Standing on a paddle board, Karl Kruger raced among dozens of motorless boats in an attempt to travel from Port Townsend to Ketchikan, AK. Unfortunately, Kruger had to bow out of the race early when his board began to warp under the weight of him and his gear.

“I had a blast! I really had fun,” said Kruger, who lives on Orcas Island with his wife Jessica and eight-year-old daughter Dagny. “I could not be happier with the gear I had on the board, the food I was using, my fitness, my paddle.”

Now in its second year, Race to Alaska is an intense competition of non-motorized boats sailing unaided across 750 miles along the Inside Passage. The first team to cross the finish line wins $10,000, the second a set of steak knives and the third a pat on the back. Last year 35 boats started, and only 15 made it to Ketchikan. The winner of the 2015 race made it in five days, one hour and 55 minutes, with the last boat arriving 23 days after the race began.

The 2016 winner was Team MAD Dog racing from California. They completed the trek in just three days, 20 hours and 13 minutes. This year a total of 64 boats and one paddle board registered.

Kruger named his one-man team Heart of Gold, and set off from Port Townsend on June 23, traveling 40 miles to Victoria. He was the 41st vessel to arrive in Victoria. A day later, he began the 710-mile stretch to Ketchikan. Surprisingly, Kruger was passing many of the boats and was holding his own among his larger competitors.

“By mid-afternoon he was mid-pack, miles ahead of any other solo team, and had paddled his way in front of some of the faster boats in the fleet,” said the Race to Alaska website.

Kruger had a strong start during the second leg of the race, despite a breeze for the sailboats, and was optimistic about seeing his idea through to the end.

“I’m sure a lot of people probably thought I was nuts, not realizing how many hours I had put into it,” he said.

Kruger and his wife own and operate Kruger Escapes, which offers sailing, skiing and surfing trips in the Pacific Northwest, British Columbia, and Southeast Alaska coastal waters.

He spent a year training and worked with Chuck Silva to prepare for the physical part of the trip, and spent thousands of hours studying charts and making a plan. He would also ride his paddle board all the way around Orcas Island, which is more than 40 miles.

Much of Kruger’s life has been spent participating in extreme outdoor endeavors. One of those activities was Alpine climbing, which has a philosophy of traveling light. This ideology aided him with his gear selection for the trip.

“My goal was to make that mileage every single day,” Kruger explained. “It’s become my race track. In all conditions. I don’t cherry pick my days.”

During his voyage towards Alaska, the weight of his body and the additional 40-50 pounds of gear and water caused the board to give out. He found himself paddling 40 times on the left side and 12 times on the right. The imbalanced movements began to take a toll.

“Psychologically, I was happy,” said Kruger. “There just isn’t a board on the planet that could do what was expected … I had these shooting pains in my right hip and my right knee,” Kruger said.

The board he used was a top of the line carbon-fiber board, which costs nearly $5,000.

“I think I broke it, actually. There are cracks in the cockpit,” he said.

Kruger wants to try the race again next year but says he will need to find a sponsor to help him purchase a custom board that can withstand the stress.

“I was into the adventure of it,” Kruger said when asked what inspired him to enter the competition. “Paddling is the best way to get intimate with this coast.”