How to Stand Up Paddle Surf

The Best of the Best How-to-SUP Stuff from Around the Globe — Just Add Water & Go!

Dihedral in Your SUP Paddle?

There’s an interesting discussion about dihedral, pro, con and neutral, in your SUP paddle over on the zone.  Interesting reading.  Here’s the question that started the ball rolling:

i have a werner spanker and for something different thought i might try a smaller bladed paddle.  everyone loves the methane, so that’s been my first choice.
but then a former methane owner brought to my attention the fact that, unlike the werners (both spanker and nitro), the methane has no dihedral.
my question is: am i going to miss it?  i’d welcome input, especially from those who have used both styles.
thanks!  and, btw, this paddle will be for surf-use only, if that makes a diff.

dihedral (werner nitro) or no dihedral (kialoa methane)?

How to Prep Your SUP Paddle!

I’m getting ready to buy a new paddle — a Methane — and have been poking around the web, looking at stuff paddle related.  I came across this today, from Ponobill at kenalu.com, and thought I’d share it.  Have a read!

Few things in SUP cause more controversy than paddle prep. Some folks like their shaft bare, some like padded shafts, some like wax, some like mastic tape. I’ve played with about every combination and I’ve hit on the perfect preparation for me. I suspect you’ll like it too, even if you’re a bare shaft fan.

I say that because I’m a bare shaft guy. I don’t mind a little wax, but I don’t like the shaft to be too sticky, and I don’t like it being larger, or having a soft grip. Nothing saps my hand strength faster than a soft grip.

But I also don’t like my hands to slip, and the least bit of sunblock or oil on my hands or the shaft and my paddling is compromised. Yes, I clean my hands with sand and give the shaft a scrub, but you can transfer goop from other places easily. This approach solves the problem, giving positive traction without softening or thickening the grip. Once it’s done it lasts for many months–you never have to rewax.

Here’s the recipe:
The Grip: Locate your grip area and mark the shaft with pencil about ten inches above and below the grip point. If you’re not sure of your grip point, hold your paddle on your head, place on hand on the handle, the other on the shaft and bend your elbows at right angles so your forearms point straight up–the hand on the shaft will be in a nearly perfect grip position.

Start at the upper mark and wrap hockey tape around the shaft, starting with one full wrap and then overlapping the successive wraps for half the width of the tape. End with one full wrap.

Now wax the tape with warm water surf wax lightly over the full length and heavily in the grip area. You’ll be able to both see and feel the proper grip point. The wax embeds into the tape and doesn’t come off, even after months of use. The wax also cushions and strengthens the tape, making it last much longer. and finally the wax prevents the tape from being too sticky, as friction tapes sometimes get when the adhesive bleeds through the cloth.

The Blade: There are three good reasons for guarding the blade. First, people have been badly cut with unguarded blades. Second, the blade can chip up your board. And third, the blade can be damaged by hitting it’s edge on hard stuff.

Door edging or commercial blade guard works nicely, but it’s a bit thick for my taste. Mastic tape is good, but it’s fragile, especially if you stretch it thin. What I do is put on a layer of mastic, stretched very tight to make it thin, and then cover it with hockey tape. Finally I add a layer of wax to protect the tape and rub it with a cloth to smooth it. You’d be surprised at the difference in abrasion resistance between waxed and unwaxed fabric tape. The end result is a thin protective edging that won’t mark your board, lasts a very long time, and looks great.

How To | Ke Nalu - Stand Up Paddle Surfing eMagazine

How NOT to Ride Your SUP

I hate to single these guys out but, for illustrative purposes, at least the first half of the vid (I didn’t go all the way) shows exactly how NOT to use your paddle on a SUP.  Don’t know where he got the idea to do it the way he’s doing it but, but he’s got it all wrong all the way all the time.  Don’t do it like this guy!  Okay?  And I’m not going to tell you what it is he’s doing wrong.  It should be obvious from his first wave.  If it’s not, leave me a comment and I’ll tell you.  Over n out.  (And again, sorry to CJ and AP; I don’t know them and have no axe to pick with them, only with the way at least one of them rides)