Introduction 

In the interview, Hayden takes Dean back to his early days of growing up in Perth, Australia and first getting into ocean paddling as a teenager. Dean discusses some of the early training and races he participated in. Hayden then probes deeper into Dean’s illustrious career, his record-setting performances at Molokai, and his pivotal role in establishing the Australian Ocean Racing Series.

 

Dean provides valuable insights into what it takes to excel at endurance ocean paddling events. He also shares his thoughts on how the sport has evolved over the decades and what the future may hold. Overall, it gives a fascinating look into the career of a legend of the sport and the growth of ocean paddling globally.

Early Days in Perth

Dean discusses how he first got into ocean paddling as a teenager growing up in Perth, Australia. Perth has strong winds that would blow offshore in the mornings and onshore in the afternoons. This created ideal conditions for surfing but not much surf. Dean found paddling as an alternative through his local surf club, where he would practice paddling up and down the coast. Occasionally he would join the surfboat crew and they would take his ski out further. He enjoyed the feeling of being comfortably seated on his ski catching the ocean swells. This led him to get better at paddling and see it as more than just a hobby.

Transition to Ocean Racing   

Dean explains that ocean racing appealed to him more than surf lifesaving events because it allowed him to travel to more adventurous locations internationally like Molokai and South Africa. In the early days, very few ocean races existed globally. He preferred the format of ocean races where he could compete for a full day rather than multiple short events over 5 days at surf nationals. Dean also discusses that his swimming was not as strong as others, so ocean racing suited his strengths better.

Breakout Success at Molokai

Dean shares details of his first Molokai race in 1989 and how he went on to win the iconic 52km race 9 times total. He set the record in 1994 at just over 3 hours, a time that wasn’t matched for over two decades. Dean explains what makes Molokai such a special event – the opportunity to paddle across open ocean from one island to another while battling steep downwind conditions and swells in the channel. 

Establishing the Australian Ocean Racing Series

It also covers how after interacting with craftsman Keith Fen in South Africa, Dean was influential in popularizing the longer Fen skis in Australia. He established Ocean Paddler. Dean then worked to launch the national series in 2002 with early support from sponsors like Men’s Health magazine. It has since grown substantially to over 500 competitors annually racing across 5 states.

Evolution of Craft and Competition

Dean acknowledges equipment and sports science have advanced compared to decades ago, allowing times to now drop further. But competition was always high skill-based. He sees improved techniques and nutrition supporting today’s champions, though work ethic of past winners was also very high.

Advice for New Paddlers 

Dean recommends joining beginner groups to learn skills safely before high-commitment training. Developing fitness comes after establishing safety-focused technique. He encourages contacting Ocean Paddler for guidance on suitable start points. 

Enduring Legacy and Future of the Sport

Dean expresses pride in the relationships and communities built within ocean paddling. He’s proud of achievements like record performances but also growth of the 20 Beaches race and series. Dean believes technology and global participation will enhance the experience for competitors and spectators alike in the decades ahead.

 

Transcript 

 

Hayden Kelly: Welcome to episode 35 of the normless podcast. This is Dean Gardner. 

 

Dean Gardiner: Hello Hayden! How are you? 

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah, one sec, I’m just gonna get this set up. 

 

Hayden Kelly: I might not have another podcast, so I just gotta fix this up on set.

 

Hayden Kelly: Hey mate, sorry about that. Yeah, it’s a pleasure to have you on. Thanks for giving up your time. 

 

Dean Gardiner: No worries at all. 

 

Hayden Kelly: Would you don’t have were you busy at home, did I?

 

Dean Gardiner: No, no, no, no, no, no! Just sorting out some stuff, but all good.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah, right? Okay. I’m just gonna adjust my camera slightly. And then I’ll discuss what we’re gonna discuss is that one second.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yep

 

Hayden Kelly: Alrighty good stuff! Can you hear me? Loud and clear? There. 

 

Dean Gardiner: 100% mate.

 

Hayden Kelly: Awesome mate. Yeah. So thanks for giving up your time today. I know my dad is, he’s always been a he’s always spoken about you all the time. So what we’ll do before we get into it is, I’ll I’ll get you to look down the barrel the camera and just say, welcome to episode 35 of the normless podcast this is Dean Gardner.

 

Dean Gardiner: Okay. Welcome to episode 35 of the normless podcast. I’m Dean Gardner. I look forward to chatting.

 

Hayden Kelly: Alright, Dane! Well, thanks for giving me your time today, mate. Now, sitting before you the best considered the best downwind paddler of your time. Now, in 1989. You did your 1st more car, and this is known worldwide as one of the most revered ocean races. And Dean Summers, who I had on the podcast last week. He actually swim, he swam the Muller Kai but you you’re in a surf. Ski! You paddle it almost every year, or you attend the event every year. What is it that’s such a big draw to the, to the event for you.

