Paddle practice, which board?

[Southsurfer]

Hi, started surfing around 2 years ago, then i made some bad desitions (meaning i stopped surfing) and this year i went back into the water with the resolution of not making the same mistake again. As it is i live around 400km from the nearest wave but i do live near rivers so im looking something to go into the water and have fun while developing my paddle skill.

The rivers i live near arent the quiet type but those huge windy rivers, there are some calm days but more often than not the water is very bumpy. There are a lot of people kayaking and doing other water sports so i wouldnt be alone in the water.

So..... i was thinking of getting a new board just to go out and paddle, first i thought a paddleboard, thing is i dont know anything about them and every time i tried to search all i get is tons and tons of useless info on SUP, i did tried to look if its possible to get a SUP board but using it as a paddle board, meaning paddling in the prone position but i dont know if they are too tall or wide for that.

Finally i dont have a longboard, so i considered buying a longboard instead use it to paddle here and then take it to the ocean when i have the time to go, my only fear is that a longboard might be too hard to use just for paddling only, i want to be able to cover some distance, but i dont really know.


So to cut it short i need a board to practice my paddling and keep that part of my surf fitness in shape, covering some distance and having some fun in the process in mostly windy river water, so longboard (dimensions?) paddle board (i still dont know if anyone make those here) or SUP paddle board and use it as a paddle board (dimensions?) Other suggestions?......

Thanks for any advice.

[Big H]

Whatever shape you decide I'd look at surf tech epoxy, NSP, Torq, Southpoint or similar....rivers are rocky places and you'll save some heartache and time spent fixing dings if you have a tougher than PU shell on your board.

[oldmansurfer]

Sup boards aren't too good for lay down paddling. They make specific paddle boards (may cost over $1000) for going long distances but if you are going to be on a raging river then maybe you need something that won't be ruined on your first outing. A long board would be fine except for durability hitting rocks and such.

[waikikikichan]

i did tried to look if its possible to get a SUP board but using it as a paddle board, meaning paddling in the prone position but i dont know if they are too tall or wide for that.

Stand Up Paddle board as a Prone board ? How wide are your shoulders ? How far are your finger tips apart ?

my only fear is that a longboard might be too hard to use just for paddling only, i want to be able to cover some distance, but i dont really know.

You mean versus a prone paddle board ? Truth is, you will be covering a lot of distance........... going BACKWARDS in reverse. It's hard enough to paddle in flat water. With a bumpy, curving, running current, you ( and myself included ) are not going to last long.

[dtc]

Paddleboards are a different beast to surfboards, but there is some cross over in terms of paddle fitness. Paddleboards are used for racing (eg: Molokai) and surf rescue. They are designed more for speed in a straight line, not for turning etc as a surfboard. They are a lot thicker (more like a kayak shape) and usually longer (12ft- 14ft is a usual length). I'm not sure how useful they would be on a running river, their manoeuvrability will be a bit suspect. And they are more expensive than surfboards.

You can always spring for a foam wavestorm (if you are in the US) and try that out on the river. I think they are only $100 or so and while you might take chunks out of it when you hit a rock or something, it will keep floating. It will give you an easy way to figure out if you are doing something a bit pointless.

Or you can just go swimming. Or find a calmer part of the river.

[BoMan]

If you have not done this already, consider river surfing. "Back in the day" when I lived in Sacramento CA, I used my fish with a water ski rope tied to a tree and surfed the current with my friends. It was SO MUCH FUN (except when I had to chase my leashless board ). I did a quick search and discovered the sport has advanced into quite a thing. Riverboarding where riders use modified boogie boards and fins is also popular.

RiverBreak Magazine with Spots, Gear and HowTo's
http://riverbreak.com/

River Surfing Community
http://www.riversurfing.ca/

If you are interested, I would definitely look into how to do this safely!

[Southsurfer]

Thanks much for the replies, i realize gave a wrong description about the place i plan to go.

By windy i meant that usually is not quiet still water, but its not a like a mountain river with a very strong stream either, also its a sand-mud bottom river. Although like any river near a city you could literally find anything going in or out so getting a strong board isnt a bad idea.

Instead of trying to explain again this is a photo of a SUP school around here, so i plan to paddle in that kind of river water.




I plan to go where people already practice paddle sports, and by people i mean anyone goes there to learn so it is friendly water, bumpy and windy i meant i would need a stable and easy to paddle board so i can cover some distance without needing an insane ammount of effort, i.e. would prefer to use something with a lot of float and low drag and which board to choose to achieve that.

Also i realize i didnt give any info about me, im around 1,80cm tall and around 80kg weight, i am fit and workout regularly but my paddle fitness is low and i want to change that!.

