SurfingSports Standup Paddle Surf & Standup Paddling BLOG

Welcome...we're stoked that you are here.

The first step in buying a standup paddle board (SUP) is choosing the right shop.
Standup Paddle Sports is the first fully dedicated SUP shop to open in North America, and we've sold thousands of SUP's since 2005. We have lots of experience getting folks set up with the right gear the first time...our customer testimonials bear witness to that.

Matter of fact, our parent company, SurfingSports, sold thousands of sailboards, surfboards, & skateboards before the Standup Paddle Sports storefront was even established.


It seems that there are dozens of solely internet based SUP "stores" opening up every month...trying to hawk boards to newbies that are cheap popouts.
Remember the old adage...you get what you pay for...

That's prolly why you're here reading this...;-)

Most of these fly by night after they come home from ther *real* job companies, don't even have a physical address, or even a telephone number in their contact info...let alone years of customer testimonials...
Check out their blog posts...if they even have one...we have over 300 blog posts going back to 2005...

They don't do demos...(next one this Sunday)...teach lessons...host races or community events, fund raisers, enviromental causes...etc...to them, it's all about selling the lowest common denominator...it's called "bottom feeding"...basically, barnacles on the backs of those of us spending lots of time , energy, and money helping to grow the sport in a healthy fashion...paying it forward to future generations...

*RANT ON*

We're REALLY kinda tired of reading our words and seeing our pictures (intellectual property) on their cheesy websites...you woudn't believe some of the rip-off artists taking credit for our ideas and innovations...total biz buzzkill...

*RANT OFF*

Back to basics...

Our retail store and warehouses are open every day 10 AM to 5 PM seven days / week...and our web folks deal with email pings 24/7...we have several toll free numbers...we're here for you...
We excel at customer service...it gives us a warm fuzzy knowing that our clients are STOKED!

We have 5 years of experience selling SUP's...not 5 weeks or 5 months, and have been ahead of the SUP curve the whole time since introducing to the world the first molded epoxy production SUP shaped by Sean Ordonez. That was before there was a standup paddling blog, ezine, magazine, standup forum, or standup paddleboard store.

We've shipped SUP's to all 50 states in the union and beyond...
We were also the first SUP shop to ship standup paddles to Norway, Sweden, Holland, Australia, New Zealand, Brazil, Germany, Italy, Chile, Argentina, Mexico...and, many other countries...

It's kinda crazy that it's already come this far...this fast...
But, it's really no wonder...standup paddling is a sport for the ages...

This is an article we wrote that was published in a local Santa Barbara magazine about standup...it's kind of surf centric...but, also is applicable to flatwater locales as well...

Undeniably fun!

There's no better way to describe the new "old sport" of standup paddlesurfing (or standup paddling if sans waves) to "never-evers", or SUP virgins...

George Greenough used to tell me, when we windsurfed together years ago, "whatever gets you in the water"...and, in Santa Barbara there's no better way to get out on the water and commune with nature, at least 300 days per year...basically, any time you have free time you can get a soul satisfying session or workout right in your backyard...doesn't that sound appealing especially after this flat as heck Winter, that's had even the most patient of surfers experiencing wave withdrawals? A saltwater lobotomy is just what the doctor ordered!
Definitely less expensive than psychological counseling...;-)

It also makes economic sense to do "staycations" at home, rather than burning jet fuel in search of the "Endless Summer"...one of the pleasant surprises with standup is that you can trunk it, sans wetsuit rubber, most days in Santa Barbara...even, all Winter long...

Standup paddling, even without the wave component, is very satisfying in a zen sort of way...giving you a surf-satisfied feeling that soothes the soul...washes away the stress of the day…the return of soul surfing...it harkens back to a simpler time...board and paddle...there's something almost prehistoric about it...

It doesn't take a whole lot of imagination in Santa Barbara to discover the nooks and crannies on a SUP that get overlooked daily by the masses on their way to the same old same old parking lot...

The waterman way ethos, that is rooted in Hawaiian culture, is available here right to us in the Santa Barbara area, just ready to tap into for the more adventurous souls...we explore our local watering holes in all of their moods...amazing, unconditional fun is there to be had, like low lying fruit, as we savor the views and experience sharing the ocean with marine life that is visually more apparent from a standup perspective...

The bottomline is that as surfers, we need to paddle...the legendary Tom Blake helped to bridge the surf lifestyle with paddleboarding back in the 1930's...standup paddling hits that note, and unlike sitdown kayaking, it also engages your balance as well...yoga on water...then, throw in the surf component and glide factor, and no wonder it's the fastest growing watersport on the planet...you can't help but notice the explosion of standup paddleboarding in Santa Barbara…it's become the mecca of the sport in North America…

As far as standup paddlesurfing with our laydown brethren is concerned, follow surf etiquette and don't come into the surfzone until you have the skill sets to control your new toy...if we all practice respect...give it and you will get it in return, then we should all be able to play nicely in the sandbox...remember, it's not what you ride...it's how you ride it!

