Hi!
I'm Katie.
I'm an outdoor school instructor for REI.
What's up?
Let's talk about 'sup.
No, for real.
Like, what's sup?
What is 'sup?
I like stand-up paddleboarding
because you can see a lot more.
Oh, look at that! (gasps)
Was that a fish?
I heard a splash.
It's a very different perspective
than when you're sitting on the water.
Oh, we're coming in hot!
Too hot!
In the summer, it gets warm.
You just fall into whatever body of water you're in,
cool off.
It's really relaxing and really fun.
That sounds amazing.
Let's do it.
So I've never gone paddleboarding before.
What sort of things do you need, gear-wise?
Stand-up paddleboarding is really simple.
You need a stand-up paddleboard, a life vest
or a PFD of some kind.
So it can be like the ones around your waist.
I really want to pull your string.
And you need a paddle.
Let's do this.
These things are gigantic.
Oh, my gosh.
Is yours heavy?
Yeah.
I thought this was full of air.
You got it?
I just need-
Oh my god.
To get it...
Are you okay?
Up higher.
That works, too.
Tell me if there's like a tree coming.
So if you look at the deck of a paddleboard,
the part that you stand on,
there's always gonna be a handle of some kind
in the middle of the board
and that's what you're going to use to carry it.
Oh, actually,
this is the most comfortable.
Oh, my gosh.
Gorgeous here.
Got it?
Yup.
That is a straight up wolf.
Where?
What is happening?
No, it has a collar on it (laughs).
Okay.
It's a tame wolf.
I knew paddleboarding was gonna be exciting.
I didn't think it was going to be that exciting.
Okay, we're good. We're good.
So there's a couple things you want to think about
when you're launching your board.
The first thing is the fin.
You want to make sure the fin is completely submerged
in the water by walking your board out
so that you're about knee-deep.
Uh, are you gonna go hop technique
or what are you doing?
Hop.
You're just gonna hop on?
Yeah!
Nice!
The common mistake is trying to stand up
when they get on the board.
Okay!
Oh my god!
Ha ha!
Do you need help?
Dueling paddles.
Oh!
I'm on a board!
Okay, now what?
It's really good to get out on your knees
and then stand up.
Entre.
Knee.
Ready?
Yes.
Nailed it.
And let's do this!
Okay.
Got an athletic stance.
And we're just gonna muscle it.
- You want to stand with your feet apart facing forward.
It looks a lot like a surfboard
but you don't necessarily want to be in a surfer stance.
There we go.
Oh, no!
Oh, man.
I think once you commit to the sit, you're done.
I feel like I have a strong tendency
to fall off of things.
Is there a more graceful way to fall than others?
So, you never know how deep the water is gonna be
so you want to avoid falling in feet first or headfirst
because you don't want to hurt your legs or your head.
So you want to fall as flat to the water as possible.
Think about falling off of your board onto your back
or flying off of your board in front like Superman.
Belly flop competition later.
Be aware that you're wearing a leash on your board also.
Good note.
So just remember that the board
is going to come back to you
and the more you stretch that leash, the faster it's coming.
Yep, good to know.
So just mental note on that one.
Bad way to die.
Okay, I'm good.
The sun on my gams.
I mean, that is living!
I'm coming for you!
Riding my wake.
I call this the lazy lady paddle.
Once you get over the initial,
I'm gonna die and fall into the water, it's (mumbles) fun.
Andiamo.
Oh, my god!
Have you ever seen water ballet in the Olympics?
What is the proper technique to turning, going forward?
I'm trying!
Trying to turn.
I'm honestly trying.
This is the widest turn ever!
- Yeah, so the blade of the paddle,
one side will have a scoop on it
and you want that scoop faced towards you.
In the forward stroke, you want to think about
sinking your whole blade.
You're gonna come in at the front of your board
and come out at your feet.
Another important stroke is a sweep stroke
so taking your paddle and reaching as far as you can
away from your boat into a rainbow.
Or you can think about drawing a circle around your board
using those sweep strokes.
So doing a forward sweep on one side, turning
and doing a reverse sweep on the other side
and that will turn your board very quickly.
Oh, that was a good one! Nice!
I'm getting a little dizzy.
If I'm looking for a good workout, stand-up paddleboarding?
Yeah, stand up paddleboarding is a great workout.
Oh, my god!
You're so fast!
You get a great core workout
because you want to be using your core a lot.
It's a great way to just bump your heart rate up
for a little while and burn some calories.
To another adventure.
Mm-hmm.
It's so pretty here.
Check out those logs over there.
How do you think those got there?
Wanna race?
What?
It's on!
First one to the log wins!
Launch.
How does my wake feel?
Oh god!
Bring it around.
Bring it around. Come back!
This breeze is intense!
Cheating!
Don't push me over.
No cheating.
I don't know what's going...
I'm trying to turn around. The wind
I'm going straight for it.
Oh, god. Oh my god!
Do-si-do baby!
Oh my gosh!
It's neck to neck.
Ha, ha ha!
I feel like I crushed that.