The Darcy Price Ocean Ski Series, New Zealand’s premier surfski competition, launches its 2025/26 season this weekend with the Windy City Downwind in Wellington. This opening leg doubles as the 2025 NZ Ocean Ski National Championships, ensuring a strong field of paddlers will take on the notorious Cook Strait winds and swell.
It’s a fitting start as Wellington regularly delivers the kind of raw, testing conditions that define the sport.
The series brings together eight major races across the country, showcasing the best ocean racing conditions Aotearoa can offer. October’s calendar alone features two marquee events: the Tawhiti Rahi Coastal Challenge in Tutukaka (11 October) and the Deep South Downwind in Queenstown (6 December).
From January through May, the circuit spreads north and south, with stops including Mt Maunganui’s Bhutty Moore Memorial, the Tasman Bay Queen and King of the Bay showdown, Whakatane’s Heads to Harbour, and the iconic Auckland King & Queen of the Harbour, a race founded by Darcy Price himself.
A virtual racing option in January also ensures paddlers around the country can join the action wherever they are.
Competitors earn series points based on their three best finishes, with weighting to reflect the difficulty of each race. Titles are awarded to male, female, and mixed doubles paddlers, while age divisions span juniors through to over-70s.
The NZ Ocean Ski National Championships (the Auckland King & Queen of the Harbour) serve a dual purpose: they not only crown the national champions but also act as the tiebreaker if competitors finish the season level on points. International paddlers are welcome, adding further depth to the fleet.
In addition, many of the events include waka ama divisions, widening the series’ reach and celebrating New Zealand’s unique paddling culture.
The series is named after Darcy Price, a beloved figure in New Zealand paddling who passed away in 2018. A skilled anaesthetist, researcher, and enthusiastic paddler, Price was instrumental in founding events such as the Auckland King & Queen of the Harbour and the Takapuna Beach Series.
With the Windy City Downwind ready to unleash the season, paddlers from across the country are expected to descend on Wellington to test themselves against wind, waves, and each other. The Darcy Price Ocean Ski Series is more than a competition — it’s a celebration of New Zealand’s coastline, waterways, and the paddling community that thrives on them.
For more details and entry information, visit: paddler.nz/darcy-price
