Words and photos: Sarah Thornelywww.supjunkie.co.ukWed love to draw your attention to one Bruce Iron Smith, a great friend and someone who has been around the SUP racing scene for a good number of years.We met Bruce at the Naish One Design race series in 2018; he was there with his partner Karen Greener as part of the Northern SUP Race Club. What drew us to him was not just the love and warmth between him and Karen, but also the steadfast way he handled the racing. Solid, dependable, fun we knew we needed to be in Bruces camp!So why did he get involved in SUP racing? Bruce was an Ironman and Ultra Distance Runner competing in events like the Marathon des Sables, but a serious ankle injury ended his ability to run and had a profound effect on his mental health. He was spiralling back to a dark place that he had already been in his life. A chance meeting with biomechanics coach and stand-up paddle enthusiast Anna Little got him on the water, and he at once realised the benefits it could give him. Like many of us, he fell in love with it straight away. It would be suitable for his rehabilitation and, more importantly, for his mental well-being.Bruce is from County Durham and regularly paddles on the River Tyne, Derwent Reservoir and the stunning coastline by Bamburgh Castle. It was here that he first started training and realised the huge benefits it offered in keeping him focused and motivated. It was a truly healing process for Bruce.He was soon competing, first in the UKN1SCO One Design series, where everyone raced on the same board over one or two days; the competition included sprints, tech and distance, was inclusive, and always had a big family vibe. It was not long before he was on the podium. Next up came one of the toughest races in the country, The Battle of the Thames, a ten-miler in Surbiton. He was immediately making an impression both on and off the water, placing well in his age category.Bruce has been a regular competitor in the National Series, where he has become a firm favourite and serious contender. His love and support for those around him have made a massive difference to everyone in the SUP community.Northern SUP Race TeamHe has since competed in endurance races such as the Norfolk Ultra, Paddle Skedaddle, The Eliminator, Trent 100 and SUP Twelve, which he won in 2023. Going back to his running days, Bruce felt it was a solitary sport, so he really embraced his time with others through SUP, team events, and being part of the Northern SUP Race Team. He is a huge part of that team, devising training programmes, but more importantly, encouraging and motivating club members, new or old.But Bruce had other things on his mind. Once an endurance athlete, always an endurance athlete!The call to Last Paddler Standing (LPS) was strong. A serious SUP endurance race held in Florida since 2022 caught his attention, and he decided to compete in 2023.Now, for all of those who do not race or just enjoy community paddling, let me give you a brief idea of how LPS works. Paddlers start at 09:00 on a Saturday, paddle a 3.33-mile loop within that hour and then get off the water. On the next hour, they go again. If they miss the start, they are out of the race. If they do not finish within the hour, they are out of the race. Once paddlers have completed 48 laps (yes, 48 hours!), the lap length increases to 4.9 miles, and the same rules apply. This longer lap is called the Super Loop.During their time off the water, the paddlers generally have a support team that feeds, waters, massages, and wakes them if they are having a nap. It takes dedication and organisation to make this work! Bruces team included his partner, Karen, Ryan Gillikin, and Randi Evans, mother and daughter, who travelled 10 hours to support him. Another was Julie Mitravitch, who was racing but came to assist once she was finished. In Karens words, He had a harem of women.The whole event is covered by live commentary throughout the day and night. It is a thrilling race to watch, not for speed but for consistency. Towards the latter end of the race, the odds stack up, which creates more excitement. Paddlers have their own goals, which may be one or two laps; others brave it for as long as they possibly can.At the 2023 Last Paddler Standing event, Bruce was a top contender, paddling an incredible 49 laps (over 49 hours), showcasing immense endurance but ultimately being overcome by the demanding 8km Super Loop before the final winner was decided. He was among the final few paddlers standing after two days and nights of paddling, impressing everyone with his performance.December saw the 2025 edition arrive, and having missed 2024 due to Too much stuff going on, Bruce was back. We were lucky enough to be on the media team, so we were there to witness his incredible paddling firsthand.Superb drone footageThis year, the Last Paddler Standing race took place at Lake June, Lake Placid, Florida, and at 09:00 local time on Saturday morning, 33 paddlers (10 women and 23 men) took to the