About Us
Andrew Surles
Southeast Paddle Sports Owner and Coach
Andrew Surles has been in the paddling world for 10 years and has been coaching for 4 years. Andrew created Southeast Paddle Sports in January of 2022 to reach out to paddlers throughout the United States. Andrew is from Gainesville, GA. He is attending Kennesaw State University for Construction Management.
Paddling is one of Andrew’s favorite activities. He actively paddles and coaches canoes, kayak, surfski, dragon boat, outrigger canoe, and paddleboard. Andrew offers world-class coaching opportunities for paddlers. This includes training camps, private lessons, and online coaching. He has led the LCKC Masters to win the Sprint National Championships for the most points of any team in the United States for the years 2021, 2022, and 2023. He was also the USA team leader for the ICF Canoe and Kayak Marathon World Championships in 2022 and 2023.
Andrew has competed in many international races. This includes racing for the United States National Team at the Olympic Hopes Regatta and the ICF Sprint and Marathon World Championships for Canoe and Kayak in the years 2017-2023. He raced at the SUP World Cup in 2023 and earned 5th place in the 200m event. He was a part of the 2018 ICF and 2023 IDBF Dragon Boat USA, winning medals and world champion titles in the 2km, 1km, 500m, and 200m races. He plans to compete and coach athletes in more international races in the future.
Tanner Foreman
Southeast Paddle Sports Coach
Tanner Foreman has been paddling since 2015. She grew up paddling on the 1996 Olympic race course on Lake Lanier in Gainesville, GA. She paddles K1, surfski, outrigger canoe, and dragon boat. She raced at the 2021 and 2022 ACA Sprint National Championships, the 2021 and 2023 ACA Marathon National Championships, the 2023 IDBF Club Crew National Championships, the 2023 IDBF World Dragon Boat Racing Championships, and many local races in the Southeast.
Aside from being an athlete, Tanner also has some work experience in the paddling business. For the majority of 2023, Tanner worked as the Executive Director of Lanier Canoe & Kayak Club in Gainesville, GA. She also started assistant coaching in January of 2023. Tanner is currently the Georgia State Director for the Southeast Regional Dragon Boat Association (SRDBA) under the United States Dragon Boat Federation (USDBF) and the interim Chair of the American Canoe Association (ACA) Dragon Boat Committee. She is a certified Level 1 ACA Official.
Tanner enjoys all aspects of paddling - from training and competing to building friendships and dealing with politics. If you need equipment, a steersperson, someone’s contact information, race information, or have questions related to paddling, Tanner is the person to call. She is currently a college student, but in the future she would like to work for one of the National or International Governing Bodies for paddlesports.