Hi Blue - thank you for agreeing to be part of our Blog Q&A. We have been following you since you started SUP racing on the GB circuit and, more particularly, over the last few years since you began competing internationally and we would love to have a chat with you about that.
For those who are not familiar, can you let us know a little bit about yourself and some personal details:
I am a SUP racer and keen waterman from South Devon. I am 23 years old and a six-time British champion in SUP racing. When I am not travelling the world racing, I work in my family’s watersports business, Reactive Watersports.
How long have you been SUP racing and had you always been a sporty kid?
I have been paddleboarding for about 15 years now but did not start racing until I was 15 so about 8 years of racing. I have always been very sporty and SUP racing was not my priority until about 5 years ago. Before that I spent a lot of my time doing loads of different sports but most of the time it was surfing and football.
After your huge success in the National Series in the UK, what made you decide to start competing overseas?
After a couple of years dominating the UK scene, I realised if I wanted to improve my paddling and take it more seriously, I would have to start racing at a higher level and to do this I had go into Europe to start racing internationally.
Did you set out a master plan of events to do in that first year, or did you just pick those you liked?
To start with I had no big plan, I simply wanted to test myself to see where I would be and figure out what I needed to do to get to the level of the best guys in the world. I did this in 2022 and went and stayed with my friend and fellow GB teammate Ben Moreham at a Eurotour in Gran Canaria and then went to the European Championship in Denmark and the ICF World Championship in Poland.
Can you tell us about your first international race and how it went for you?
My first international race was the APP London event in 2019 when I was 17. At this stage my training was just to paddle 10km as fast as I could maybe once a week and the rest of my time, I would spend surfing, so I did not have high expectations going into the event. I managed to beat some good paddlers in the long distance, including the junior world champion at the time Christian Anderson as well as Connor Baxter (who was having a bad day) and a few other recognisable names like Kenny Kaneko and more.
Did it feel like starting over again?
The event was humbling to see how far ahead the top guys were ahead of me. I expected to be in the back half so was actually more shocked to beat a few big names than to be in the back half of the race.
What have been some of your favourite venues?
I have been fortunate to visit some great places to race in the last few years such as Greece, Sicily and Thailand to name a few.
Can you let our readers know about your successes since competing overseas?
Since racing overseas, I have had 3 major wins in international competitions in France, Austria and Greece as well as a handful of podium finishes in big international races and Eurotour events. I have finished top 5 in the overall rankings on the Eurotour the last 2 years and had top 10 finishes at World championships with one top 5 finish.
How long have you been a sponsored rider and who has helped you over the years in that respect?
My first sponsor was from Naish when I predominantly would SUP surf and do the occasional Nisco event or 12’6” hardboard race and this was what first got me into racing after being more focused on the surfing side of things. After a couple of years with Naish, I signed for JP in 2019 which is when I started to do more racing and won my first British titles winning the GBSUP series in both long distance and technical. In 2023, I changed to a brand who are a lot bigger in the race scene. Their boards were far better than anything else I had ridden and I signed for NSP who I am now going into my third year of sponsorship with. I was also lucky enough to be sponsored by Black Project for the last 3 years and am now supported by Xcel Europe and Ocean & Earth UK too.
Can you let us know how sponsorship works; what help might they give, and what demands might they put upon you?
How sponsorship works depends on the type of contract you have but for most people they will start with maybe some discount on products for you to use and promote. As you improve and you become more of an asset in promoting a brand you would likely receive more support. This could be in the form of enough money for some athletes to earn a living out of but in our sport, this is not something that happens to many. A lot of sponsors will have requirements for you to meet as a team rider but not in all cases.
Do you believe having good sponsors makes the difference to success and why?
I think having the support of sponsors can really help athletes to become more recognised within the sport and can make competing and traveling to races a lot more accessible for many especially in a sport like ours which can be expensive especially for younger people.
Could you give us a rundown of "a year in the life of Blue Ewer".
In a typical year for me my season will start in April or May so I try to get away from the English winter and get some pre-season training in before this in a warmer climate with other paddlers. I will usually spend most of May and June racing in Europe before spending some time at home in the summer here doing a few UK races and starting to prepare for the backend of the season with World championships usually in September and November. Once these are over, I like to switch off from paddling and enjoy more surfing and foiling for the last month or so of the year.
What advice would you give to any young paddler considering travelling overseas to races?
If you want to improve your paddling, it is so worth getting out of the UK to race at a higher level, there is so much to learn in technique and skills as well as race tactics and more. Being exposed to high level racing consistently made a huge difference to my paddling and you’ll get to make great friends from all over the world too.
Have you made some good buddies on the international circuit and do you see them off the water? Have they been helpful to you when travelling?
I have made some great friends over the years and been lucky enough to travel the world to visit them for training camps and holidays and I have visited places I would never even dream of going to before!
What other watersports do you do?
Outside of SUP I enjoy doing anything in the water and love surfing as well as foiling in which I surf foil, wing foil and downwind foil. I also love to run and push myself in the gym too, anything to keep me busy and push my body.
Can you let us know who your current sponsors are?
My current sponsors going into 2025 are NSP for boards and paddles, Xcel for wetsuits and paddle wear, and Ocean & Earth UK for all the accessories needed.
You have just announced that you will not be riding for the paddle brand Black Project going into the future. Are you able to let us know why this decision was made?
I will be using NSP paddles rather than Black Project for this year. The Black Project paddles are great and I was very happy with them and I loved to work with Chris Freeman too. However, NSP wanted me on their paddles and offered me a better contract for 2025 and they have been working hard to make a new competitive paddle. It was hard to turn down this contact despite being happy with my Black Project gear.
We understand you have been nursing an injury since Florida - can you let us know a bit more about that and how it has impacted your paddling?
In the lead up to ICF Worlds, I had done some tendon damage which I stupidly ignored unaware of what it was and carried in training and racing. After the Worlds I was struggling to do everyday tasks and in pain all the time so I took some time off to rest before seeing some professionals who told me I had Tendinopathy in my elbow (golfers' elbow). I have now been out of the water and unable to do any upper body exercise for 1 month and am hoping I will be back to training in the next few weeks. It is driving me crazy not being able to do anything!!!
Despite that injury, are you able to let us know your race schedule for 2025?
Given I recover from my injuries soon enough, my season will start in May where I will be racing on the Eurotour for the most of that month. I haven’t planned to do much else yet but I’ll make more plans once I am back to full health and can train properly.
Can you let us know the gear you are currently riding in 2025 from your sponsor NSP.
My go to NSP equipment for this upcoming season is the NSP Carolina 20.5” for ocean races and the NSP Ninja 20” for flatwater paired with the new 84” NSP Vivace paddle.
Thank you so much for your time Blue and we wish you the very best recovery from that injury – we look forward to watching you on the circuit in 2025 – good luck! You can follow Blue on IG @blueewer01.
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📷 Photo credits to AgiosonSUP, ISA and Planet Canoe
Great write up on our leading SUP male athlete! World class!