 

Dean Gardiner: Well, the events special in that. It’s a crossing type event. And they’re the really really cool ones. You know, we go from one landmass to another. and Molokai just happens to lie upwind of of Oahu, and which makes that channel the caves channel a really really fantastic body of water to battle him. So you know you get the downwind stuff and and the big ocean swell that rolls through that channel, and it’s a it’s a reasonable distance. It’s 52 K, so it’s not extraordinarily long unless you’re swimming it. Of course, like that other fella that’s for paddling, you know. You can belt ball it over in just over 3 h, and it’s an exceptionally, you know, Fan, when it’s on. It’s an exceptionally fantastic event to do.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah. And so that when you say bow it over in over 3 HI think that was the record you said around 3 and a half hours. So it’s not everyone that can bowl it over in that amount of time. My! My dad, Matthew, who now living with dementia but he went over there with Wayne Dunbar, and they, I think, Tag teamed it but took them well over, I imagine you know. 5 h or so. So it’s a big. It’s a big journey for the for the average paddler.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, well, that’s that’s cause your dad had a wake link in in wine. So.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah. Yeah. 

 

Dean Gardiner: He’s probably listening.

 

Hayden Kelly: Love it off. Yeah, yeah. 

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you set the record in 1994. And you improved upon that 4 years later in 1998, and that record held strong for around or just over 2 decades. So 24 years, incredible achievement and a testament to what we’re going to talk about today, which is, you know, your upbringing and and getting into the sport of ocean paddling to become a 9 time world champion in the Molokai race. But I understand you grew up in Perth in the early days.

 

Hayden Kelly: and you started paddling as early as 13 years old. So take us back to that point in time, in your life.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah. So I I grew up in in Perth. And Perth. In summer is a funny place. It has strong offshore winds in the morning and howling onshore winds in the afternoon, and that’s pretty well nearly every day, so it’s kind of 2 days in one where you have this beautiful blue ocean with nice offshore wind blowing, and and for a surfer. you know, they’re they’re the ideal conditions. But summer in Perth doesn’t really offer much surf, so you sort of look for alternatives and and for me. I stumbled across, paddling at at Florence Surf Club, and I would go down there in the morning and sort of paddle along the coast, and then in the afternoon I would. I would paddle up. upwind, and then do a run downwind, and occasionally I’d jump on with the surfboat crew who would drive down the coast towards Fremantle and jump in, and they’d put my ski on the boat and take me down with them, and I’d I’d paddle back in in a really big southwest winds that were blowing there, so that made it pretty easy to take on another sort of ocean sport rather than just surfing, and the fishing stuff that I was doing and downwind paddling in Perth is, you know, it’s there’s no better place on earth than WA. For that sort of thing. So it worked out. It worked out that I just got better and better at that, and I really enjoyed doing that, and found that I felt most comfortable when I was sitting on a ski in the middle of the ocean catching chop. You know some people feel most comfortable sitting in an office looking at numbers. Some people feel comfortable. You know, running through a forest, I I feel comfortable out in middle of the ocean catching ocean chop, and I sort of just love doing that, and that turned it into a sport, I guess, and and and got good at it.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah, it wasn’t until those later teenage years that you got into more ocean paddling. So I guess early on the days, as you said, there, you weren’t doing too much of that. You’re doing a lot of swimming and surf life saving.

 

Hayden Kelly: What was the I guess the draw towards paddling over, say, iron man or or surf life saving, I mean, there was so many events at the time running around across Australia, you know, in on the surf. Ski paddling, you know, like, even on the the sand, soft sand, events like, why, what was the draw towards ocean, paddling over surf life saving at the time?

 

Dean Gardiner: Well for me. It it took you to locations that that were a little bit adventurous. Going over to Molokai and going to Tahiti and South Africa and those sorts of places, and in the early days there wasn’t many ocean races going on around the world, and I don’t know. I just. I just found that like I I did pretty well at the Surf Club stuff, and but I just found that they the there, was a lot lot of baggage around surf lifesaving events for me, a lot of I like the fact that I could roll up and do an ocean race, and you’re you’re kind of done with it. Whereas the Surf Club stuff. If you went to the Nationals it was a 5 day thing, and it chewed up a lot of time, and you only got to race it, you know, a few times each day, and I kind of like the fact that I could spend 2 or 3 h on the ocean and and get a full full days racing in, and rather than sit on a beach and do a couple of events here and there, and but don’t get me wrong. I loved doing the last saving events, and I love, you know, any sort of events in the water. But for me the ocean paddling was more the preference.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you said that your nickname was Chop what you said? Yeah.