@boman very interesting and i would wish that, those kind of rivers are farther from my house than the ocean though.... But since we are talking river surfing, there is an underground rummor that when a certain kind of very strong south wind hits the coast and produces shifts in the bottom of this river it produces small, strong and long duration surfable waves in some areas. Since that happens when the river is very wild and agitated i wouldnt dare to do it unless i can go with some locals willing to tell me what to do, still havent found them.....

[oldmansurfer]

Somewhere like that you could use a paddle board meaning a board meant for paddling but if you get a longboard it could also be used for surfing. A SUP board would be ok if it was narrower than your shoulders or similar in width to a surfboard. If you stand up paddle it doesn't exercise the right muscles for surfing so that is not an option for getting paddle fit.

[dtc]

If you just want to paddle practice, get the cheapest board you can find. It doesn't really matter the length (well, probably don't go under 6ft or so). The longer the board/higher the volume the easier to paddle, which is in part why its good for someone learning or unfit. But short boards you obviously can still paddle and will arguably be a more intensive workout than a long board. Even, as I said earlier, a foam board will be fine

That said, there is benefit (considerable in my view) in buying a board to paddle on and using that board to surf as well eg you will know the board, how it feels, how it turns etc. The downside is that you might damage this board during your practice.

So.... your options

1. buy the board you want to surf on, and practice paddling with it as well (but focus on the first requirement); or
2. buy the cheapest board you can find to paddle with (6ft or longer), and buy another board to surf with

If you are going to be transporting your surfing board from home to the beach, go with option 1 unless you think there is a risk of damage during paddling (you can minimise this by getting an epoxy board, but you cant avoid it).

If you are storing your surfing board at the beach or you believe there is a risk of damage from rocks or shallow water during paddling, go with option 2.

I wouldn't bother with a 'paddle board' unless you want to get into racing or want to paddle for a long time for some reason.

If the location where you are paddling is roughly like the photo, its going to be perfectly fine - less issues than paddling in the waves at a beach.

[Southsurfer]

Ok makes sense, its a relief actually since that is the most practical solution. I live in argentina so we are in full summer now, meaning shapers are overdemanded and used equipment is expensive, so will wait until the summer is over and many people will want to get rid of that huge surfboard they got to look cool on the summer

My plan is to find out what to buy now while still making a couple of trips to the ocean, buy new board for paddling in a month or so from now (also start saving) and use the autumm-winter to go to the nearby river and paddle paddle paddle, so when spring comes around september i will hopefully be in a lot better shape to catch more of those beautiful waves.

Yeah im really not interested in SUP but since its all the rage, its all you can find around here, kitesurfing is present but i really dont want to get into that now. Luckily you dont see many SUPs at the ocean, although they are more present than before, meaning more huge boards flying around that you have to look out for.

Thanks for the replies!

[Big H]

FWIW....if I surf shortboards for a week or two in a row then go to my longboard, I can catch anything from anywhere and getting back in position after a ride is a breeze....if I ride my long or longer boards for awhile, that first sesh back on a shortboard I feel like I'm a little sluggish and tire a little bit easier; not match fit as it were.

If you just want to build paddle muscles, get a shortboard. Will work your core more too as you have to hold posture in a less stable platform.

[opelagos]

It sounds like any board will work for you to practice-- less volume will be more challenging for endurance and strength.

If you really want to focus on paddling (aside from surfing), a prone paddleboard would be the way to go.

[IB_Surfer]

Get a 10'5 or 11' longboard, plenty of glide and paddle, and you can surf it if you get a chance too. Or, yes, buy a prone paddle board, but you can't really surf those.

[OldSalt]

You are SO on the money here. Really. I too moved from living my whole life and surfing right by the beach, to living inland, 2 hrs drive from any surf spot. I moved here 8 years ago and my surfing really suffered. Now, happily, I am able to get in the water twice a week or so.

What I do is paddle the lakes here. I just take out either my regular shortboard or my groveler– it doesn't matter which – and I just paddle between the buoys for about 700 metres to a kilometre or so, depending on how I am feeling. It makes an incredible difference when you go surfing. No more struggling and getting caught inside. You'll feel light and strong and free and confident. So yeh, take out a normal shortboard and just paddle for like 20 minutes a day and you will be good to go!

My whole attitude now is that, even when I am not surfing, I am surfing! (If that makes sense) So, I do yoga, practice breath holds, and swim and paddle. All the while, I know I am probably doing more for my surfing than I ever did before. And when I go surfing it just translates to way more fun . My attitude to surfing has totally shifted. Instead of wallowing in misery and feeling sorry for myself about not being able to surf every day, I now do something every day towards surfing. Feels really great!

Get out there bro! Grab whatever board you've got handy.