"I'm on a Low Budget..."
-The Kinks
At some point in the future I'm going to get a stand up paddle board and join the SUP crowd. But not soon. In the meantime I've been wondering about the 12-foot board I already own...my beloved, battered Mistral Superlight. Would it work? Could I practice SUPing on it? Not in the waves (I say now, but I'm nuts so maybe later...) but perhaps on windless days on flat water. Perhaps on Davis Creek (a tidal inlet). Would it work?
The answer is Yes. I grabbed a kayak paddle and had the thing cruising in no time. It glides like a dream (like it does with a sail). Turning it is not so easy, but maybe I can learn to pivot the thing...more practice is called for. Shortly after I went out my neighbor Remy grabbed a paddle and got on her Techno, and then Sally did the same, and suddenly there were three of us paddling windsurfers up and down the creek. It's good fun. If you have access to a long paddle (I'm using a kayak paddle...see photo) you're fine, but a canoe paddle is too short for most people.
(A kayak paddle and a longboard = SUP on Davis Creek. Photo by Remy McFadden.)
Hello Mr. Janitor! Welcome to the SUP community.
Posted by: Joe Rouse | July 14, 2009 at 02:48 PM
Great shot! At first I thought you sh*t yourself with laughter having so much fun, but then I realized it was just the daggerboard knob behind you. Here's to nice clean fun. See you on the water!
Posted by: mike burns | July 14, 2009 at 08:12 PM
Thats how I started...on an original Windsurfer. It worked great. Now I have a SUP board that works great in flat water and waves. My daughter has started on the original Windsurfer...pretty soon a new SUP board for her too.
Posted by: Mac | July 14, 2009 at 09:44 PM
Michael, This could be your shark:
http://www.nbcnewyork.com/news/local/Huge-Shark-Washes-Up-on-LI-Beach.html
Posted by: Mac | July 14, 2009 at 10:55 PM
Turning should be easier if you take out the daggerboard. You will loose some stability, but hey, no risk, no fun!
Posted by: Switch | July 15, 2009 at 05:06 AM
Mac, the basking shark wasn't "my" shark. The basking shark showed up a few days later and was photographed swimming at Ponquogue. Had "my" shark been half that size I would have REALLY freaked! Mine was seven feet...eight feet tops.
Switch: I'm paddling with the centerboard up...are you saying that having it on the board at all affects turning?
Posted by: the editor | July 15, 2009 at 08:43 AM
I have done the same thing on my '88 Superlight, but I added a custom EVA pad - you would be much happier with the pad (the Superlight has a famously slippery deck). I also have a Mistral Pacifico. I thought the Superlight would have better glide (but can't be surfed) - interestingly, it does not. The Pacifico is definitely quicker. For a windsurfer like yourself, I would strongly recommend a board with mast track - had an incredible windsurf session on Monday off FI on the Pacifico (which is really a windsurfer in SUP disguise).
Posted by: Jamie | July 15, 2009 at 10:07 AM
Jamie, I have the hots for a gorgeous Naish SUP that I've seen at Windsurfing Hamptons. It's got an insert to attach a mast base.
Posted by: the editor | July 15, 2009 at 10:30 AM
>> I'm paddling with the centerboard up
If up really means in the board, it should not affect turning. If it still sticks out underneath the board, it will affect turning. If it is a pivot board, I guess having it straight down is your second best option.
Posted by: Switch | July 16, 2009 at 08:28 AM
Cool, man.
You should make a cheapy SUP paddle by wrapping a pipe or broom handle with duct tape shims and sticking it in one half of your kayak paddle. Then a little more duct tape to seal the joint, and some more to pad the handle. The length from top of the handle to tip of the blade is supposed to be your height + ~10".
If you step one foot way back on the board to lift the nose, it will turn pretty quick. :)
Posted by: James | July 17, 2009 at 01:50 PM
Thanks for the turning tip, James! You know, I was looking at the photo this AM, thinking "I'm standing further forward than I thought I was" but it still didn't occur to me that turning might be easier if I stepped back. I'm a total newbie!
Re the paddle I'm going to leave it as it is...the wife won't go for broom sticks and duct tape (if I was single I'd be all over it, though.)
Posted by: the editor | July 17, 2009 at 01:56 PM
You can get a pretty cheap adjustable Amundsen SUP paddle for about 90 bucks. Works great. I also SUP the Amundsen board, which is a great all=round board. My Kona longboard also makes a fair flat-water SUP.
-Ian
www.hudsonwindsurfer.blogspot.com
Posted by: Ian Berger | July 22, 2009 at 04:43 PM
Love the low budget SUP!
Posted by: f messina | July 25, 2009 at 12:48 PM