George Bass Marathon
Sun, 29 Dec
|Bateman's Bay to Eden
This is the longest, toughest surfboat race in the world!
Time & Location
29 Dec 2019, 7:00 am
Bateman's Bay to Eden
About the Event
What is the George Bass Marathon?
About the George BassThe George Bass Marathon is 42 years old this year, a phenomenal feat in today’s high pressure sporting environment. It is the longest and toughest surfboat marathon in the world.
Teams and single ski paddlers undergo a gruelling seven days on the open ocean, covering 190km’s of the coastline between Batemans Bay & Eden and contending with variable and wild surf conditions to launch and land their boats. They are elite athletes, skilled lifeguards and adventurers at heart.
The very first Bass was run in 1975 and was the brainchild of Bega Newspaper editor Curly Annabel who wanted to trace the journey of early explorer Surgeon Commander George Bass in 1797.
Surgeon Commander Bass with a crew of 6-navel oarsman rowed a longboat not unlike surf’s original double-ended clinker from Port Phillip down the NSW coast and around the southern end on Victoria mapping the coastline as they went. Annabel was at first thought mad and received no support, until then NSW State Secretary and Cronulla boat sweep, the legendary Nick Dixon, took up the cause and the rest, as they say, is history. FIND OUT MORE
