An Inflatable - faster than a 12’6

[photofr]

You guys make some very valid points, even if I don't agree with all of them.
For instance, I could name a dozen 12'6 rigid boards that are going to be slower than the Starboard Racer iSUP 14x28. This will happen on several "courses" like: totally flat water, choppy or confused seas, and sidewind. I am not certain about the upwind yet (lack of data) but from what I am seeing so far, it is very promising (remains to place the 5 or 6 riders on 5 or 6 boards for more data).

I was a boat builders, and took part in several plugs for the surfski market - and while it's been a few years - I still have my preferences for stiff / efficient / hallow. Goes without saying that I would prefer a hallow board (any day, any time) but I may very well be the exception.

Perhaps the one thing we will all agree on is traveling with an iSUP, and specifically: lowering our handicap on an iSUP while traveling. In this particular case, traveling to countries like Norway, Switzerland and Italy in the same month may turn at times be impossible using a rigid board, or very practical with an iSUP.

The ability to actually experience such outings can now become a reality, without even feeling like I am touring "Norway" on a Boogie-Board.

So yeah… a fast iSUP 14x28 instead of a fast 12'6 rigid board may be the (only) way to go on certain occasions.

[UKRiverSurfers]

Perhaps the one thing we will all agree on is traveling with an iSUP, and specifically: lowering our handicap on an iSUP while traveling. In this particular case, traveling to countries like Norway, Switzerland and Italy in the same month may turn at times be impossible using a rigid board, or very practical with an iSUP.

I would drive between them countries and take solid boards

I would squeeze my 7'2 IRS in though for a few standing waves...

Nice to have a 'paddler' on here with a solid 'paddling' back ground by the way photofr!

[photofr]

On a side note: We are talking about super fast 12'6 rigid boards, seeking more efficient inflatable boards, design changes nearly every year to "gain an advantage" and further excel by 2% in speed…

The reality is, I would so much rather see everyone in a paddling school for at least 3 days. This would help every new comer improve their paddling technique, and safety. With proper technique, we would see more dedication to the sport, and perhaps paddlers' efficiency spike by 30%.

More efficient = seeing more and enjoying more.

[UKRiverSurfers]

Thats a great philosophy

[Muskoka SUP]

Wow.  I certainly am stoked about the progress in iSup technology.  There will be a couple in the near future for my wife and I - they make so much sense for frequent travelling... 

What I wasn't aware of is how they will replace rigid boards for every part of the SUP game... As well, inflatable technology will render current AC Catamarans obsolete, and from what I'm guessing, the Volvo Ocean race will be using Inflatables.. Also rowing, sculling, canoeing, kayaking, surf skiing, windsurfing, etc, etc, etc. 

In the mean time I guess I'll just have to suffer and use my rigid boards... 

[Area 10]

So - we have a bunch of paddlers in the UK that do not have a timeserved back ground. When and if elite paddlers do get attracted to UK SUP racing the boys at the top will be blown out of the water. So maybe they want to keep it aimed at low end paddling fraternity??

You are in danger of sounding like a paddłe snob here. I assume that you regard yourself as belonging to the "time served" camp, so go enter a race and show the top guys how important it is to have a long paddling background.

Although I should point out that people like Connor Baxter had not served that much time before they were beating the guys who had decades of experience in eg. OC. So time served is a tricky concept. Larry Cain has more paddle experience than most, and does extraordinarily well. But there are also people like Annabel Anderson who are pushing even long-time male paddlers after only a couple of years in the sport. So I think you could probably make whatever case you like out of the examples on offer.

However, unsurprisingly, the top athletes in the world tend to have a paddle background of some sort, more than any other. But in the UK there is relatively little tradition of ocean culture, so the Jamie Mitchell's and Travis Grants that other countries have do not exist. So it is even more remarkable that our top guys and girls can roughly compete with international athletes from a paddle/ocean sports background. I think you should be encouraging them rather than telling them that eg. if serious kayakers wanted to they could thrash them. We did in fact have an Olympic paddler in the UK race scene a few years ago. He did well, but didn't outshine the triathletes once they got serious about SUP. So please don't put our guys and girls down. Given the limitations culturally and weatherwise of the UK, they are doing pretty well.

