SUP Mag UK lo-res free to readers April 2014 lo-res free to read | Page 39

Central SUP Club Paddle on Youtube 16th March 2014 That was then… Success! Before Central SUP, the sport of stand up paddle boarding was unheard of in the Midlands. There was an unorganised group of inland surfers, but nothing else as such. This was frustrating and I was always on the hunt for another fix. Snowboarding, skateboarding and windsurfing; I went through the lot but nothing really grabbed me like SUP. The game changer came after a winter paddle ended in an argument with a fisherman. I was not wise to the world of water access but after paddling a local lake in Tamworth I learnt very quickly you couldn't SUP where you pleased. I took it a bit personally, at the time, and not wanting to give up called the council. My first experience was in Sheffield on a lake. It felt (and tasted) very different to the sea! I still got hooked though nonetheless. I never expected them being keen to offer new sports to the people of Tamworth. (One of the development officers happened to be a surfer and had seen SUP in Hawaii). They wanted to meet with me and discuss the idea further. inning I had nothing other than my boards and a lot of enthusiasm – I never expected the outcome to be what it is now. As it was the year of the Olympics in the UK there was funding around so the council offered some help to formalise Central SUP and get it going in Tamworth. They even had a room right on the river they were prepared to rent to us. Excitement rises Location, location, location Driving home I was so stoked with the outcome – this was it I thought! Then a bit of panic set in. How on earth would I do this? The biggest obstacle was trying to find somewhere to paddle. Nobody had done this on inland waterways near me so I started tagging along with the local canoe club. They happily accepted me as one of theirs, even if I did look a bit odd standing up. I would need kit, I would need insurance and I would need to be able to teach SUP. Fortunately I had made some good friends and I got straight on the phone with my good pal Scott (Warren), also a very keen paddler. I got more attention on the water which started to build interest in the sport. After a few chats Central SUP came together. I started offering club night sessions using a couple of boards I had purchased. We also paddled in Birmingham City Centre which was a unique experience in itself. There was still no real structure to the SUP club other than a Facebook group. This was a really good way to raise the profile of Central SUP. I found by adding content I could get more people interested, but without the support of a proper club it was merely a way for likeminded people to meet up and paddle together. 39 s t a n d u p p a d d l e m a g u k Building blocks We ran the first ever Midlands Race Series which went down a storm, attracting paddlers from all over. It was our first venture into racing, which was growing at a rapid rate The following year our regular paddlers were keen for more. When the opportunity to become instructors arose they jumped at it. Scott was moving on to pastures new so I would need help to keep things going. In particular, one of our club members was keen to get the SUP scene happening at the National Watersports Centre. Stacey took on the challenge and with our support Central SUP Nottingham was born. We also took part in the Head of the Dart, the Battle of the Thames, Bray Lake Race Series, Paddle Round the Pier, Watergate Bay Nationals and built our network with other SUP clubs.