six years building up his Paddle Surfit business at Heffley Lake. But now he’s at the point where he has the time and the desire to prove to himself and others that he can still do it. 

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“My last professional race was six years ago. It was at the world championships back in 2011, the Molokai 2 Oahu. I think it’s just about proving to yourself constantly at any age that you can be up for the challenge,” Shandro noted.

He knows he’s at a disadvantage. Not only his age, going up against 18 year olds, but also where he’s located. Heffley Lake doesn’t compare to the surf he’ll be experiencing down in California. 

“There’s no question. The biggest wave we get here on Heffley Lake is when the trout jump,” Shandro joked. “I do all I can. All that Indo board training, strength training, a lot of stretching, range of motion stuff. A lot of footwork on the board, moving around. I’ll blindfold myself and go out on the board. Try and paddle on one foot, anything that I can do to really work on those balance skills.”

Following the six-year hiatus, Shandro travelled down to Oregon in May to compete in the Columbia Gorge Paddle Challenge. 

“I really didn’t realize how much I missed it until this last, very impromptu race down at the Gorge,” he said. “Getting back in there with all the new young bucks. I was standing there with an 18-year-old Tahitian that took the race. But just watching technique, talking stories. It’s exciting.”

Shandro will be down in Florida next week for a stand-up paddle convention. But he’ll also hit up the Atlantic Ocean down there, hoping to get a better sense of what he’ll be facing in California.