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Cultural Shock - SUP Paddling in France

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oceanAddict:
 I noticed it too.  We traveled to Southern Italy recently and being all-things-water enthusiast I asked at the hotel's reception (beautiful waterfront property with private beach and dock) where I could rent a SUP. Got a blind stare and offer to try kayak... I'm bringing iSUP next time.

I think this is a business opportunity.

Bean:
What state is France in again?😁😁😁

In Waikiki, back in August, I noticed that there were relatively few SUPs in the water.  Sometimes personal observations are distorted.

PonoBill:
Geographic weirdness and the twists and turns of personal perspective. I live in Hood River and Maui. An SIC Bullet 14 V2 on a car in Hood River is as common and unremarkable as a bellybutton. It's cold out, we're headed into winter, and I saw five or six today. I've had little old ladies walk up to me, point at the board on my truck and say "is that a 17?"

Less so in Maui but only because now it's all foilers.

The last long motorcycle ride I took in Europe covered a lot of coastal France and Italy and quite a few lakes. Beautiful beaches with lots of facilities, and not a soul using them. It wasn't the dead center of vacation season (August, right?, as I recall this was September) but there was no one--at the lakes, at the beaches, or really doing anything that looked even moderately active. My notion of Europe was that everyone was an outdoor athlete, and I've never seen evidence of that firsthand. I'm probably just looking in the wrong places at the wrong time.

TallDude:

--- Quote from: Bean on November 05, 2018, 08:00:23 PM ---What state is France in again?😁😁😁

In Waikiki, back in August, I noticed that there were relatively few SUPs in the water.  Sometimes personal observations are distorted.

--- End quote ---
I was there just a month earlier. I actually saw a number of people on those Hobie Mirage Drive SUP's. At one of the rental places right in front of the Hale Koa Hotel was a whole bunch of nice looking Blue Planet Surf SUP boards. Robert has definitely put his mark on a number of the Waikiki SUP rental places.

photofr:
UPDATE:
Now travelling through France to really discover the country. I've racked more than 14000 km in my travels so far, and my prospective has only changed ever so slightly: France seemingly produces amazing athletes, but they are very VERY FEW of them. You are likely to spot more runners / joggers on a regular basis, along with quite a few bikers, depending on the season...

As a whole, I still only spot two categories of people on SUP:
- The SUP athlete who trains rather consistently for races.
- The SUP paddler who takes his or her board out 5 weeks out of the year.

Something that I JUST NOTICED:
Back in history class, we were told that France had a lot of "water". To my great surprise, A LOT OF WATER is an understatement!!!

After racking up all these miles (nearing 10k miles with my board atop the camper van) take note that you can paddle just about anywhere in this country. There's water in places you'd least expect, lakes to no end, and endless coastlines.

It all makes me wonder even further: why aren't there more paddlers???

Clearly, I still do not have answers. One possible factor is the French lifestyle:
The mere fact of taking long lunches (2 hours) and long dinners (2+ hours with family) may make it impossible for families to find time to paddle on a given day.

The French seem a lot more stressed on a "regular basis". They seemingly would rather take a pill rather than go out and play to chill.

After working the 8 to 12 and 2pm to 6pm for a while, I was the only one taking off at lunch to go paddling - enjoying my surroundings.  While this was clearly odd to the French, comments about that lifestyle went on for months.

Paddling immediately after work also brought a lot of questions: "Do you even work"?

All and all, I'd say that they French aren't yet ready to enjoy the outdoors as part of a ritual, as part of a habit, but here and again, it may just be a very different culture, because they have a blast during their 5-week-long summer vacation.

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