[photofr]

Totally off subject, but to my knowledge the UK has amazing paddlers for flat water: Rowing shells, K4, K1 flat water - or am I totally mistaking? I am asking, because apparently, with such a strong paddling pedigree on flat water, the UK doesn't seem to be too involved in the ocean.

I am not even sure the statement above is correct, but if it is, then I have additional questions:
- Why are UK paddlers not spending more time in the ocean?
- With the rough weather and harsh tides, why don't we hear much about UK paddlers on SUP or Surfskis in the ocean?

To compare:
France has couple of strong paddlers, and most of them come from the harsh coastline of Brittany - which could be like UK's little sister.

[UKRiverSurfers]

Totally off subject, but to my knowledge the UK has amazing paddlers for flat water: Rowing shells, K4, K1 flat water - or am I totally mistaking? I am asking, because apparently, with such a strong paddling pedigree on flat water, the UK doesn't seem to be too involved in the ocean.

I am not even sure the statement above is correct, but if it is, then I have additional questions:
- Why are UK paddlers not spending more time in the ocean?
- With the rough weather and harsh tides, why don't we hear much about UK paddlers on SUP or Surfskis in the ocean?

To compare:
France has couple of strong paddlers, and most of them come from the harsh coastline of Brittany - which could be like UK's little sister.

I think the main reason is because of the way the guys bringing in the stuff are marketing it and aiming at paddlers who are not already paddlers of another craft.

[UKRiverSurfers]

So - we have a bunch of paddlers in the UK that do not have a timeserved back ground. When and if elite paddlers do get attracted to UK SUP racing the boys at the top will be blown out of the water. So maybe they want to keep it aimed at low end paddling fraternity??

You are in danger of sounding like a paddłe snob here. I assume that you regard yourself as belonging to the "time served" camp, so go enter a race and show the top guys how important it is to have a long paddling background.

Although I should point out that people like Connor Baxter had not served that much time before they were beating the guys who had decades of experience in eg. OC. So time served is a tricky concept. Larry Cain has more paddle experience than most, and does extraordinarily well. But there are also people like Annabel Anderson who are pushing even long-time male paddlers after only a couple of years in the sport. So I think you could probably make whatever case you like out of the examples on offer.

However, unsurprisingly, the top athletes in the world tend to have a paddle background of some sort, more than any other. But in the UK there is relatively little tradition of ocean culture, so the Jamie Mitchell's and Travis Grants that other countries have do not exist. So it is even more remarkable that our top guys and girls can roughly compete with international athletes from a paddle/ocean sports background. I think you should be encouraging them rather than telling them that eg. if serious kayakers wanted to they could thrash them. We did in fact have an Olympic paddler in the UK race scene a few years ago. He did well, but didn't outshine the triathletes once they got serious about SUP. So please don't put our guys and girls down. Given the limitations culturally and weatherwise of the UK, they are doing pretty well.

Well - Im possibly gonna be doing the race organised by Tids on the Devon North Coast, but its unlikely I'm not gonna be there now because they use FB as their main platform and I am now no longer on Force Book

I lay down challenges all the time but most folk don't wanna go near where i paddle and that include you, Professor

[Chilly]

Totally off subject, but to my knowledge the UK has amazing paddlers for flat water: Rowing shells, K4, K1 flat water - or am I totally mistaking? I am asking, because apparently, with such a strong paddling pedigree on flat water, the UK doesn't seem to be too involved in the ocean.

I am not even sure the statement above is correct, but if it is, then I have additional questions:
- Why are UK paddlers not spending more time in the ocean?
- With the rough weather and harsh tides, why don't we hear much about UK paddlers on SUP or Surfskis in the ocean?

