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PADDLEBOARDING FOR GOOD
Embracing Adaptive and Inclusive SUP
Photo : WhatSUP
Jo Moseley
Hello , my name is Jo Moseley , and I am the author of Stand Up Paddleboarding in Great Britain – Beautiful Places to Paddleboard in England , Scotland and Wales and host of The Joy of SUP – The Paddleboarding Sunshine Podcast . I am also a proud ambassador for the 2 Minute Foundation and Seaful Charity .
In this column , I look forward to sharing inspiring stories of environmental projects , mental wellbeing initiatives and how we can make SUP accessible to more people . If you have a story , please email me at thejoyofsuppodcast @ gmail . com and follow me on Instagram @ jomoseley .
Photo : Jo Moseley
I ’ m so grateful to Mark at Shoretees SUPwear for highlighting WhatSUPUK and my next story for you when we chatted at Lake District Paddleboarding ’ s SUPFest in the Lake District a few weeks ago .
Mark kindly introduced me to Ben Peters , an explorer who has paddled the Blue Nile and in the Amazon and is the founder of WhatSUP Ltd , so we could chat further . WhatSUP began in 2017 and is a community of highly qualified and dedicated instructors committed to using the power of
What a joy to finally meet Lizzie Carr , founder of Planet Patrol , at a book launch recently . Author , activist and world record holder Lizzie ’ s story is shared in Louise Minchin ’ s book Fearless , which I highly recommend . It was great to hear Lizzie speak about her passion for paddling and our waterways . To find out more about Lizzie , go to www . lizzieoutside . co . uk , and for Planet Patrol litter picks in the UK and worldwide , go to www . planetpatrol . co
STOP PRESS ! I just wanted to mention SUPfm Podcast ’ s # DontDriftAway campaign focusing on the impact of the wind and , in particular , not going out in an offshore wind . For more information , go to www . supfmpodcast . com
SUP to help others and make it more inclusive . A percentage of every booking for a SUP lesson is put aside so they can do this sustainably . They offer free or discounted SUP lessons to disadvantaged groups who could otherwise not afford them .
When we spoke , Ben told me about the Embrace board he had designed . The Embrace is the first wheelchair-adapted paddleboard in the UK , initially allowing them to offer adaptive paddleboarding in Somerset . They have since trained other SUP schools across the UK and supplied them with the same equipment .
WhatSUPUK manufactures several other boards , and this is the one they are most proud of for the opportunities it offers wheelchair users . It has anchoring points for specially designed adapted chairs and sidekick boards ( similar to ‘ stabilisers ’). The boards are not sold directly to individuals . However , many schools nationwide use them , including SUP Active Yorkshire in Richmond , Yorkshire , The Anderton Centre in Chorley , Lancashire and Whitemoor Lakes in Lichfield , Staffordshire . WhatSUPUK also provides paddleboarding opportunities for foster families to spend time on the water to get to know each other .
For more information , go to www . whatsupuk . com