 

Dean Gardiner: Couldn’t, but.

 

Hayden Kelly: You said there that you enjoyed the choppiness of the ocean, and. 

 

Dean Gardiner: Yep.

 

Hayden Kelly: But it is chop. But I understand your nickname on Instagram is Chops Gardner. Is this something you thrive, Don? And you found was one of your you know, leg ups in those long ocean races. Maybe one of the reasons why you didn’t go with. Say. Blackwater, racing on a on a k 1. For instance.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, Well, I’m actually named Chops, cause I was a fat kid. So that’s that’s how I got that nickname. But it kind of a lot of people associate it with the the downwind paddling, which is, which is kind of cool, too. So I’ll take either one. You know I was happy being affected, and I’m happy that I can run ocean chop. So either way, it doesn’t really matter too much.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so I understand you throughout the eighties, though. You were very strong. So I guess early on the days, as you said, there, you weren’t doing too much of that. You’re doing a lot of swimming and surf life saving. What was the I guess the draw towards paddling over, say, iron man or or surf life saving, I mean, there was so many events at the time running around across Australia, you know, in on the surf. Ski paddling, you know, like, even on the the sand, soft sand, events like, why, what was the draw towards ocean, paddling over, say, iron man or or surf life saving, which you could have done because, you know, you’re training with people like Guy late. You were, you know. Class endurance athletes as well. But was it ever a a matter of thought where you considered the fact that it wasn’t maybe over populated the sport at the time, and it was a good opportunity for you to make a, you know, make your presence felt amongst competitors, because you were going into a sport which maybe was, didn’t have the same opportunities and exposure that surf life saving had at the time.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, like i i i probably would never have been a top on man. Anyway, I did quite a few of the events. I I wasn’t a fast enough swimmer, really, and and the basis of an iron man race is is swimming. Really, if you if you’re not a fast enough swimmer. There’s no way you’ll ever make a good iron man, because it’s it’s the leg that yeah, like the Barclay really counts in a triathlon. It’s the swim leg that really counts in a in a iron man event in a surf iron man event. So I I hadn’t had the swimming background that a lot of the other guys had. You know, I never swam as a kid. I only did it for a couple of years when I, in my late teens. And it to make big gains in swimming. You have to do so much work to gain precious seconds. And that, it wasn’t something that I wanted to do. You know, building out 10 swimming sessions a week. It’s not my sort of thing. So the ocean was my attraction. So and there’s a lot of people used to turn up for the the national titles, there was, you know, when I remember looking at the entry list some years, and it was well over 500 people. So. and you get down to to 12 people on a Sunday afternoon, and it was a fantastic feeling to look down on the beach and still have your ski on the beach, and you’re only one of 12 skis that are still on the beach, ready to race in the final. And that was a pretty great feeling, too. So I enjoyed that. I enjoyed that, and I love, you know, any sort of events in the water. But for me the ocean paddling was more the preference.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you said that your nickname was Chop what you said? Yeah.

 

Dean Gardiner: Couldn’t, but. 

 

Hayden Kelly: You said there that you enjoyed the choppiness of the ocean, and.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yep.

 

Hayden Kelly: But it is chop. But I understand your nickname on Instagram is Chops Gardner. Is this something you thrive, Don? And you found was one of your you know, leg ups in those long ocean races. Maybe one of the reasons why you didn’t go with. Say. Blackwater, racing on a on a k 1. For instance.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, Well, I’m actually named Chops, cause I was a fat kid. So that’s that’s how I got that nickname. But it kind of a lot of people associate it with the the downwind paddling, which is, which is kind of cool, too. So I’ll take either one. You know I was happy being affected, and I’m happy that I can run ocean chop. So either way, it doesn’t really matter too much.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so I think that’s a commonality among some of the people I’ve spoken to. On this podcast we look at Kendrick, Lewis, and Dane summers who I spoke to in the last episode, and just the open nature of the the ocean, and how conditions changed between swims or events. And so one of those that you did in 2,004. That Cape Town was the 1st ever icf surf ski world championship and you took that out over Herman and Tim Jacobs, and that was in pretty pretty rough conditions and rough sea. So what I was sort of getting at there was. Is this where you throw? You feel like you thrive in those tougher conditions when you have that largest swell or the unknown is really something that you you, you found you had to grasp throughout your career, or something. You you got a leg up on your other competitors.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, most definitely. Yeah. I think that if you enjoy something you always gonna go better at it. And for me there’s a lot more enjoyment in in water that has movement and and variables on it than flat water. So and that particular race had a lot of swell. It was yeah, it was pretty big, and and Tim and myself and another guy called Jono Chalmers, who was a good paddler at the time we were the Australian part of the Australian team, and we we sort of took a bit of risk and went really, really close to the to the surf breaks on that one, and and and it kind of paid off for us what definitely paid off for me. So and Tim cause Tim ended up 3.rd So and Herman Herman went wider, and and I think you know 2 thirds of the way down the course. Us 3 were kind of the latest, so At that particular time Herman was really really fast. So to beat Herman in in in any race was a real a real fantastic thing to do, and and to beat Tim likewise in in any race, was a fantastic thing to do. So for me it was a that was a great event. And it was well run. It was well organized, and and we all had a fantastic time over there, and we did a double ski race the next day, and I paired up with Dave Cassane in that one, and we did pretty well in that as well. It was little bit different. We didn’t race many doubles over here in Australia, whereas double racing is very big in South Africa. So but that was around Robin Islands, you know, where Nelson Mandela was incarcerated for a long period of time, which made the event really interesting. And and there was big surf in that as well. So yeah, it’s been some fantastic events. And obviously, when it’s big surf.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you said that your nickname was Chop what you said? Yeah.

