Sup surfing growth stagnant?

[Admin]

Maybe Admin could divulge some info on the rate of new users signing up over the last year or so, although that is probably sensitive info.

Hi Jeff,

May 2010 saw 153 new users, up from 72 the previous year.  We get a lot of attempted spammers who send through registrations and those are auto removed and are not counted.

New posts went up to 3,081 from 2,177.  New topics rose to 267 from 216.

As with all forum sites, registered users are a small percentage of the overall site trafic.  

Standupzone served over 1.5 million pages in May (not including bot visits) which is a new high.  June will easily pass that #.  I used page views as a metric because page views don't lie.  "Hits" are, as always, a useles metric (even moreso now that everyone has broadband).  "Unique users" are just a guess these days with single users logging on with home computers, laptops, work computers, ipads, iphones, etc, often within the same day.  Trying to factor those and other problems out, a strong case could be made for 30,000 unique visitors a month.  In any event, overall site trafic is up over 30% year to year.

Standupzone will turn 3 years old next month.  Have a look at the Google graph of stand up paddling below.  We started the site when interest in the sport was just coming up.  All of those initial questions and answers are here for people to find.   Our posts that are over two months old make up over 70% of our site traffic on any given day.  Have a look at what people are viewing on the Zone:  http://www.standupzone.com/forum/index.php?action=who.  So in addition to an increase in current posts, etc, the questions that have already been answered are being reviewed as well.

[JeffBach]

Hi admin

I am happy to be wrong with my simple metric.  Glad to read that interest in SUP remains growing!

thanks for sharing your numbers.
Jeff

[tautologies]

No slowing here. Actually when I see how many wants to get into and finds SUP of different kinds interesting we ain't seen nothing yet. There are still a ton of countries where SUPing barely has touched ground.

The potential for SUP is way beyond both windsurfing, kiteboarding and surfing.

In a personal level I am learning new things everytime I go out and the boards are getting better so I don't see any slowing down at all.

[JeffBach]

Are you a coastie or do you live inland?

PS - Just what is "tautologies"?  People's aliases are the most interesting part of forums ......

[tautologies]

Are you a coastie or do you live inland?

PS - Just what is "tautologies"?  People's aliases are the most interesting part of forums ......

Hi sorry, I live on Oahu. We've seen a huge growth here for sure. In regards to growth I think the SUP potential has barely scratched the surface. If I had the know how, and desire I would go all in. 

In regards  to tautologies...it depends on which context you mean. In logic a tautology is a formula which is true in every possible interpretation...

In rhetorics it is often unnecessary or unessential (and sometimes unintentional) repetition of meaning, using different (but not always) words that effectively say the same thing twice.

My opinion is that there is a lot of that on forums, and I am happily contributing to it. :-) Kind of ironic.

[Zak]

I have to agree with Jeff for some of what he said.  I think the growth, in California at least, is going to be limited... especially when the boards are pretty much indestructable.

Great descriptions of California waves on some post on here.  I like to think of myself as well versed on many a water craft, and for California it's just so damn crowded, introducing SUPs has been hard because many SUP are plain too greedy and didn't approach lineups looking for scraps.  California has weak swells, sometimes only getting 1-3 waves per set.  If ONE SUP immediately paddles out and starts taking one wave each set, crawlers are getting pissed, and I don't blame them... I get pissed too when I shortboard.  Imagine what's it like for shortboarders when multiple SUPs paddle out.

That's why the paddle is getting regulated- greed and the ability to catch waves well beyond the normal takeoff zone.  That's why people see it as a kayak... kindof hard to SUP without one  

Not trying to be a hater-  I'm opinionated sometimes.  

Me- I perfer uncrowded lineups with just a few friends.  It's too bad that is not a reality anymore.  There's simply too many people already surfing.  

Why the constant push to GROW?  Seems like most of these people (and obviously a lot of people on here- sorry) are looking to make a buck off it.  NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT.  But, if that's your cause, then maybe you don't really represent the true end user that you're selling it to... even if you do surf.  Most guys I know that SUP (and don't make a living off it), don't try endlessly to promote it.  Doing so, is generally thought of as counter productive to a fun session in our future.  I've been around long enough to know that even 1 SUP being greedy can ruin everybody's sessions.  

Do you honestly think constantly adding people to already crowded lineups (especially on boards with a clear advantage) will not backfire at some point?

Personally, I hope it does slow down.  The more people taking it up, means more crowds and likely uneducated SUPs, or greedy ones... therefore it'll force regulation upon SUPs in the waves.  At least here, in CA.

Hawaii seems different because of the wide variety of boardsports, but from what I'm hearing- H-Bay has been soo crowded with SUPs that it's basically ruined for anybody except the main 4-5 guys on SUPs.

 Just my $.02, and 2 cents ain't worth a damn thing.
 

