Jonah had been trying to get me to try SUP for over a year. I am a busy guy, run a company and only have so much time that I can budget for adventure (or so I tell myself). Diving had been taking up all my spare time for the past three years but to be honest, this year I felt myself start to pull away from the diving a little. The time vs what I get out of it equation was swinging into the red a little and diving had been sitting on the back burner a bit this past season. The other thing that has always bothered me a little about diving was the lack of massive physicality. Don’t get me wrong, diving is very physical, just not the high-output cardio vascular workout that I often crave. I will always dive, just not to the level that I have in recent years perhaps.
This left a void which was quickly filled with SUP. I tried Bryce’s inflatable SUP on a dive weekend up in Tobermory and just loved it. I immediately bought a big multi purpose touring board called the Boardworks Raven. Jonah helped me pick it out and at 12’6” long this board was up to a bigger guy like myself and big water. It is large enough to tour yet well rounded enough to do pretty much anything around here. Perhaps not so great for surfing but let’s be honest, I live in Ontario dude. Oh yeah, now that I SUP I say things like “dude” and “stoked” a lot more.
Since getting the board I have been out on it 4-5 times a week. I have lost over ten pounds and my body feels fantastic. I have noticeable abs for the first time in a long time andI feel great! Jonah mentioned that a big Canadian SUPer Norm Hann was coming to Toronto to do a workshop and that he could be a great mentor for us. His workshop was a two day instructor training course which was not necessarily something I had been thinking of but I was itching to learn as much as I could as quickly as possible so I hopped on board (on board - get it). I find that with anything I do the very best way to learn the most as quickly as possible is to jump in and mentor with the best of them. We are really lucky with SUP as it is such a new sport that it is still possible to access the very top people even as someone who is just starting out. Perhaps it has something to do with the fact that SUP comes from surf roots and there is a history of the easy going vibe there. Everyone just seems so friendly and helpful and I really appreciate that about it.
Norm Hann was awesome and his course invaluable. The guy paddled over 400km along the proposed Enbridge tanker route in BC to raise awareness for what is going on out there. This adventure can be witnessed in his documentary Stand Up For Great Bear. Norm is one of our countries top SUP athletes for sure. SInce the course with Norm I have taught a number of people to SUP and this has helped me think more about how I operate on the board and interact with others in SUP and in the rest of my life.
Right after the course week there was the Canada Cup SUP race in Pickering where the famous Danny Ching was to be in attendance. I was going to “just go watch” but Norm and Jonah quickly talked me into racing in the intro category. It was a lot of fun to really push hard out on the water, come into a buoy turn with a group fast and have to pivot turn and power out. I hadn’t felt that surge of competitiveness for a long time and I felt alive! I chased the lead guy the whole race and finished about 15 seconds behind him. He shook my hand on the beach and told me that I had won as he was just racing for fun as he was registered in the elite race. I have to admit that it felt good to compete and to win.
Then on August 25th it was the Aloha Toronto SUP race at Ashbridges Bay in Toronto. This was a Hawaii themed event and a lot of fun too. Again I raced in the beginner category and again I finished second behind one super fast guy who was actually from Hawaii. I am not sure what happened though as when I look at the “official results” on the aloha web site I am listed as coming in first in this one as well. So it was two for two in my SUP race career up to date. I guess next year I will have to buy a race board and enter the elite category and really get my ass kicked. I can’t wait!
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