Although many years have passed since Zach Morris won his Under 9 board title, his love for board paddling and his hunger for success never deteriorated.
Tweaking his R1 Hextek board with the team at Race One ahead of the recent Australian Championships, Zach lined up to secure himself the biggest win of his career thus far, taking home the Open Australian Board Title.
“It meant a lot to me to win the board at the Australian Championships,” he said.
“Not only because I designed the board with the team at Race One, but I have had a lot of board races that I have been leading but I had never actually won one since the Under 9’s!”
Working alongside the team, Zach tweaked the width of the board tail, increased the volume of the board and moved the position of the fin box. He went on to flatten out the chest area, add more of a point to the nose of the board and wrap up his season with an Open Australian Title.
Shaping his own success both on and off the craft, Zach believes that this win came down to a combined effort of both the board and his ability to paddle it.
“I definitely think the board helped, but again, it comes down to who’s paddling the board,” he said.
“I was able to work myself from almost last position then up through the pack to get onto that winning wave!”
Riding his R1 Hextek into the upcoming season Zach endeavors to put in the work to not only defend his Australian Title in 2025, but to find success in his Ironman racing.
“Next season I would love to try and defend the board title, but also try and go out there to do my best in all the Iron events and hopefully win a few - if I’m lucky and have put in the work.”
With the offseason slowly ending, there is no doubt that Zach Morris will soon be spotted enjoying his favourite board feature along the Gold Coast coastline.
“My favourite feature in my Race One board is its ability to chase runs with such ease.” He said.
“I believe it’s the most important thing you want in a board when it comes to Surf Lifesaving; a boards ability to chase runs effortlessly!”