 

Dean Gardiner: Couldn’t, but.

 

Hayden Kelly: You said there that you enjoyed the choppiness of the ocean, and. 

 

Dean Gardiner: Yep.

 

Hayden Kelly: But it is chop. But I understand your nickname on Instagram is Chops Gardner. Is this something you thrive, Don? And you found was one of your you know, leg ups in those long ocean races. Maybe one of the reasons why you didn’t go with. Say. Blackwater, racing on a on a k 1. For instance.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, Well, I’m actually named Chops, cause I was a fat kid. So that’s that’s how I got that nickname. But it kind of a lot of people associate it with the the downwind paddling, which is, which is kind of cool, too. So I’ll take either one. You know I was happy being affected, and I’m happy that I can run ocean chop. So either way, it doesn’t really matter too much.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so I think that’s a commonality among some of the people I’ve spoken to. On this podcast we look at Kendrick, Lewis, and Dane summers who I spoke to in the last episode, and just the open nature of the the ocean, and how conditions changed between swims or events. And so one of those that you did in 2,004. That Cape Town was the 1st ever icf surf ski world championship and you took that out over Herman and Tim Jacobs, and that was in pretty pretty rough conditions and rough sea. So what I was sort of getting at there was. Is this where you throw? You feel like you thrive in those tougher conditions when you have that largest swell or the unknown is really something that you you, you found you had to grasp throughout your career, or something. You you got a leg up on your other competitors.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, most definitely. Yeah. I think that if you enjoy something you always gonna go better at it. And for me there’s a lot more enjoyment in in water that has movement and and variables on it than flat water. So and that particular race had a lot of swell. It was yeah, it was pretty big, and and Tim and myself and another guy called Jono Chalmers, who was a good paddler at the time we were the Australian part of the Australian team, and we we sort of took a bit of risk and went really, really close to the to the surf breaks on that one, and and and it kind of paid off for us what definitely paid off for me. So and Tim cause Tim ended up 3.rd So and Herman Herman went wider, and and I think you know 2 thirds of the way down the course. Us 3 were kind of the latest, so At that particular time Herman was really really fast. So to beat Herman in in in any race was a real a real fantastic thing to do, and and to beat Tim likewise in in any race, was a fantastic thing to do. So for me it was a that was a great event. And it was well run. It was well organized, and and we all had a fantastic time over there, and we did a double ski race the next day, and I paired up with Dave Cassane in that one, and we did pretty well in that as well. It was little bit different. We didn’t race many doubles over here in Australia, whereas double racing is very big in South Africa. So but that was around Robin Islands, you know, where Nelson Mandela was incarcerated for a long period of time, which made the event really interesting. And and there was big surf in that as well. So yeah, it’s been some fantastic events. And obviously, when it’s big surf.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so se seems like you, and I think you’ve commented on this in some of the things I’ve read. Some articles, but some of the training in those early days, even when you were paddling and going back and forth I guess you’d say some of the training was quite tough. 

