CHARLIE DON'T SUP SURF !!!

OK Charlie, Bob, Joe, Jim, Billybob or whatever your name might be, it's time for my every 6 months spew on the do's and don'ts of standup paddle surfing at the local SB surf breaks. Why do I care? Because I have been surfing off and on my whole life, my dad surfs and my dad's dad surfed. So that makes me a third generation surfer who knows the rules and has respect for the rules while in the water. My grandfather pounded it into my dad's head and my dad schooled me on the rules when he taught me to surf at the age of 10 down in San Clemente. Now that the Standup Paddle craze has hit the waters a whole new breed of surfers have arrived. Most not really coming from a surfing background therefore not knowing about the surf lineup and the angry dudes that lurk in the waters ready to rip the head off the next kook on a 12' SUP board that cuts him off. I have been involved in SUP for many years now and the issues with the boards seem to come and go. The SUP craze is still growing and more and more people are getting on the water and paddling. Just like any issue the key to making everyone happy is education. I spend many hours a day talking about paddle surfing with people that are good at it and people that want to get into it that have never surfed. Now that we have our SUP store in town and it is quickly becoming the go to shop for expert advice on SUP, I am spreading the word and educating everyone I can about surfing and not pissing people off in the water. I won't let anyone walk out the door with a SUP board that has never done it without a speech on staying out of the surf until you learn how to handle the big board. Then there are the good guys that hog all the waves. Well, all I can say about these guys is that they need to be dealt with on an individual bases. Most likely these guys were wave hogs when they prone surfed or they just have that kind of personality where they don't think of others. I encourage every SUP surfer in the water to police each other and if you see a guy or gal on a SUP board being a wave hog or even worse putting others in danger due to his or her lack of skill and surf knowledge, please call this person on it. This will help us all in the long run. Now go grab your board and have some fun!!! Respect......................