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At 25, Barry Lewin is one of the younger surf ski paddlers on the circuit. He's had a pretty good season - 4th in San Francisco; 9th in Dubai; 8th in Perth; and 3rd in Plett behind Dawid Mocke and Hank McGregor. It's a fair bet then that he'll be in the top ten at Molokai - and he's hungry for more.
 Barry at the Dubai Shamaal 2007 (Pic: Wouter Kingma)
We caught up with him on the eve of his departure for Hawaii.
Age, Height, Weight?
25; 6'2"; 85kg
How long have you been paddling? And how did you get into it? What other sports do you do?
7 years! I started paddling in a K1 and started surfski when I left school. I race surfski, some canoe races and lifesaving competitively. I surf and mountain bike as a jol with my mates.
Do you paddle only on the sea, or do you do rivers as well?
The sea is my real passion but still do just a couple of canoe races every year. The surfski makes you really strong and good in moving water so it's not hard to hard to cross back now and again.
You're about to head off to take part in the "Holy Grail" of Surfski paddling. Most of the other Saffa guys have been at least once before even if last year's race had atypical hot and flat conditions. How do you approach an entirely new experience like this?
Molokai has been a dream for a long time but due to my studies at Varsity College I have never been able to make the trip as it clashes with exams. It's also an expensive trip from RSA so it was always the one trip that got left out. I will be one of the first comers to Molokai but with the GPS systems like my Garmin 305 it makes it a little easier. I will just have to draw on the experience gained in other international races I have gone to and trust my training. I believe you just have to back yourself 100%.
I know your Dad, Mark, has been to Molokai a couple of times - has he been handing down some advice?!
My dad went in 1987 and came 4th and then went again in 93 (not sure where he ended up). He has been great to chat to about what to expect. We paddle very differently and have different thoughts on training but picking his brain has been fun. He has been helping me with some of my long sessions, either driving down the coast or coming with us in a double with one of his mates. He is still paddling really well for a ballie of 52 and is pretty much a freak of nature.
Have you been paddling with some of the other Durban guys who are going? How has their training gone?
Training has gone great. I had a long layoff over Dec and Jan. My training started fat and unfit chasing Ian Grey around Durban for a couple weeks before he left. Since then I have been doing my own thing, not many of the locals want to do sessions as long as you need to do for Molokai. Done a couple lekker paddles with Steve Woods and Hank. I am happy with my form and my Garmin is telling me great things the last week or so. I have some stories of my training on my website www.barrylewin.co.za .
What does your training week look like? Do you follow a three week on, one week off regime?
- Monday is an easy day with a swim session and a Pilates Class
- Tuesday - AM - I coach at the Varsity College Surfskischool and do a 1h technique session after and then Gym(1h). PM - Paddle K1 in the harbour, 30min from Wilson's Warf to Stella, do the 8am time trail and then paddle 30min back to Wilson's.
- Wednesday - AM - Paddle intervals. PM Coaching + swim session in evening.
- Thursday - AM - Run and Gym. PM Paddle intervals or time trail
- Fri - AM - Bike 1h easy. PM paddle intervals
- Sat - Coaching 4 classes of an hour each, tough
- Sunday - Paddle, long!
If the wind is blowing all other training gets dropped and I try get in at least 1 downwind a week depending on the weather. We haven't had a lot of wind around so been hard to train, just made those out there even tougher.
 Winning the doubles race with Lewis Laughlin - US Champs 2007
Who do you rate as the major competition this year?
This year has probably the best depth ever with tons of Saffa's coming out, the Ausi's making a charge with some younger guys (great to see). There are so many to choose from. The people I will be watch will be Hank, Dawid and Herman
How much juice do you take for the race? What do you use?
3 x 750ml , each with different mixes.
- 1 x USN cyto power and carbo fuel orange
- 2 x Same in Lime flavour
- 3 x Coke and water
Total 2,25L
I mix it up to make it easier to drink, coke saved for last as it goes down the easiest. I add in 3 USN Vooma Gels, 1 every hour or so
What do you eat the night before the race - and for breakfast on the day?
Not really to fussed, try pack in a piece of steak and dome pasta.
What ski do you paddle?
Icon Light
 Paddling the Icon Lite - 2007
How do you handle the fact that your dad is a ski manufacturer - do you feel obliged to use his products?
I am one of the luckiest dood's when it comes to boats. In the R&D phase I get to test the new models and give some input. I get to play in his workshop and set up my boats just the way I want them. I paddle very boat on the market to see what else is out there and am still confident in the boat I am racing. If I found something faster or something the suited me better I would think about changing. It hasn't happened yet.
What paddle do you use? What length?
Custom Kayaks Edge. 212-213 in the sea
Do you change the length of the paddle shaft according to conditions?
I use a 212 and only if it is dead flat I move up to a 213.
What are your best/favourite conditions?
You will never find 2 days in the ocean where conditions are the same; the more adaptable you are the better you will do. I love downwind but can handle most conditions. Always read for anything.
What's your goal at Molokai - are you hoping to emulate Lighty? (Clint "Lighty" Pretorius won the race on debut in 2006.)
I think that the field this year will be a bit stiffer so doing what Lighty did would be awesome. There is more at stake now so people are willing to sacrifice more to get to the top. I would love to get there one day and hope that might be this year. I haven't ever been out the top 10 in an international ski race so I don't expect anything less than top 10.
Ian Gray and Steve Woods are following the World Series - how many of the races are you going to do?
As many as I can! I would love to live the dream on tour to all the events in the future. Let's hope it becomes a reality one day. For now I am going to try get to the Caribbean and the USA again, Hong Kong and Dubai. If I win some cash maybe more. If a race puts up enough prize money, I will come!
Is it possible to make a living out of surfski paddling right now?
Yes if you do well enough. It's getting there: Dubai has really pushed the races by setting such a great example. There are still very few winning enough money to cover the cost of travelling. The Sponsors are coming through. I am one of the lucky ones who have sponsors with Jeep Apparel, Varsity College and Garmin helping me get to some of the races. If you combine sponsors and prize money you can definitely make it happen.
 Barry gets airborne going upwind - Dubai Shamaal 2007 (Pic: Wouter Kingma)
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