Paddlesports (Kayaking, Canoe, Stand-Up Paddle boards)

MM-Seat said:
So this weekend I'll be on Windermere for the first time. Very exciting! One of the other guys on assessment is on a SUP so that should be fun!

Hope everyone else is getting some paddles in!
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Enjoy Windermere.

I have been getting out less as work is rammed but did have a burn late last week. I've been asked to do a 10km run for charity for a conference I am speaking at (virtually) next week. Thought I might do it on the SUP instead over the weekend.

What phone based trackers are people using? As you have to post your 'run'. The supboarder one is irritatingly still iphone only.
 
MM-Seat said:
So this weekend I'll be on Windermere for the first time. Very exciting! One of the other guys on assessment is on a SUP so that should be fun!

Hope everyone else is getting some paddles in!
Click to expand...

Enjoy it. Windermere is great, plus it should be fairly quiet this time of year you'd hope.

I was looking at doing the perimeter later this month, but at 26 miles it might be a bit of a big jump from the 12 miles of my current longest paddle. Especially solo at a time when daylight isn't around for long. I'm going to tackle Ullswater i think.
 
Strava is certainly the "goto" app/platform for runners/cyclists.

Here's an example of my Coniston paddle to give you an idea
https://www.strava.com/activities/3881773567


I keep trying to decide if i want a new paddle. My Gladiator one is full carbon and it's so light, but it's a flat blade and it has no anti-twist so it's not a brilliant paddle design. My starboard one is a much better design but with it being a hybrid construction it's a decent amount heavier. So it feels like i've experienced both sides of the spectrum and would like a paddle which combines the 2. A guy locally has spent lockdown designing carbon paddles. He let me use a few different styles of them a few weeks ago and they felt really good. Incredibly light and a good catch. The only issue was the clamps didn't feel like they closed properly (these were prototypes though). The sticking point is they're £230 for the 2 piece and it's an unknown entity. Whereas i can spend an extra £40 for the black project, get a really good quality paddle bag and also have a very well known paddle which would hold it's value.

My mate who's been after a hard board has finally made a purchase. He was looking at a few options, but has decided to buy a £400 12'6x30 Fanatic race board. It's around 10 years old and a bit marked, but it should be a great board for 12 months and i would imagine he wouldn't lose any money on it if he moved it on. It also will help show him whether he'd prefer to be narrower or longer.
 
No, i don't really get up there often enough to make use of it. It's around a 40 minute drive for me, and if i'm doing that drive i'd rather head to St Annes and go in the sea or drive a little further and go to the lake district.

The SUP North guys haven't really arranged many paddle and pint days this year either, to make use of it.

I'm not sure if they've scrapped the day permit too.
 
Funny isn't it, in Spain i paddled every day and yet i've been back almost 2 weeks now and haven't been out yet. What i'd give to live by the sea!

Whilst in Spain my wife brought up whether i'd want to do any SUP style holidays. I've since been looking at the 11 City Sup tour. It feels like that's the "Boston Maraton" of the SUP world and would be amazing to take part in it.

I'm just trying to decide how enjoyable something like that would be on my own for a whole week.
 
I passed my paddlesport leader award!

I now have quite a wide remit. Can take novices on the water and get them to a standard to go on a trip as long as 200 meters away from a safe landing.

Ive been looking at some SUPs as that's something I could store and make use of and I think will be very popular with the scouts. Could be a next year purchase however, like the look of the bluefin that a few have had in here.
 
Brilliant. Congratulations.

If i'm honest i'd look at Gladiators instead. I found the Bluefin to be very heavy and so if you're using with kids it may be a struggle, the Gladiators are lighter which is more manageable. Depending on your budget of course, but i know the SUP Wirral people use Gladiators as their lesson/hire board.

Suppose it depends on if you can get deals from anywhere for buying multiple.
 
God dammit, i think i have a problem.

I saw a Black Project Ray fin advertised on Facebook. I'd been debating trying out another fin for a while and had been looking at some FCS ones for around the £50 mark as i decided the Black Project ones were too expensive. However i saw this one advertised and have gone for it.

I've also decided a board in Spain is 100% the right way to go. We're going again in December, so that's twice this year at a cost of £100 and we have discussed going for more short breaks in the future, so that's potentially £150 a year that's thrown away on baggage fees along with increased hassle carrying stuff around and filling up cars.

