Of all the paddlers lining up for the second edition of the 2019 Vaikobi King and Queen of the Harbour race on Saturday (Nov 30) none boast quite the same outstanding race record as Rachel Clarke.<\/p>\n
The winner of the past seven editions of a race regarded as New Zealand\u2019s premier surfski event, and which this year doubles as the ICF Oceania Championships, the Aucklander has proved invincible since winning on her debut in 2013.<\/p>\n
Since then she has owned the event, proving the indisputable queen of a race, which takes on a range of different race routes in the Waitemata Harbour dependent on the weather conditions.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy first King and Queen of the Harbour seems so long ago,\u201d recalls Rachel, who is currently preparing for the prestigious The Doctor race in Perth this weekend.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was my first national ocean ski race. I had done a few other races of that sort of distance, so I knew what I was in for. If I can recall, it was reasonably flat and a wash riding festival.\u201d<\/p>\n
Rachel has also achieved sustained success on the international surfski circuit. She is a two-time winner of the prestigious 52km Molokai Crossing, the 2017 World Series champion and in 2015 scooped a bronze medal at the ICF Ocean Racing World Championships in Taihiti.<\/p>\n
Yet for domestic paddlers, she is perhaps best known for her dominance of the Queen of the Harbour race \u2013 and it is a race which means so much to the 29-year-old surfski specialist.<\/p>\n
\u201cBecause the race is in my hometown, and I\u2019m racing on the same water that I train on every day, it is pretty special,\u201d she says. \u201cMy favourite memory was four years ago when we went from Gulf Harbour to Royal Akaranga Yacht Club. The downwind conditions were awesome and a lot of fun.\u201d<\/p>\n
Working anywhere from 40 to 60 hours per week for the police National Protection Service – in which her role is to shield leading New Zealand dignitaries such as the Prime Minister and the Governor General – is unquestionably demanding. And squeezing in an additional 14 hours of training per week can be \u201chectic.\u201d<\/p>\n
Chatting weekly to her coach, Gavin Elmiger, to work out a training plan, she more often than not carries out the necessary training while allowing time for her body and mind to recover.<\/p>\n
Yet time in the surfski is not always possible. A recent month-long training course in Wellington \u2013 after returning home from placing eighth in September\u2019s ICF Ocean Racing World Championships in France \u2013 badly compromised her time in the boat.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe training course was full on and I struggled to fit in any paddling (during the month in Wellington),\u201d she explains. \u201cI managed to get in some runs and a couple of gym sessions late at night but that\u2019s pretty much it. Post the work course, I\u2019ve had about four weeks solid training, so I guess we\u2019ll see how we pull up (in Auckland).\u201d<\/p>\n
Understandably, given her lack of training, Rachel was short of her best at the Hong Kong Dragon Run earlier this month, placing fourth behind her fellow Kiwis Danielle McKenzie and Teneale Hatton who finished first and third, repeating their finishing positions from September\u2019s ICF Ocean Racing World Championships<\/p>\n
New Zealand \u2013 thanks to the exploits of Danielle, Teneale and Rachel – currently boast an embarrassment of riches in women\u2019s surfski paddling, but does Rachel have any theories why it is currently thriving?<\/p>\n
\u201cI think we all started out paddling in the lifesaving environment and grew up racing nationally and international against each other,\u201d she says. \u201cIt\u2019s so great to have three Kiwis racing at a high level and it would be great to see more.\u201d<\/p>\n
One of those Kiwis \u2013 Teneale Hatton, a former world sprint champion and Olympian \u2013 will be standing in opposition in Auckland later this month.<\/p>\n
However, Rachel has proved both the irresistible force and immovable object for the previous seven editions of the race and is no mood to relinquish her crown without a fight.<\/p>\n
\u201cTo win an eighth title would be the icing on the cake,\u201d she explains. \u201cI just want to make sure I execute a good race and concentrate on making as few mistakes as I can during the race.\u201d<\/p>\n
Article by Steve Landells<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The winner of the past seven editions of a race regarded as New Zealand\u2019s premier surfski event, and which this year doubles as the ICF Oceania Championships, the Aucklander has proved invincible since winning on her debut in 2013.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2894,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n