[PonoBill]

Good comments Zak. I also think coastal growth is limited, and it's probably a good thing. I think what we're going to see a lot of is what we see in Hood River. Just before I came into my office and started reading the Zone I was looking out at the Hood River Event Center and Nichols boatworks where there are about thirty SUPs out paddling. It's a nice night, and there might be some kind of demo going on, but it is Tuesday, and we're 110 miles from the nearest salt water.

It WILL take marketing to make inland SUP grow, but the grassroots awareness is growing. Very few people ask what my board is anymore, even when I have the F18 on the rack.

[Woody]

Zak, I like your comments but I have to admit, when someone inquires about my board, the sport, "is it hard?", "how long have you been doing it?", I find myself spewing forth excitement about SUPing/SUSing! I can't help it, the sport and the newer perspective it lends me is simply pure stoke!

Yah, I'm with you, I wish it were easier to find that deserted break and not feel the CA tension in the water with a few SUSers in the lineup. However, I believe great forums like this and "SUPFathers" (Bill) out there will make sure our fellow SUSers are not being greedy and surf with aloha or receive a few words of encouragement from the rest of us.

And I agree with others here, SUPing is and will continue to grow as it opens the ability to experience our water world in such ways as never before for the many land-locked admirers of ours.

Cheers,
Woody

[JeffBach]

I wonder if admin could share how many Zone members are from "inland" locales?  Could be hard to sort though....

For me, one of the underlying curiosities is how SUP manufacturers see this category.  Their ability to spread the word to a much more "dilute" potential audience and still make an affordable product is going to be very interesting.  From my cratonic point of view in Wisconsin USA, most SUP manufacturers barely have to market their products. This is a good problem to have but...imo their model is setup with pricepoints that make boards affordable to an eage audience. This likely does not allow for enough "leftover cash" to support the overhead of sales and marketing staff, dealer education, travel to the mainland and inland to meet dealers, and all the other stuff that comes along with a maturing industry expanding out and away from their original selling model.

The C4 waterman league thingie set an interesting precedent, but I haven't heard anything about these guys in awhile.  Besides that they were all saltie, all guys, all HI natives, and their style was all wave riding.  None of which fits the inland millions on the mainland who could be interested in SUP if someone would market it to them.......

I see a decentralized dispersed network of tour leaders / rental shops / instructors, etc. spread out across the country.  How else to get SUP into the hundreds of thousands of lakes, rivers etc where inland people could SUP?  This is expensive to setup, nurture and maintain.  There are also vendor / licensing / permit hassles at SUP venues that complicate things too.

To me this is a pretty interesting and hard to solve problem that is holding back inland SUP'ing.....

more .02
Jeff

[Woody]

Interesting points Jeff. I'll be in central Wisconsin over the 4th visiting family and friends and will be bringing my Uli inflatable to paddle around Lake Emily outside Stevens Point. I can't wait to go for an early morning paddle and maybe throw a line and hook a Bass for old time sakes. The possibilities and options are unlimited.

Cheers!

[Admin]

I wonder if admin could share how many Zone members are from "inland" locales?  Could be hard to sort though....

Happy to share and I hope some of the other venues with stats chime in too.

The coastal states top the list with California being almost double Hawaii in the # 1 and two slots.  In order: Cali, Hawaii, Florida, North Carolina, Washinton, NY, Oregon, Mass, Virginia, Texas.  New visitors from those states are up less than the site average.  Colorado is seeing above average growth.  The great lake states vary from well above (Illinois) to below (Wisconsin) the site average.  The biggest growth in site percentage is coming from the land locked states, but the numbers are still relatively small.

[uglysupper]

Bill,

 If you were watching between 6 and 7, you saw one newly transplanted Floridian boy totally crashing the Big Winds' Ladies SUP night (unknowingly, but not unappreciatively!)

As someone who comes from the land of lakes - orlando, fl - that's where the potential is at.

[tautologies]

Me- I perfer uncrowded lineups with just a few friends.  It's too bad that is not a reality anymore.  There's simply too many people already surfing.  

Why the constant push to GROW?  Seems like most of these people (and obviously a lot of people on here- sorry) are looking to make a buck off it.  NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT.  But, if that's your cause, then maybe you don't really represent the true end user that you're selling it to... even if you do surf.  Most guys I know that SUP (and don't make a living off it), don't try endlessly to promote it.  Doing so, is generally thought of as counter productive to a fun session in our future.  I've been around long enough to know that even 1 SUP being greedy can ruin everybody's sessions.  

...but I think the potential of growth is beyond the surf. It is that people can take out a board and paddle...in sea water, downwind, in fresh water, rivers, bays, fjords..what ever...but that even people that aren't interested in surfing can take out a board and have fun.

Share the stoke. Over here there are plenty of uncrowded spots..you just have to know where to look, and be willing to paddle a little..