I've spoken to the guy who runs Fatstick Spain and he has a "Pure Wood" that he's been using over summer that he's willing to see. He's local to where my parents live so i'll chat to him when i go out in December. But also keeping an eye on local facebook sale groups. It's only a 10'6 but has a double concave to increase glide, so is probably comparable to a 11'6 inflatable from a paddling point of view. It also looks very pretty which is very important, and will hold it's value pretty well.

https://fatstickboards.com/shop/pure-wood/
 
Ideally yes, i initially enquired to see if he had any old stock of the 12'6, however no options. Fatstick do seem to describe it as a touring board, so not sure whether the shape of the hull helps slightly.

I've been looking over here and initially my plan was to buy something here where i know where to look for used boards, but getting it over there is difficult to say the least. I've had quotes from "No chance at that size" to "£720". It's too big to take on the plane as Sports Equipment, and then because they're 4 metres long, it's too big for most people who drive over in a van.

My other thinking then gets very carried away looking at something like a Starboard Generation. That'd be my perfect board over there, but it's also a grand plus a bag and i don't think i need something brand new. I can make it work using man logic, in that it's probably still worth £600 after a few years and from the money saved in luggage fees it's paid for itself. It's just whether my head likes the idea of having a better board over there than i have here, and that's then a very slippy slope!
 
Starting to find a few online retailers for Spain now.

I'm in 2 minds which way to go here.

1 - Buy a 12'6x30 Gladiator Elite and get it delivered to Spain. Cost will be £630 all in and i'll have a pump/paddle over there and it's all nice and done. Nice and easy for my parents to store, probably better for my mum to use, and also could stick a Kayak seat on for my dad as he was debating buying an inflatable Kayak to potter around on. For the price/quality, i don't think there's anything better than this board.

2 - Buy a hard board. Cost would be almost double option 1 once i factor in a bag/rail tape and i'd take my Gladiator paddle over with me and leave it there. It'd likely have to be stored outside and obviously would be sat for a long time in the bag not being checked for issues when i'm not visiting. It's also heavier and less durable with me being nervous about scratches etc. However it'd hold its value a lot better i think and performance would certainly be much better.

3 - Buy the Fatstick board about. Cost would be about the same as the Gladiator, but i'd need to buy a bag and take over my paddle. Benefits would be cost and it holding value, however i think i'd always wish for something a little longer and there's a part of me that wouldn't be happy with a 10'6, no matter what design features it has to increase glide. It's also 31" wide and i find my paddling technique suffers from that wide a board vs my 27" (This would also be a factor with the Gladiator i imagine)



As an idea, these are the hard boards i've been looking at

https://www.redwoodpaddle.es/261-race-explorer-11-6.html
https://sicmaui.uk/product/sonic/
https://hoenalu.com/es/producto/starboard/generation-12-6-x28
https://xn--fatstickespaa-tkb.com/shop/race-touring-sup-paddle-board/


The generation would be the best board, but is a little more expensive. The SIC would be durable which is certainly a plus point as i think i'd worry less.

The Fatstick owner lives round the corned from my parents and i've chatted to him over email and there's always a chance he might offer a small discount/ throw in a bag which is tempting.
 
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Would you be storing inside or outside?

I think you'd kick yourself buying a 10.6 31 inch board if you are going to do some longer tours.

Generation looks good as does the SIC.
 
I've asked my dad for clarification on the size of their shed. I can't quite picture the length of it, but i'm not sure a 12'6 would fit lengthways. They also have shelving along the back wall so not much scope to put diagonally as i need to be conscious of not taking up their space.

There is plenty of outside space with some covering, so i think it'd be fine outside in the bag covered in a tarp. I could even look to build a small cover in the space between the back of their shed and the external wall.

There's a huge part of me that says the Gladiator is the sensible option, it's cheap, it's packable and probably more durable. But similar to the 10'6 i think i'd always be longing for a hard board. The problem with a hard board is as mentioned before where if i really enjoy it then i end up looking for one over here as well.



EDIT - Just had a reply from Sup Inflatables that the Gladiator isn't available until January. That's an extra £50 on taking my Fanatic out there again, which could be removed from a hard board. I'm at the point where any justification i can make for a hard board i'll take. I would also have to fly over with it myself as in January we'll no longer be in the EU and so there would be import taxes due on getting it shipped over directly, so that's another £30 for the luggage.
 
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