Pic: John O'Sullivan
Booth 3rd in testing ‘Doctor Challenge’
On Saturday 25th November, a competitive field put their boards on the start line to compete in a challenging 27km race from Rottnest Island, Western Australia to Sorrento Beach.
Michael Booth placed 3rd in the ‘Doctor’, competing on the unlimited SUP for the first time and finishing the race in just under two hours, battling it out with James Casey and Jake Jensen.
Booth said the angry ocean and challenging conditions set the mood for the race early on.
“It was a hard and demanding battle from start to finish, James and Jake got away from me in the final few kilometres. I just wasn’t fast enough to maintain their pace towards the end”.
The strong winds produced this year were said to be some of the best downwind racing conditions the course had seen to date.
“The conditions were amazing. I’m happy with how I raced overall, but there’s always room for improvement” said Booth.
Despite a nerve-racking 48hours prior to the race, where Booth had problems with his steering system, his results on the day proved otherwise.
“I almost didn’t make it to the start line. It definitely wasn’t the ideal lead up to a race,” said Booth.
Continuing to sharpen his skills and technique, Michael said this year has definitely been a big learning season for him.
“I feel I am continually improving my skills in downwinding and seeing big improvements which is really satisfying”.
Michael said although the field of competitors this year was small, the competition was highly competitive.
“I left everything out in the water. I raced my best and feel I am always improving which is exciting and exactly what I hope to continue to do”.
Booth will compete on Thursday in the Triple S Sunset Series before preparing himself for next weekend’s King of the Cut.
“The end of the year is always challenging both physically and mentally, hopefully I’m able to wrap up the season with some great results”.
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