Roray Kam (born Dec 27, 1961) is a surfer, [1] a multiple-time winner of longboard surfing competitions and an early participant in stand up paddle boarding in South Florida. [2] He is a surfing coach and the founder of RK Ocean Gear, and in 2013 resides in Fort Lauderdale, FL and works for the Broward County Sherriff's Office. [2] Kam has hosted a number of Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) events and races.
Kam was born in The Big Island of Hawaii. As a child he joined his father Raymond Kam in surfing, outrigger paddling, diving and fishing. Kam entered the surfing competition circuit at the young age of 12, and placed in many surfing competitions in Hawaii as a young teenager. [2]
In 1982 Kam moved to South Florida for a job opportunity. In 1983 began competing in longboard competitions there, winning his first contest.
During the 80's, Kam competed in the Professional Longboard Association (PLA) Tour and the Eastern Surfing Association (ESA) competitions. In the ESA, he competed in both longboard [3] and shortboard events, and was often placed on the podium. [4] With multiple regional events under his belt, Kam also advanced to the U.S. Open of Surfing in California. Kam was the East Coast longboard champion from year 1991 through 1994.
After a period of five years without competing, in 2003 Kam returned to surfing and won 13 tournaments. [5]
In 2005, Kam was an early participant in the Stand Up Paddleboard (SUP) movement in South Florida. [6] Right after Ark Paddleboards first founded, Kam was sponsored as a team rider and was involved in board designing and development; as a result, Ark Paddleboards released the Kam Islander model and the Kam Pro model boards.
Within two years, Stand Up Paddleboarding had gained enough popularity that races were organized. Kam competed in a number of these, [7] including the 6-hour Molokai to Oahu Paddle Race Championship in 2010, where he placed third overall in the stock division and first in his age group. Kam was the first SUP racer from Florida to enter the race.
Kam began studying raceboard design and participated in development of boards, including Ark race boards and the Jimmy Lewis Slice model race board, which was tested by Kam at the Battle of Paddle Race in 2010. Kam took second in the open class.
In 2010 Kam completed the Ka'iwi Channel crossing. [8] Between late 2011 and 2012 Kam went through extensive surgery and recovery for his shoulder. During his recovery period Kam hosted and emceed Florida SUP race events, including the US Open of Standup Paddle at Miami Beach in 2011. In 2013 Kam fully recovered and placed first overall in the 14-foot class at the Virginia Key Ocean Challenge on June 29, 2013.
In 2011, Kam signed with Starboard as team rider and South Florida liaison. In 2012 he won a kayak fishing prize at the Extreme Kayak September Slam. [9] [10] He continues to compete in various surfing and SUP events. [11] [12]
Kam is seen each December surfing in a Santa suit on Fort Lauderdale beaches. [13] [14] [15]
In 2015, Kam was the coach of a local Special Olympics standup paddleboarding team. [16] [17]
Surfing is a surface water pastime in which the wave rider, referred to as a surfer, rides on the forward part, or face, of a moving wave, which usually carries the surfer towards the shore. Waves suitable for surfing are primarily found in the ocean, but can also be found in lakes or rivers in the form of a standing wave or tidal bore. However, surfers can also utilize artificial waves such as those from boat wakes and the waves created in artificial wave pools.
The Sun Sentinel is the main daily newspaper of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, as well as surrounding Broward County and southern Palm Beach County. Owned by Tribune Publishing, it circulates all throughout the three counties that comprise South Florida. It is the largest-circulation newspaper in the area.
The International Canoe Federation (ICF) is the umbrella organization of all national canoe organizations worldwide. It is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, and administers all aspects of canoe sport worldwide. 157 countries are affiliated with the ICF after seven national federations were added at the 2008 ICF Congress in Rome.
A surf ski is a long, narrow and lightweight craft similar to a kayak but with an open "sit-on-top" (SOT) cockpit and a self-bailer to eliminate water instead of the enclosed kayak-style cockpit which can be sealed against the elements with a sprayskirt or tuliq. Surfskis are primarily designed for speed, including fast runs on the open seas, and have a powerful, pedal-operated rudder to control the boat while surfing on wave fronts.
Anastasia State Park is a 1,600-acre (6.5 km2) state park in Florida, United States. Its location is on a peninsula on Anastasia Island across Matanzas Bay from downtown St. Augustine along the Atlantic coastal plain. This park has a variety of wildlife, birds and plants in a setting of beaches, tidal salt marsh, and marine and upland hammock.
