ABOUT Project WSUP

Project WSUP (pronounced "dub-sup") is a series of posts on practical skills, tricks, and strategies for Whitewater SUP. Here's the link.

This "sport" with barely 10 years of serious attention by pioneers like Corran Addison and Dan Gavere is still in it's infancy. Our imaginations are only beginning to grasp what might be possible on standup paddleboards in whitewater and what the WSUPs of the future might look like.

As I meet more Whitewater SUP paddlers I am struck by the variety of styles developing based on the type of board they are paddling and their prior whitewater experience ... or lack thereof. For instance, I came to WSUP from whitewater canoeing and the Jackson SUPerCharger was my only board for the first 4 years of my practice. The 60lb mass of that board was perfect for becoming stable, learning to move my weight around, and then for learning to work the rails on river features. It was about the same weight as a loaded open canoe and so I approached that board as I would a canoe. In fact, thanks to the design and construction of the SUPerCharger I saw it not as a "stand up paddle BOARD" but as a "stand up paddle "BOAT." It was that shift in perspective that encouraged me to get comfortable exploring all of the ways I could change the shape of the hull on the water by focusing my weight in different places on the deck and rails. Without that foundation I'm not sure I'd be dancing around the decks of inflatable SUPs the way I do now. Barry Kennon, a true pioneer of whitewater SUP, has another unique style informed by his background in C1 whitewater slalom and freestyle. Cohen Atkins brings a hyper-nimble aerial style informed by his home river, the US National Whitewater Center in Charlotte, NC.

The Project WSUP Blog (and supporting YouTube playlist) is my contribution to the growing compendium of knowledge for this challenging and ridiculous sport. I keep in mind that some (or much?) of what I present as "truth" today as far as technique and principles may turn out to be misguided or just plain wrong as the sport gains in knowledge and practice.

But you gotta start somewhere.



If you have ideas for topics, would like to contribute, or would like to share your own WWSUP blog, please please PLEASE let me know!

In addition to my own lessons I highly recommend learning from different instructors! Here's a playlist of some of the better SUP tutorials and instruction that I keep for reference...