SUP industry exposed?

[stoneaxe]

I don't think there is any question it's slowing. But there are still plenty of newbies out there. There will always be those that get the bug and keep it moving. This is simply the hangover after the wild party of the last 10 years. We've become a more mature sport, fallout was bound to happen after all the exuberance. I agree that racing is dying....I know I've lost most of my interest in it. That's just me but I've heard a number of others with similar sentiments.

[Zooport]

Agree, Stony.  Yes, it is slowing.  As everyone has already said, it's not going away.  Just becoming less profitable for all making their living from it.  Why is anyone surprised by this?

[all~wet]

Not sure that any of this should be seen in any way as a negative, more like a healthy eventuality.  In nature, uncontrolled continuous growth is somewhat akin to cancer while the ideal would be finding a point of sustainable balance- homeostasis.

[SupSimcoe]

This same slow of growth is not isolated to the water sports industry. It has affected all sports. Bicycling has seen this cycle quite a few times with the last decline in MTB back in 1999. They are now seeing this in the road bike area but Gravel bikes are starting to go up.

I see a few issues with this sport which are causing issues but I think the biggest is that is is not a sport that you can do a few times and be good at. It takes hundreds of hours to get OK and thousands to get good. Also it is one of the least efficient sports as we use a huge amount of effort to go at a fast walking/slow jogging pace which lowers the enjoyment factor for some.

If those who rent and sell boards do more to train the users and give them a good start then we have a chance at slowing the pace of the decline.

For racing we should definitely look at the price and way we compete. It is generally costly to race and when we put all the racers of all abilities out at the same time it starts to make luck and chance part of the outcome which frustrates the competitors.

For the rest of us we should try to get as many as we can to join us out on the water and introduce them properly to the sport.

For the manufacturers they have to do more to promote the sport and do the dealers a favor and not introduce next years models before the current ones are sold. This is exactly what happened in bicycles and the dealers have stopped ordering as many bikes because there selling season is getting shorter and shorter.

[surf4food]

The first time I ever saw SUP was in this American Express commercial with Laird:



Next time I saw it was in this segment from the movie Sport Of Kins which I saw at the La Paloma theater in Encinitas:



Both times I thought WTF and just for of dismissed it as a novelty that would never catch on.  Who knew back them it would go through this whole cycle and we would now be having this very conversation?

[surf4food]

I see a few issues with this sport which are causing issues but I think the biggest is that is is not a sport that you can do a few times and be good at. It takes hundreds of hours to get OK and thousands to get good.

Well that depends on what type of paddling you're into.  The overwhelming majority paddlers are flat water.

[SupSimcoe]

Well that depends on what type of paddling you're into.  The overwhelming majority paddlers are flat water.

That may be another issue as I either have to get up at dawn to get flat water or only go out a few times a week to get flat water. I remember back to a few years ago when I first started out and I had a horrible time trying to negotiate wind and chop that now I don't even notice.

Again it took a lot of hours to get comfortable more conditions and a lot of training to get there.

Some may be lucky to have flat water but on the great lakes this does not happen that often. We have a group that meets for a social paddle and the few times it was flat this year we had 20 plus people but most of the time we only have 10 core paddlers that are not afraid of going out in choppy and windy conditions.

I also had to go out and save a few people that got out of the protection of the shore and were being pushed out to the middle of the lake. I never saw them again and this may happen more often than we think.

I trying to not be negative as I love the sport and converted from being a hard core cyclist to a paddler because of the great workout, the fact that I am getting back to the fitness and muscle mass I had in my early 20s and crashing does not result in broken bones and huge road rash. But it is a very hard sport to get out consistently if you do not live in the perfect place.

[Dusk Patrol]

One thing I never got about proner ‘SUP hate’ is the myopia...that a lot of proners will eventually age into SUP.

[blueplanetsurf]

From a good friend of mine deep in the industry, "SUP racing is dead. No one has ever made any money making race boards and they now realize it is never going to happen. Surf is a niche. Whatever money is to be made going forward is in cheap recreational boards. The people who buy those boards paddle only a few times a year. They are not interested in surfing or racing and they don't read the magazines. Racers and other sponsored paddlers who might have been getting a few bucks from manufacturers had better start looking for a job because that party is over."

It's true that manufacturers make most of their money with beginner boards but that does not mean that racing and SUP surfing are not important to branding.  Marketing is aspirational.

Ferrari has a Formula 1 team and spends a lot of money on developing Formula 1 cars and technology that never makes it into production cars even though they make all of their profits from street legal production cars.

[Admin]

Gaming is the new youth socializing for sure.

It is pretty interesting, though, that the average age of gamers is 35 and there are as many gamers over 50 years old as under 18. 

[spirit4earth]

Some people might be priced out of racing due to boards costing ~1700 and up.  If good quality, lightweight technology can move into the $1000 range, more people might race.  Same with paddles---lightweight quality for less money.  Maybe not possible?  But it would help, I think. 

[JEG]

That was a good read, thanks!

[stoneaxe]

Gaming is the new youth socializing for sure.

It is pretty interesting, though, that the average age of gamers is 35 and there are as many gamers over 50 years old as under 18. 

I've been an off and on gamer over the years. From when putting a quarter into an Asteroids machine was hours of play. Haven't done much in the last 10-15 years though. One thing I look forward too in old age.....if I make it there.  When no longer capable of the physical demands of the things I enjoy now I know that I have that as fall back. If I'm 85 and can't get around much....give me some weed, a cup of coffee, some cookies and a kick ass FPS....rock n roll......

If you were ever a gamer you understand the anticipation of the next release with the next gen graphics and more realistic game play. The graphics They have now along with VR headsets is crazy enough. I'm not sure my mind will be able to take the change from what I was used too and the games that will be played in 2042. Plug into the jack in my brainstem and enter the Matrix.....

[beached]

Plug into the jack in my brainstem and enter the Matrix.....

it appears to me most of today's youth are already 'living' in the matrix. they are glued to their iphones and reality seems to be a mere nuisance to them. i'm not complaining though...if they ever bothered to look up and notice there's a world out there to actually experience, it might get even more crowded on the waves.

[Badger]

If I had kids, there is no way I would allow them to have Iphones or computer games. Nor would I let them sit around the house. They would be outdoors, unsupervised as much as possible. Kids need to experience freedom. Without it, they won't understand the meaning of freedom when they become adults.