3 minute read
Active
What’s SUP?
Stand-up paddleboarding – or SUP – is the fastest-growing watersport and lots of fun. Whatever your age, build or fitness, have a go!
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One of the many joys of paddleboarding is that it allows you to focus on nothing else but your natural surroundings, embracing the fresh air in your lungs and a new perspective from above the water. Sian Sykes, owner of Psyched Paddleboarding based on Anglesey said: “It’s a joy taking people for a paddle along this stunning coastline. It’s a chance for them to switch o , reconnect with nature and themselves – and most of all to have fun!”
Stand-up paddleboarding uses every muscle in your body, from your feet upwards. You can make it as easy as you want: pootling with friends for a social, paddling with your pooch (dogs love it!); the more fl exible might try yoga, and for the adventurous there is SUP surfi ng, winging (with a sail) and touring. Sian is known for her expeditions, as she was the fi rst to paddleboard solo all the way around Wales – a 1,000km journey o shore and inland that took two months and involved wild camping on beaches.
Sian loves taking others out on the water. “We’ve been
fortunate enough to see porpoise, seals and dolphins. Sipping hot chocolate and dunking cookies from a paddleboard whilst watching shooting stars and witnessing magical phosphorescence – ‘sea sparkles’ as my customers like to call it – is an experience that stays in the memory forever.” Remember, SUP is not without risks and you should take appropriate risks and you should take appropriate safety precautions and follow professional guidance. The best professional guidance. The best way to start is Stand-up paddleboarding uses every muscle in your body “We’ve been to take a course. Get psyched! fortunate enough to see porpoise, Psyched Paddleboarding o ers Learn seals and dolphins” to SUP, SUP Progression courses such as Advanced Flat water and Advance Moving Water, Sea SUP Skills, SUP instructor courses, magical night tours, guided tours and expeditions. For full details and prices, visit their website at psychedpaddleboarding. Sian Sykes of Psyched spent two months paddling the Welsh coastline
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Getting kids on track
As the nights get lighter, local bike enthusiasts are celebrating the news that the North West area is set to receive more than £3.4 million to get more youngsters in the region out on two wheels
more people are equipped with the skills, confi dence and knowledge to cycle on our roads. The Bikeability Trust is continuing to o er bursaries for those wanting to join the industry as an instructor. This will help the Trust achieve its ambition of o ering cycle training to every child.
Local legend in the lead
The funding will enable more parents and pupils in the North West to leave the car at home and choose cycling for short, every day journeys. This all comes as the Department
for Transport recently launched Active Travel England, the Executive Agency tasked with driving up the quality of cycling and walking routes, led by former Olympic cyclist and local Wirral resident Chris Boardman. Visit www.
bikeability.org.uk
The North West will receive £3,436,148 to help more children learn to cycle with the Bikeability scheme as part of a record £20 million investment from the Department of Transport. It will be used to deliver cycle training for children and families in the initiative that has trained more than 3.6 million children since 2007. This funding has the potential to deliver half a million training places for children and their families across the UK, supporting even more people to introduce active travel into their everyday lives. The funding will ensure even
The Bikeability Trust aims to o er cycle training to every child