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, well, the the fishing days were were pretty good. They were. They were really tough. I jumped on my 1st trawla when I was 16 and went to the golf carpenter, and I guess it was even at the time. I guess it was probably. you know, a weird thing to do, you know, like a lot of people would still be at school, or starting a trade or something like that. And I guess my trade was being a decade on a trawler, and I think, from right on. From those early early days the very 1st boat I jumped on. We left Fremantle on a blustery afternoon, and we went straight into a cyclone. So I spent the next 3 days throwing up. as we made our way up the coast towards Darwin. And yeah, I just remember looking at the ocean. And oh, yeah, I just used to think about all the all the things you could do with those. They were pretty large lumps of water that were moving around us. And I yeah, I just used to think about all the all the things you could do with those. They were pretty large lumps of water that were moving around us. And I yeah, I guess I’ve always just looked at that sort of thing. I I don’t know if I have a real 6th sense for it. But I I when I look at some other people, I just think that they don’t. They don’t look. They think about the paddling too much, and don’t actually look at what’s going on around them, and the benefits you can get from utilizing the the different movements on the water, and and just having a quick look at that stuff that’s going on. So yeah, I’ve always liked that. I’ve always been one of those people that if I saw a hill. I’d want to walk up the hill and see what was on the other side. So I guess ocean paddling fitted that bill more than like flat water sprint paddling. And I did. I did one or 2 years of that, and I I just didn’t enjoy it. I didn’t enjoy it one bit. I love the hard grind. I love the hard work, and I love all the training associated with it. But I just didn’t like the racing. So the the unknown of the ocean, and and the fact that you roll up one weekend to a race, and you know it’s 20 k. Down win, and and next weekend you roll up to another race, and it’s a 20 K. Down win. But it’s completely different to the race you did the previous week, whereas flatwater, paddling your your paddled down a 1,000 or a 500 meter course, and pretty well the same as the venue raced that a couple of weeks ago. So I kind of like the fact that I could spend 2 or 3 h on the ocean and and get a full full days racing in, and rather than sit on a beach and do a couple of events here and there, and but don’t get me wrong. I loved doing the last saving events, and I love, you know, any sort of events in the water. But for me the ocean paddling was more the preference.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you said that your nickname was Chop what you said? Yeah.

 

Dean Gardiner: Couldn’t, but. 

 

Hayden Kelly: You said there that you enjoyed the choppiness of the ocean, and.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yep.

 

Hayden Kelly: But it is chop. But I understand your nickname on Instagram is Chops Gardner. Is this something you thrive, Don? And you found was one of your you know, leg ups in those long ocean races. Maybe one of the reasons why you didn’t go with. Say. Blackwater, racing on a on a k 1. For instance.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, Well, I’m actually named Chops, cause I was a fat kid. So that’s that’s how I got that nickname. But it kind of a lot of people associate it with the the downwind paddling, which is, which is kind of cool, too. So I’ll take either one. You know I was happy being affected, and I’m happy that I can run ocean chop. So either way, it doesn’t really matter too much.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so I guess, like who I, Kelvin Graham, was someone you looked at in the swimming space, and a a amazing achievements that he was able to accomplish. But was there anyone else you looked up to like Ken Vidl or any of those guys that were really strong paddlers at the time.

 

Dean Gardiner: Villa was sort of the king at that particular time. Well, prior to that, and then another guy, Greg Nicole. who I spend a lot of time with, and he’s 1 of my best friends. He It was an amazing athlete and and waterman all round like pretty well anything that has water to do it, Greg. Pretty good at it. So I he was one of the guys that I spent a lot of time with as well. And then all my friends were water people. They all surfed all day. fished, or they dove, or they paddled, or they did something, so I didn’t have many friends that weren’t associated with the ocean, not because I didn’t want to, only because that’s the environment that I was in at the time. And if I wasn’t doing the paddling I was surfing, or we were doing something involved in their water. So the only race that that I remember doing was once I paddled to rotness when I was about 15, on a double ski with a mate of mine. you know, in a race that was just out of the blue, and and then the Avond descent, which was a downriver race in Perth that still exists today was another big event that we used to do as well, so that was had some rapids and trees and stuff like that in it, which was pretty exciting. And then, as I said, when I moved to Sydney, Molikai was really the only major ocean race going on in the world, and I went over and started doing that.

 

Hayden Kelly: So talk to us about in the 19 eighties, when you move to Manly. Now, sitting before you the best considered the best downwind paddler of your time. Now, in 1989. You did your 1st more car, and this is known worldwide as one of the most revered ocean races. And Dean Summers, who I had on the podcast last week. He actually swim, he swam the Muller Kai but you you’re in a surf. Ski! You paddle it almost every year, or you attend the event every year. What is it that’s such a big draw to the, to the event for you.

