Book a private lesson with your friends or family and learn how to SUP! We teach you everything you need to know. Stand Up Paddling is very easy and quick to learn. Our beginner friendly SUP boards are very stable and the flat water makes it easy to glide along. But you will need to understand paddling techniques and correct stance and make sure you do not have your paddle around the wrong way!
The first steps…
Before you get into the water, ensure you know the safety basics and have the right equipment as per our SUP safety section. A beginner’s board must be large enough so that you can safely stand on it even in choppy water. Narrow race boards are not a good way to start…. Same goes for the water. Start with flat water with as little wind and current as possible.
The first time on the board, try to be relaxed, you might find the board tippy moving from side to side. Don’t Stand horizontal to the board like a surfer, stand facing straight forward with a wide parallel stance. Any reposition of your feet are to be made in tiny half-inch steps or hops. Relax, bend your knees, relax and stay loose in the hips. Use your paddle for balance, move blade forward or backward to keep steady, and even lean on it or pull up on it to find your balance. Keep your paddle in the water as much as possible and never let go of it.
Some good advice for beginners
Stand in the middle of the board. Too far forward will sink the nose. Too far back will drag the tail and slow you down. You generally want a wide centered parallel stance for long-distance paddling on flat water because it’s more stable and gives you easier, even paddle transitions from side to side. Hold the paddle with one hand about half way down the shaft and the other hand on the T Bar grip at the top of the paddle. With a straight back and slightly bent knees reach forward and place the first 1/3 of the paddle into the water. Your aim should be to pull yourself towards the paddle rather than pull the paddle towards you. As the paddle moves past your body you should pick it out of the water and rotate the blade and bring the paddle through the air and back to the starting position. Then, repeat the stroke. If you are moving off course, swap your hands around and put in a stroke on the other side of the board. (when paddling on your left hand side your right hand should be on the T Bar grip and the other way round)
What you can learn at SUP centre:
- get to know the SUP equipment
- find right size of board and paddle
- get up on the board including the proper and correct stance
- hold the paddle and basic paddling techniques including turning and direction control
- advanced paddle strokes
- safty rules and paddling in strong winds
We are featured on the learn 2 paddle board website.
