How Can You Stand Up Paddle As Fast As Possible?
By: James | Last update: 14 December 2022
If you start to become a fanatic Stand Up Paddle Boarder, you will soon become dedicated in trying to achieve higher speeds. In this blog we explain how you can paddle the fastest on your SUP.
Apart from technique, you achieve the highest speeds with a race Paddle Board
How Can You Stand Up Paddle AS Fast As Possible?
To be able to paddle quickly, only hard paddling is not enough. There is also a technique involved. These technique(s) ensure that you paddle as quickly as possible and with as little chance of an injury.
Bend your knees
Bend your knees far so that you are almost in a squatting position. This keeps you low to the ground and makes you less susceptible to the wind. It also helps with the points below.
Grab your paddle low
Place both hands a little lower on the paddle. This allows you to make powerful, short and fast strokes. Also shorten the paddle if you have the opportunity. When you shorten the paddle the weight ratio of the paddle is better and you can put more power behind your paddle strokes. If you don’t grip the paddle low, you can’t make fast, short and powerful strokes because the paddle is too long for your position.
Make short, fast and powerful strokes
Make sure each paddle stroke is short, fast and strong. This allows you to move forward as quickly as possible. Thanks to this technique you can also maintain a good pace so that you use less energy.
This paddle technique is also important when stand up paddling with a headwind. This keeps you moving forward instead of being pushed back with every gust of wind.
Paddle movement
When you quickly paddle straight ahead (this is also important at normal speeds) it is important that you put your paddle perpendicular into the water at the tip of the SUP (Stand Up Paddle) Board. When you have your paddle at the height of the front with the blade completely submerged, you pass the paddle from front to back along the SUP board. Remove the paddle from the water in front of your feet. During this paddle stroke it is important that the paddle from front to back really physically touches the paddle board with the shaft. Both the board and the paddle can withstand this, so don’t worry about damaging them. This way you go as straight as possible with the least resistance which is very important for your energy efficiency.
Paddle blade rotation
An extra trick among the professionals to paddle a little faster is to turn the paddle blade a quarter turn when you bring the paddle back to front after a paddle stroke. This way you have just a little less resistance when retrieving and cut the blade through the air. This way you can return your paddle to the front of the SUP as quickly as possible for the next paddle stroke.
Pivot turn
Racing / fast supping also involves making fast turns. The pivot turn is the best technique to make a turn as quickly as possible. A pivot turn is turning around your axle with the back of the board underwater and the point of the board in the air. This makes it the fastest way to turn your paddle board.
Make use of intervals
If you want to cover an x number of kilometers as quickly as possible, it is important to use intervals. Intervals are actually certain stretches in which you go paddleboarding quickly. You can compare it to running. When running you also first walk, then run, then walk again, etc. This is the same with stand up paddling. You first go paddling at normal speed to warm up. After this you go paddling quickly for an x number of times, then you go back to normal speed, then faster again after some time and so on until you have completed the trip.
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