Is inflation impacting Nationals Attendance?

Paddleboarding warning issued after 100 rescues in 48 hours on one stretch of Welsh coast (msn.com)

Originally posted by DiscoBall Originally posted by CT249   It's a mystery to me why people would rather SUP than kayak I always think it's quite telling that this pops up on here and sea kayaking forums - both sports that seems to attract older men who have a particular technical/equipment focus to their leisure activities.   The huge joy of sup (in places with clear water at least) is in the access it gives you to the underwater world - far more than you ever see from the low down position in a kayak and IME often superior to snorkelling. If you think of sup simply as a waterborne version of going for a walk it makes a lot more sense as to why it has enormous appeal to a broad section of society. I don't perceive that many dinghy sailors are really that interested in the natural world other than as a backdrop to sailing in circles.    As to the safety aspect, the 'you won't get wet' comment seems to be pretty true really. Other than the odd really inept beginner (usually wet-suited to the max anyway) I struggle to think of seeing anyone fall off unintentionally in years. Much like with SOTs the vendors don't want disgruntled customers who can't stay upright, so they push very stable designs (perhaps to the detriment of more capable beginners). 423 asks about statistics - I think the RNLI published a report a couple of years ago saying that paddlesport rescues had doubled in the previous 5 years. Cue much huffing and puffing in sea kayaker circles. However even by that stage SUP/SOT/kayakfishing participants outnumbered sit-in kayaks by far more than 2:1, probably more like 10:1 and that has only increased. The real elephant in the room for sit-in kayaking is why, despite the training courses and the prescribed (long) list of safety kit, worn in all the prescribed places (few activities are as dogmatic - perhaps another reason people have embraced paddlesports outside of the 'official' club scene), there are still so many accidents. Its almost as if there's an inverse correlation between safety kit and competence...

I saw a guy out spear-fishing off an inflatable SUP the other day … that takes some balls, or monumental stupidity, not sure which tbh.

The benefit of SUPs - simple… the inflatable ones can be taken holiday for the cost/car space of a suitcase. This equates to more TOW and obviously, bang for buck

The hard ones can be surfed, river paddled, downwinder ‘raced with mates’, freestyled … you can kinda do all that with decent inflatables too, but the composite boards are still superior

As Discoball says, the vantage point is the draw that keeps people coming back - great for nature or simply getting out there and unwinding. It’s road biking on water… you get out what you put in, and it’s fine if it’s not a lot, but I’ve broken a few sweats too.

Regarding buoyancy aids - if conditions require them, fine, but I’ve been SUPping for 6+ years - never encountered a session when they were necessary; proper offshore without rescue cover, maybe, I guess?!?

if you are comparing it to high performance dinghy development for the exclusive purpose of racing against the clock, you really are missing the point somewhat.



Edited by turnturtle - 14 Aug 22 at 9:06am

CT wrote:
"It's a mystery to me why people would rather SUP than kayak, but perhaps kayaking is making itself seem too scary with the safety gear people now use?"

There is a big difference between Sit in Kayaks and Sit one. As CT says you can always tell the sit in paddlers because of the among of safety gear. Sit on tops where I live may have a buoyancy aid and suncream.

I'm sure this would put me off sit ins no matter what the advantages if I were starting kayaking again.

Talking of complexity, just sailed past a Hobie Adventure island tandem. Complex with two mirage drives but 15mins from roof rack to water and dead easy to use.