water. Another new aspect of the event was some superb drone footage shot by Craig Sawyer/The SUP Coach, a huge part of the production and media team. It was a game-changer to showcase the event.The new course consisted of four right-hand buoy turns, with one of them out on the main body of the lake, and this indeed became known as the Buoy of Doom, causing paddlers difficulties with heavy side chop and windy conditions, especially on the Saturday.Karen was there too; she always is, and she had decided to enter the race and complete just one lap, having recently had knee replacement surgery. To give you a flavour of the kind of man he is, Bruce made sure that he paddled alongside Karen during that first lap he would not have dreamt of leaving her behind.We saw him steadfastly paddle, consistently keeping his pace with everything superbly organised when off the water. He had a great team behind him, and all he had to do was walk to the camp, and they would do the rest. He often refers to himself as their puppet, saying that when he is at his camp, they do everything for him!This year, we had a thunderstorm with lightning, so everyone was off the water for two laps in the early hours of Monday morning. 09:00 arrived, and after 46 laps, Bruce was still there, regularly cooling himself by diving into the shallow waters from the beach directly after getting off the board and before going to his camp.We were now into Super Loop time! Bruce had been one of seven paddlers who had been paddling together since lap 38, the rest having dropped out one by one. You can choose at any time to leave the race, but the Super Seven all decided to test themselves over the longer course. This is a real test of mental ability, and we know Bruce has that in abundance.Speechless and exhaustedSuper Loop 1 tick! And now there were three paddlers left. Super Loop 2 tick! And still there were three paddlers. Super Loop 3 this is where Bruce left absolutely everything out on the water he had given his all and did not want to let anyone down, and we saw a lone figure paddling back to the beach and knew he was done. Bruce Smith completed 46 laps + 2 Super Loops! He was speechless and exhausted when he was back on the beach, but the hugs that kept coming his way were incredible. He saved the biggest and longest for last Karen. Always there, always calm (or appeared to be!) and always smiling. What a team!Bruce has certainly written himself into the history books of not only SUP racing but SUP endurance racing there are very few paddlers anywhere in the world who could do this, and we applaud every ounce of you, Bruce. Small in stature and humble, but mighty in strength and resilience. From those first moments of stepping on a board to this? Its a truly remarkable story of how you can bounce back from PTSD and a serious injury by finding your sport and your tribe.For those of us who are used to fast-paced racing and dynamic start lines, LPS is a whole new level every hour, the slowest start to a race you will ever see, but the twists and turns will hook you in and have you wondering if its at all possible for you to have a go. It is, and you should think about it as the LPS family vibe is strong its a small, supportive community and everyone who turns up has a huge sense of achievement, regardless of the laps completed.When a paddler decides to retire, Race Director, Greg Wingo hands them a poker chip, signs their race number with the number of laps completed and makes them feel a million dollars for just showing up. Private and respectful words are spoken by Greg just for that paddler.Ive watched this race almost every hour for the last three years, have been totally addicted, and to be there live, well, it really gave me a better understanding of why this race draws you in. To be there to witness Bruce achieving yet another LPS milestone was an absolute honour. We implore every level of paddler to have a go; you will not be disappointed, and you will leave with something truly special in your heart.I asked Bruce about his thoughts on LPS and Greg Wingo. Its hard to put into words what it means to be honest. Its special, and Greg makes every single competitor feel like they are special, like family. Its not just the competitors; so many spectators just turn up to support Greg, and they make you feel a million dollars. I know the word family is thrown around too much, but thats how it feels to me.Thank you, Bruce, for being such a big part of our lives and personally, I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for being such a supportive friend.We cannot wait to see what you achieve next, and huge congratulations to every paddler who took on that first lap and stepped up to be a part of Last Paddler Standing we cannot wait to see you all in 2026! Dates have just been released as 5/6th December, bearing in mind that if you have the ability, you may well be paddling into the 7th!www.lastpaddlerstanding.comwww.instagram.com/bruce_ironsmithwww.facebook.com/bruce.smith.92775838