‘Water always wins’: Keys paddleboarder will brave a 25-mile course in New York
Trish Miller, one of the Florida Keys’ elite paddleboard competitors, knows one thing when it comes to fighting the elements on her board.
“Water always wins,” she said.
Wind, waves and temperature always factor into how she maneuvers rivers and the ocean during marathon competitions.
“I’ve got to stay present and really deal with every little condition,” Miller said. “It changes so much. If you’re not having a really successful time, 10 minutes from now it’s going to change.”
Come Aug. 3, Miller will help represent Florida in the Surfers Environmental Alliance’s annual SEA Paddle NYC race, a 25-mile course that takes on the often choppy New York waterways.
Paddlers begin the 25-mile journey under the Brooklyn Bridge, head north up the East River, into the Harlem River, then down the Hudson River, finishing at Chelsea Piers Marina. Along the way, ferries will come and go and planes will buzz about along with other traffic on the water.
The race raises money for various autism and environmental causes. Since 2007, it’s raised nearly $4 million for charities.
Organizers call it a grueling race with some dangerous factors.
But Miller said she trusts her training and, having completed it seven times already, isn’t fearful of getting on her board. In fact, she enjoys the long-distance races.
Her longest one so far has been a 31-mile course in Chattanooga.
“I would never entertain running that far,” she said. “But on a board, there is something in me that’s, oh my gosh, yes.”
Miller, 36, a native of Brooklyn, New York, has made Key West her home base — she loves to travel — for 13 years. Around 2010, she started paddleboarding as part of the Key West team from outfitter and water tour company Lazy Dog Adventures.
“I’ve never been a natural athlete,” she said. “Anything I’ve done, I’ve had to try hard at it.”
Miller gets more out of the sport than physical endurance. “It was kind of a source of therapy,” she said. “Anytime my mind is bogged down, I can go out on the board.”
Miller is known for her down-to-earth approach to competition.
In fact, she has handed back first-place prize money to charity several times over the years.
“She has always been my beacon to follow,” said Maryann Marinho, a fellow paddleboarder.
“She does it for the love of the sport more so than anyone I have ever met in my years racing around the country,” Marinho said. “She truly is an ambassador of humility and grace in the sport and in life.”
The most challenging part of the New York race, she said, was raising money. She’s got $2,400 so far. Racers are asked to put together at least $1,000. It’s her least favorite part of competing, asking people for cash.
“Now all I have to do is just stay standing for six hours,” she said. “The stressful part is over.”
This story was originally published July 26, 2019 at 6:00 AM.
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