 

Dean Gardiner: Well, the events special in that. It’s a crossing type event. And they’re the really really cool ones. You know, we go from one landmass to another. and Molokai just happens to lie upwind of of Oahu, and which makes that channel the caves channel a really really fantastic body of water to battle him. So you know you get the downwind stuff and and the big ocean swell that rolls through that channel, and it’s a it’s a reasonable distance. It’s 52 K, so it’s not extraordinarily long unless you’re swimming it. Of course, like that other fella that’s for paddling, you know. You can belt ball it over in just over 3 h, and it’s an exceptionally, you know, Fan, when it’s on. It’s an exceptionally fantastic event to do.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah. And so that when you say bow it over in over 3 HI think that was the record you said around 3 and a half hours. So it’s not everyone that can bowl it over in that amount of time. My! My dad, Matthew, who now living with dementia but he went over there with Wayne Dunbar, and they, I think, Tag teamed it but took them well over, I imagine you know. 5 h or so. So it’s a big. It’s a big journey for the for the average paddler. 

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, well, that’s that’s cause your dad had a wake link in in wine. So.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah. Yeah.

 

Dean Gardiner: He’s probably listening. 

 

Hayden Kelly: Love it off. Yeah, yeah.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you set the record in 1994. And you improved upon that 4 years later in 1998, and that record held strong for around or just over 2 decades. So 24 years, incredible achievement and a testament to what we’re going to talk about today, which is, you know, your upbringing and and getting into the sport of ocean paddling to become a 9 time world champion in the Molokai race. But I understand you grew up in Perth in the early days.

 

Hayden Kelly: and you started paddling as early as 13 years old. So take us back to that point in time, in your life.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah. So I I grew up in in Perth. And Perth. In summer is a funny place. It has strong offshore winds in the morning and howling onshore winds in the afternoon, and that’s pretty well nearly every day, so it’s kind of 2 days in one where you have this beautiful blue ocean with nice offshore wind blowing, and and for a surfer. you know, they’re they’re the ideal conditions. But summer in Perth doesn’t really offer much surf, so you sort of look for alternatives and and for me. I stumbled across, paddling at at Florence Surf Club, and I would go down there in the morning and sort of paddle along the coast, and then in the afternoon I would. I would paddle up. upwind, and then do a run downwind, and occasionally I’d jump on with the surfboat crew who would drive down the coast towards Fremantle and jump in, and they’d put my ski on the boat and take me down with them, and I’d I’d paddle back in in a really big southwest winds that were blowing there, so that made it pretty easy to take on another sort of ocean sport rather than just surfing, and the fishing stuff that I was doing and downwind paddling in Perth is, you know, it’s there’s no better place on earth than WA. For that sort of thing. So it worked out. It worked out that I just got better and better at that, and I really enjoyed doing that, and found that I felt most comfortable when I was sitting on a ski in the middle of the ocean catching chop. You know some people feel most comfortable sitting in an office looking at numbers. Some people feel comfortable. You know, running through a forest, I I feel comfortable out in middle of the ocean catching ocean chop, and I sort of just love doing that, and that turned it into a sport, I guess, and and and got good at it.

 

Hayden Kelly: Yeah, it wasn’t until those later teenage years that you got into more ocean paddling. So I guess early on the days, as you said, there, you weren’t doing too much of that. You’re doing a lot of swimming and surf life saving. 

 

Hayden Kelly: What was the I guess the draw towards paddling over, say, iron man or or surf life saving, I mean, there was so many events at the time running around across Australia, you know, in on the surf. Ski paddling, you know, like, even on the the sand, soft sand, events like, why, what was the draw towards ocean, paddling over surf life saving at the time?

 

Dean Gardiner: Well for me. It it took you to locations that that were a little bit adventurous. Going over to Molokai and going to Tahiti and South Africa and those sorts of places, and in the early days there wasn’t many ocean races going on around the world, and I don’t know. I just. I just found that like I I did pretty well at the Surf Club stuff, and but I just found that they the there, was a lot lot of baggage around surf lifesaving events for me, a lot of I like the fact that I could roll up and do an ocean race, and you’re you’re kind of done with it. Whereas the Surf Club stuff. If you went to the Nationals it was a 5 day thing, and it chewed up a lot of time, and you only got to race it, you know, a few times each day, and I kind of like the fact that I could spend 2 or 3 h on the ocean and and get a full full days racing in, and rather than sit on a beach and do a couple of events here and there, and but don’t get me wrong. I loved doing the last saving events, and I love, you know, any sort of events in the water. But for me the ocean paddling was more the preference.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so you said that your nickname was Chop what you said? Yeah.

 

Dean Gardiner: Couldn’t, but.

 

Hayden Kelly: You said there that you enjoyed the choppiness of the ocean, and.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yep. 

 

Hayden Kelly: But it is chop. But I understand your nickname on Instagram is Chops Gardner. Is this something you thrive, Don? And you found was one of your you know, leg ups in those long ocean races. Maybe one of the reasons why you didn’t go with. Say. Blackwater, racing on a on a k 1. For instance.