To compare:
France has couple of strong paddlers, and most of them come from the harsh coastline of Brittany - which could be like UK's little sister.

I think the main reason is because of the way the guys bringing in the stuff are marketing it and aiming at paddlers who are not already paddlers of another craft.

I thought it’s because of this.

[Area 10]

Totally off subject, but to my knowledge the UK has amazing paddlers for flat water: Rowing shells, K4, K1 flat water - or am I totally mistaking? I am asking, because apparently, with such a strong paddling pedigree on flat water, the UK doesn't seem to be too involved in the ocean.

I am not even sure the statement above is correct, but if it is, then I have additional questions:
- Why are UK paddlers not spending more time in the ocean?
- With the rough weather and harsh tides, why don't we hear much about UK paddlers on SUP or Surfskis in the ocean?

To compare:
France has couple of strong paddlers, and most of them come from the harsh coastline of Brittany - which could be like UK's little sister.

Yes, the UK is VERY strong in rowing in particular. That is a cultural thing - with university teams taken very seriously, and money form the government put into fostering new talent at e.g. the Olympics. In fact, at least one of our gold-winning women rowers had no previous experience of rowing before starting to train for the 2012 London Olympics about 2-3 years before, so despite what UKRiversurfers says, you can become good at a paddle sport with relatively little "time served".

UK do spend time in the ocean. In boats. We are strong in sailing. Again, its another cultural thing. What we don't have is much significant culture of surf lifesaving like there is in Oz. And surfing is a minority sport, largely because our weather is harsh and most of the best spots are a long way from the main towns or places you can earn a living. The UK is cold, wet, and windy in winter. Some large coastal areas such as those in Scotland are significantly harsher than e.g. the Brittany coast. There are a couple of OC teams now in the UK but again this is a vanishingly small minority activity. There just aren't the facilities to store kit, socialise etc that the sailing and rowing clubs have, and UK people do not tend to spend much money on participation sports, other than football, and fishing, and to a lesser extent cycling. As I say, it's just a cultural thing really. Like why 99.9% of top swimmers in the world are white, I guess. Sport is culturally divided along very strict lines, and it is not yet clear where SUP fits into the social hierarchies and structures, let alone the sporting organisation ones.

[UKRiverSurfers]

Totally off subject, but to my knowledge the UK has amazing paddlers for flat water: Rowing shells, K4, K1 flat water - or am I totally mistaking? I am asking, because apparently, with such a strong paddling pedigree on flat water, the UK doesn't seem to be too involved in the ocean.

I am not even sure the statement above is correct, but if it is, then I have additional questions:
- Why are UK paddlers not spending more time in the ocean?
- With the rough weather and harsh tides, why don't we hear much about UK paddlers on SUP or Surfskis in the ocean?

To compare:
France has couple of strong paddlers, and most of them come from the harsh coastline of Brittany - which could be like UK's little sister.

I think the main reason is because of the way the guys bringing in the stuff are marketing it and aiming at paddlers who are not already paddlers of another craft.

I thought it’s because of this.

    Yeah, probably!

[UKRiverSurfers]

 

so despite what UKRiversurfers says, you can become good at a paddle sport with relatively little "time served".

Depends on your definition of good of course

[Area 10]

I lay down challenges all the time but most folk don't wanna go near where i paddle and that include you, Professor

That's a crock of crap. My commute to work is a 5 hour round trip in order to allow me to live by the ocean, as I was brought up next to it. My life already involves a huge amount of travel sacrifice in order to pursue my love of the sea, so when I have time off work and are not in the sea I want to spend it with my family and not gallivanting all around the UK involving yet more hours of sitting in cars etc.

Where were you last weekend? It was gusting 40 knots and we had a good, if knackering downwinder.

[Area 10]

so despite what UKRiversurfers says, you can become good at a paddle sport with relatively little "time served".

Depends on your definition of good of course

Well if winning an Olympic Gold doesn't qualify you as being good at something then might I suggest that perhaps you are setting the bar a little high?