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

I’ve got a lovely paddle on Derwent water next Wednesday as a mock student for a paddlesport touring leader assessment. Will get put my new sup through its paces.
 
Have just heard that naish have stock of 2022 malikos to replace my twisted 2021. Great but they want me to cut the 2021 in half and dispose of it. Seems like a waste of plastic!
 
So… yesterday was epic and a disaster all rolled into one.

First part of the day was the open water element for the guys getting assessed (I was a mock student). We paddled on Derwent Water. Everything went really well and felt comfortable paddling in force 4 and up winds. Unfortunately, I had to get into the water and pretend to be unconscious and my carbon paddle that came with my Gladiator Pro board went missing.

Second part of the day was on the River Derwent which had Grade 1 moving water with short sections of Grade 2. I did this on my older board. I took a swim on the grade 2 bit which ended up with my losing another paddle and taking a heavy hit to my lower back.

The wind became manic as we got into Bassentwaite and we decided to bail at this point. We got off the water at 5 and I didn’t leave the Lake District till 7:30 after getting all the kit away from the water and the taxis needed to get back to our cars.

What an epic day and lots learnt.
 
So… yesterday was epic and a disaster all rolled into one.

First part of the day was the open water element for the guys getting assessed (I was a mock student). We paddled on Derwent Water. Everything went really well and felt comfortable paddling in force 4 and up winds. Unfortunately, I had to get into the water and pretend to be unconscious and my carbon paddle that came with my Gladiator Pro board went missing.

Second part of the day was on the River Derwent which had Grade 1 moving water with short sections of Grade 2. I did this on my older board. I took a swim on the grade 2 bit which ended up with my losing another paddle and taking a heavy hit to my lower back.

The wind became manic as we got into Bassentwaite and we decided to bail at this point. We got off the water at 5 and I didn’t leave the Lake District till 7:30 after getting all the kit away from the water and the taxis needed to get back to our cars.

What an epic day and lots learnt.

Sorry about the paddles but great experience I'm sure!
 
Spring is definitely here now. I’ve got some big plans for the sup once my coaching assessment for canoe and kayak is complete.

first plan, sup coach training in April. 1st day is on Windermere. Really looking forward to it.
 
Soo this weekend is not SUP coaching course. Really can’t wait.

another mention for sup inflatables who provided a replacement Gladiator Pro paddle really cheap. I’ve also bought an Itwit paddle from decathlon which I’m really impressed with as a cheap alloy paddle.
 
Well the attempt to buy footrests for my kayak have resulted in my local informing me that the popular one has been on order for over 6 months and the next in line is also the same and this applies across the UK and Ireland.

Have had to buy the dreaded China special, not that I'll be doing much with it at the moment due to bloody COVID.
 
My course was incredible. My paddling took off massively!

still getting some balance issues and sore feet. How did anyone find a balance board? @Martynt74 think you made one? Are they worth it.
 
Awesome stuff. Great you're still seeing good progress.

Yeah i love my balance board. Well worth making one if you can, if not i've still got a decent chunk of birch ply left which could be used if you wanted me to make one? The issue was making the roller but you could just use some pvc pipe or a foam roller.

The other option is a balance cushion. Probably works better for balance as you're constantly adjusting, also brilliant for ankle strengthening. With the board it's quite easy to get your balance and then you're controlling the movement side to side if that makes sense and it's more of a "game"

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Core-Balan...t=&hvlocphy=1007000&hvtargid=pla-860901807106
 
Awesome stuff. Great you're still seeing good progress.

Yeah i love my balance board. Well worth making one if you can, if not i've still got a decent chunk of birch ply left which could be used if you wanted me to make one? The issue was making the roller but you could just use some pvc pipe or a foam roller.

The other option is a balance cushion. Probably works better for balance as you're constantly adjusting, also brilliant for ankle strengthening. With the board it's quite easy to get your balance and then you're controlling the movement side to side if that makes sense and it's more of a "game"

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Core-Balan...t=&hvlocphy=1007000&hvtargid=pla-860901807106


Thank you! I’ve ordered one and I’ll see how I get on.
 
Does anyone transport an inflatable sup on the roof of their car? It's a 10 min drive to my nearest spot, 40mph max. If I do back to back days then it just saves a bit of time not having to inflate/deflate them. Not sure if I trust them on the roof or though...
 
Does anyone transport an inflatable sup on the roof of their car? It's a 10 min drive to my nearest spot, 40mph max. If I do back to back days then it just saves a bit of time not having to inflate/deflate them. Not sure if I trust them on the roof or though...

I don’t but, it’s a popular way of doing it.
 
Does anyone transport an inflatable sup on the roof of their car? It's a 10 min drive to my nearest spot, 40mph max. If I do back to back days then it just saves a bit of time not having to inflate/deflate them. Not sure if I trust them on the roof or though...


I used to leave my inflatable inflated all the time and transported it like that.

As a cheap option I used some foam blocks and ratchet straps. Although I’m a fan of those soft racks too.
 
Finally got out for the first paddle in September on Saturday. Had to collect something from near Burnley, so got up early, went for a run up Pendle hill, then met a mate at Rishton on the canal. Did just over 6 miles in total and it all felt fairly pleasant except for a couple of stretches where the wind was brutal. There were spells where we'd spend around 60 seconds paddling like mad just to stay still!

What surprised me was how stable i felt. Unsure if it's due to a lot of running/strength work on single leg exercises but usually the first minute or two always feel very wobbly until i settle into it, whereas this time i just felt comfortable from the start.

@MM-Seat Not sure if you'd fancy it, but i saw someone on the Sup Manchester group arrange a paddle of around 13 miles on the 25th June. I'm still wavering between that and an Ultra marathon in the Lakes, but could be a good day out.
 
So… another goal ticked off. I passed my canoe and kayak coach assessment today after months of worry. Was a really good experience and felt really straightforward in the end.

Finally got out for the first paddle in September on Saturday. Had to collect something from near Burnley, so got up early, went for a run up Pendle hill, then met a mate at Rishton on the canal. Did just over 6 miles in total and it all felt fairly pleasant except for a couple of stretches where the wind was brutal. There were spells where we'd spend around 60 seconds paddling like mad just to stay still!

What surprised me was how stable i felt. Unsure if it's due to a lot of running/strength work on single leg exercises but usually the first minute or two always feel very wobbly until i settle into it, whereas this time i just felt comfortable from the start.

@MM-Seat Not sure if you'd fancy it, but i saw someone on the Sup Manchester group arrange a paddle of around 13 miles on the 25th June. I'm still wavering between that and an Ultra marathon in the Lakes, but could be a good day out.

I’m away that week otherwise I would have done! I’m planning on doing some lakes paddles if you are interested at all? Think I remember you saying you like to get up there early and back for lunch time, etc.
 
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