Dr. Von D. Mizell-Eula Johnson State Park is a Florida State Park located in Dania Beach, Florida off Florida State Road A1A. The park is named for late civil rights activists Von Mizell and Eula Johnson, who first pressured Broward County to have at least one beach for African Americans, then led wade-ins in Ft. Lauderdale in 1961 that led to desegregation of the county's beaches the followiing year. The park's former namesake, John U. Lloyd, served as Broward County Attorney for over 30 years and was instrumental in obtaining the land for the park.
The International Surfing Association (ISA) is the world governing authority for surfing, SUP racing, SUP surfing, bodyboarding and all other wave riding activities. The ISA is recognized by the International Olympic Committee.
Paddleboarding participants are propelled by a swimming motion using their arms while lying, kneeling, or standing on a paddleboard or surfboard in the ocean. This article refers to traditional prone or kneeling paddleboarding. A derivative of paddleboarding is stand up paddleboarding also called stand up paddle surfing. Paddleboarding is usually performed in the open ocean, with the participant paddling and surfing unbroken swells to cross between islands or journey from one coastal area to another. Champion paddlers can stroke for hours and a 20-mile (32 km) race is only a warm-up for well-trained paddlers.
Paddling with regard to watercraft is the act of manually propelling a boat using a paddle. The paddle, which consists of one or two blades joined to a shaft, is also used to steer the vessel. The paddle is not connected to the boat.
Dave Kalama is a big wave surfer/tow-in surfer, stand-up paddle (SUP) surfer and racer, surf and SUP board shaper, windsurfer, outrigger canoe racer, private adventure guide, and celebrity watersports enthusiast. Kalama, his wife, 2 sons and 1 daughter live in Kula, Maui.
Stand up paddleboarding (SUP) or Stand up paddle surfing is an offshoot of surfing that originated in Hawaii. Unlike traditional surfing where the rider sits until a wave comes, stand up paddle boarders stand on their boards and use a paddle to propel themselves through the water. The sport was documented in a 2013 report that identified it as the outdoor sporting activity with the most first-time participants in the United States that year. Variations include flat water paddling for outdoor recreation, fitness, or sightseeing, racing on lakes, large rivers and canals, surfing on ocean waves, paddling in river rapids, paddle board yoga and even fishing.
Corran Descy Addison and is a slalom canoeist, whitewater kayaker, surfer and surfboard designer. He is now based in San Clemente, California.
Thomas Michael O'Shaughnessy Jr. is a member of the UCF Athletics Hall of Fame, a paddleboarder, surfer, adventurer, real estate agent and philanthropist. He is currently living in Ponce Inlet, Florida.
Andrea Moller is a Brazilian-American competitive canoeist and surfer. She competes in every outrigger race large event, from one-man (OC1) to six-man (OC6) canoes as well as SUP long distance races all year round. She is a professional Paramedic and mother, on Maui where she lives.
Robert Dennis "Woody" Woodbury is an American comedian, actor, television personality and talk show host. He is known for his best-selling comedy albums of risqué stories, most of which were released in the early 1960s. He was among the first standup comedians to receive a gold record.
Sean Mattison is an American former professional surfer and current professional surf coach and mastermind behind Kelly Slater's "nubster". A fifth fin that was created by Mattison that some critics say helped Kelly Slater win his 11th ASP World Championship. Mattison also is the designer of his own alternative high performance surfboards and surfboard fins named Von-Sol.
Poor Boyz Productions is a North American entertainment company which specializes on Freeskiing, Wind surfing and Standup paddleboarding films. The company was formed in 1994 by Johnny Decesare and is headquartered in Redondo Beach, California. In 2012 Poor Boyz began producing freeskiing videos in association with Red Bull Media House.
Dog surfing involves dogs that are trained to surf on surfboards, bodyboards, skimboards, windsurf boards or to bodysurf. Historically, surfing dogs have been documented as occurring as early as the 1920s in the United States. Competitions and exhibitions that feature surfing dogs have occurred in various coastal areas of the United States, such as Del Mar, California, Imperial Beach, California and Jupiter, Florida.
Chris Bertish is a South-African-born surfer, stand-up paddleboarder, adventurer, and motivational speaker. He won the Mavericks Big Wave Surf contest in 2009. In March 2017 he completed the first solo, unsupported stand-up paddle board (SUP) crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. He did it while supporting charitable organizations. He has also set other SUP world records. His efforts moved an obscure sport onto the forefront of many important media outlets.
