TRENDING NOW
T A H W One of the largest selling sports equipment through lockdown has been the Stand Up Paddleboards (SUP) – many sold out and they were hard to get hold of unless you wanted to pay a small fortune to get an expensive one. I decided to see for myself why everyone has been going bonkers for this new leisure activity. Having gone down the cheap route and ordered a ‘Groupon’ paddleboard last year for only £180 I was very excited to test it out, only to discover it was cheap for a reason. It bent when you stood on it and was too narrow and short at only 10ft. Fine if you are a light weight teenager but at 5ft8 and over 10 stone,
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I could not stand up and spent the entire time in the water. So this time I decided to upgrade and tested out the ‘Red’ inflatable Paddleboard size 10’6” (www.redpaddleco. com £859). It was easy to pump up and with easy to follow instructions on the valve, I was relieved it didn’t take long to setup. It was much easier to stand up and you couldn’t tell it was inflatable. I tried very hard to look cool as I walked along the beach but I was beaten back by the wind and struggled to walk like I was in Baywatch. I wondered to myself – how do people make this look so effortless as I got battered by waves getting out far enough to pull myself up to my knees before falling straight in the sea. I realised quite quickly I
should really do this when the sea is calm or on a river but still enjoyed the experience. The feeling of freedom bobbing along on the sea after lockdown was amazing. It is a good workout for your arms, as well as mindfulness for your soul. The SUP experience clears a busy or anxious mind and simply focusses all your thoughts with a sense of satisfaction when you don’t fall off and leaves no other room in your mind other than staying on the board. Sorted Surf shop by Boscombe Pier hire out SUPs for £15 for 30 mins so it is worth getting a lesson or testing it out before purchasing. For more information visit: www.redpaddleco.com and www.sortedsurfshop.co.uk
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