The act of propelling oneself on a floating platform with the help of a
paddle or
setting pole traces back thousands of years and across many continents in the form of
rafts and
punts, but the current form and popularity of standing paddleboarding originated in Hawaii in the 1900s. Records of earlier forms of SUP have been found as early as
3,000 B.C. and its iterations span over various regions such as
Peru,
Levant,
Italy, and
China. John Ah Choy was a local Hawaiian who surfed, but as he got older and was unable to get up and down from his board, he would stand on his board from the break and paddle out with a canoe paddle to catch waves. His sons, Leroy and Bobby Ah Choy, and their friend,
Duke Kahanamoku, started to mimic this while they taught surfing to visiting tourists. They did this as a way to keep an eye on surf students while also monitoring the incoming swell. They also utilized the vantage point of being out on the water to take pictures. As the style became popular with other surfers, it took on the name Beach Boy Surfing after the instructors, who were called Waikiki Beach Boys. In the 1990s,
Laird Hamilton redefined and modernized standup paddleboarding as a sport. In 2004, SUP surfing was added as a category in the Buffalo Big Board Contest. Standup paddleboarding has diversified from a variation of surfing into racing, touring, yoga, whitewater, and fishing. Its surfing heritage coupled with its various disciplines make the sport attractive and accessible to everyone, regardless of ability. The first magazine devoted to the sport,
Standup Journal, was founded in June 2007.
SUP surfing SUP surfing is a variation of traditional surfing. Instead of lying prone on the surfboard and paddling with arms to get out to the surf zone, SUP surfing allows the participant to stand on the board from the shore and paddle out to the surf zone using a SUP paddle. The best way to move forward is to stand hip-width apart on the board with one's knees slightly bent. The paddle should be held in the water perpendicular to the board so that one does not unintentionally steer while driving. Once in the surf zone, the surfing rules still apply. At the SUP surfer's turn, one paddles and steers with the SUP paddle to catch a wave. This style of surfing is widely used by surfers who have physical limitations due to hip and shoulder injuries. Her route took her along the Cornish and Devon coast into the
Bristol Channel, up the
River Severn and by canals to
Blackpool, by sea around
Cumbria and the
Mull of Galloway, across the
Firth of Clyde to the
Isle of Arran, along the whole of the
Caledonian Canal, and up the coast of northeast Scotland. In 2020,
Jordan Wylie attempted to SUP around Great Britain, but was forced to stop after 149 days and due to
COVID-19 regulations in Scotland. In 2021, Dave Chant and Sophie Witter became the first pair to paddle Land's End to John o' Groats, taking 64 paddle days and 25 days off the water due to bad weather and logistical challenges. Their route similarly took them on a mixture of sea, river, and canals but was the longer expedition covering from start to finish.
SUP yoga SUP yoga is the practice of yoga while on a SUP board. Any SUP board can be used; however, an inflatable SUP (iSUP) is said to be more forgiving for yoga practice. SUP yoga inflatable paddleboards are mostly stable, robust all-around standup paddleboards with some important additional features: • Slightly wider than normal • Enlarged, soft, and non-slippery surface in the middle of the board for better grip • Paddle holders (lateral) for fixing the paddles during the yoga session • The carrying handle is not located in the middle of the board SUP yoga is done on calm water, such as lakes and bays.
SUP fishing The introduction of SUPs to the fishing world provided a new low-cost alternative to anglers looking to explore shallow water estuaries in the solo skiff category. The inflatable SUP could be easily traveled with or transported to destination fishing locations by car, boat, and even seaplane and packed as luggage on commercial airlines for use at travel destinations. This portability extended the anglers' fishing range and ability to fish previously unexplored areas. A paddleboard's minuscule draft allows fishermen to access extremely shallow estuaries that skiffs can not, thus increasing their popularity specifically amongst
fly fishermen and anglers who are sight fishing. SUPs do not displace as much as a traditional skiff, therefore allowing anglers to approach fish in shallow water without alerting them to their presence. A few fishing-specific SUPs are designed for mounting an engine, further extending the angler's range and creating a new hybrid SUP category. Powered fishing SUPs combines the advantages of engine-propelled shallow-water fishing vessels with the advantage of stability offered by SUPs when the angler is standing, compared with more traditional methods such as a powered canoe. == Popularity ==