In July 2018, the inaugural year of the Blazing Paddles race on the Cuyahoga River through downtown Cleveland, Tommy Piros decided at last minute, on a whim, to enter the race in the Men’s 2-mile SUP (stand up paddle board) Division. Tommy had never raced a SUP before - like ever. In fact, Tommy’s prior experience on a paddle board consisted of playing around on his sister Julia’s rec board in the Rockcliff Wave, which by the way, is where I first met him.

For those who didn’t know him, Tommy was a kayaker. Not just any kayaker; an exceptionally talented whitewater kayaker, sponsored by Jackson Kayak. He loved running wild rivers and stout waterfalls, and he did it with his own unique style and grace. His whole family kayaks, and they’re all really, REALLY good. Tommy started paddling before he was out of diapers. The guy basically grew up on the water and he was always up for an adventure.

Anyway, Tommy was planning on racing in Blazing Paddles Paddlefest, a pretty competitive race, using a heavy, sluggish rec board. Great for stability, not so much for speed. I said “Nah bro, you can borrow my Starboard AllStar race board.”

My AllStar was narrow, light, and super unstable. But if you could tame her, she was really freaking fast. Her planing hull would just glide for dayssss if you could keep your balance. She was either pure speed, or a lot of swimming lessons, depending on rider ability. Definitely not a beginner board.

So I met up with Tommy at Emerald Necklace Marina the evening before the race to let him take a test drive, show him the basics, and see if the AllStar would work for him. We tooled around the Cleveland Yacht Club for less than an hour. He figured her out pretty quick; didn’t fall off once. Never turned the burner on either, but whatever, everything checked out. So he strapped her up to his J-bars. “Cool, see you at the race tomorrow.”

Sidebar: I also let him borrow a spare paddle, which was a broken adjustable, held together by duct tape.

RACE DAY!!

All the racers were launching and lining up for the 2-mile race. Everyone’s paddling around, jockeying for a good starting position. Minor chaos. Last I saw Tommy before I found my spot on the starting line, he was way in the back. Gun went off. No sign of Tommy. “Damn, I hope he didn’t get caught in the choppy start wakes!” He did.

About 3/4 miles into the race, I was in a really good position, keeping up with the front runners, breaking further away from the middle pack. It felt like the leading pack was pretty much solidified until the final, finish line push. Everyone had a good cruising speed going when all of a sudden Tommy came flying past me out of nowhere. “Whoa! Where did you come from?”

He overtook the next guy, the next guy, next guy. Tommy was paddling super strong, with complete board control and perfect balance; just gliding past everyone until he finally took the lead! At the one mile marker he nailed the buoy turn, and after that, there was no way anyone was going to catch him. “Hahahaha! Go Tommy, go!” He made it look so effortless.

Tommy, in his first and only SUP race, on a very difficult, borrowed board, using a janky paddle, with one hour of practice the night before, came from behind to win the 2-mile race overall. By A LOT!

That was Tommy. A winner.

Super cool guy. Free spirit. Friend to all. Naturally talented. Funny. Kind. Humble. Lived his best life everyday.

Gone way too soon Rest easy, my adventurous friend.

Please keep the Piros/ Homberg family in your prayers. A memorial service for Tommy is Wednesday, July 26, 2023, 12:30 p.m at North Olmsted Friends Church, 5665 Great Northern Blvd. North Olmsted, OH 44070 (get map)

If you would like to donate to Tommy’s medical and funeral expenses, here is the GoFundMe link https://gofund.me/44fed25f

#staystokedlikeTommy

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