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out &aabout
Samantha Black, front left, along with Katie Devitt,
center, and Kelly Berrall, right, listen to instructor John
Sloan give tips on stand up paddleboarding.
stand up paddleboarding has exploded
in the last seven years, due in large part
to YouTube and videos posted there.
A paddleboarder stands on a long
board and powers it with a long oar.
Most paddleboards stand 10 feet to 12
feet tall and are wider than surfboards.
The extra width helps stability; however,
since a longer board glides faster, stand
up race boards are 12 feet 6 inches to
14 feet.
Sloan, a certified stand up paddle-
board teacher, said he still recalls his
first time on a paddleboard six years ago.
“Standing on water is a new sensation,”
he said. “ [It offered] a total sensory over
load.”
One recent Thursday, he showed
members of a class how to mount and
dismount a paddleboard, and how to
stand after paddling a short distance.
Kneeling is the position recommend
ed if you get tired or hit rough water,
he said. Although most of the people
attending the demonstration appeared
a bit shaky at first, everyone eventually
was able to stand up on a board.
When asked why paddlers stand,
Sloan replied, “It’s just fun!”
“You might go faster on your knees
or sitting,” he said, “but standing and
looking down in the water is much more
fun. Plus, it’s a better workout.”
Rudy Evenson, information officer
with the Chattahoochee recreation area,
said paddleboarding is no more danger
ous than rafting.
Still, he said, a paddleboard is consid
ered a vessel under Georgia law, so pad
dlers must adhere to the same rules as
boaters. Every paddler must have a per
sonal floatation device with him or her.
And paddlers, like other river sports
fans, should avoid excessive use of al
cohol, he said. “Alcohol use on the riv
er is the biggest danger with any wa
ter sport,” he said. “But I don’t think it
would be easy to drink while standing
up and paddling with both hands.”
First-timer Katie Devitt, a runner
who also enjoys yoga and rock climbing,
was the first to mount a board. By the
end of the evening, she was hooked on
the sport.
“It was so relaxing, something great
for unwinding after work,” she said.
Paddleboarding on the Chattahoochee River
Classes: High County Outfitters offers public classes on stand up
paddleboarding on Thursdays through August, weather permitting.
Classes start at 6:30 p.m., at Morgan Falls Overlook Park, 200 Morgan
Falls Road, Sandy Springs, 30350. Additional sessions may be scheduled
during September. See Facebook for last-minute schedule changes:
www.facebook.com/HighCountryOutfitters. Classes cost $25.
Urban Currents offers an introduction to stand up paddleboarding
at 9 a.m., noon, 3 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sundays
during non-holiday weekends at the Power Island Unit of the
Chattahoochee River National Recreation Area, 5820 Interstate
North Parkway, Sandy Springs, 30328. Sessions cost $92.
Chattahoochee Outfitters offers classes Tuesdays at 10:30
a.m. and Saturdays at 10:30 a.m., and noon through end
of September, and perhaps longer. Classes are held at
Azalea Park, 203 Azalea Drive, 30075. Cost is $30.
Contacts: High Country Outfitters, www.highcountryoutfitters.
com; Urban Currents, urbancurrents.org; Chattahoochee
Outfitters, www.shootthehooch.com..
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www.ReporterNewspapers.net | AUG.9—AUG. 22, 2013 | 11