 

Dean Gardiner: Yeah, Well, I’m actually named Chops, cause I was a fat kid. So that’s that’s how I got that nickname. But it kind of a lot of people associate it with the the downwind paddling, which is, which is kind of cool, too. So I’ll take either one. You know I was happy being affected, and I’m happy that I can run ocean chop. So either way, it doesn’t really matter too much.

 

Hayden Kelly: And so I understand you throughout the eighties, though. You were very strong. So I guess early on the days, as you said, there, you weren’t doing too much of that. You’re doing a lot of swimming and surf life saving. 

 

Hayden Kelly: What was the I guess the draw towards paddling over, say, iron man or or surf life saving, I mean, there was so many events at the time running around across Australia, you know, in on the surf. Ski paddling, you know, like, even on the the sand, soft sand, events like, why, what was the draw towards ocean, paddling over, say, iron man or or surf life saving, which you could have done because, you know, you’re training with people like Guy late. You were, you know. Class endurance athletes as well. But was it ever a a matter of thought where you considered the fact that it wasn’t maybe over populated the sport at the time, and it was a good opportunity for you to make a, you know, make your presence felt amongst competitors, because you were going into a sport which maybe was, didn’t have the same opportunities and exposure that surf life saving had at the time.

 

Hayden Kelly: You mentioned earlier that you didn’t have as strong of a swimming background as many other paddlers. Could you elaborate on that and how you got into ocean paddling? 

 

Dean Gardiner: I didn’t swim much as a child and only took it up in my late teens. I got reasonably good at it, but never excellent. Making big gains in swimming requires so much work to gain mere seconds. That level of commitment wasn’t for me. I preferred being on the ocean. All the top surf paddlers at the time raced ocean events whenever possible. 

 

Hayden Kelly: I understand you were very strong in Ironman races throughout the 1980s, notably winning the first Molokai event. You were dominant in those events throughout the 1990s as well, breaking some records there. Could you tell us more about that time and your performances at Molokai?

 

Dean Gardiner: Yes, I started doing Molokai in 1999 and kept racing there for many years afterwards. The 1990s was when I was able to train and focus on performing well in that particular event. I broke the record in 1994 and 1997, holding it until 2018. I held the Australian Ocean Racing Series in high regard as well.

 

Hayden Kelly: What made you so strong at Molokai specifically? Was it familiarity with the course or something else? 

 

Dean Gardiner: I was younger, bigger, and more enthusiastic I think. Making big gains in swimming takes so much work to gain mere seconds. That level of commitment wasn’t for me. I enjoyed being on the ocean more than endless laps in a pool. Skill is also a huge part of ocean paddling. Physical ability is important but not as much as skill level. 

 

Hayden Kelly: When you started the Shorn and Partners National Series, it came about through a chance interaction you had with Keith Fen in South Africa. Could you talk about how that influenced your paddling and your connection to using Fen craft?

 

Dean Gardiner: I went to do a race in South Africa and the organizer offered for me to use one of Keith Fen’s skis. I did well on it and he offered to sell me that one. I bought two more from him and brought them back to Australia, starting Ocean Paddler. The South African skis were longer, slicker and faster than what I’d been using. They helped me perform better. Meeting Keith was pivotal in changing from Ray Burton skis to Fens.

 

Hayden Kelly: You mentioned the ocean racing series was originally sponsored by Men’s Health magazine. How did that connection come about? 

 

Dean Gardiner: In the early days, myself and another guy organized a race from The Spit to White Bay in Sydney. Men’s Health magazine got involved through their parent company Murdoch Magazines. They didn’t provide direct funding but used their reach to find additional sponsors in areas like cars. This helped provide better prizes in the early years when money in our sport was scarce. 

 

Hayden Kelly: The first ocean racing series event was in 2002 with only about 14 competitors per race. How has it grown to now have 16 races across 5 states with over 500 competitors?

 

Dean Gardiner: Exposure is the main factor. As more people get involved, it perpetuates itself. The Covid period in particular saw huge growth as people looked for outdoor activities. If someone buys a ski, their friends want to try. It’s grown organically through word of mouth rather than big marketing campaigns. We just focus on continual small improvements each year.

 

Hayden Kelly: You were very strong in Molokai races throughout the 1990s, notably breaking records. What do you think has led to times improving there now, with Corey Hill and Hank McGregor recently breaking your long-held records?

