Most people would not buy a race board before getting cozy on a wider, shorter board first. As an experienced ocean outrigger paddler, my comfort level was high enough to bypass entry level boards. The price was right on this used board, which only had a couple of dings I had to repair. Compared to my outrigger canoe, the NSP Sonic looks really wide, but I am in a sitting position with a low center of gravity in the canoe. Shifting that weight upwards was going to be a challenge. This is how we met that challenge: my stand up coach stood at the back of the board and basically used his hands to steady me. He told me to get into a crouched position and start paddling. So, he walked behind me, and after a minute he told me to come up on one foot and (KEY PART HERE) WHILE TAKING A STROKE come up on the other foot into a standing position. Just like that, I was standing. Let’s cover this again: crouch on your knees, come up on one foot, stick blade in water, stroke, come up to standing position with the other foot.
Aha! A brace stroke! What is a brace stroke you ask? There are variations on it, but basically when you see a paddle board surfer leaning on a wave, on the paddle, they are bracing the paddle. When you see someone flying the ama on an outrigger, they are bracing the paddle. And I am lucky that Oscar Chalupsky taught me the brace stroke for surfski, which is the most important one: the one that keeps you from rolling over. In this case, standing up on a paddle board, the board is more stable because you have the paddle blade planted in the water, momentarily “locking” you into a stable position just like a rudder does, while you mess with gravity.
The fellow continued to hold the rear of the board while I stood and paddled (my legs shaking like mad), and I really have no idea when he let go. So, try this with a friend or family member, and make sure they don’t tell you when you’re on your own. The psychology of BELIEVING someone was stabilizing me, even if they were not, meant my brain could not tell the difference between him being there and when he let go. In fact he made it a point to let me know he would not tell me when he was not holding the board. So, I got my first “downwind” paddle on the Sonic my first day out. And in all subsequent paddles, I did not fall off.
Back to leashes. What happens when I do fall? It is more dramatic than a fall off an outrigger or surfki, where you mostly just roll into the water. Your bouyancy is such that you usually don’t go under. Not a lot of countering forces here. But a plunge? You really don’t want to smack the board, with hands, legs, head… And when you do leap sideways, you will submerge further, which means there will be more stress on the leash.
