How to Stand Up Paddle Board information Part 6

19 May, 2013

Common mistakes and falling

When You Fall

Stand up paddleboarding is a relatively easy sport to learn, but you can expect to take the occasional fall as you're gaining skills. How to stand up in paddleboard is a big question here. For those inevitable times you lose your balance:

• So that you fall into the water and not onto the board, aim yourself to the side. Avoid falling onto the board as it’s more likely to cause an injury.
• If you get separated from your paddle and your board, get to your board first, then hand paddle it to retrieve the paddle.

Common Beginner's Mistakes in Paddleboarding

When you’re starting out, these mistakes are easy to make.  Try to avoid them and you'll have a lot more fun on the water:

Do’s	Don’ts
Keep your back straight, shoulders level	Don’t have a hunched posture
Look at the horizon	Don’t stare at your feet
Have the elbow of the paddle pointing away from you	Don’t have the paddle facing in the wrong direction (elbow backwards)
Have your top hand at the very top of the paddle, on the grip	Don’t have both hands on the paddle shaft
Balance with bent knees	Don’t stand straight-kneed

Paddleboarding: Next Steps

The watery worlds you can explore on your stand up paddleboard are endless and there’s no limit once you've mastered the basics. Learn new strokes, carve turns or play in the waves and ocean surf.  As you advance you may find yourself wanting a narrower, more manoeuvrable board.

In the meantime, get out there, enjoy the view and have a great time on your SUP! anyway how about some surf lessons South Australia