 

Dean Gardiner: The craft have definitely improved, with lighter, stiffer boats and better wing-shaped paddles creating an equipment advantage compared to what we used decades ago. But the competition has always been high – you only need to look at past times to see that. Some of the factors are likely improved sports science, training techniques, and nutrition support as the sport has grown. But the work ethic of past champions was very high too.

 

Hayden Kelly: What kind of food or nutrition did you use to fuel your Molokai and other races considering they were generally shorter than an Ironman swim? 

 

Dean Gardiner: I was never big on nutrition planning. For Molokai or other races under 3.5 hours, I never really felt food was needed. Maybe a sports drink or powerade on the way to the start. Paddling skill is such a big part of ocean racing that physical fitness, while important, isn’t the be-all-and-end-all like some other sports.

 

Hayden Kelly: Given there are now many different craft, how would you advise recreational paddlers interested in transitioning into competitions and races?

 

Dean Gardiner: They need to learn. The best way is joining a beginner’s group to learn skills safely. They should try different stable craft to find what suits. Contact us at Ocean Paddler and we can point them to suitable groups and training. Starting with just one session a week is fine before committing more time as skills develop. Safety should be the priority in the early stages.

 

Hayden Kelly: How did you navigate the organizational and promotional challenges of establishing the Australian Ocean Racing Series? What were some of the bigger hurdles?

 

Dean Gardiner: Initial hurdles included opposition from some groups who disagreed with our approach. I tried involving others but some didn’t want to be part of it or thought they could do it better. We just focused on continual small improvements each year. Compliance with regulations also presented ongoing challenges as personnel changed. Overall it was a financial burden in the early years before sponsors like Shore and Partners came onboard. Perseverance was needed.

 

Hayden Kelly: How has technology evolved in relation to these events, both for organizers and individual paddlers?

 

Dean Gardiner: Technology has helped enormously for safety but also making the racing more visual. Paddlers can now track themselves and others online, watching races unfold in a way that wasn’t possible before when you only saw competitors at start and finish. This will be a big part of future growth. Equipment has also evolved significantly over decades with craft, paddles and materials improving performance.

 

Hayden Kelly: What would a typical training week look like for newcomers joining an ocean paddling group? 

 

Dean Gardiner: When first starting, coming once a week to learn basics is sufficient. Groups run at different times so find what suits. Get your own craft then go whenever you want. Safety is priority for beginners so take time to develop skills before high-commitment training. Contact us at Ocean Paddler for advice on local groups.

 

Hayden Kelly: What are some of the more memorable moments or achievements from your career that you’re most proud of?

 

Dean Gardiner: I’m most proud of the amazing people who have embraced paddling and become part of the community. It’s a sport with very few unpleasant personalities. I’m also proud of relationships like with Shore and Partners, how the 20 Beaches race has developed, building Ocean Paddler into a great business, and my records at Molokai, even if they are now broken. The friendships created have been most rewarding.

 

Hayden Kelly: Any events coming up that you or your group will be competing in? 

 

Dean Gardiner: The Australian Ocean Racing Series kicks off in August, running until November. All our training group will compete in various races. I’ll likely do a few races for fun but am no longer too focused on results. Might even team up with Ill from Shore and Partners for some doubles races. It’s an exciting second half of the year for ocean paddling in Australia.

 

Hayden Kelly: Finally, where do you see the future of ocean paddling heading globally in coming decades?

 

Dean Gardiner: We’ll continue growing participation in Australia while other countries take it up more. Already we’re seeing Europeans, Spanish, French and others performing strongly as the sport becomes more global. It may follow a similar trajectory to surfing which was once dominated by Australians and Hawaiians but now has champions from all over the world. Technology will also continue enhancing the experience for both competitors and spectators. The future is bright.

 

In conclusion 

 

In conclusion, this episode provides invaluable insight into the career of a legendary ocean paddling champion while also sharing the history of how the sport has developed globally. Dean Gardiner’s accounts of breaking records at Molokai in the 1990s and his organizing of the Australian Ocean Racing Series were pivotal in elevating ocean paddling to new levels. His willingness to pass on advice shows a commitment to building the community. 

 

While equipment and training methods have undoubtedly advanced in recent decades, Dean’s experiences emphasize that skill, perseverance, and passion have always been at the heart of excellence in endurance ocean racing. Younger competitors breaking his long-held records pay tribute to Dean’s past achievements and ongoing competitiveness pushing new standards. 

 

Most importantly, Dean expresses pride not in records alone but in the relationships and enthusiasm for the sport that have endured. His interview offers inspiration for current and future athletes while laying a foundation of understanding for those yet to discover ocean paddling. Dean Gardiner’s career stands as a testament to what individual dedication and leadership can accomplish in growing a sport globally. His legacy will inspire paddlers for generations to come.