Later this year I’ll turn a very special milestone age that happens to begin with a “4”… and I’m OK with it. It’s just a number after all. I’m also OK with it as I’ve started celebrating a little early because over the weekend, C got me an early birthday present…
Look what we dragged home from Costco this past weekend? Yup, it’s a SUP!
Yup, I now own my very own stand-up paddle board (SUP)… and I LOVE IT, RMT’ers! I’ve blogged before about my love of the SUP, which I’ve only done twice while on vacation on the Big Island. But that was enough to know that I wanted a SUP of my very own, and now I have one.
First time out on my new SUP last Saturday!
What do I like most about the SUP and SUP’ing? I’ll give you a top five list right now:
5. Costco makes SUP’ing an affordable water sport to get into. My 9 ft. 6 in. Wavestorm-brand board was just $399 (compared to an average of about $600-700 for a beginner’s board elsewhere). I don’t know if any of the boards are left (read here for a nice review of why these boards are perfect for beginners or casual users), but I got it at the Signal Hill Costco Saturday; there were about a half-dozen left and the store staff said once they’re gone, they’re gone for the season.
4. We live a five-minute drive from waters that were made for SUP’ing: Alamitos Bay and the Naples Canals. And lucky for us, our SUP season lasts year-round here in Long Beach.
Heading back out into Alamitos Bay in Long Beach (CA). Even on an overcast morning this is one gorgeous spot in Southern California to go SUP’ing.
3. The views are awesome. Again, I love Long Beach.
After about 40 minutes out on the water, I was pretty wiped out and ready to come in for a rest. SUP’ing is great exercise, RMT’ers!
2. SUP’ing makes me feel strong. Honestly, it might look lazy and like “old people’s surfing” but you go out there and paddle for 45 minutes and tell me you don’t feel it in your arms, shoulders, core, and legs later… because you will.
And my number one reason for falling in love with SUP is…
C got a picture of me as a Whaler and a Ski crossed my path as I exited the Naples Canals. Two small wakes… no problem (sort-of). I haven’t fallen off (yet) though!
1. Even a klutz like me can SUP. I don’t know how someone like me who stumbles on a regular basis just walking down a smooth sidewalk can SUP, but I have balance on this board. Color me (and C) SUPrised!
I’m more than happy to share the SUP with C. I want more birthday gifts like this in the future after all!
As you can see, I definitely need a rack system if I want to transport the SUP on my own with this car. Lucky for me, it’s on order and should arrive any day now. Also lucky for me is that C’s handy enough to have built this perfect shelf in the garage to store the SUP, too! Nice work, C!
So far C and I have taken the SUP out twice (T was at grandma-and-grandpa weekend camp); the board fits into the back of C’s Tundra easily compared to my small sedan. But that’ll change any day now as my car rack’s been ordered and will be arriving sometime later this week. C also has already built a storage system for the board inside the garage (sweet!). That means I can start my solo SUP’ing adventures soon enough, and we can add SUP’ing to T and mine’s beach adventures, too. Woot!
Thanks again for the awesome bday gift, C! xo
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