No. 201 - SUP

After recently returning from a family vacation in the Outer Banks of North Carolina, my wife said to me that we should take surfing lessons one of these years. Now I can't really see my wife, or me, on a surfboard so I kind of dismissed the comment without giving it much thought. I am willing to try anything once, as long as it doesn't involve jumping out of an airplane. I'm just not willing to take the chance that someone else packed the parachute properly.

I read an article in the WSJ today that taught me about a surf-like sport that looks fun and can be done in the ocean, as well as in rivers and lakes. It's known as SUP (pronounced like the "sup" in "supper"), or stand up paddle surfing.

I learned that the sport is an ancient form of surfing, and began as a way for surfing instructors to manage large groups of beginner surfers, as standing on the board gave them a higher viewpoint, increasing visibility of what was going on around them such as an approaching wave.

The boards are generally between nine and twelve feet long with padded decks 

The article talked about the fitness benefits of SUP'ing. A 44-year-old triathlete is quoted as saying "For my money it's the best total body workout you can get."

Whereas I did not have a great desire to learn how to surf, I think I would really like to give SUP'ing a try.