The next time you have an opportunity to try a standup paddleboard, just do it!
You just may be surprised by how challenging, and fun, doing it standing up really is...

Word Up! (pics to return next blog post)

Labels: paddleboard warehouse, paddlesurf warehouse, Santa Barbara standup paddle sports, SUP store

Bill Foote (Maui) is in town...he'll be helping us unload a container of his awesome SUP's in a few days...including the highly anticipated new 9'10" x 29.5" wing swallow high performance wave ripper...it's clearing customs right now...

Jason and his family were in town for a weekend getaway...he is a firefighter who was deployed from LA on the last two Santa Barbara fires...we met them at our fav Italian family restaurant Petrinis...locals treated them to dinner to show appreciation for his (and all of the firepeoples) courageous efforts to save lives and properties...we invited him down to a demo we were doing and he took us up on it...standup paddling for the first time with his very cute (and precocious...;-) daughter, Allison...





Kenny K came down from the Central Coast to fill his king of all Sprinter Vans up with a couple of more SUP's...a Naish Glide and a Starboard 8'5" Pocket Rocket...here's Kenny's customized pad job...









We had the pleasure of hooking up Lori Ann David and her family with a couple of new Starboard SUP's...she is an amzing landscape designer and architect...organic farmer...drives a classic '54 GMC pickup truck...











Steve's '56 Chevy is pretty sweet as well...





Lots of folks riding and picking up our Imagine ECO SUP's lately...including a couple from Northern California who flew down in their plane to pick one up...
Here's a 10'6" in Brian's Jeep...and, Greg has his ECO stoke going as well...

Labels: paddleboard warehouse, paddleboards direct, Santa Barbara standup paddle sports, Standup Paddleboard store, SUP store

A few snapshots and customer testimonials from THE STOKE FACTORY...

Anna is stoked with her new Starboard 9' Fish...



Ready to roll with the inflatable HandiRack...



Meanwhile...Doug in New Jersey is scoring a new Hobie 10'2" Chuck Patterson Stinger wave ripper...Mango with yellow gold camo pad...SWEEEEET!!!







Here's mine...nice rocker and volume distribution...



Getting ready to install the yellow gold camo pad on a client's Starboard 10'5" Drive in Classic construction...



Same board with a blue pad installed for Philip from Ventura...



Ship 'em in...ship 'em out...seems like everyday is Christmas at the Standup Paddle Sports stoke factory...







Lots of people drop into our store to buy their paddleboard direct from our paddleboard warehouse...we have well over 100 of the best standup paddleboards in stock, and more on the way daily...

Labels: Hobie SUP, paddle boards direct, paddleboard warehouse, PADDLESURF SANTA BARBARA, Santa Barbara standup paddle sports, Starboard Standup Paddleboards, SUP

HAPPY EASTER!

Now that Spring is truly here, we've been shipping standup paddleboards and SUP paddles to all corners of the country...recent shipments went to Alaska, Minnesota, Washington, New Hampshire, New York, Virginia, Connecticut, Florida, Indiana, Texas, Puerto Rico, and New Jersey to name a few...our customer's testimonials say it better than we ever could...

Double boxed SUP's waiting for freight pick up from our shipping department...



Of course, we've had a number of travelers in town for Easter picking up boards and paddles as well...Sergio from Half Moon Bay will be enjoying his new SUP today before returning home to the SF Bay Area...

Santa Barbara locals Kevin and Jason, both brought home an Easter surprise to their families yesterday...;-)



Flatwater paddling beauty...





Man's best friend along for the ride...



The essence of standup paddling...F U N !!!







If you need any help with your SUP buying decision, we're here to help...
We have the most experienced SUP sales staff on the planet...
Flatwater cruising to paddle racing to all arounders...to wave rippers...and everything in between...

We are a REAL SUP SHOP...not just a cheesy ecommerce site with the same generic thumbnails of boards NOT in stock...VAPORWARE...trying to sell make believe...or, a surfboard, kayak, kiteboard, or windsurf shop with a few dusty clunkers in the back that they're trying to pawn off on a newbie...call or email us...you work too hard for your money to make a mistake...we'll help you navigate through the maze of cheap knockoff garbage that has infiltrated the SUP market like a computer virus...

NO WORRIES...WE ARE THE REAL DEALIO!!!

OUR CORE VALUES:
QUALITY...VALUE...SERVICE...EXPERIENCE...DEDICATION...INTEGRITY...

We bring SUP's in by the container...another one arriving this week...our inventory stays fresh...
A dedicated SUP store...with heaps of boards in our showroom, backed up by two warehouses fully stocked to satisfy EVERY discipline of the SUP paddler...


All of our SUP's have handles...







Shop GALLERY...

Labels: paddle boards direct, paddleboard warehouse, Santa Barbara standup paddle sports, standup paddle boards, SUP store